NASA plans to return four astronauts from the ISS to Earth early Jan. 15, about a week after one of them experienced a medical issue that prompted the shortened mission.

The post Crew-11 to make early return Jan. 15 appeared first on SpaceNews.

The FCC approved a second tranche of 7,500 Starlink Gen2 satellites Jan. 9, expanding the size of SpaceX’s authorized next-generation constellation.

The post FCC approves 7,500 additional Starlink satellites appeared first on SpaceNews.

SpaceX sweeps nine national security missions for SDA and NRO under NSSL Phase 3 Lane 1

The post Space Force awards $739 million in launch orders to SpaceX appeared first on SpaceNews.

Pete Hegseth praises U.S.-built satellites and rapid launch as Trump administration escalates pressure on legacy primes

The post Pentagon chief takes ‘Arsenal of Freedom’ tour to Rocket Lab appeared first on SpaceNews.

Commercial launch startup Landspace has secured formal contracts to launch satellites for China’s two main megaconstellation projects, helping to address a launch capacity bottleneck.

The post Landspace secures launch contracts for China’s megaconstellation projects appeared first on SpaceNews.

At the beginning of 2026, it’s worth reflecting on the U.S. Space Force’s recent accomplishments. They include the creation of the Commercial Space Office and its Commercial Augmentation Space Reserve, a working capital fund to provide flexibility in providing MILSATCOM services and new acquisition approaches for Resilient GPS and Protected Tactical SATCOM. The list of […]

The post The Space Force will acquire and integrate systems faster in 2026 appeared first on SpaceNews.

America faces a choice in space: lead or follow. There’s no middle ground anymore. China is methodically executing a plan to dominate the moon and cislunar space. The question isn’t whether someone will control humanity’s next economic frontier — it’s whether that someone will be us or them. And if we want it to be […]

The post The U.S. will seize space leadership – or China will take it appeared first on SpaceNews.

‘Vanguard’ project builds on NASA-developed AutoNav under a $1.9 million SpaceWERX contract

The post Rhea Space Activity applies optical navigation to military rendezvous missions appeared first on SpaceNews.

NASA has decided to bring home early four members of the International Space Station crew because of a medical issue with one of them, a first for NASA.

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Catalyst Campus is proud to announce they are now accepting applications for Cohort 4 of the SDA TAP Lab – Catalyst Campus Mini Accelerator, a high-impact accelerator program designed to […]

The post APPLICATIONS OPEN FOR COHORT 4 OF SDA TAP LAB – CATALYST CAMPUS MINI ACCELERATOR appeared first on SpaceNews.

NASA expects to launch the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope as soon as September, seeing it as evidence the agency can do flagships on cost and schedule.

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A billionaire-backed philanthropic organization is funding the development of a series of new observatories, including a space telescope larger than Hubble.

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Launchers Isar Aerospace is expected to attempt its second two-stage Spectrum vehicle test flight, a key step after its first, partially successful liftoff in 2025. In parallel, Spain’s PLD Space and its Miura-5 remain the second contender — after Isar — for the European Launcher Challenge, a competition that increasingly looks like Europe’s closest analogue […]

The post 2026 will clarify Europe’s new priorities for space appeared first on SpaceNews.

In this special episode of Space Minds, our show is split into two segments from the recent SpaceNews annual Icon Awards.

The post The moon, AI and the high-stakes decisions shaping space’s future appeared first on SpaceNews.

The launch of USSF-87 comes amid leadership change at United Launch Alliance and pressure to increase launch tempo

The post Vulcan to open 2026 with national security launch appeared first on SpaceNews.

LiDAR costs, compute power and AI training are the “big three” usually associated with the high cost of autonomous vehicles (AVs). We rarely look up. But maybe we should. High above the Earth, the ionosphere, a chaotic, sun-charged layer of our atmosphere, is levying an invisible tax on every self-driving car in development. If you […]

The post The ‘space tax’ on your self-driving car appeared first on SpaceNews.

An unspecified “medical concern” involving one of the astronauts aboard the International Space Station has postponed a spacewalk and could force an unprecedented early return of part of the crew.

The post Medical issue could force early end of Crew-11 ISS mission appeared first on SpaceNews.

We are in an era where planetary science no longer depends on government missions. Commercial capabilities are mature and ready to deliver a higher cadence of planetary exploration that fits within proposed budgets. What’s missing is an operational model that matches ambition. The old way — one in which bespoke, government-run missions with decade-long development […]

The post Interplanetary science needs a commercial backbone appeared first on SpaceNews.

NASA says it is continuing to prepare for a possible Artemis 2 launch as soon as February, but with remarkably little publicity for the historic mission.

The post NASA continues to work toward February launch of Artemis 2 appeared first on SpaceNews.

IRVINE, Calif., Jan. 7, 2026 — Terran Orbital, a Lockheed Martin Company and a leading manufacturer of satellite solutions, announced today the appointment of Michael Vishion as vice president of […]

The post Terran Orbital Appoints Michael Vishion as Vice President of Program Management appeared first on SpaceNews.

Falcon ExoDynamics wins contract to mature satellite interface developed by Aerospace Corp.

The post Space Force moves to standardize satellites with ‘Handle 2.0’ contract appeared first on SpaceNews.

Spend enough time investing in space and expectations change. The industry does not advance through clean inflection points that resolve uncertainty, and progress rarely aligns with the milestones investors are accustomed to tracking. More often, space infrastructure is absorbed gradually into other systems, registering as essential only after it is already embedded. That dynamic, rather […]

The post SpaceX’s IPO will make space investment far less niche appeared first on SpaceNews.

NASA is ramping up work on its next flagship space telescope while also laying the groundwork for future observatories.

The post NASA seeks to accelerate development of Habitable Worlds Observatory appeared first on SpaceNews.

Pay-as-you-go model aims to simplify traditionally complex imagery procurement

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