Part 3/6:
As the month progressed, more launches followed suit. The long-awaited launch of a Falcon 9 on January 15th included not one, but two lunar landers from commercial partners. This marked a milestone for private space exploration, with Firefly's Blue Ghost and iSpace's Hakuto-R targeting the Moon.
Notable Missions and Innovations
On January 16th, New Glenn made its debut, but not without challenges, including a failed landing of its booster. Further, SpaceX's Starship faced its trials during the January 17th launch, where it suffered engine failure shortly after takeoff, resulting in debris over the Caribbean while the booster successfully returned to a landing platform.