A slow week at least here in the US when it comes to spaceflight activities but we do have an exciting moment Friday. With Virgin Galactic planning its third flight the end of this week, they are trying to keep their momentum going with a truly incredible launch rate.

Venturi Astrolab, the developer of the Flexible Logistics and Exploration (FLEX) rover, has inked an agreement with SpaceX that is set to propel its innovative rover to the lunar surface aboard a Starship flight. This ambitious mission, scheduled for a potential launch in mid-2026, marks SpaceX’s first-ever commercial cargo contract for lunar delivery.

It’s been an entire week since Chandrayaan-3 landed on the Moon, putting India in a small club of those who can do it. Since then ISRO has been sharing photos from its lander and rover, as well as some early science results. On Wednesday, ISRO treated us to a photo of the Chandrayaan-3 lander, on the surface of the Moon, courtesy of the small rover that tagged along for the ride.

Between the increasing need and decreasing budgets, NASA’s Deep Space Network is running into constraints during big missions like Artemis 1. DSN’s director is concerned the lack of funding to expand deep space communications and the continued requirement to drop everything for these missions will harm NASA’s other science missions.

It’s clear the James Webb Space Telescope was set to stun in newly released galactic portraits of galaxy M51. Researchers tapped into two of the telescope’s powerful infrared instruments to capture the distant object. Let’s take a look!

On Wednesday, August 30th, we’ll have our second full moon of the month! This occurrence is known as a “blue moon,” and just as the saying goes, it doesn’t happen often.

What makes this blue moon even more special is that it also coincides with a supermoon creating a rare event that won’t happen again until 2037. Here’s what time the rare blue supermoon occurs in different areas of the world…

On Rocket Lab’s 40th Electron rocket launch, the company successfully re-debuted the Rutherford engine, but this time it was flight-proven. After a last-minute change, Capella Space’s latest satellite was deployed into orbit using a recoverable variant of the Electron with one of its nine first-stage engines being reused from a previous mission.

Early Saturday morning a crew of four astronauts from around the globe lifted off from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center on a SpaceX Falcon 9 for a six-month stay on the International Space Station. The crew is currently in transit to the ISS, and expecting to arrive Sunday morning.

The Department of Justice announced Thursday that they are suing SpaceX over hiring practices that might have discriminated against non-US citizens and asylum/refugee seekers. This is not the first time this topic has been brought up about SpaceX but after years of investigation, the DOJ seems ready to bring suit.

Houston-based Axiom Space secured a significant boost of $350 million in funding. The Series-C funding round was led by Aljazira Capital from Saudi Arabia and Boryung Pharmaceutical, a prominent South Korean healthcare company.

In case you didn’t watch or finish the first Presidential debate of the 2024 election, I don’t blame you it was chaos. Before moving to closing statements there was a rather interesting question to former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie about UFOs. While no answer was really given, it was an interesting addition to the night.

Over the course of the past six months, Crew-6 has delivered an abundance of breathtaking images from the International Space Station. These views of Earth give the rest of the population the ability to see our planet from unprecedented views.

According to financial documents seen by the Wall Street Journal, SpaceX brought in a small profit in the first quarter of 2023. However, the documents also saw large increases in expenses compared to years prior, echoing the company’s commitment to expand its Starship development program.

In a watershed moment for India’s space program, on Wednesday, the Chandrayaan-3 spacecraft successfully touched down at the unexplored lunar south pole. This is the first time any country has visited this area of the Moon.

Update: The Pragyan rover has rolled off the Vikram lander. Due to the amount of dust kicked up upon the touchdown of the Vikram lander, the rollout of the rover was delayed.

Fresh off the back of a detailed capture earlier this month, NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) has released yet two more images of the famous Ring Nebula. Each reveals surprising new details about the intricate structures of the final stages of the dying star. Let’s take a look…

This week has proven to be one of the most eventful in recent memory, featuring a flurry of activities including two launches to the International Space Station, four SpaceX launches, and four distinct rockets. From the Crew-7 rotation mission by SpaceX, a specialized SmallSat mission by Rocket Lab, to a rare Japanese launch, this week is poised to be action-packed.

The four members of the Crew-7 mission arrived at Kennedy Space Center and are in the final quarantine phase before starting their journey to the International Space Station. Launch week has begun with several events taking place as we get ready to see Crew-7 liftoff.

We have been watching two lunar missions as they progress towards the lunar surface. The first mission involves India’s Chandrayaan 3 lunar lander and rover, while the second pertains to Russia’s Luna 25 lander. Presently, one mission is experiencing a smoother journey compared to the other.

NASA has selected the Space and Technology Solutions team, a joint venture with KBR and Intuitive Machines, to provide multifaceted engineering support for key space orbital systems.

My favorite part of where I live now is four distinct seasons each year. Wisconsin brings cold winters, hot summers, beautiful falls, and well, rainy springs. In contrast, during my time in Florida, we experienced two seasons: intensely hot and wet, followed by relatively less hot and dry (if you’re curious, the latter is when you most likely came for vacation). Interestingly, seasons appear to have lost their uniqueness in space, as a study indicates that Mars once possessed them before its water reserves evaporated.

In an Instagram post, Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin has granted us a rare glimpse into its Florida factory, showcasing the ongoing endeavors of the company. So, what insights does the photograph offer?

The Hubble space telescope stuns–and spooks–in its latest image of a pale ‘ghostly’ galaxy in the deep reaches of space. Captured with Hubble’s Advanced Camera for Surveys from over 44 million light-years away.

NASA’s Artemis program is slated to land astronauts on the Moon by the end of 2025, but SpaceX’s hurdles with its lunar lander technology could potentially push the much-anticipated mission into 2026, warns a Senior NASA manager.