February 16-22, 2026 / Hawai`i Island, USA

Vol 45, Week 7: Lunar Broadcast Precursor — Terrestrial Edition

Second Anniversary of IM-1 Lunar Mission and Upcoming Moon Landings

The second observation of 1st commercial landing on the Moon occurs February 22. Intuitive Machines IM-1 Odysseus landed at 80.13°S near Malapert A Crater in 2024. It carried 6 NASA and 6 commercial payloads. IM-2 Athena lander attempted name imprinting in lunar regolith and Firefly Blue Ghost had a fully operational landing, with their 1st annual observations next month. As the Artemis 2 crewed mission prepares to launch NET March 6 for a Moon flyby, China’s Chang’E-7 (CE-7) uncrewed lander readies for launch NET August from Wenchang for a November/December touchdown near Shackleton Crater rim—very close to lunar South Pole. CE-7 advances plans for the International Lunar Research Station with 6 instruments related to finding water ice. CE-7 also carries ILOA astronomical camera ILO-C, developed with international input from China, Hong Kong University and Thailand, and Hawai’i. ILO-C aims to photograph and transmit to Earth inspirational images of the Milky Way. Future lunar missions include IM-3, IM-4, Firefly Blue Ghost 2, Astrolab FLIP and FLEX rovers (carrying your name / message), Chang’E-8 and Artemis 3 to return humans to the Moon. (Image Credits: International Lunar Observatory Association, Grok)

GSLV Mk II Nears Retirement: Sriharikota GISAT-1A Launch Spotlights Shift to Reusable NGLV

Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle Mark II (GSLV Mk II) has only 6 remaining flights planned, beginning with the GISAT-1A (EOS-05) launch scheduled for February 20 from Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota, India. This mission will deploy a geostationary Earth observation satellite for near-real-time monitoring of the Indian subcontinent. The GSLV Mk II is a three-stage vehicle with four liquid strap-on boosters powered by Vikas engines. It is capable of lifting up to 6,000 kg to low Earth orbit (LEO) and 2,250 kg to geostationary transfer orbit (GTO). ISRO continues operations with the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) for versatile payloads, the Small Satellite Launch Vehicle (SSLV) for dedicated smallsat missions, and the Launch Vehicle Mark 3 (LVM3, formerly GSLV Mk III) for heavy-lift tasks up to 4,000 kg to GTO—as demonstrated in the Chandrayaan missions. After these final six GSLV Mk II flights, the vehicle will phase out, and ISRO will transition to the Next Generation Launch Vehicle (NGLV) family. These partially reusable systems differ from the expendable GSLV Mk II with features such as vertical takeoff and vertical landing (VTVL) first stages, semi-cryogenic kerosene-liquid oxygen and methane-liquid oxygen propulsion, and modular designs. They target payloads of 10,000 to 30,000 kg to LEO (or up to 12,000 kg to trans-lunar injection in heavy variants). Reusable architectures are projected to provide three times the payload capacity of LVM3 at 1.5 times the cost. (Image Credits: Indian Space Research Organization)

Humans in Space

⭐ International Space Station, ~415-km LEO: Expedition 74 three members were finally joined by Crew-12 four to reach full complement of 7 aboard; NASA Astronauts Jessica Meir and Jack Hathaway, along with ESA Astronaut Sophie Adenot and Roscosmos Cosmonaut Andrey Fedyaev arrived February 14 for their ~8-month stay, joining Chris Williams of NASA and Cosmonauts Sergey Kud-Sverchkov and Sergei Mikaev; entire crew conducting radiation monitoring with EveryWear system, loading trash / obsolete gear in JAXA HTV-X1 craft set to leave next month, testing surfaces for mold / mildew to maintain safety, taking memory tests, collecting hair samples for analysis, studying protein crystals and continuing research on crew psychology / communications.

⭐ Tiangong Space Station, ~390-km LEO: Shenzhou-21 crew of 3, Zhang Lu (张陆), Wu Fei (武飞), and Zhang Hongzhang (张洪章), in 2nd half of their 6-month mission, continue research on bone metabolism regulation, space omics meaning study of DNA / RNA / proteins / metabolites, visual asymmetry in microgravity and its underlying cognitive neural mechanisms; maintain station equipment including science cabinet / modules / sample chamber and air cleaners; use devices to deliver force stimulation to lower limb muscles; examine intraocular pressure and fundus of the eye; assess cardiac / muscle function. 

🌔 Lunar Enterprise News: SpaceX has put off Mars mission for “about 5 to 7 years,” shifting its focus to going to the Moon first, aiming to build a city there “in less than 10 years, whereas Mars would take 20+ years”; travel time of 2 days vs 6 months was mentioned as a factor in the decision.

☄ Near-Earth Objects Close Approaches – Mon Feb 16: Atira Asteroid 2026 BX4 (0.019 AU); Wed Feb 18: Apollo Asteroid 2026 CU (0.013 AU); Fri Feb 20: Apollo Asteroid 2026 CO (0.011 AU); Sat Feb 21: Apollo Asteroid 2023 CM2 (0.010 AU); Sat Feb 21: Aten Asteroid 2025 DQ (0.007 AU)

The First Woman FLIES to the Moon …

NET (no earlier than)

Days

First Woman LANDS on the Moon …

Days

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Land your name on the Moon!

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Events

Today

  • Launch Falcon 9 / Starlink Group 6-104

    SLC-40 (~28°N), Cape Canaveral SFS FL, USA

    Launch window 02:05-06:05 EST (21:05 Feb 15 - 01:05 Feb 16 HT) for 29 satellites. Booster B1077 expected to make 26th landing on JRTI ASDS barge in the Atlantic Ocean.

  • Launch Falcon 9 / Starlink Group 10-36

    SLC-40 (~28°N), Cape Canaveral SFS FL, USA

    Launch window 17:00-21:00 EST (12:00-16:00 HT) for 29 satellites. Booster B1092, after this 10th reuse, expected land on JRTI ASDS in the Atlantic Ocean.

  • LOGIC Working Meeting: Lunar Operating Guidelines for Infrastructure Consortium

    Online

    February Working Group meeting, 10:00-11:30 EST (UTC-5). Lunar Operating Guidelines for Infrastructure Consortium brings together the international and commercial lunar community around adopting, adapting and potentially authoring interoperability standards, ensuring that lunar infrastructure systems can function within a cohesive ecosystem. Sponsored by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) and managed by Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory […]

  • Lunar New Year

    China (Zhongguo) / Worldwide

    Lunar New Year 2026 Spring Festival marks the Year of the Horse.

  • Annular eclipse of the Sun

    Global / Inter-Global

    Begins 11:42 UTC (01:42 HST), maximum at 12:13 UTC, creating a "ring of fire" visible primarily over remote parts of Antarctica and the southern ocean; 96% of the sun obscured. 

  • Launch Falcon 9 / Starlink Group 17-25

    SLC-4E (~35°N), Vandenberg SFB CA, USA

    Launch window 12:00-16:00 PST for 25 satellites; 1st stage Booster B1063 expected to land after this 31st flight on ASDS OCISLY.

  • 5th Year on Mars: Mars Perseverance Rover

    Mars Surface

    Mars 2020 Perseverance Rover reaches 5 full years on Mars surface having landed in Jezero Crater on this day in 2021; it carried Ingenuity helicopter – the first craft to successfully complete powered flights off-Earth.

  • Secure World Foundation Results of Research Fellowship

    Online

    Space Sustainability Research Fellows selected in 2025 present their research: Deborah Housen-Couriel on information sharing, and Beril Saadet Turnbull / Calum Turner on "the circular space economy"; followed by audience Q&A; 10:00-11:30 EST. Description of Fellows here: https://www.swfound.org/news/announcing-swfs-2025-space-sustainability-research-fellows

  • ISU-DC Space Cafe with JAXA Washington Office Deputy Director

    Washington DC, USA

    Kenta Tsuchiya of Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency Washington DC office will be the special guest, 18:00-20:00 EST at 1201 Pennsylvania Avenue NW ground level conference room, for International Space University USA Alumni Association Washington DC Chapter and the interested public; a casual forum that encourages interaction and discussion.

  • 12th Annual Space Traffic Conference: Operational Assurance for All

    Austin TX, USA

    Sponsored by the Space Security, Safety, and Sustainability (SSSS) Program at The University of Texas at Austin’s (UT) Strauss Center for International Security and Law in partnership with the International Academy of Astronautics (IAA). Experts from all over the world gathered to discuss and exchange knowledge on Space Traffic. As the title […]

  • Innovate Space: Finance Forum

    Dallas TX, USA

    Focus is on innovative financing models; invited are executives, financiers. investors, public-sector leaders; discussed will be Texas Space Commission US$300M in grant funding. At JW Marriott Dallas Arts District.

    $1250 – $1500

  • CFD Validation Challenges: Perspectives from Modelers and Measurers

    London, United Kingdom

    Exchange of ideas, networking opportunities and collaborative discussions aimed at fostering innovation and addressing the pressing mathematical issues faced in today’s technological landscape. At Royal Aeronautical Society HQ, 4 Hamilton Place.

  • spaceNEXT

    Tysons VA, USA

    Inaugural event for visionaries shaping the new space economy, including in-space manufacturing / research and tourism / homesteading, underpinned by technologies in aerospace, robotics, data capabilities. Invited are investors, policymakers, researchers, builders from government, industry and academia. At Capital One Hall, 7750 Capital One Tower Road. Speakers include Amit Kshatriya […]

    Free – $649

  • All Space Considered (Broadcast)

    Los Angeles CA, USA

    Griffith Observatory broadcasts this public program live 19:00-20:30 PST from the Leonard Nimoy Event Horizon Theater. Join the Observatory's curatorial staff as they examine and explain the most-talked-about subjects in astronomy and space science. It is free to attend in-person or stream on YouTube.

  • Launch Falcon 9 / Starlink Group 17-26

    SLC-4E (~35°N), Vandenberg SFB CA, USA

    Launch window 12:00-16:00 PST for 25 satellites; 1st stage Booster B1093 expected to make landing on ASDS OCISLY after this 11th flight.

  • Launch Falcon 9 / Starlink Group 6-104

    SLC-40 (~28°N), Cape Canaveral SFS FL, USA

    Launch window 21:04 Feb 21 - 01:04 Feb 22 EST (16:04-20:04 HT) for 29 satellites; newly commissioned Landing Zone 40, where the 1st stage booster for Dragon Crew-12 landed on February 13, 2026, could have the landing of 1st stage Booster B1067 after this 33rd flight, although it has been […]

  • AIAA Carolina Aerospace Symposium

    Charlotte NC, USA

    Showcasing the accomplishments and progress of aerospace engineering; open to professionals, educators, students, retirees. At Energy Production and Infrastructure Center, 8700 Phillips Road, 09:00-18:00 EST.

    $20 – $50

  • 2nd Anniversary: First-Ever Commercial Lunar Landing (Intuitive Machines IM-1)

    Near Malapert A Crater, 80.13°S 1.44°E, Moon Surface

    Second annual observation of 1st successful commercial lunar landing on Moon by Intuitive Machines IM-1 Nova-C Lander "Odysseus". This mission also marks the USA first return to the Moon since Apollo 17 in 1972. IM-1 lander carried 6 NASA and 6 independent payloads to surface, landing near Malapert A Crater […]

VIEW DOWNRANGE – WEEKS AHEAD