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SpaceX CRS-28 Dragon departs International Space Station
Derek RichardsonJune 29th SpaceX’s CRS-28 cargo Dragon spacecraft undocked from the International Space Station after spending just over three weeks at the outpost.
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Virgin Galactic’s VSS Unity completes first commercial spaceflight
Derek RichardsonJune 29th Virgin Galactic’s SpaceShipTwo has flown with paying passengers for the first time on its inaugural commercial suborbital spaceflight.
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Orion heat shield for Artemis 2 has been installed
Derek RichardsonJune 28th With some 18 months until the crewed Artemis 2 mission, teams at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida have completed the installation of the Orion spacecraft’s heat shield.
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NASA and India to cooperate on human space exploration
Derek RichardsonJune 23rd NASA and the Indian Space Research Organisation are set to cooperate on a joint mission to the International Space Station next year, according to the White House.
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NASA picks 7 companies to advance commercial space capabilities
Derek RichardsonJune 16th NASA has partnered with seven companies to help advance commercial orbital capabilities to meet the agency’s needs while building up a commercial low Earth orbit economy.
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Spacewalkers finish installation of 3rd set of new solar arrays
Derek RichardsonJune 15th During a pair of spacewalks over the last week, two astronauts completed installing a set of new solar arrays outside the International Space Station.
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CRS-28 Dragon launches toward International Space Station
Derek RichardsonJune 5th SpaceX’s autonomous CRS-28 cargo Dragon spacecraft is on its way to the International Space Station for a delivery of crew supplies and a pair of new solar arrays.
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New problems indefinitely delay Starliner Crew Flight Test
Derek RichardsonJune 2nd Two newly discovered issues have prompted NASA and Boeing to postpone the launch of Starliner’s Crew Flight Test, which was expected in July.
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Axiom-2 crew back on Earth after capsule splashes down in Gulf
Derek RichardsonMay 31st After nearly 10 days in space, the all-private Axiom-2 astronauts are back on Earth, having splashed down in their Dragon capsule in the water off the coast of Florida.
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17 humans are in orbit after Shenzhou 16 launch
Derek RichardsonMay 30th With the launch of the three-person Shenzhou 16 spacecraft to China’s Tiangong space station, there are now 17 people living in low Earth orbit -- a new spaceflight record.
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Progress MS-23 freighter docks with International Space Station
Derek RichardsonMay 24th Russia’s Progress MS-23 resupply spacecraft has docked with the International Space Station to deliver supplies and experiments for the Expedition 69 crew.
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Axiom-2 crew reaches International Space Station
Derek RichardsonMay 22nd The four-person private Axiom-2 mission has docked with the International Space Station to begin an eight-day science mission aboard the outpost.
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‘Let Freedom fly’: Private Axiom-2 mission launches to ISS
Derek RichardsonMay 21st SpaceX launches Axiom Space’s second all-private crewed mission to the International Space Station using its Crew Dragon spacecraft.
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Blue Origin selected as 2nd Moon lander provider for Artemis
Derek RichardsonMay 19th A team led by Blue Origin has been selected by NASA to build a second Human Landing System for the agency’s Artemis program.
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Turning up to 11: Orion service module completes acoustic tests
Derek RichardsonMay 15th Orion's European Service Module for the crewed Artemis 2 mission to the Moon has completed acoustic testing at Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
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Tianzhou 6 cargo ship arrives at Chinese space station
Derek RichardsonMay 11th China’s Tiangong space station received a fresh delivery of supplies with the launch and arrival of the Tianzhou 6 cargo spacecraft.
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Vast could launch 1st private space station in 2025
Derek RichardsonMay 10th A private space venture called Vast announced its plans to fly a commercial space station as early as two years from now.
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Russia agrees to extend International Space Station operations
Derek RichardsonMay 1st All five of the International Space Station partner agencies have now agreed to operate the outpost through at least 2028.
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SpaceX’s Starship flies high, then explodes during ascent
Derek RichardsonApril 20th The first integrated flight test of SpaceX’s massive Starship rocket failed just minutes into the booster phase of ascent.
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Europe launches JUICE to study Jupiter’s icy moons
Derek RichardsonApril 14th The Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer, JUICE, is on its way to the solar system’s largest planet to study three of its four Galilean moons.
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NASA, Canada assign astronauts to Artemis 2 Moon mission
Derek RichardsonApril 3rd The Artemis 2 astronauts were announced in Houston, marking the first time in the 21st century a human crew has been assigned to fly a mission to the Moon.
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Canadian Minister speaks in Houston ahead of Artemis 2 crew announcement
Sean CostelloApril 3rd On the eve of the wildly anticipated Artemis 2 crew announcement, Canada’s Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry, the Honourable François-Philippe Champagne, met with Canadian media at the Johnson Space Centre in Houston, Texas.
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Crippled uncrewed Soyuz MS-22 spacecraft returns to Earth
Derek RichardsonMarch 28th Russia's Soyuz MS-22 spacecraft, which was struck by a micrometeoroid late last year, autonomously landed in Kazakhstan after a 187-day stay at the International Space Station.
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Artemis 2 Space Launch System core stage nearly complete
Derek RichardsonMarch 23rd The second Space Launch System core stage has been fully integrated. It'll be used to send the Artemis 2 mission and four astronauts to the Moon next year.
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Rocket Lab’s Electron deploys two Capella radar satellites
Steve HammerMarch 17th With a loud roar and trail of flame, Rocket Lab’s Electron hoisted a pair of Capella Space satellites into the evening sky.
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Spacesuit prototype revealed for Artemis 3 Moon landing
Derek RichardsonMarch 15th When NASA astronauts return to the surface of the Moon in the next several years, they’ll be using a spacesuit built by Axiom Space.
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‘One heck of a ride!’ Crew-5 astronauts, cosmonaut back on Earth
Derek RichardsonMarch 12th Three astronauts and a cosmonaut returned to Earth in their Crew Dragon spacecraft after spending over five months in orbit aboard the International Space Station.
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Rocket Lab’s Electron rocket makes Virginia debut
Steve HammerJanuary 24th Rocket Lab launched its first Electron rocket from the United States, sending satellites into orbit for the company Hawkeye 360.
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The People of Artemis: Jeremy Parsons, NASA Exploration Ground Systems Deputy Manager
April 2nd
During the rollout of NASA's Artemis 1 SLS rocket, Spaceflight Insider spoke with Exploration Ground Systems Deputy Program Manager Jeremy Parsons. -
A 2nd NASA SLS Moon rocket takes shape in New Orleans
March 28th
While the first Space Launch System rocket is being readied for its maiden flight, the core stage for a second SLS reached a new assembly milestone. -
First exoplanet targets recommended for Webb observation
March 27th
Now that the James Webb Space Telescope's primary mirror has been aligned successfully, scientists are identifying the first exoplanets for observation. -
Study of Pluto’s subsurface ocean drives potential return mission
March 12th
A $3 billion return mission to Pluto with an orbiter is being proposed to further study the subsurface oceans of both Pluto and its large moon Charon. -
SLS Program Manager provides update on Artemis I
March 11th
NASA is working toward a March 17 rollout of its Artemis 1 Space Launch System rocket from Kennedy Space Center's Vehicle Assembly building in Florida for an early-April wet dress rehearsal at nearby Launch Complex 39B in anticipation of a summer 2022 launch. -
NASA expanding heat shield technology this fall
March 10th
As humanity prepares to face the extreme challenges of deep space, NASA engineers are hard at work researching new and innovative ways to safely land large payloads, including astronauts, on Mars. -
Boeing tests all-composite cryogenic propellant tank
February 23rd
At the end of 2021, Boeing completed a series of tests on a “large, fully-composite, linerless cryogenic tank” at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville Alabama. -
Third planet found orbiting Proxima Centauri
February 22nd
Proxima Centauri, the star closest to our Sun, may host a third planet that has just 25% the mass of Earth, according to a new study published in the journal Astronomy and Astrophysics. -
Lockheed Martin to build a rocket to return Mars samples
February 15th
NASA awarded Lockheed Martin a contract to build a rocket to return Mars rock samples currently being collected by the agency’s Perseverance rover. -
Liquid water may exist beneath Mars’ south polar ice cap
February 14th
Bright reflections detected in 2018 by the Mars Express orbiter could indicate the presence of liquid water lakes beneath Mars south polar ice cap. -
Study makes case for geophysical planet definition
January 16th
In an in-depth study of planet classification from the time of Galileo to the present, a group of planetary scientists criticize the 2006 International Astronomical Union planet definition as being rooted in folklore and astrology and argue for a geophysical definition that includes spherical moons as secondary or satellite planets. -
Sublimating nitrogen ice could be cause of polygons in Pluto’s Sputnik Planitia
January 12th
The unusual polygonal features seen in Sputnik Planitia, the left side of Pluto's iconic heart feature known as Tombaugh Regio, could be caused by the sublimation of nitrogen ice, a team of scientists propose in a study published in the journal Nature. -
Bill Gates-founded clean-tech initiative funds rocket startup
January 4th
Bill Gates-founded Breakthrough Energy has backed Stoke Space's goal of creating a fully-reusable rocket in the company's latest funding round. -
Our spaceflight heritage: A conversation with Fred Haise
December 24th
Spaceflight Insider spoke with Fred Haise after a ceremony commemorating the 2020 designation of the A-1 Test Stand after the Apollo 13 astronaut. -
NASA asking for fission power design concepts for Moon missions
December 20th
As humanity moves toward the very real possibility of becoming a multi-planet species, the need for safe and reliable energy not only arises on Earth, but especially so in outer space.
