Space news

Microorganisms and Spaceflight Spaceflight poses a risk of adverse health effects due to the interactions between microorganisms, their hosts, and their environment. The JSC Microbiology team addresses the benefits and risks related to microorganisms, including infectious disease, allergens, environmental and food contamination, and the impacts of changes in environmental and human microbial ecology aboard spacecraft. […]

Does Spaceflight Alter the Human Immune System? Getting sick on Earth is nothing to sneeze at, but for astronauts on deep space exploration missions, the risk for contracting diseases may be elevated due to altered immunity. The Human Health and Performance Directorate’s Immunology/Virology Laboratory is ideally suited to study the effects of spaceflight on the […]

The JSC toxicologists establish guidelines for safe and acceptable levels of individual chemical contaminants in spacecraft air (SMACs) and drinking water (SWEGs) in collaboration with the National Research Council’s Committee on Toxicology (NRC COT) and through peer-reviewed publication.  The framework for establishing these levels is documented for SMACs and SWEGs, and recent refinements to the Methods reflect current risk assessment […]

In 2025, the Harmonized Landsat and Sentinel-2 (HLS) program established itself as a cornerstone for global medium-resolution optical Earth observation and became one of NASA’s most downloaded products.

In this episode of Space Minds, host Sandra Erwin sits down with former NASA astronaut and Space Force leader Brig. Gen. Nick Hague for a wide-ranging conversation on how the U.S. Space Force is shaping its culture, training Guardians, and preparing for future conflict in space. The post How the Space Force trains Guardians for the future of warfare appeared first on SpaceNews.

Scientists using NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope have observed a rare type of exoplanet, or planet outside our solar system, whose atmospheric composition challenges our understanding of how it formed.  Officially named PSR J2322-2650b, this Jupiter-mass object appears to have an exotic helium-and-carbon-dominated atmosphere unlike any ever seen before. Soot clouds likely float through the […]

The NASA ORBIT (Opportunities in Research, Business, Innovation, and Technology for the Workforce) Challenge is a multi-phase, student-focused challenge designed to inspire and empower the next generation of innovators, engineers, entrepreneurs, and researchers. Compete for cash prizes, receive mentorship from NASA experts, and present your work at an in-person showcase. Finalists gain access to an […]

All 10 instruments aboard NASA’s newly launched IMAP (Interstellar Mapping and Acceleration Probe) mission have successfully recorded their first measurements in space. With these “first light” observations, the spacecraft is now collecting preliminary science data as it journeys to its observational post at Lagrange point 1 (L1), about 1 million miles from Earth toward the […]

NASA’s Carruthers Geocorona Observatory has captured its first images from space, revealing rare views of Earth and the Moon in ultraviolet light. Taken on Nov. 17 — still months before the mission’s science phase begins — these “first light” images confirm the spacecraft is healthy while hinting at the incredible views to come. The initial […]

Copernicus Sentinel-6B, launched last month, has reached its orbit and delivered its first set of data, which show variations in sea level in the North Atlantic Ocean. This data underlines how the mission will continue to strengthen the long-term reference record of sea levels, a key parameter of climate change.

The Trump administration’s new national security strategy has rightly drawn criticism for presuming to tell our European allies how to arrange their domestic affairs. Equally as baffling is its near silence on a genuine United States national security concern — bolstering our offensive and defensive capabilities in space. Amid much MAGA trollery that blames Europe […] The post Trump’s national security strategy ignores space appeared first on SpaceNews.

Launched in November, Sentinel-6B will track ocean height with ultraprecision to advance marine forecasting, national security, and more. Sentinel-6B, a joint mission by NASA and its U.S. and European partners to survey 90% of the world’s oceans for the benefit of communities and commerce, has started sending back its first measurements since launching in November. […]

Firms aim to link air and ground platforms using visual positioning technology The post Vantor partners with Niantic Spatial on GPS-free navigation for defense market appeared first on SpaceNews.

SAN FRANCISCO – EraDrive, a Stanford University spinoff developing software and hardware for satellite autonomy, raised $5.3 million in an oversubscribed seed round, the startup announced Dec. 16. “EraDrive is very much about this idea of the self-driving spacecraft,” Justin Kruger, EraDrive chief technology officer and co-founder, told SpaceNews. EraDrive is developing a software-hardware module […] The post EraDrive raises $5.3 million for software-hardware kits to enhance satellite autonomy appeared first on SpaceNews.

A reported close approach between a Starlink satellite and a recently launched Chinese spacecraft highlights the challenges of coordinating spacecraft operations and verifying potential close calls in orbit. The post SpaceX claims close approach to Starlink satellite by payload from Chinese launch appeared first on SpaceNews.

China conducted a pair of launches in recent days, sending a commercial cargo spacecraft and tech demo into orbit, followed by a remote sensing satellite. The post China launches experimental cargo spacecraft, opaque tech demo mission and remote sensing satellite appeared first on SpaceNews.

Los Angeles CA (SPX) Dec 11, 2025 The U.S. Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) has awarded BAE Systems' FAST Labs research, development, and production organization a $16 million Phase 2 contract under the Oversight program, which is developing an autonomous space-based system to maintain continuous custody of many terrestrial assets using new satellite constellations. The Phase 2 award follows completion of

New York (AFP) Dec 11, 2025 Elon Musk has signaled plans to soon seek a public stock listing of SpaceX, confirming a report that links the strategic shift to a near-term need for more capital. Musk, who is also the CEO of Tesla among other ventures, described as "accurate" a report in online publication Ars Technica outlining the controversial billionaire's embrace of a public listing as a way to access capital to fina

Mahia, New Zealand (SPX) Dec 16, 2025 Rocket Lab Corporation has carried out its first dedicated launch for the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), advancing the role of the Electron small launch vehicle in Japan's satellite technology demonstration program. The mission marks a new step in collaboration between Rocket Lab and JAXA in support of Japan's growing space activities. The flight, named RAISE And Shine, lifted

Sydney, Australia (SPX) Dec 16, 2025 Southern Launch has signed a contract with South Korean launch service provider INNOSPACE to conduct space missions from the Whalers Way Orbital Launch Complex and the Koonibba Test Range in South Australia. The agreement allows INNOSPACE to undertake a range of missions from Southern Launch sites, including orbital satellite launches and suborbital technology demonstration flights.

Tucson AZ (SPX) Dec 16, 2025 Gemini North has obtained new color images of Comet 3I/ATLAS after the interstellar object emerged from behind the Sun on its outbound trajectory from the Solar System. Using the Gemini Multi-Object Spectrograph (GMOS) on the Gemini North telescope at Maunakea in Hawaii, scientists observed the comet on 26 November 2025 to study how it has evolved since perihelion. The observations were co

Tokyo, Japan (SPX) Dec 16, 2025 Researchers in China have used a Mars general circulation model to simulate 50 years of Martian dust activity, aiming to improve forecasts of global dust storms that can disrupt exploration missions. Mars is dominated by a dry, dusty desert landscape where winds and rotating columns of air lift fine particles into the atmosphere and later return them to the surface. The resulting dust cycl

Atlanta GA (SPX) Dec 16, 2025 When NASA scientists opened the sample return canister from the OSIRIS-REx asteroid sample mission in late 2023, they found something astonishing. Dust and rock collected from the asteroid Bennu contained many of life's building blocks, including all five nucleobases used in DNA and RNA, 14 of the 20 amino acids found in proteins, and a rich collection of other organic molecules

New analysis suggests that problems with NASA’s MAVEN Mars orbiter may be more serious than a simple communications glitch. The post MAVEN telemetry shows changes to spacecraft orbit and rotation appeared first on SpaceNews.

SpaceX continues rapid infrastructure improvements at its Starbase facility in South Texas, with demolition work… The post SpaceX advances Starbase upgrades at the launch site appeared first on NASASpaceFlight.com.

French engineering group Technip Energies (T.EN) is in the process of completing Factory Acceptance Tests for a robot that will be used to connect and disconnect umbilicals from the Callisto reusable rocket demonstrator before and after liftoff. Callisto is being jointly developed by CNES, DLR, and JAXA to mature key technologies for future reusable launch […] The post Callisto Ground Support Robot Ready for Shipment appeared first on European Spaceflight.

A weak La Niña emerged in the equatorial Pacific in late 2025, and scientists are watching how it may help shape weather and climate in the months ahead.

The ‘Bridging the Swarm’ mission comes two days after the company launched its ‘RAISE and Shine’ flight for JAXA. Liftoff is scheduled for 1:55 p.m. NZDT / 0055 UTC on Dec. 16 (7:45 p.m. EST on Dec. 15).

Senior leaders emphasize internal expertise and hands-on experimentation The post Space Force uses AI challenge to push everyday use of artificial intelligence appeared first on SpaceNews.

Notice ID: M2M-MSFC-0001 NAICS Codes: NASA seeks industry-led architecture concept development, concept refinement studies, and risk-reduction activities that address Moon to Mars Architecture gaps through the Next Space Technologies for Exploration Partnerships-3 (NextSTEP-3). NASA plans to release this solicitation — NextSTEP-3 Appendix B: Moon to Mars Architectural Studies — near the beginning of calendar year […]

Expedition 74 kicked off the week exploring robotics, physics, and heart health aboard the International Space Station. The orbital residents also continued packing a Japanese cargo craft while servicing and inspecting lab hardware.

Low Earth orbit is undergoing the fastest expansion in its history. However, the nature of the payload is changing. We are moving past simple “bent-pipe” communication relays — where a satellite simply receives a signal and beams it back to Earth without processing it. With initiatives like StarCloud deploying and training a large language model […] The post Beyond the ground station: Why space data centers require a distributed RAID appeared first on SpaceNews.

NASA plans to test SpaceX’s Starshield satellite network, designed primarily for national security customers, to support operations of the agency’s Deep Space Network. The post NASA to test SpaceX’s Starshield in pilot program appeared first on SpaceNews.

A camera on the International Space Station captured this Oct. 2, 2025, photo of the Bassac River in Cù Lao Dung, a river islet district in southern Vietnam. The Bassac River surrounds the district before emptying into the South China Sea. The river’s brown waters at its mouth result from massive amounts of silt, clay, […]

Palo Alto startup Apolink has picked GomSpace to build the radio frequency subsystem for its first relay cubesat, aiming to show how signals can be received from other LEO spacecraft and forwarded to the ground. The post GomSpace to provide RF subsystem for Apolink LEO relay demonstrator appeared first on SpaceNews.

This will be the sixth and final launch of the year for United Launch Alliance. Teams are targeting liftoff from pad 41 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station at 3:49 a.m. EST (0849 UTC).

Chinese companies are no longer hiding their intent to clone SpaceX. They're advertising it.

From the ESA Blogs.

Lee esta nota de prensa en español aquí. Our universe is filled with galaxies, in all directions as far as our instruments can see. Some researchers estimate that there are as many as two trillion galaxies in the observable universe. At first glance, these galaxies might appear to be randomly scattered across space, but they’re not. […]

2025 was a landmark year for Europe in space. From celebrating 50 years of ESA to new missions, scientific breakthroughs, the year reaffirmed Europe’s leadership in science, exploration, climate action and innovation.

In this episode of Space Minds, host Mike Gruss sits down with Maj. Gen. Stephen Purdy, one of the U.S. Space Force’s most influential acquisition leaders and recipient of the SpaceNews Icon Award for Military Space Achievement. The post Why the Space Force says 2025 changes everything appeared first on SpaceNews.

Starfish Space and Impulse Space have revealed the successful execution of the “Remora” mission, marking… The post Starfish Space announce Autonomous Rendezvous and Proximity mission success with Impulse Space appeared first on NASASpaceFlight.com.

Two space companies have collaborated to demonstrate automated close approaches between spacecraft using a single camera as the primary sensor. The post Starfish Space and Impulse Space demonstrate autonomous spacecraft proximity operations appeared first on SpaceNews.

Ever wondered how planetary systems like our own Solar System form? Thanks to the European Space Agency’s Gaia space telescope, we're getting a unique peek behind the cosmic curtain into these dusty environments.

For two decades, ESA has sent a medical doctor to brave the cold and more for 13 months at Concordia station in Antarctica, one of the most remote places on Earth. This unique environment – isolated, confined and extreme – mirrors many of the psychological and physiological challenges astronauts face in space. By studying life at Concordia, scientists can better understand these effects, develop countermeasures and prepare for future human missions beyond Earth. 

SAN FRANCISCO – University of California spinoff MetaSeismic wasn’t focused on space applications when it began using an artificial intelligence platform to create materials to mitigate vibration and shock. But […] The post MetaSeismic material mitigates vibration and shock in NASA Marshall testing appeared first on SpaceNews.

Los Angeles CA (SPX) Dec 12, 2025 Researchers at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County extracted building blocks from precise hand gestures in Bharatanatyam, a classical Indian dance form. Their analysis revealed a richer set of movement patterns than those in natural grasps. The team published findings online Nov. 24 in Scientific Reports. Ramana Vinjamuri leads the UMBC lab that studies brain control of complex ha

Career paths are rarely a straight line and often include some unexpected curves. That is certainly true for Erin Sholl, deputy chief of the Space Transportation Systems Division within the Safety and Mission Assurance Directorate at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston. From struggling with multiplication tables in elementary school to supporting the International Space […]

Satellites are emerging as a powerful new tool in the fight to curb emissions of methane. While methane is much shorter-lived in the atmosphere than carbon dioxide, it is vastly more potent at trapping heat, which makes rapid cuts essential for slowing warming in the short term. The same satellite technology that has transformed methane monitoring in the oil and gas sector is now being turned towards another major source – landfill sites.

European defence technology companies Helsing and Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace have announced a new German-Norwegian partnership to build a large constellation of small satellites for space-based intelligence, surveillance, and targeting applications. The partnership comes as European leaders push for a greater focus on sovereign space capabilities, with European Commissioner for Defence Industry and Space Andrius […] The post Kongsberg and Helsing to Develop Large Defence Satellite Constellation appeared first on European Spaceflight.