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 100 grams of samples via anchoring-drilling, hover-sampling and touch-and-go techniques from near-Earth asteroid (2016 HO3) 469219 Kamoʻoalewa “celestial fragment that oscillates”. Kamo’oalewa orbits the Sun alongside Earth, is considered a quasi-satellite and may be a fragment of the Moon—possibly originating from the impact that created the Giordano Bruno crater on the far side. Tianwen-2 is planned to arrive at Kamo’oalewa on July 4, 2026 and depart on April 24, 2027. The sample return craft portion will return to Earth in November 2027, providing scientists with valuable insights into the asteroid’s composition and the early Solar System. Tianwen-2 itself will continue its journey, flying by Earth and then taking 6 years to reach the Main Asteroid Belt, where it will then study the periodic comet 311/P PanSTARRS starting January 24, 2035 for at least a full year. These studies may also contribute understandings for planetary defense. Long term, the Tianwen deep space program already has missions planned for Mars sample return, Jupiter / Calisto and Uranus. Naturally, Kuiper Belt and Interstellar planning will follow. (Image credits: CNSA, CGNTV, Xinhua)
MONDAY
☆May 26 — International Space Station, ~415-km LEO: Expedition 73 to remain seven-member crew through this week while looking forward to Axiom 4 visitors in early June; working with Cardiobreath and Bio-Monitor experiments during exercise cycles, Plasma Crystal-4 space physics study, 24-hr heart & blood pressure sensors, and monitoring genetically-engineered dwarf tomato plants.
☆May 26 — Tiangong Space Station, ~390-km LEO: Shenzhou 20 three-member crew inspect additional externally mounted space debris protection equipment after performing 8-hr EVA, first of at least 2 spacewalks planned for this mission; new analysis of swabs taken from TSS cabins during Shenzhou 15 (2023) mission shows new strain of bacteria named Niallia tiangongensis.
o May 26-30 — Canadian Space Agency, Canadian Aeronautics and Space Institute, Montreal, Quebec, Canada: SpaceOps 2025: Toward Space Sustainability; exploring aspects of space mission operations, including human and robotic missions.
● May 26-30 — Space Center Houston, Houston TX:Space U (Ages 11-14) and Mission Control Space U (Ages 15-18); learning opportunities tied to NASA missions including space habitats, thermal protection systems, rocketry, robotics; US$720-$960.
☾ May 26 — Moon: 4.7° NNW of Uranus, 04:00; n 0.66° NNE of Pleiades, 09:00; 4.7° N of Mercury, 11:00; New Moon, 17:03.
☆ NET May 15 — Gilmour Space, Launch Eris-1 / Inaugural Test Flight, Bowen Orbital Spaceport, Queensland, Australia: First flight of 3-stage orbital Eris-1 rocket; will attempt to reach LEO; will also mark first flight from Bowen Spaceport.
● = Terrestrial and o = International terrestrial events in local time; ☾ = Moon, ★ = Space and ☆ = International space events in Hawai’i time unless noted.
H2M2 Summit Advocating Humans to the Moon & Mars: Peacefully, Responsibly, Sustainably
The 2025 Humans to the Moon & Mars Summit (H2M2), May 28-29, promotes a sustainable and enduring human presence on the Moon in the 2020s and Mars in the 2030s. Explore Mars Inc. is organizer and CEO Chris Carberry says humanity needs to work together to reach these goals. He will sign his books The Music of Space and Alcohol In Space, and former NASA Chief Scientist James Green will sign Mars: Photographs from NASA Archives. Both also will speak, as will ~11 others from NASA including HQ Acting Associate Administrator Vanessa Wyche and Bhavya Lal. Other speakers include Mike Gold (Redwire), Shawna Pandya (IIAS Space Medicine), Dave Limp (Blue Origin), Tariq Malik (Space.com), Scott Pace (Space Policy Institute) and Janet Ivey (Janet’s Planet). Important foci cover: The commercial sector; Technical hurdles; What skills are needed; How the ensuing R&D can benefit Earth. Networking, tours, Congressional lobbying and STEM workshops are planned. H2M2 fosters collaboration between government and private sector for unified strategy towards a sustainable future in space for all. A reception acknowledges signing of The Washington Compact set of principles compiled by The Hague Institute for Global Justice, to guide commercial space operators in peaceful use, transparency, and responsible behavior. (Pictured: Center L-R: Limp, Carberry; CW from upper Rt: Pace, Ivey, Pandya, Malik, Green, Gold, Wyche, Lal) (Image Credits: Explore Mars Inc., NASA, NASA/Pat Rawlings/SAIC, Rewire, Blue Origin, Space.com)
TUESDAY
★ May 27 — SpaceX, Launch Starship (9th Flight), Starbase, Boca Chica TX: Starship Flight Test 9 with Booster 14 and Ship 35; 8-day launch window, opens today 18:30 CDT.
● May 27 — NASA, Freelancer, Online: Design contest entries due for Artemis II Moon Mascot zero gravity indicator; small plush item maximum ~15x15x15 cm, to be fabricated by NASA Thermal Blanket Lab.
o May 27-28 — SatNews, ESA Airbus, Clyde Space, KSat, RedWire, et al, Amsterdam, The Netherlands:SmallSat Europe 2025.
o May 27-29 — Global Satellite Operators Association, Singapore Space & Technology Ltd, et al, Singapore:SatelliteAsia 2025.
☆ May 28 — Apollo Asteroid 2025 JR: Near-Earth Flyby (0.030 AU)
THURSDAY
☆May 29 — CNSA, Launch Long March 3B/E / Tianwen-2, Xichang Satellite Launch Center, China: First asteroid sample return for China, to Kamo’oalewa (2016 HO3) planned to launch 01:22-01:44 local time; return module planned to slingshot main spacecraft to comet 311P/PANSTARRS for ~2035 arrival.
☆ May 29 — Mars: Summer solstice for Mars north hemisphere, 13:00.
☆ May 29 — Mercury: At superior conjunction with Sun, 1.322 AU from Earth, 18:00.
FRIDAY
★ May 30 — SpaceX, Launch Falcon 9 / Starlink Group 11-18, SLC-4E, Vandenberg SFB CA: Next batch of Starlink satellites to launch for LEO mega-constellation.
☾ May 30 — Moon: 2.32° S of Pollux, 00:00.
☆ May 30 — Mercury: 6.1° NNW of Aldebaran, 02:00.
☆ May 30 — Apollo Asteroid 2022 KP3: Near-Earth Flyby (0.026 AU)
☾ May 31 — Moon: 2.36° NNE of Beehive Cluster, 01:00.
☆ May 31 — Mercury: At perihelion, 0.3075 AU from Sun, 03:00.
SUNDAY
★ NET Jun — Rocket Lab, Launch Electron / DART AE, Rocket Lab Launch Complex 2, Wallops Flight Facility VA: Payload is a scramjet-powered hypersonic vehicle developed by Hypersonix of Australia.
☾ Jun 1 — Chang’E-6,Apollo Basin, South Pole–Aitken Basin, Moon (153.99° W, 41.64° S): CE-6 lander as part of sample return mission reaches 1 full years / enters 2nd year on lunar surface, having landed on this day in 2024, with sample return launching from the Moon 2 days later.
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