spaceflight

noun

space·​flight ˈspās-ˌflīt How to pronounce spaceflight (audio)
: flight beyond the earth's atmosphere

Example Sentences

a history of human spaceflight
Recent Examples on the Web This is in part because Artemis 2 needs to test new technology that has never been used during spaceflight, according to Space.com’s Brett Tingley. Will Sullivan, Smithsonian Magazine, 3 Apr. 2023 He will be joined by NASA astronaut Victor Glover, who will act as pilot, NASA astronaut and mission specialist Christina Koch and Canadian astronaut and mission specialist Jeremy Hansen. Wiseman, Koch and Glover each have one spaceflight under their belts while Hansen is the lone rookie. Richard Tribou, Anchorage Daily News, 3 Apr. 2023 Glover is a 46-year-old naval aviator who returned to Earth from his first spaceflight in 2021 after piloting the second crewed flight of SpaceX’s Crew Dragon spacecraft and spending nearly six months aboard the International Space Station. Jackie Wattles, CNN, 3 Apr. 2023 This will be his second trip into space, having previously taken a 165-day spaceflight to the International Space Station. Ariana Garcia, Chron, 3 Apr. 2023 Still, Relativity proved that its technology could survive at least the initial punishing rigors of spaceflight, offering a bit of hope amid a bad run for the start-up rocket business. Christian Davenport, Washington Post, 23 Mar. 2023 There’s a lot of discussions of capitalism in space right now because of this growing private spaceflight industry. Ramin Skibba, WIRED, 3 Mar. 2023 Nuclear thermal propulsion has long been a goal of spaceflight advocates, dating back to the days of German rocket scientist Wernher von Braun and NASA's Project NERVA. Eric Berger, Ars Technica, 25 Jan. 2023 More than three decades later, spaceflight is not yet available to everyone, not even close. Marina Koren, The Atlantic, 10 Dec. 2022 See More

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'spaceflight.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1931, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of spaceflight was in 1931

Dictionary Entries Near spaceflight

Cite this Entry

“Spaceflight.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/spaceflight. Accessed 8 Jun. 2023.

Kids Definition

spaceflight

noun
space·​flight ˈspās-ˌflīt How to pronounce spaceflight (audio)
: flight beyond the earth's atmosphere

More from Merriam-Webster on spaceflight

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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