Rocket Lab will kick off its 17th Electron launch this morning with its “The Owls Night Begins” mission. Currently, liftoff is scheduled to occur at 2:09 a.m. PST/5:09 a.m. ET from Launch Complex 1 in New Zealand.

NASA has announced that technicians working on assembling the X-59 airplane completed a major milestone in its construction back on November 5. On that day, technicians were successfully able to close up the airplane’s wing, encasing interior components that will never be touched by human hands again.

NASA and ESA have announced which three astronauts will train and become crew members for SpaceX Crew-3 mission in 2021. The mission, which is expected to launch sometime in the fall next year, will carry the three selected astronauts to the International Space Station (ISS) aboard a Crew Dragon spacecraft.

Early in the morning of December 1, the famed Arecibo Observatory in Puerto Rico suffered from a fatal collapse. The event marked the end to a string of unfortunate events that had plagued the observatory. Now, Arecibo’s sad demise and the events leading up to it are acting as a cautionary tale for other aging facilities.

Over the weekend, in honor of its 30th anniversary, NASA unveiled 30 new images of space taken by the Hubble Space Telescope. These images include amazing views of star clusters, nebulae, and much more.

As part of its Launch Services Program (LSP), NASA has awarded Venture Class Launch Services Demonstration 2 (VCLS Demo 2) contracts to three different companies. Those three companies and the fixed-price of their contracts are as follows:

NASA is currently in the process of replacing its three Bell Huey 2 helicopters with new Airbus H135 helicopters at Kennedy Space Center in Florida. NASA has been using the Hueys for about 30 years, and a lot of the staff have expressed their sadness to see them go.

India-based rocket manufacturer AgniKul Cosmos recently announced that it had signed a non-disclosure agreement with the Department of Space (DoS). Under this new agreement, AgniKul will be allowed to access the facilities and technical assistance of various Indian Space Research Organizations (ISRO).

On December 9, 2020, iSpace announced that it had opened a brand new mission control center in Nihonbashi, Tokyo. It will serve as the mission control for the companies commercial lunar exploration program, “HAKUTO-R.”

Hyundai Motor Group has officially announced that it has purchased a controlling stake in the autonomous robot maker Boston Dynamics. The business deal was revealed to have been in the works for quite a while and valued the company at $1.1 billion.

Yesterday, SpaceX completed a semi-successful high-altitude flight test using a prototype Starship rocket called SN8. The rocket was successfully able to launch and readjust itself in an attempt to slow its speed for landing. However, the landing ended in a fiery explosion that SpaceX says it was expecting.

On November 21, the satellite Sentinel-6 Michael Freilich was launched from Vandenberg Air Force Base aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket. Its purpose is to monitor sea-level changes alongside other satellites, and today NASA received its first recordings.

On December 14, 2020, the Moon will move in front of the Sun, creating the only total eclipse that will take place this year. Unfortunately, most of you reading this article won’t be able to view the eclipse, though, due to it only be visible from Chile and Argentina in South America.

After the failure of Starliner’s first uncrewed test flight back in December 2019, Boeing and NASA are finally ready to give it another go. The aerospace company is now targeting March 29, 2021, to launch Starliner’s second uncrewed flight.

This year’s winter solstice will bring something special in regards to the planets in our solar system. Saturn and Jupiter will be appearing closer in the night sky than they have since July 16, 1623.

Bengaluru-based company Pixxel is a new satellite startup formed in 2019 by a couple of 21-year-olds. Now, after lots of hard work and funding, the company has signed a deal to launch its first imaging satellite into orbit.

NASA’s Artemis space program is set to send humans back to the Moon for the first time since 1972. The program’s current goals are to send humans around the Moon in 2023, then land humans on the Moon as soon as 2024. Today, NASA announced the 18 astronauts being considered for the prestigious program.

A new report put out by The Debrief discusses some of what goes on behind the scenes at the Pentagon’s Unidentified Aerial Phenomena Task Force (UAPTF). The report includes a handful of testimonials made by current senior US officials who have knowledge of or have been a part of the secretive task force.

According to Ars Technica, Vice President Mike Pence will be announcing a group of 18 astronauts who will be considered for NASA’s Artemis Program. Some of which could even be lucky enough to set foot on the moon.