China’s sixth uncrewed lunar exploration mission, Chang’e 6, landed on and sampled the far side of the Moon. The mission was launched on a Chang Zheng 5 rocket from the Wenchang Space Launch Site on May 3 at 09:27 UTC. The Chang’e 6 vehicle consists of an orbiter, lander, ascent vehicle, and sample return capsule. […]

Virgin Galactic has been pioneering the suborbital tourism industry, offering customers the opportunity to experience a few minutes of weightlessness and witness the curvature of the Earth from the edge of space. On Saturday, the company successfully completed its final spaceflight before a two-year pause in commercial operations. The flight, dubbed “Galactic07,” saw a massive […]

The SpaceX Starship rocket achieved a monumental feat during its test flight on Thursday, successfully nailing its first-ever splashdown in the ocean. This groundbreaking accomplishment marked a significant milestone for the prototype system that may one day transport humans to Mars. As the massive Starship descended over the Indian Ocean northwest of Australia, dramatic video […]

Mars’ polar ice caps, initially identified in the 19th Century, have puzzled researchers due to their apparent lack of movement. High-resolution images show that the Martian polar ice caps are about 2-3 km thick and extend over 1000 km across the poles, primarily composed of water ice. The terrain beneath the ice includes steep slopes […]

In the days leading up to the Starship integrated flight test, there was a flurry of activity at SpaceX’s Starbase facility in Boca Chica, Texas. Teams meticulously prepared the Orbital Launch Pad, fueling systems, and the flight hardware itself – Booster 11 and Ship 29. The booster, standing 71 meters tall and featuring 33 Raptor […]

NASA is on a mission to revolutionize the exploration of Mars and unlock the secrets of our solar system’s origins. The space agency is brimming with ambition, determined to bring back precious samples from the Red Planet in a timeframe that defies conventional expectations. Their goal? To achieve this groundbreaking feat by the 2030s, shattering […]

Teams at NASA and Boeing confirmed on Monday that the Starliner spacecraft, ULA Atlas V rocket, and ground support equipment are healthy and ready for the 10:52 am ET June 5 launch of the agency’s Boeing Crew Flight Test. Meteorologists with the 45th Weather Squadron predict 90% favorable weather conditions for liftoff. On Wednesday, June […]

In an unprecedented feat for human lunar exploration, China’s Chang’e-6 probe successfully took off from the far side of the Moon on Tuesday, carrying precious samples collected during its 53-day mission. This remarkable achievement marks a significant milestone for Beijing’s ambitious space program. The ascender module of the Chang’e-6 probe lifted off from the lunar […]

Purdue University planetary scientist Ali Bramson’s research is laying the foundation for future extraterrestrial exploration. She is focused on finding ice deposits beneath the barren surfaces of the moon and Mars, providing a buried resource important for future human habitats and even space travel itself. Subsurface ice also is a compelling target for astrobiology, climatology, […]

ESA’s experimental OPS-SAT CubeSat mission came to an end during the night of 22—23 May 2024 (CEST). Launched on 18 December 2019, OPS-SAT was tasked with opening up the world of spacecraft operations to the widest possible audience. Its founding principle was to provide a fast, no-charge, non-bureaucratic experiment service for European and Canadian industry […]