Space news

On 17 December, two Galileo satellites will be launched on an Ariane 6 rocket from Europe’s Spaceport in French Guiana in the 14th launch of operational satellites for the Galileo programme. This will be Galileo’s first launch on Ariane 6 and the fifth launch of Europe’s heavy-lift launcher.

From the ESA Blogs.

China launched new Guowang satellite internet payloads Dec. 11 as preparations advanced for a Long March 12A orbital launch and first stage landing attempt. The post China launches new Guowang satellites, Long March 12A launch and landing attempt date set appeared first on SpaceNews.

Italian rocket builder Avio has announced that it has selected the state of Virginia to build its planned US-based production facility. The $500 million project forms part of the company’s expansion of its defence business. Avio founded its wholly owned US subsidiary, Avio USA, in 2022 to capitalise on a market opportunity created by constrained […] The post Avio Selects Virginia for New $500 Million US-Based Production Facility appeared first on European Spaceflight.

A potent atmospheric river delivered intense rainfall to western Washington, triggering flooding and mudslides.

The head of NASA’s astrophysics division offered an upbeat assessment of upcoming missions, a stark contrast to the bleak outlook in the agency’s budget proposal six months ago. The post NASA astrophysics director offers optimistic vision despite budget uncertainty appeared first on SpaceNews.

Gen. Chance Saltzman unveils a taxonomy linking system names to mission areas, echoing legacy traditions across the military The post Space Force rolls out new naming scheme for satellites and space weapons appeared first on SpaceNews.

After the arrival of the MS-28 spacecraft on Nov. 27, all eight docking ports on… The post All eight ISS docking ports occupied for the first time, Expedition 74 begins appeared first on NASASpaceFlight.com.

Troy Meink says Beijing is innovating, not merely reverse-engineering U.S. systems The post U.S. Air Force Secretary warns China’s space gains are driven by more than copying appeared first on SpaceNews.

Paris, France [December 11, 2025] – Released today, Novaspace’s latest FSS Operators: Benchmarks & Performance Review unveils a year of transformation for satellite operators. 2025 is redefining the rules of […] The post 2025: The Turning Point for Satellite Operators appeared first on SpaceNews.

NASA has selected one small explorer mission concept to advance toward flight design and another for an extended period of concept development. NASA’s Science Mission Directorate Science Management Council selected CINEMA (Cross-scale Investigation of Earth’s Magnetotail and Aurora) to enter Phase B of development, which includes planning and design for flight and mission operations. The […]

Other space companies are likely to move toward the public markets now that Elon Musk is openly signaling plans to pursue a SpaceX IPO next year, hoping to ride the wave of momentum behind a potentially record-breaking listing. The post SpaceX IPO plan sets stage for a surge of other space listings appeared first on SpaceNews.

Picture this: You’re just about done with a transoceanic flight, and the tracker in your seat-back screen shows you approaching your destination airport. And then … you notice your plane is moving away. Pretty far away. You approach again and again, only to realize you’re on a long, circling loop that can last an hour […]

Most smaller galaxies may not have supermassive black holes in their centers, according to a recent  study using NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory. This contrasts with the common idea that nearly every galaxy has one of these giant black holes within their cores, as NASA leads the world in exploring how our universe works. A team […]

Torrance, California-based K2 was founded in 2022 to build large satellites with more onboard power and volume. The post K2 Space raises $250 million to scale high-power satellite line appeared first on SpaceNews.

Images captured by NASA’s Parker Solar Probe as the spacecraft made its record-breaking closest approach to the Sun in December 2024 have now revealed new details about how solar magnetic fields responsible for space weather escape from the Sun — and how sometimes they don’t. Like a toddler, our Sun occasionally has disruptive outbursts. But […]

NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope captured a blowtorch of seething gasses erupting from a volcanically growing monster star in this image released on Sept. 10, 2025. Stellar jets, which are powered by the gravitational energy released as a star grows in mass, encode the formation history of the protostar. This image provides evidence that protostellar jets […]

Stem cells, materials research, and a technology demo topped the research schedule for the Expedition 74 crew on Thursday. The seven International Space Station residents also worked on a host of lab maintenance including Japanese cargo operations and preparations for upcoming rack transfers.

The award is for Phase 2 of DARPA’s Oversight program. The post BAE Systems wins $16 million DARPA award to advance autonomous satellite tasking appeared first on SpaceNews.

Researchers using NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope have detected the strongest evidence yet for an atmosphere on a rocky planet outside our solar system, as NASA leads the world in exploring the universe from the Moon to Mars and beyond. Observations of the ultra-hot super-Earth TOI-561 b suggest that the exoplanet is surrounded by a […]

In this episode of Space Minds, host Mike Gruss sits down with Matt Magaña, President of Space, Defense & National Security at Voyager Technologies, to explore one of the most consequential national security space stories of 2025: Golden Dome. The post Building the future of space defense appeared first on SpaceNews.

The Exploration Company is developing a spacecraft designed to dock with and refuel satellites in orbit as part of the European Space Agency’s (ESA) In-Space Proof-of-Concepts (InSPoC) initiative. Founded in 2021, The Exploration Company is primarily developing a modular capsule called Nyx, which will be capable of delivering cargo and, later, crew to and from […] The post The Exploration Company is Developing an In-Orbit Serving Vehicle appeared first on European Spaceflight.

For years, both the Trump Administration and Congress have clearly stated that returning Americans to the moon before China in the 2028-2030 timeframe is a national priority. It is central to United States leadership in space, to global influence and to the future of human exploration.  Yet across the space community, a sobering recognition has […] The post The U.S. race to the moon: Why Plan B cannot wait appeared first on SpaceNews.

December 8, 2025 LENEXA, KS – Enduralock is pleased to announce the successful completion of form, fit, and function testing for its OneLink™ satellite docking connector in Arkisys’ 1G robotic […] The post Enduralock Validates OneLink™ Prototype in Zero-G Simulation appeared first on SpaceNews.

ESA’s Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer (Juice) is on an epic eight-year journey to Jupiter. It left Earth in April 2023 and is due to arrive at the gas giant in 2031.

The search for past or present life should be the top science objective of future human missions to Mars, a new National Academies report concludes. The post Report identifies science objectives of human Mars exploration appeared first on SpaceNews.

The European Space Agency’s Swarm mission detected a large but temporary spike of high-energy protons at Earth’s poles during a geomagnetic storm in November. It did this not with the scientific instruments for measuring Earth’s magnetic field, but with its ‘star tracker’ positioning instruments – a first for the Swarm mission.

Air travellers will shrink their carbon footprint while reducing flight delays worldwide, thanks to a collaboration between the European Space Agency (ESA), satellite operator Viasat and aerospace company Boeing. Flights to test the space-based technology with new aviation standards from and to the USA and Europe took place in late October and early November.

London, UK (SPX) Dec 11, 2025 Discover how five innovative bookmakers are reshaping Ireland's betting industry through technology, transparency, and player-first design. A news-style deep dive into Ireland's evolving betting landscape.

Tokyo, Japan (SPX) Dec 11, 2025 CAS Space has carried out the 11th launch of its Kinetica 1 solid-fuel carrier rocket, orbiting nine satellites from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in the Gobi Desert of northwestern China. The rocket lifted off at 12:03 pm local time and delivered all payloads into their planned orbits. The manifest included six Chinese multifunctional satellites, along with one satellite each for the Unit

Tokyo, Japan (SPX) Dec 11, 2025 The 2025 International Symposium on the Peaceful Use of Space Technology - Health (IPSPACE 2025) opened Tuesday in Boao, a coastal town in China's Hainan province, with a focus on expanding cooperation in space activities and applying space-based capabilities to the health sector. Organizers brought together about 50 experts and astronauts from China and other countries for the three-day

Tokyo, Japan (SPX) Dec 11, 2025 China Aerospace Science and Technology Corp (CASC) has achieved three orbital launches with Long March rockets in a single day, setting a new mark for the country's spaceflight cadence. The first mission lifted off at 6:11 am from the Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center in Shanxi province, where a Long March 6A deployed a batch of internet satellites into orbit. Built by the China Academ

Tokyo, Japan (SPX) Dec 11, 2025 Qingzhou, or light vessel, China's new-generation cargo spacecraft, has achieved breakthroughs in multiple key technologies and is scheduled to make its maiden flight next year, according to its developer, the Chinese Academy of Sciences' Innovation Academy for Microsatellites. Designed with a focus on low cost, high reliability, high adaptability and high intelligence, the compact spacecr

Los Angeles CA (SPX) Dec 11, 2025 Overview Energy has revealed an airborne power-beaming demonstration that transmitted energy from a moving aircraft to a ground receiver 5 kilometers below, marking its second major step toward delivering grid-scale solar power from space. The test used the same optics and laser chain planned for space operations and showed that the system can send power via near-infrared light from an air

Berlin, Germany (SPX) Dec 11, 2025 Scientists have recorded solar neutrinos changing carbon-13 into nitrogen-13 inside the SNO+ detector in Canada, marking the first observation of this specific interaction between neutrinos and carbon nuclei. Neutrinos, sometimes called ghost particles, rarely interact with matter even though trillions pass through every person each second, and they are produced in nuclear reactions such a

Los Angeles CA (SPX) Dec 11, 2025 Last year a UCLA-led team achieved a long-sought goal in nuclear spectroscopy by making radioactive thorium-229 nuclei absorb and emit photons in a controlled way, a capability scientists had pursued for about 50 years. That work, first proposed by the group in 2008, opened the door to nuclear clocks with very high precision that could influence navigation and tests of fundamental physics.

Berlin, Germany (SPX) Dec 11, 2025 Astronomers have reported the first clear observation of a swirling distortion in spacetime produced by a rapidly spinning black hole, seen through the motion of material left over from a disrupted star. The team, led by researchers at the National Astronomical Observatories of the Chinese Academy of Sciences with support from Cardiff University, studied AT2020afhd, a tidal disruption even

Zurich, Switzerland (SPX) Dec 11, 2025 The Solar System is often divided into four inner rocky planets, two gas giants, and two ice giants thought to be dominated by water and other volatiles, but new work from the University of Zurich suggests Uranus and Neptune may contain much more rock than assumed so far. The study indicates that these distant planets can be consistent with interior structures that are either ice rich or rock ri

Pasadena CA (JPL) Dec 11, 2025 The center leverages AI along with JPL's unique infrastructure, unrivaled tools, and years of operations expertise to support industry partners developing future planetary surface missions. NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California on Wednesday inaugurated its Rover Operations Center (ROC), a center of excellence for current and future surface missions to the Moon and Mars. D

Los Angeles CA (SPX) Dec 11, 2025 SAN ANTONIO - Southwest Research Institute (SwRI) scientists working with researchers at UT San Antonio have analyzed Apollo lunar soil samples to determine how space weathering alters the Moon's surface and affects its far-ultraviolet (FUV) reflectance. The team examined how exposure to solar wind and micrometeoroid impacts over long periods changes the FUV spectral response of lunar grains, us

Madrid, Spain (SPX) Dec 11, 2025 Much remains to be known about the chemical composition of small asteroids. Their potential to harbour valuable metals, materials from the early solar system, and the possibility of obtaining a geochemical record of their parent bodies makes them promising candidates for future use of space resources. A team led by the Institute of Space Sciences (ICE-CSIC) has analyzed samples of C-type asteroi

The right combination of conditions allowed this distinctive low cloud to form in California’s Central Valley for weeks.

Blue Origin’s rocket factory in Florida’s Exploration Park is undergoing rapid transformation as the company… The post Blue Origin’s Cape Campus continues to expand ahead of New Glenn ramp-up appeared first on NASASpaceFlight.com.

The findings come from a report by the Consortium for Space Mobility and ISAM Capabilities, or COSMIC The post GEO satellite refueling a priority for national security, commercial markets, new analysis finds appeared first on SpaceNews.

The Starlink 6-90 mission will launch on a Falcon 9 rocket flying a south-easterly trajectory after leaving from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. Liftoff from pad 40 is scheduled for 3:26 p.m. EST (2026 UTC).

The center leverages AI along with JPL’s unique infrastructure, unrivaled tools, and years of operations expertise to support industry partners developing future planetary surface missions.   NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California on Wednesday inaugurated its Rover Operations Center (ROC), a center of excellence for current and future surface missions to the Moon and Mars. […]

Two Shenzhou-21 taikonauts conducted a spacewalk yesterday that included inspecting the damaged window on Shenzhou-20 that remains docked to the Tiangong space station. Last month the Shenzhou-20 crew had to […]

Lt. Gen. Phil Garrant, head of the Space Systems Command, said Five Eyes partners would likely have access to this technology The post L3Harris satellite-jamming system approved for export to close U.S. allies appeared first on SpaceNews.

Expedition 73 has ended and NASA astronaut Jonny Kim has returned to Houston and Roscosmos cosmonauts Sergey Ryzhikov and Alexey Zubritsky have returned to Moscow. Expedition 74 is now underway with veteran NASA astronaut Mike Fincke as commander.

The Global Learning and Observations to Benefit the Environment (GLOBE) Program has launched a new feature that connects citizen scientists directly to Landsat observations.