August 13th, 2025
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Today, President Donald J. Trump signed an Executive Order to streamline regulations and foster a competitive commercial space industry, ensuring the United States maintains its leading role in the commercial use of space. The Order directs the Secretary of Transportation, in consultation with the Chair of the Council on Environmental Quality, “to eliminate or expedite […]
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GOLDEN, Colorado – The Colorado School of Mines has built a large simulated moonscape. The specialized facility is being used to test lunar rovers, evaluate lunar landing and launch pads, excavation gear and assess other hardware ideas. It’s all about getting a lunar leg up on how best to robotically work effectively on the Moon. […]
Virgin Galactic’s new Delta class space plane could fly as soon as fall 2026 The company is also looking at using its mothership aircraft that releases spacecraft at high altitude as a carrier platform for other customers. Go to my new Space.com story at: https://www.space.com/space-exploration/launches-spacecraft/virgin-galactics-new-delta-class-space-plane-could-fly-as-soon-as-fall-2026
The Shenzhou-20 crew aboard China’s Tiangong space station has been occupied in the unpacking of new extravehicular spacesuits and carrying out multiple scientific experiments and tests. The astronaut trio — Chen Dong, Chen Zhongrui and Wang Jie — entered the Tiangong space station on April 25 this year. Last week, the crew unpacked the two […]
Findings from China’s Chang’e-6 lunar sample mission provide evidence of a “super-reduced” state in the Moon’s mantle. Published in the journal Nature Communications, the study shows the mantle material beneath Chang’e-6’s landing site is not only drier and more depleted than samples from the Moon’s near side, but also exists in a more chemically […]
China’s lunar lander aces touchdown and takeoff tests ahead of planned 2030 crewed moon mission. “For our manned space missions, we must ensure that astronauts land on the lunar surface very comfortably and smoothly.” Go to my new Space.com story at: https://www.space.com/astronomy/moon/chinas-lunar-lander-aces-touchdown-and-takeoff-tests-ahead-of-planned-2030-crewed-moon-mission-video
China’s crewed Moon lander completed a comprehensive landing and takeoff verification test. The “Lanyue” lunar lander is undergoing testing at the “extraterrestrial celestial landing test site” in Huailai County, north China’s Hebei Province, reports China Central Television (CCTV). Lanyue is a crew-carrying descent and ascent vehicle designed for China’s first human lunar exploration mission, set […]
It has been a one-two punch as the Philippine Space Agency had to alarm citizens regarding China-launched rocket debris fell into local waters. This new incident involved the “estimated drop zone” of China’s Long March-12 rocket that was lofted from the Hainan commercial spacecraft launch site in the southern island province of Hainan on Monday. […]
Things are progressing for Virgin Galactic’s Delta Class suborbital spaceships for hauling payloads and passengers. A Virgin Galactic Holdings earnings overview was held on August 6, providing an update on construction of the new SpaceShip as well as the mother ship carrier aircraft. Michael Colglazier, CEO of Virgin Galactic noted that “Commercial service remains planned […]
It is a hot topic bracketed by cold hard facts: How best to handle Mars samples here on Earth? Yes, the specter of “Andromeda Strain” is alive and well, brought home by the 1969 novel written by Michael Crichton, later turned into a techno-thriller of a movie. China is moving forward on a specialized […]
