First Women in Space and on the Moon, Advanced at ISDC and European Lunar Symposium? A triad of observations occurs this week commemorating the first woman in space (Valentina Tereshkova in 1963), first woman from USA in space (Sally Ride in 1983) and the first woman from China / PRC
Wenchang, Hainan Hosting Enterprise, Tourists at 19° N and Delivering Missions, Crew to Deep Space The newest land-based launch site in China, Wenchang Space Launch Center on Hainan Island, has attracted hundreds of aerospace businesses to the area as well as tourism. According to Global Times, 700+ space-related enterprises are settled
ispace Aims for Hakuto-R Moon Touchdown June 6; Third Company to Attempt a Lunar Landing in 2025 The anticipated landing of ispace Hakuto-R Resilience is set for 04:24 on June 6 (Japan Standard Time). There will be livestreamed events for the landing sequence. This second attempt by ispace comes just
Tianwen-2 Set to Launch May 29 to Sample Asteroid Kamo’oalewa, Study Comet 311/P PanSTARRS The first asteroid sample return / comet orbiter mission from China, Tianwen-2, is set to launch early May 29 aboard a Long March 3B from Xichang Satellite Launch Center, China. The craft will aim to gather
10 Humans in Space Work on Life and Material Sciences Aboard ISS and TSS Orbiting the Earth 16x a day is the International Space Station and current Expedition 73 crew: Commander Takuya Onishi, and Astronauts Anne McClain, Nichole Ayers, Kirill Peskov, Sergey Ryzhikov, Alexey Zubritsky and Jonny Kim. Docked are
Australia Lunar and NewSpace Ongoings, Bowen Spaceport Inaugural Gilmour Eris-1 Launch Set for NET May 15 Gilmour Space is set for the inaugural launch of its Eris Block 1 three-stage orbital rocket from Bowen Orbital Spaceport in Queensland, Australia NET May 15. This will be the first launch from Bowen
India Spotlights Our Galaxy: IAF GLEX May 7-9; ILOA Galaxy Forums May 9 & 12 International Astronautical Federation (IAF) holds Global Space Exploration Conference 2025 (GLEX2025) to foster collaboration among astronauts, engineers, scientists and agency leaders, receiving 1275 abstract submissions from 57 countries. Acknowledging the IAF vision of A space-faring
Europe Conferences Hosted in Tartu, Vienna, Berlin; Launch of Vega Set for April 28 Estonia is 2025 chair of the European Interparliamentary Space Conference themed Security in Space: Europe’s Challenges and Opportunities. The Annual Workshop is April 27-29 in Tartu, which is the science and research capital, and location of
China to Launch Shenzhou, Holds 2nd Lunar Samples Forum and National Space Day During China Space Conference Tiangong Space Station Taikonauts are planning to welcome Shenzhou 20 three-member crew subsequent to their launch from Jiuquan aboard a Long March 2F rocket. Similar to the current 3-member crew, they expect a stay
New Shepard NS-31 Flight April 14 to Take All-Women Crew to Suborbital Space Six women are prepped to fly aboard the next crewed Blue Origin New Shepard NS-31 flight, aiming for an April 14 liftoff from Corn Ranch, Van Horn, Texas. Though many NS flights have science experiments, this flight
Apophis T-4 Years: Knowledge Opportunity for the Science of Planetary Defense Meteor Apophis will pass by Earth on April 13, 2029. This year, “T minus 4 years,” a workshop in Tokyo, April 9-10 is held for researchers to discuss protecting Earth from asteroids, meteors and meteorites. The Tunguska Meteor, exploding
Many Firsts to Be Accomplished in Polar Orbit by Fram2 The privately funded Fram2 mission sees 4 astronauts aboard a Crew Dragon spacecraft atop a Falcon 9, launching NET Mar 31 from Florida and headed to LEO, ~430km, as the first human spaceflight over Earth polar regions. Poles are invisible
ISS Science Lab Welcomes Crew-10; TSS Continues Astronautical Science Humans permanently living in space is a 21st Century crowning accomplishment and continues with International Space Station (ISS) Expedition 72 and its 7 crew. Recently arrived SpaceX Crew-10 NASA Astronauts Anne McClain and Nichole Ayers, JAXA Astronaut Takuya Onishi and Roscosmos
Blue Origin Following Many Paths to Fulfill its Mission The mission of Blue Origin is to reduce space travel costs, promote off-Earth resources, and inspire people to live and work in space for the benefit of Earth. Moon lander Blue Moon Mark 1 (MK1) can carry 3 tons to the
International Space Station Astronauts Continue Important Research, Exemplify International Cooperation Expedition 71 crew continues to unload ~2600 kg of food, fuel, supplies and a new Orlan-MKS spacesuit that arrived via the Progress 91P cargo craft. Roscosmos Cosmonauts Aleksandr Gorbunov, Aleksey Ovchinin and Ivan Vagner are working to improve communications between
2 Lunar Landings in March: Firefly Blue Ghost Followed by IM Nova-C Athena The first attempted Moon landing by Firefly Aerospace, on the mission named Ghost Riders in the Sky, is set to occur on March 2 at 02:45 CST, after many successes so far: insertion into lunar orbit, instrument
Significant SpaceX Launches on the Horizon: Starship, IM-2 to the Moon, NASA Science Sats, Transporter-13 Working at an all-time record pace, Starbase General Manager Kathy Lueders notes SpaceX is aiming for 25 Starship launches in 2025. So far, SpaceX has launched 21 Falcon 9s and 1 Starship this year (as
Continued Science, Activities Aboard ISS as Commercial Stations Plan 2026-2028 Operations The seven spaceworkers of International Space Station continue experiments involving crop growth, in-space body orientation, plant radiation exposure, nutrients provided by yeast, student-controlled camera and VR headsets. Progress 89P cargo ship will undock near the end of February to
United Nations Holds COPUOS and UNOOSA Meetings to Focus on Cislunar PNT and Space Debris On February 11-13 the United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs (UNOOSA), directed by Aarti Holla-Maini, will hold a workshop in Vienna, Austria on cislunar positioning, navigation, and timing (PNT), along with the International Committee
United Nations Holds COPUOS and UNOOSA Meetings to Focus on Cislunar PNT and Space Debris On February 11-13 the United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs (UNOOSA), directed by Aarti Holla-Maini, will hold a workshop in Vienna, Austria on cislunar positioning, navigation, and timing (PNT), along with the International Committee
10 International Astronauts in Low Earth Orbit Focus on Experiments, EVAs, Cargo Tiangong Space Station Shenzhou 19 crew Cai Xuzhe, Song Lingdong and Wang Haoze are now halfway into their 6-month mission and continue to work with ~6,000 kg of supplies and experiments from Tianzhou-8 cargo craft. The crew performed
Ad Astra, per Aspera: Pioneers Having a Positive Impact Today Crews of Apollo 1, Challenger and Columbia are looked-to each January-February as inspiration for humanity’s reach for the stars. Let us each carry their dreams forward, pushing boundaries and traveling beyond our Earth into our entire Solar System and beyond.
New USA Vision for 21st Century Human Solar System Complete Exploration? Strategic planning for the next 75 years (2025-2100) is of high priority for Earth / terrestrial protection and human exploration and expansion into the complete Solar System. January 20 USA Presidential Inauguration Day, also Martin Luther King Jr. Day
SpaceX Transporter-12 Mission to Carry About 50 Satellites to SSO, NET January 14 Transporter-12 is planned to launch from SLC-4E, Vandenberg SFB, CA on January 14 via SpaceX Falcon 9 (estimated launch cost US$52M). F9 first stage is expected to land on a drone ship. About 50 objects are being