NASA aims to cut science mission selection time by up to 45%
NASA's Competition Model 2.0 aims to cut science-mission selection timelines by up to 45%, starting with a lighter first review step.
#science
ispace wins JAXA contract to design lunar solar power tower
JAXA selected ispace to conceptually design a solar-power tower for the Moon's south pole, targeting deployment after 2030.
Update: JAXA launches MMX sample-return mission toward Mars moon Phobos
JAXA confirms MMX completed its initial critical operations phase on Oct. 21: solar arrays deployed, three-axis attitude control established, and the spacecr...
original 2026-10-19
National Academies names four priority non-polar crewed moon sites
A NASA-commissioned report names four non-polar sites for future crewed moon landings beyond Artemis.
Update: JAXA launches MMX sample-return mission toward Mars moon Phobos
JAXA's own post-launch release confirms MMX separated from the H3 upper stage 71 minutes and 13 seconds after liftoff and was injected into its planned traje...
original 2026-10-19score 4 → 5
HPE to fly AI compute module on Astrobotic's Griffin-1 Moon mission
Spaceborne Computer-4 rides Astrolab's FLIP rover to the lunar south pole, running NASA and Deloitte AI workloads on the Moon's surface.
OHB wins ESA study contract for shared lunar infrastructure concept
OHB will lead ESA studies for OASIS, a shared power, communications and data-storage platform for the lunar surface.
JAXA launches MMX sample-return mission toward Mars moon Phobos
JAXA's H3 rocket lifted off carrying MMX, Japan's first interplanetary mission and first attempt to return a sample from a Martian moon.
Update: JAXA schedules MMX Mars-moon sample-return launch for October 20
SpacePolicyOnline adds detail on MMX's two NASA instruments, the 15% US sample share, NASA's $87 million cost stake, and the mission's international partners.
original 2026-08-20
ispace-Europe and ALTEC sign MoU for lunar rover testing in Turin
ispace-Europe and Italy's ALTEC will assess using ALTEC's Turin facilities to test lunar rovers and train mission operators.
Update: NASA and Energy Department sign MOU on space nuclear power and propulsion
Isaacman says NASA will beat the 2030 target, with the Moon Base's first element launching in December and near-monthly robotic missions starting in early 20...
original 2026-10-08
NASA and Energy Department sign MOU on space nuclear power and propulsion
NASA and DOE agreed to jointly advance nuclear space reactors and propulsion, from fuel production to launch integration.
L3Harris wins NASA contract to build telescopes for ESA's LISA mission
NASA awarded L3Harris a contract to build all-glass telescopes for ESA's LISA gravitational-wave observatory.
Update: ESA and CAS declare Smile spacecraft ready for science operations
ESA's own mission page now shows Smile's first released images: a July 24 UVI auroral-substorm view and an SXI test shot of Cassiopeia A, with the main X-ray...
original 2026-09-23
ESA advances ECO, Keystone and CryoRad in Earth Explorer 12 pick
ESA narrowed its 12th Earth Explorer science satellite mission down to three concepts advancing to the next development phase.
ESA-JAXA Ramses spacecraft core module powers on for first time
Ramses asteroid mission's core module was switched on for the first time, starting integrated functional testing.
European Space Agency · Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) · OHB Italia · ArianeGroup1 source →
Astrolab teams with Interstellar Mapping to hunt lunar water
Interstellar Mapping will map subsurface lunar volatiles to guide where Astrolab's FLIP rover searches for water.
NASA selects PRIMA far-infrared telescope as first Probe Explorer mission
NASA picked the PRIMA far-infrared space telescope to advance toward construction as the first mission in its new Probe Explorers class.
Space Applications Services books LUVMI-M lunar rover on Blue Origin lander
Belgium's Space Applications Services secured a ride for its LUVMI-M rover aboard a Blue Origin Blue Moon Mark 1 lander, on track for 2029.
ESA and CAS declare Smile spacecraft ready for science operations
ESA says Smile has released its first science images: an auroral substorm from UVI and a supernova-remnant test shot from its X-ray camera.
TRL11 wins NASA contract to build cameras for SR-1 Freedom Mars mission
TRL11 will build imaging systems for NASA's SR-1 Freedom, the fission-powered Mars mission carrying the SkyFall helicopters, per Payload.
NASA taps SpaceX to launch StarBurst gamma-ray mission
NASA awarded SpaceX a task order to launch its StarBurst gamma-ray-burst detector no earlier than 2028.
ESA launches FLEX and Sentinel-3C on Vega-C from French Guiana
Vega-C's eighth flight carried Copernicus Sentinel-3C and the FLEX vegetation mission into orbit from French Guiana.
NASA powers on Roman Space Telescope's main science instrument
The Wide Field Instrument's 18 infrared detectors switched on and returned first test data as Roman heads to L2.
Inversion wins NASA contract to study aerocapture with its Arc vehicle
NASA tapped Inversion Space to study using its Arc reentry vehicle to demonstrate aerocapture at Earth for future interplanetary missions.
ESA presses ahead on EnVision Venus mission as NASA drops radar instrument
NASA is unlikely to deliver the VenSAR radar it committed to ESA's EnVision Venus orbiter, per Ars Technica; ESA says it's pressing ahead.
Update: SpaceX launches NASA's $4.3 billion Roman Space Telescope
The supply chain reaches beyond the US: CNES says France's Laboratoire d'astrophysique de Marseille designed and built the 16 parabolic mirrors inside Roman'...
original 2026-08-30
BepiColombo separates from transfer module, begins Mercury arrival phase
ESA and JAXA's BepiColombo shed its transfer module and began final approach to Mercury, orbit insertion set for November 21.
Update: ispace-Europe wins ESA's 65 million euro MAGPIE lunar rover contract
ESA's own Sept. 2 page confirms the MAGPIE contract's formal implementation signing ceremony (Space for Inspiration event, Copenhagen) and adds first-party m...
original 2026-07-24score 4 → 5
SpaceX launches NASA's $4.3 billion Roman Space Telescope
A SpaceX Falcon Heavy launched NASA's flagship Roman Space Telescope on Aug. 30, nine months ahead of schedule.
AeroVironment wins NASA contract to build three Mars helicopters for SkyFall
AeroVironment will co-design and build three autonomous helicopters for NASA's SkyFall mission to Mars, targeting a November 2028 launch.
China postpones Chang'e-7 launch to moon's south pole
China's ice-hunting lunar lander missed its launch window this year, with no confirmed new date.
JAXA schedules MMX Mars-moon sample-return launch for October 20
JAXA set an October 20 launch date for its MMX Mars sample-return mission aboard H3 flight F10, carrying two NASA instruments.
Firefly books Zeno Power radioisotope heater for 2028 lunar night demo
Firefly will fly Zeno Power's radioisotope heater unit on a Blue Ghost mission to test surviving the 14-day lunar night.
Update: ispace switches to Japan's H3 rocket for 2028 lunar lander mission
Upgrades the lead from Nikkei (mainstream) to Mitsubishi Heavy Industries' own press release confirming the launch-services contract signing, and attaches Sp...
original 2026-07-29score 2 → 5
ispace switches to Japan's H3 rocket for 2028 lunar lander mission
ispace and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries signed a launch contract putting ispace's next lunar lander on Japan's domestic H3 rocket in 2028.
Update: ispace-Europe wins ESA's 65 million euro MAGPIE lunar rover contract
European Spaceflight reported July 27 that, asked why the award exceeds SMEX's roughly 50 million euro cost target, an ESA spokesperson said the MAGPIE contr...
original 2026-07-24
ispace-Europe wins ESA's 65 million euro MAGPIE lunar rover contract
ESA awarded ispace-Europe a 65 million euro Phase 2 contract to build and deliver its MAGPIE rover to the Moon's south pole.
Advanced Space wins NASA contract to build CAPSTONE 02 cislunar mission
NASA picked Advanced Space to fly CAPSTONE 02, twin cislunar satellites testing autonomous rendezvous ahead of a 2027 launch.
NASA prices nuclear-powered Mars mission SR-1 Freedom at $2.1 billion
NASA budgeted its first fission-powered Mars spacecraft, SR-1 Freedom, at $2.1 billion for a late-2028 launch.
MDA Space UK selected by OHB to supply lunar landing sensors for ESA's Argonaut
MDA Space UK will supply LEIA LiDAR sensors for the hazard-detection system on ESA's Argonaut lunar lander, per an interim OHB contract.
ESA books Ariane 6 to launch Henon deep-space CubeSat
ESA signed a launch contract flying its Henon CubeSat as a secondary payload on Ariane 6 alongside the Plato telescope.
Draper and NASA terminate CLPS lunar lander task order after delays
NASA and Draper mutually ended the CP-12 lunar lander task order after years of schedule slips, ispace-U.S. said.
NASA moves SunRISE mission from ULA Vulcan to SpaceX Falcon Heavy
NASA's SunRISE solar radio mission will now launch on a Falcon Heavy rideshare instead of a Vulcan Centaur.
China's Tianwen-2 probe reaches asteroid Kamo'oalewa, sends first images
Tianwen-2 closed to 20km of Kamo'oalewa and sent its first photos, revealing a smaller asteroid than expected.
JAXA's Hayabusa2 makes closest-ever asteroid flyby, first laser ranging
Hayabusa2 passed 744 meters from asteroid Torifune's center, the closest Solar System flyby on record, laser-ranging it during the pass.
ESA contracts EMXYS to build asteroid-landing CubeSat for Ramses mission
ESA contracted Spain's EMXYS to build Don Quijote, the first CubeSat designed to land on an asteroid, for its Ramses mission.