Space news

The Expedition 74 crew wrapped up the week with cardiac and respiratory studies and conducting space exercise research to keep astronauts healthy off the Earth. The International Space Station residents also packed a SpaceX Dragon cargo spacecraft before its return to Earth and maintained science and life support hardware.

Giant tortoises are returning to Floreana Island after more than 150 years, guided by NASA data that shows suitable areas for release.

NASA confirmed today that March 6 is their target for sending astronauts around the Moon for the first time in more than 50 years on the Artemis II mission. The […]

NASA is targeting a March 6 launch for Artemis 2 after completing a countdown test with few problems. The post NASA targeting March 6 for Artemis 2 launch appeared first on SpaceNews.

An amendment to the United Kingdom’s Space Industry Act will mandate that limits are set on how much launch operators are financially liable for if something goes wrong. The government has framed the change as a necessary step to strengthen the country’s position as a competitive launch location. The concept of states being liable for […] The post The UK Amends Launch Liability Rules as RFA Prepares for Inaugural Flight appeared first on European Spaceflight.

NASA astronaut Christina Koch and Canadian Space Agency astronaut Jeremy Hansen take off on a T-38 training flight from Ellington Field on Feb. 11, 2026, as a waning crescent Moon hovers above. Koch and Hansen, along with NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman and Victor Glover, are part of NASA’s Artemis II mission, the first crewed flight […]

Week in images: 16-20 February 2026

The company opened a new facility in El Segundo to support Millennium’s missile-warning satellite backlog The post Boeing to boost production of missile-tracking sensors for military satellites appeared first on SpaceNews.

NASA completed a second wet dress rehearsal for the Artemis 2 mission on Feb. 19 without any of the hydrogen leaks seen in the first such test earlier this month. The post NASA completes second Artemis 2 fueling test appeared first on SpaceNews.

From the ESA Blogs.

Just over a year since Smile arrived in the Netherlands in two parts, the now-complete and thoroughly-tested spacecraft has left for good. With a launch window set for 8 April – 7 May on a Vega-C rocket, the joint European-Chinese mission is almost ready to embark upon its unique space mission.

From the ESA Blogs.

From the ESA Blogs.

Dry, gusty conditions spurred fast-growing fires in Oklahoma and Kansas, along with dangerous dust storms across the region.

The practice countdown began Tuesday night, kicking off a carefully choreographed series of steps to ready the world's most powerful operational rocket for what amounted to a simulated launch Thursday at 8:42 p.m. EST. Controllers then carried out additional tests to make sure the team can recycle, hold and restart an actual launch countdown as needed to handle unexpected problems.

Today’s successful Artemis II Wet Dress Rehearsal (WDR) positions NASA to launch astronauts around the Moon  for the first time in over 50 yearsa s soon as next month. This […]

NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman said NASA will continue working with Boeing to make the Starliner a viable crew transport vehicle, adding that "sustained crew and cargo access to low Earth orbit will remain essential, and America benefits from competition and redundancy."

At a quickly announced news conference today, NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman released NASA’s investigation into the 2024 Boeing Starliner Crew Flight Test incident. Acknowledging that the Starliner spacecraft itself has […]

The Starlink 10-34 mission will be SpaceX’s 20th Falcon 9 launch of the year so far. Liftoff from pad 40 is set for 8:41:40 p.m. EST (0141:40).

"The most troubling failure revealed by this investigation is not hardware."

NASA has classified the flawed Starliner crewed test flight in 2024 as its most serious level of mishap, with the agency’s leadership citing shortfalls in how officials oversaw the program. The post Starliner investigation identifies flawed NASA decision making appeared first on SpaceNews.

New kinds of aircraft taking to the skies could mean unfamiliar sounds overhead — and where you’re hearing them might matter, according to new NASA research. NASA aeronautics has worked for years to enable new air transportation options for people and goods, and to find ways to make sure they can be safely and effectively […]

At a news conference on Thursday, NASA released a report of findings from the Program Investigation Team examining the Boeing CST-100 Starliner Crewed Flight Test as part of the agency’s Commercial Crew Program.   “The Boeing Starliner spacecraft has faced challenges throughout its uncrewed and most recent crewed missions. While Boeing built Starliner, NASA accepted it and launched two astronauts to space. […]

Relaxation, exercise, and biomedical studies were the key research objectives for the Expedition 74 crew on Thursday as NASA and its partners investigate ways to keep astronauts healthy on long-term missions. The International Space Station is also orbiting higher after the docked Progress 93 cargo craft fired its thrusters on Wednesday.

During a news conference at 2 p.m. EST on Thursday NASA will discuss the findings of investigations into the 2024 crewed test flight of Boeing Starliner to the International Space Station. The news conference will stream live on NASA’s YouTube channel. An instant replay will be available online. NASA participants include: To ask questions during […]

Imagine trying to photograph wind. That’s similar to what NASA engineers dealt with during a recent effort to study how air moves around planes, rockets, and other kinds of aerospace vehicles. Air is invisible, but our understanding of how it flows is crucial for building better, safer aircraft. For 80 years, researchers used a technique […]

From the ESA Blogs.

This June 5, 2024, image shows lysozyme crystals aboard the International Space Station. Lysozyme is a protein found in bodily fluids like tears, saliva, and milk, and is used as a control compound to demonstrate well-formed crystals. Lysozyme plays a vital role in innate immunity, protecting against bacteria, viruses, and fungi. The crystals were grown with […]

In this episode of Space Minds, David Ariosto interviews Matt Kuta, president and co-founder of Voyager Technologies about how the company is pursuing a commercialized future in low Earth orbit. […] The post Creating new demand in the nascent orbital economy appeared first on SpaceNews.

Use data from NASA’s Magnetosphere Multiscale Mission to shed light on solar storms. For anyone with a laptop or cell.

With six additional satellites launching in May and continued expansion later this year, the EarthDaily Constellation will enter commercial operations in Summer 2026, delivering daily, consistent global coverage. The post EarthDaily in Orbit: From First Launch to Commercial Operations appeared first on SpaceNews.

From the ESA Blogs.

If the United States wants to defend the homeland against the next generation of missile and aerial threats, hardware alone will not save us. Sensors, radars and interceptors are necessary but no longer sufficient. The decisive advantage for Golden Dome for America will come from software and the ability to integrate, test, adapt and fight […] The post Golden Dome will fail without software-defined warfare appeared first on SpaceNews.

For the first time, an international team of astronomers have mapped the vertical structure of Uranus’s upper atmosphere, uncovering how temperature and charged particles vary with height across the planet. Using NASA/ESA/CSA James Webb Space Telescope's NIRSpec instrument, the team observed Uranus for nearly a full rotation, detecting the faint glow from molecules high above the clouds. The results offer a new window into how ice-giant planets distribute energy in their upper layers.

A small but mighty piece of lab equipment, about the size of a cellphone, has arrived at the International Space Station after launching with NASA’s SpaceX Crew-12 mission. NASA aims to use the off-the-shelf device, called a microplate reader, to conduct vital biological research in space and get real-time access to data.

London, UK (SPX) Feb 18, 2026 Gilat Satellite Networks has secured a 9 million dollar contract from Israel's Ministry of Defense to supply and integrate satellite communication systems and services for defense operations. The award was announced by the company's defense division, Gilat Defense, which will deliver next generation defense modems as a core element of Gilat's ground system defense solution. The new modems

Sydney, Australia (SPX) Feb 18, 2026 AALTO HAPS Ltd, an Airbus subsidiary that develops and operates the Zephyr solar-powered Stratocraft, plans to establish its second launch and landing site in northern Australia as it expands stratospheric operations and services. The proposed AALTOPORT in Australia would complement the company's existing launch and landing base in Kenya, which opened in 2024, and is aimed at supporting a nation

London, UK (SPX) Feb 17, 2026 The UK Space Agency has placed three new study contracts with British companies to assess how advanced materials could be manufactured in Low Earth Orbit for use back on Earth. The projects focus on life-saving medicines, high performance optical fibre and next generation semiconductor materials, all produced using the unique environment of space. In orbit manufacturing can exploit microgr

Los Angeles CA (SPX) Feb 17, 2026 The National Reconnaissance Office has issued the first three awards under its Strategic Commercial Enhancements Commercial Solutions Opening, advancing the agency's shift toward multi-phenomenology commercial remote sensing capabilities that combine several sensing modalities to support intelligence missions. Under this initial tranche, HEO will provide non-Earth imagery, SatVu will deliv

Los Angeles CA (SPX) Feb 17, 2026 BlackSky Technology Inc. has secured a new seven figure Assured contract that deepens its relationship with an international defense customer seeking guaranteed access to Gen 2 and Gen 3 satellite capabilities. The agreement extends uncontested tasking priority and real time delivery of imagery and AI enabled analytics over the country's key areas of interest. The Assured model gives the c

Paris, France (SPX) Feb 17, 2026 Airbus Defence and Space has signed a new radar satellite data framework agreement with Japanese Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) specialist Synspective Inc. to broaden its space-based radar coverage for Earth observation customers worldwide. Under the agreement, Airbus gains access to Synspective's growing constellation of SAR satellites, which will operate alongside Airbus's existing radar

Los Angeles CA (SPX) Feb 18, 2026 Gravity feels stable in everyday life, but its strength varies across the surface of the planet, and it is weakest beneath Antarctica after accounting for Earth rotation. These subtle variations arise from differences in rock density deep inside the planet, and around Antarctica they create a pronounced gravity low that also affects regional sea level by allowing the nearby ocean surface to sit

Sydney, Australia (SPX) Feb 18, 2026 ST Engineering iDirect has formed a strategic technology partnership with G and S SatCom to create a unified approach to satellite network and service management for operators and service providers. The agreement centers on integrating the widely deployed G and S SatConnect module into ST Engineering iDirect's next generation ground system, Intuition, to extend service orchestration and operatio

Tokyo, Japan (SPX) Feb 18, 2026 Pale Blue has begun operating its new Tsukuba Production Engineering Base to support mass production of satellite propulsion systems and shorten delivery lead times. The Tsukuba Production Engineering Base in Tsukuba, Ibaraki Prefecture, centralizes the full product lifecycle from technical development for mass production through manufacturing, final inspection, and global shipping. By bri

Berlin, Germany (SPX) Feb 18, 2026 Hyperion will move KSATs HYPER concept from design into on orbit demonstration, using relay satellites to act as ground stations in space and shorten the time it takes operators to receive satellite data when speed is critical. Announced at the SmallSat Symposium in Silicon Valley, the Hyperion mission will extend KSATs global ground network into low Earth orbit and test how an in orbit re

Pasadena CA (JPL) Feb 17, 2026 The results from our first visit to the "Nevado Sajama" drill location were intriguing enough to motivate our return to do a deeper dive into the minerals and compounds locked in this rock with SAM (the Sample Analysis at Mars instrument suite). As explained in the last blog, that deeper dive involves using the second of two vials of a chemical reagent, tetramethylammonium hydroxide (TMAH)

Kourou (AFP) Feb 18, 2026 "Stop. Danger of death. Work in progress." This sign, written in Russian, is still hanging inside an office at the site where Russia once launched its Soyuz rockets from Europe's spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana. However the jungle has been slowly reclaiming the launchpad on South America's northeastern coast ever since Russia hastily left in the aftermath of invading Ukraine in Februa

Sydney, Australia (SPX) Feb 17, 2026 NASA is preparing for the second wet dress rehearsal of the Space Launch System rocket and Orion spacecraft ahead of the Artemis II test flight, targeting Thursday, Feb. 19, as the day to load propellants into the vehicle at Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Teams spent the weekend replacing a filter in ground support equipment that was suspected of restricting liquid hydrogen flow during a

Los Angeles CA (SPX) Feb 17, 2026 Hypersonica has completed its first hypersonic test flight at Andoya Space in Norway, marking what the company describes as a major step toward a European sovereign hypersonic strike capability by 2029. The Anglo-German defense and aerospace company reported that its missile prototype accelerated to speeds above Mach 6 and flew more than 300 kilometers during the mission. All systems perfo

Sydney, Australia (SPX) Feb 19, 2026 For more than sixty years, astronomers have searched the sky for signs of advanced extraterrestrial technology, scanning the Milky Way for artificial radio transmissions, optical flashes and excess infrared heat. Despite these efforts, no technosignature has been confirmed so far, a silence often attributed to the fact that only a tiny fraction of the cosmic search space has been explored.