Space news

ESA’s Mars Express takes us on a journey across the southern highlands of Mars, including a flight around Flaugergues Crater.

From the ESA Blogs.

Ice in the Hudson River hugged the shore of Manhattan amid a deep freeze.

NASA officials defended their preparations for the Artemis 2 mission after a fueling test experienced the same type of hydrogen leaks that bedeviled Artemis 1 more than three years ago. The post NASA examining hydrogen leaks during Artemis 2 fueling test appeared first on SpaceNews.

The FY2026 Defense and Transportation-HUD appropriations bills were signed into law today, ending a brief partial government shutdown that began Friday night. The Defense bill funds the U.S. Space Force, […]

NASA’s Artemis II mission will launch no earlier than March due to several issues that were encountered during a launch rehearsal last night.

Biomedical research to keep crews healthy and CubeSat deployments for educational research topped the science schedule aboard the International Space Station on Tuesday. The Expedition 74 crew also focused on cargo swaps and life support maintenance throughout the day.

The French space agency CNES, operator of the Guiana Space Centre in French Guiana, has issued a call for launch operators interested in taking over a portion of its new multi-user commercial launch site following MaiaSpace’s withdrawal. The facility is being built on the grounds of the former Diamant launch site. CNES announced plans to […] The post CNES to Fill Commercial Launch Facility Vacancy Left by MaiaSpace appeared first on European Spaceflight.

A full moon is seen shining over NASA’s SLS (Space Launch System) and Orion spacecraft, atop the mobile launcher at Launch Pad 39B at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida in the early hours of February 1, 2026. The agency concluded a wet dress rehearsal for the agency’s Artemis II test flight early Tuesday morning, […]

Following Booster 18’s failure during a pressure test, SpaceX went ahead and set a new… The post Booster 19 Rolls out to Masseys for Cryogenic Proof Testing appeared first on NASASpaceFlight.com.

Rapid advances in commercial space, artificial intelligence, and edge computing are transforming what is possible for Earth observation. By pushing more intelligence onboard, missions can move from passively collecting data to actively interpreting and responding to changing surface conditions in near-real time, enabling more targeted observations and dramatically improving the value of data returned to […]

Space activities are unlike any others. They interact not just with Earth, but with three interconnected environments: Earth, Earth’s orbit, and the Moon and deep space. On Earth, we aim to reduce the space sector’s environmental impacts while maximising the societal and environmental benefits of our missions. In orbit, we manage space debris and collision risks to maintain safe and secure operations. For the Moon and deep space, we are laying the foundations to minimise the impact of our missions on and around other celestial bodies.

In space procurement, there are few phrases that carry more weight than “flight heritage.” Once a supplier claims it, the rest of the room can relax. The hardware has flown, goes the thinking. It worked. The risk of using such hardware is vanishingly small, even absent. This is understandable. Space is famously unforgiving, and if […] The post Flight heritage? It isn’t what you think appeared first on SpaceNews.

NASA is passing on this month’s opportunity to send astronauts around the Moon on the Artemis II mission. March is the new target, with five available dates starting March 6. […]

SpaceX is pausing Falcon 9 launches after an issue with the rocket’s upper stage encountered at the end of a launch Feb. 2. The post SpaceX pauses Falcon 9 launches after upper stage anomaly appeared first on SpaceNews.

NASA is no longer planning a February launch of the Artemis 2 mission after encountering hydrogen leaks during a fueling test of the Space Launch System. The post Artemis 2 slips to March appeared first on SpaceNews.

Tokyo, Japan (SPX) Jan 30, 2026 MDA Space has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Hanwha Systems to pursue collaboration on Korea's planned sovereign Low Earth Orbit K-LEO defense constellation, targeting enhanced military communications and data services for national security operations. The agreement sets a framework for the two companies to explore how MDA Space's AURORA software-defined digital satellite platform can

Tokyo, Japan (SPX) Jan 30, 2026 Airspan Networks Holdings LLC has announced that it will deploy a 5G Air-to-Ground communications system for Space Compass's High-Altitude Platform Station, creating a new capability for maritime domain awareness from the stratosphere. The partnership will use high-altitude aircraft operating around 16 to 18 kilometers to extend secure broadband connectivity far beyond the reach of conventional

Berlin, Germany (SPX) Feb 02, 2026 An international team working within the LIGO Virgo KAGRA collaboration has used the exceptionally clear gravitational wave signal GW250114 to carry out some of the most precise tests yet of Einstein general theory of relativity. The work, which appears in Physical Review Letters, relies heavily on contributions from researchers at the Max Planck Institute for Gravitational Physics (Albert Einst

Los Angeles CA (SPX) Feb 02, 2026 When two neutron stars collide, they generate gravitational waves and light across the electromagnetic spectrum, from intense gamma ray flashes to faint radio signals that can persist for years. These multi-messenger events contain rich information about the physics of compact objects, their environments and the formation of heavy elements, but extracting that information efficiently has proved

Los Angeles CA (SPX) Jan 29, 2026 Prompt, individual dose assessment is a critical part of protecting people after large scale nuclear or radiological incidents, but traditional dosimetry relies on expensive instruments or laboratory processing that can delay decisions on medical care. Researchers at Hiroshima University have now demonstrated a portable, low cost system that pairs a small piece of radiochromic film with a foldab

London, UK (SPX) Jan 28, 2026 Unless they work in particle physics or a related discipline, most people are unlikely to have encountered muons, elementary particles that resemble electrons but are around 200 times heavier and interact only weakly with matter. This combination of properties enables muons to penetrate dense materials and be used in imaging techniques similar to X rays, but on the scale of large and heavy struc

Los Angeles CA (SPX) Feb 02, 2026 Researchers are developing new ways to reprogram the cellular machinery of microbes such as yeast and bacteria so they can manufacture useful products for medicine and industry. A team at the Carl R. Woese Institute for Genomic Biology has now shown that they can extend the biosynthetic capabilities of microbes by harnessing light to drive new types of chemical reactions inside cells. In w

Washington, United States (AFP) Feb 2, 2026 Meet OpenClaw: the AI assistant that promised to be your dream intern, terrified cybersecurity experts, and now thrives on chatbot-only social media - all in just a few weeks. The perfect assistant? At the heart of the tech world's latest come-out-of-nowhere fascination is an AI tool built by Austrian researcher Peter Steinberger in November to help organize his digital life. After

New York (AFP) Feb 2, 2026 NASA on Monday was conducting critical final tests ahead of setting a launch date for its first crewed flyby mission to the Moon in more than half a century. At approximately 11:25 am EST (1625 GMT), the launch director of the Artemis 2 mission gave the green light to begin loading cryogenic liquid propellant into the giant rocket at the Cape Canaveral launch pad in Florida as part of the "w

San Francisco USA (AFP) Feb 2, 2026 Elon Musk's SpaceX has taken over his artificial intelligence company xAI in a merger aimed at deploying space-based data centers, a statement said on Monday. The acquisition combines SpaceX's rocket capabilities with xAI's technology to create what Musk in the statement called "the most ambitious, vertically-integrated innovation engine on (and off) Earth." The merger comes as funding f

Icebreakers play a critical role in delivering supplies to America’s largest research base in Antarctica.

Los Angeles CA (SPX) Feb 02, 2026 The countdown for NASA's Artemis II wet dress rehearsal is underway at the agency's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, marking a key test before the first crewed flight of the Space Launch System rocket and Orion spacecraft in the Artemis campaign to return astronauts to the Moon. The Space Launch System (SLS) rocket and Orion spacecraft, secured to the mobile launcher at Launch Pad 39B, wil

Los Angeles CA (SPX) Feb 02, 2026 NASA's Perseverance Mars rover has completed the first AI planned drives ever carried out on another planet, using a vision capable generative AI system to map out safe routes across the rim of Jezero Crater without human route planners intervening in the usual way. The demonstration, run on Dec 8 and Dec 10, 2025, used generative AI to create waypoints for the six wheeled rover, taking ov

Sydney, Australia (SPX) Feb 02, 2026 Bacteria that thrive on Earth may not survive easily on Mars, where the soil contains toxic perchlorate salts at levels that can reach about 1 percent by weight. Researchers at the Indian Institute of Science have now shown how a brick building soil bacterium responds to this chemical and discovered that although the toxin slows growth and stresses the cells, it can also yield stronger biocement

Paris, France (SPX) Feb 02, 2026 A four person international crew is preparing to launch to the International Space Station no earlier than Wednesday 11 February, riding a SpaceX Dragon spacecraft on a Falcon 9 rocket from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida. The planned liftoff time is 11:00 GMT, which corresponds to 12:00 CET and 06:00 EST, with two additional launch opportunities on 12 an

New York NY (SPX) Jan 31, 2026 As NASA counts down toward humanity's first crewed lunar mission in more than half a century, a question beyond engineering is taking shape: Can a flight that never touches the surface still define who "wins" the Second Moon Race? The answer lies not in propulsion equations or landing dynamics, but in the realm where space programs have always competed most fiercely-perception, prestige, and the stories nations tell about themselves.

Los Angeles CA (SPX) Feb 02, 2026 NASA is preparing for a new phase in hypersonic aviation by funding industry studies aimed at expanding flight test capabilities for reusable airbreathing vehicles that can cruise at several times the speed of sound. The agency has awarded short term study contracts to SpaceWorks Enterprises of Atlanta, Georgia, and Stratolaunch of Mojave, California, to examine how existing platforms coul

Los Angeles CA (SPX) Feb 02, 2026 NASA has ordered a fifth private astronaut mission to the International Space Station from Axiom Space, targeting a launch no earlier than January 2027 from the agency's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The flight, designated Axiom Mission 5, continues the series of commercially sponsored crewed missions to the orbital laboratory under NASA's commercial space strategy. NASA Administrator J

Los Angeles CA (SPX) Feb 03, 2026 The Expedition 74 crew has opened the week with preparations for the arrival of NASA's SpaceX Crew-12 mission while keeping the International Space Station supplied and its science hardware in working order. A SpaceX Dragon cargo spacecraft is also being readied for its return to Earth after delivering experiments, supplies and hardware in August 2025. The next mission to the orbital outpo

Los Angeles CA (SPX) Feb 03, 2026 Terran Orbital has announced it will provide its Nebula satellite platform for the Mitsubishi Electric LEO Demo Mission, a new project developed with Mitsubishi Electric Corporation and Mitsubishi Electric US to support future low Earth orbit constellations. The mission is described as a key step in advancing technologies needed for LEO satellite systems and associated services. The Mitsub

Tokyo, Japan (SPX) Feb 03, 2026 Nanyang Technological University, Singapore is launching three new space projects under Singapore's Space Technology Development Programme, a national initiative to accelerate the commercialisation of space technologies. The projects are among the first supported under the Space Access Programme, which targets annual launches in 2026, 2027 and 2028 to give local researchers and companies faster,

Los Angeles CA (SPX) Feb 03, 2026 Lockheed Martin has delivered the first Sentinel A4 radar from the second Low Rate Initial Production tranche to the US Army, marking a key step toward full rate production of the new air and missile defense sensor. The radar recently completed the first phase of Initial Operational Test and Evaluation, which is designed to assess performance in representative operational scenarios and red

Greenbelt MD (SPX) Feb 03, 2026 NASAs IMAP (Interstellar Mapping and Acceleration Probe) began its two-year primary science mission on Feb. 1 to explore and map the boundaries of our heliosphere - the protective bubble created by the solar wind that encapsulates our solar system. The mission, which launched on Sept. 24, 2025, relies on 10 scientific instruments to chart a comprehensive picture of what is roiling in space

Sydney, Australia (SPX) Feb 03, 2026 A PhD candidate at the University of Sydney has recreated a small slice of cosmic chemistry in the laboratory by manufacturing carbon rich dust under conditions that mimic space. Working in the School of Physics, materials and plasma physics researcher Linda Losurdo used a simple set of gases to simulate the harsh environments near aging stars and supernova remnants, then tracked how they assemb

Berlin, Germany (SPX) Feb 03, 2026 Astronomers have used advanced computer simulations to show that the matter distribution just beyond the Local Group is organized in a vast, flattened structure of dark matter that extends tens of millions of light years. This large scale sheet surrounds the Milky Way and the Andromeda Galaxy and is bordered above and below by enormous voids where galaxies are absent. For almost a century,

As of 11:00 pm ET, NASA is still conducting the Artemis II Wet Dress Rehearsal test of the Space Launch System rocket that will send four astronauts around the Moon. […]

Whether mission managers will be able to clear the rocket for launch as early as Sunday to propel four astronauts on a flight to the moon will depend on the results of a detailed overnight review and post-test analysis. NASA only has three days -- Feb. 8, 10 and 11 -- to get the mission off this month or the flight will slip to March.

NASA astronaut Chris Williams will connect with students in Pennsylvania to answer prerecorded science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) questions while aboard the International Space Station. The Earth-to-space call will begin at 12:20 p.m. EST Thursday, Feb. 5, and will stream live on the agency’s Learn With NASA YouTube channel. Media interested in covering the […]

SpaceX has acquired xAI, an artificial intelligence company also run by Elon Musk, as part of his effort to develop orbital data centers. The post SpaceX acquires xAI in bid to develop orbital data centers appeared first on SpaceNews.

Pentagon chief sharpens warnings to defense contractors over delivery, pay and buybacks The post At Blue Origin, Hegseth escalates criticism of legacy defense procurement appeared first on SpaceNews.

"This marks not just the next chapter, but the next book in SpaceX and xAI's mission."

"This marks not just the next chapter, but the next book in SpaceX and xAI's mission."

Eutelsat’s planned €550 million sale of its satellite ground infrastructure to a fund managed by Stockholm-based EQT Group has not received the necessary regulatory approval, with France’s finance minister stating it was a “decision to protect our sovereignty.” EQT announced in August 2024 that it had entered into negotiations to purchase a majority stake in […] The post Sovereignty Invoked to Block €550m Sale of Eutelsat’s Ground Infrastructure appeared first on European Spaceflight.

The Expedition 74 crew kicked off the week with SpaceX Dragon spacecraft preparations and science hardware maintenance ensuring research continues providing pristine results aboard the International Space Station.