Irene Klotz is Senior Space Editor for Aviation Week, based in Cape Canaveral. Before joining Aviation Week in 2017, Irene spent 25 years as a wire service reporter covering human and robotic spaceflight, commercial space, astronomy, science and technology for Reuters and United Press International. She also worked with Discovery Communications, Discovery News and was a founding member of Space.com.
Irene cut her teeth on the space beat at Florida Today newspaper, a business writer enchanted by the colorful entrepreneurs who wanted access to Air Force launch facilities and assets after commercial payloads were taken off the space shuttles following the 1986 Challenger accident. Commercial space remains the focus of her work, along with a keen interest in the search for life beyond Earth.
A graduate of Northwestern University, Irene is the 2014 recipient of the Harry Kolcum Memorial News and Communications Award, named in honor of the late Aviation Week managing editor and Cape Canaveral senior editor who was among Irene’s earliest mentors.
The financial impacts of COVID-19-related work delays have resulted in a one-year postponement in the launch of the Dragonfly astrobiology mission to Saturn’s intriguing moon Titan.
The U.S. Space Force’s Space and Missile Systems Center (SMC) will launch a pair of upcoming GPS-III satellites on previously flown Falcon 9 rockets, saving taxpayers nearly $53 million and setting the stage for future reuse missions under SpaceX’s Phase 2 National Security Space Launch contract.
