America's Next-Generation Spaceplane Won't Head to the ISS on its First Mission as Originally Planned...

Sierra Space

Dream Chaser® Advances Toward First Flight, Eyes Multi-Use Applications (Press Release)

LOUISVILLE, Colo. – Sierra Space, a proven Defense Tech company delivering solutions for the nation’s most critical missions and advancing the future of security in space, announced today a strategic transition for its Dream Chaser® spaceplane. Dream Chaser’s first flight will be a free-flyer, demonstration mission, which is expected to prove the technology and deliver critical data to NASA. This approach aims to provide Sierra Space with flexibility to address the nation’s most pressing National Security Space challenges, while continuing to advance Dream Chaser’s capabilities for NASA and commercial customers.

Sierra Space is prioritizing first-flight readiness with Dream Chaser, targeting a launch in late 2026 to align with expected launch vehicle availability. Sierra Space and NASA worked together to reach this mutually-beneficial agreement that provides greater mission flexibility for Dream Chaser’s first flight. This flight aims to demonstrate critical capabilities for NASA’s ISS resupply and future Commercial LEO Destinations (CLD) missions and position Dream Chaser as a national asset available for future national security and defense demonstrations.

As America’s Spaceplane®, we believe that its adaptability as an orbital, hypersonic spacecraft and rapid deployment, commercial testbed is critical to addressing the nation’s evolving priorities and emerging threats. Additionally, Dream Chaser has unique features and capabilities as a commercial, autonomous spaceplane with the ability to land on any conventional runway, enabling reusability, rapid turnaround and cost-efficient operations for space missions.

“Dream Chaser represents the future of versatile space transportation and mission flexibility,” said Fatih Ozmen, Executive Chair at Sierra Space. “This transition provides unique capabilities to meet the needs of diverse mission profiles, including emerging and existential threats and national security priorities that align with our acceleration into the Defense Tech market. Together with NASA, we are seeking to preserve the exceptional potential of Dream Chaser as a national asset, ensuring its readiness for the next era of space innovation.”

Source: Sierra Space

"Integrity" Will Soon Head to the Moon...

NASA / Rad Sinyak

Artemis II Crew Members Name Their Orion Spacecraft (News Release)

The Artemis II crew members named their Orion spacecraft Integrity during a news conference on September 24.

The name Integrity embodies the foundation of trust, respect, candor and humility across the crew and the many engineers, technicians, scientists, planners and dreamers required for mission success. The name is also a nod to the extensive integrated effort – from the more than 300,000 spacecraft components to the thousands of people across the world – that must come together to venture to the Moon and back, inspire the world, and set course for a long-term presence at the Moon.

Integrity is rooted in a shared core value of NASA, the agency’s astronaut office, and CSA (Canadian Space Agency).

As part of a Golden Age of innovation and exploration, the approximately 10-day Artemis II test flight, launching no later than April 2026, is the first crewed flight under NASA’s Artemis campaign.

Source: NASA.Gov

Welcoming the Next Generation of Space Explorers for Artemis and Beyond...

NASA

NASA Selects All-American 2025 Class of Astronaut Candidates (News Release)

NASA’s 10 new astronaut candidates were introduced on Monday following a competitive selection process of more than 8,000 applicants from across the United States. The class will now complete nearly two years of training before becoming eligible for flight assignments supporting future science and exploration missions to low-Earth orbit, the Moon and Mars.

Acting NASA Administrator Sean Duffy welcomed the all-American 2025 astronaut candidate class during a ceremony at the agency’s Johnson Space Center in Houston.

“I’m honored to welcome the next generation of American explorers to our agency! More than 8,000 people applied – scientists, pilots, engineers, dreamers from every corner of this nation. The 10 men and women sitting here today embody the truth that in America, regardless of where you start, there is no limit to what a determined dreamer can achieve – even going to space,” said Duffy. “Together, we’ll unlock the Golden Age of exploration.”

The agency’s 24th astronaut class reported for duty at NASA Johnson in mid-September and immediately began their training. Their curriculum includes instruction and skills development for complex operations aboard the International Space Station, Artemis missions to the Moon, and beyond. Specifically, training includes robotics, land and water survival, geology, foreign language, space medicine and physiology, and more, while also conducting simulated spacewalks and flying high-performance jets.

After graduation, the 2025 class will join the agency’s active astronaut corps. Active astronauts are conducting science research aboard the space station while preparing for the transition to commercial space stations and the next great leaps in human exploration at the Moon and Mars. The candidates’ operational expertise, scientific knowledge, and technical backgrounds are essential to advancing NASA’s deep space exploration goals and sustaining a long-term human presence beyond low-Earth orbit.

The 2025 astronaut candidates are:

-- Ben Bailey, 38, chief warrant officer 3, U.S. Army, was born and raised in Charlottesville, Virginia. He has a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from the University of Virginia and is completing a master’s in systems engineering at the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, California. Bailey is a U.S. Naval Test Pilot School graduate with more than 2,000 flight hours in more than 30 different rotary and fixed-wing aircraft.

At the time of his selection, Bailey was responsible for the developmental testing of emerging technologies aboard Army rotary-wing aircraft, specializing in the UH-60 Black Hawk and CH-47F Chinook.

-- Lauren Edgar, 40, considers Sammamish, Washington, her hometown. She earned a bachelor’s degree in Earth sciences from Dartmouth College, and her master’s and doctorate in geology from the California Institute of Technology. Edgar has served as the deputy principal investigator for the Artemis III Geology Team.

In this role, Lauren helped define lunar science goals and geology activities that NASA astronauts will conduct, and science operations for NASA’s return to the Moon. She also spent more than 17 years supporting Mars exploration rovers. Edgar was working at the U.S. Geological Survey at the time of her selection.

-- Adam Fuhrmann, 35, major, U.S. Air Force, is from Leesburg, Virginia, and has accumulated more than 2,100 flight hours in 27 aircraft, including the F-16 and F-35. He holds a bachelor’s degree in aerospace engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and master’s degrees in flight test engineering and systems engineering from the U.S. Air Force Test Pilot School and Purdue University, respectively. He has deployed in support of Operations Freedom’s Sentinel and Resolute Support, logging 400 combat hours.

At the time of his selection, Fuhrmann served as the director of operations for an Air Force flight test unit.

-- Cameron Jones, 35, major, U.S. Air Force, is a native of Savanna, Illinois. He holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees in aerospace engineering from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. He is also a graduate of the U.S. Air Force Test Pilot School at Edwards Air Force Base in California and the U.S. Air Force Weapons School at Nellis Air Force Base in Nevada.

Jones is an experienced test pilot with more than 1,600 flight hours in more than 30 different aircraft, including 150 combat hours. The majority of his flight time is in the F-22 Raptor. At the time of his selection, Jones was an Air Force Academic Fellow at the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency.

-- Yuri Kubo, 40, is a native of Columbus, Indiana. He earned a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering and a master’s in electrical and computer engineering from Purdue University. He spent 12 years working across various teams at SpaceX, including as launch director for Falcon 9 rocket launches, director of avionics for the Starshield program, and director of Ground Segment.

Earlier in his career, Kubo was a co-op student at NASA Johnson, where he completed multiple tours supporting the Orion spacecraft, the International Space Station, and the Space Shuttle Program. At the time of his selection, Kubo was the senior vice president of Engineering at Electric Hydrogen.

-- Rebecca Lawler, 38, is a native of Little Elm, Texas, and a former lieutenant commander in the U.S. Navy. She is a former Navy P-3 pilot and experimental test pilot with more than 2,800 flight hours in more than 45 aircraft. Lawler holds a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from the U.S. Naval Academy and master’s degrees from Johns Hopkins University and the National Test Pilot School.

Lawler is also a U.S. Naval Test Pilot School graduate. She also flew as a National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration hurricane hunter, and during NASA’s Operation IceBridge. Lawler was a test pilot for United Airlines at the time of selection.

-- Anna Menon, 39, is from Houston and earned her bachelor’s degree from Texas Christian University with a double major in mathematics and Spanish. She also holds a master’s in biomedical engineering from Duke University. Menon previously worked in the Mission Control Center at NASA Johnson, supporting medical hardware and software aboard the International Space Station.

In 2024, Menon flew to space as a mission specialist and medical officer aboard SpaceX’s Polaris Dawn. The mission saw a new female altitude record, the first commercial spacewalk, and the completion of approximately 40 research experiments. At the time of her selection, Menon was a senior engineer at SpaceX.

-- Imelda Muller, 34, considers Copake Falls, New York, her hometown. She was formerly a lieutenant in the U.S. Navy and served as an undersea medical officer after training at the Naval Undersea Medical Institute. Muller earned a bachelor’s degree in behavioral neuroscience from Northeastern University and a medical degree from the University of Vermont College of Medicine.

Muller's experience includes providing medical support during Navy operational diving training at NASA’s Neutral Buoyancy Laboratory. At the time of her selection, Muller was completing a residency in anesthesia at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine in Baltimore.

-- Erin Overcash, 34, lieutenant commander, U.S. Navy, is from Goshen, Kentucky. She holds a bachelor’s degree in aerospace engineering and a master’s in bioastronautics from the University of Colorado, Boulder. A U.S. Naval Test Pilot School graduate, Overcash is an experienced F/A-18E and F/A-18F Super Hornet pilot with multiple deployments.

Overcash has logged more than 1,300 flight hours in 20 aircraft, including 249 carrier arrested landings. Overcash was part of the Navy’s World Class Athlete Program and trained full-time at the Olympic Training Center with the USA Rugby Women’s National Team. She was training for a squadron department head tour at the time of selection.

-- Katherine Spies, 43, is a native of San Diego and holds a bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering from the University of Southern California and a master’s in design engineering from Harvard University. She is a former Marine Corps AH-1 attack helicopter pilot and experimental test pilot, with more than 2,000 flight hours in more than 30 different aircraft. A graduate of the U.S. Naval Test Pilot School, she served as UH-1Y/AH-1Z project officer and AH-1W platform coordinator during her time on active duty.

At the time of her selection, Spies was the director of flight test engineering at Gulfstream Aerospace Corporation.

With the addition of these 10 individuals, NASA has now recruited 370 astronaut candidates since selecting the original Mercury Seven in 1959.

“Today, our mission propels us even further as we prepare for our next giant leap with NASA’s newest astronaut candidate class,” said Vanessa Wyche, director of NASA Johnson. “Representing America’s best and brightest, this astronaut candidate class will usher in the Golden Age of innovation and exploration as we push toward the Moon and Mars.”

Source: NASA.Gov

Orion Is Ready for its First Crewed Flight to the Moon...

NASA / Frank Michaux

Artemis II LASF (Photo Release - September 17)

Teams with NASA’s Exploration Ground Systems attached the fourth and final ogive fairing for the launch abort system of the Orion spacecraft for the Artemis II mission.

The fully-installed fairings were photographed inside the Launch Abort System Facility high bay at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on September 17, 2025.

The ogives are protective panels that will shield the crew module from the severe vibrations and sounds it will experience during launch, while the 44-foot-tall launch abort system will detach from the spacecraft after launch when it is no longer needed.

Source: NASA.Gov

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NASA / Frank Michaux


NASA / Frank Michaux


NASA / Frank Michaux

Factoids About the Next SLS...

NASA

NASA Artemis II Moon Rocket Ready to Fly Crew (News Release)

NASA’s Artemis II SLS (Space Launch System) rocket poised to send four astronauts from Earth on a journey around the Moon next year may appear identical to the Artemis I SLS rocket. On closer inspection, though, engineers have upgraded the agency’s Moon rocket inside and out to improve performance, reliability and safety.

SLS flew a picture perfect first mission on the Artemis I test flight, meeting or exceeding parameters for performance, attitude control and structural stability to an accuracy of tenths or hundredths of a percent as it sent an uncrewed Orion thousands of miles beyond the Moon. It also returned volumes of invaluable flight data for SLS engineers to analyze to drive improvements.

For Artemis II, the major sections of SLS remain unchanged – a central core stage, four RS-25 main engines, two five-segment solid rocket boosters, the ICPS (interim cryogenic propulsion stage), a launch vehicle stage adapter to hold the ICPS, and an Orion stage adapter connecting SLS to the Orion spacecraft. The difference is in the details.

“While we’re proud of our Artemis I performance, which validated our overall design, we’ve looked at how SLS can give our crews a better ride,” said John Honeycutt, NASA’s SLS Program manager. “Some of our changes respond to specific Artemis II mission requirements while others reflect ongoing analysis and testing, as well as lessons learned from Artemis I.”

Engineers have outfitted the ICPS with optical targets that will serve as visual cues to the astronauts aboard Orion as they manually pilot Orion around the upper stage and practice maneuvers to inform docking operations for Artemis III.

The Artemis II rocket includes an improved navigation system compared to Artemis I. Its communications capability has also been improved by repositioning antennas on the rocket to ensure continuous communications with NASA ground stations and the U.S. Space Force’s Space Launch Delta 45, which controls launches along the Eastern Range.

An emergency detection system on the ICPS allows the rocket to sense and respond to problems and notify the crew. The flight safety system adds a time delay to the self-destruct system to allow time for Orion’s escape system to pull the capsule to safety in event of an abort.

The separation motors that push the solid rocket booster away after the elements are no longer needed were angled an additional 15 degrees to increase separation clearance as the rest of the rocket speeds by.

Additionally, SLS will jettison the spent boosters four seconds earlier during Artemis II ascent than occurred during Artemis I. Dropping the boosters several seconds closer to the end of their burn will give engineers flight data to correlate with projections that shedding the boosters several seconds sooner will yield approximately 1,600 pounds of payload to Earth orbit for future SLS flights.

Engineers have incorporated additional improvements based on lessons learned from Artemis I. During the Artemis I test flight, the SLS rocket experienced higher-than-expected vibrations near the solid rocket booster attachment points that was caused by unsteady airflow.

To steady the airflow, a pair of six-foot-long strakes flanking each booster’s forward connection points on the SLS intertank will smooth vibrations induced by airflow during ascent, and the rocket’s electronics system was requalified to endure higher levels of vibrations.

Engineers updated the core stage power distribution control unit, mounted in the intertank, which controls power to the rocket’s other electronics and protects against electrical hazards.

These improvements have led to an enhanced rocket to support crew as part of NASA’s Golden Age of innovation and exploration.

The approximately 10-day Artemis II test flight is the first crewed flight under NASA’s Artemis campaign. It is another step towards new U.S.-crewed missions on the Moon’s surface that will help the agency prepare to send the first astronauts – Americans – to Mars.

Source: NASA.Gov

The Latest Update on Artemis 2 Flight Preparations...

NASA / Cory S Huston

Orion Launch Abort System Integration (Photo Release)

Teams with NASA’s Exploration Ground Systems completed installation of two ogive fairings onto the launch abort system inside the Launch Abort System Facility at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida – on Wednesday, September 10, 2025.

The ogives consist of four protective panels that will shield the crew module from the severe vibrations and sounds it will experience during launch.

Positioned at the top of Orion, the 44-foot-tall launch abort system is designed to carry the crew to safety in the event of an emergency during launch or ascent, with its three solid rocket motors working together to propel Orion – and astronauts inside – away from the rocket for a safe landing in the ocean, or detach from the spacecraft when it is no longer needed.

Source: NASA.Gov

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NASA / Cory S Huston


NASA / Cory S Huston

Send Your Name to the Moon on the First Crewed Flight of Orion!

NASA

Launch Your Name Around Moon in 2026 on NASA’s Artemis II Mission (News Release)

NASA is inviting the public to join the agency’s Artemis II test flight as four astronauts venture around the Moon and back to test systems and hardware needed for deep space exploration. As part of the agency’s “Send Your Name with Artemis II” effort, anyone can claim their spot by signing up before January 21.

Participants will launch their name aboard the Orion spacecraft and SLS (Space Launch System) rocket alongside NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch and CSA (Canadian Space Agency) astronaut Jeremy Hansen.

“Artemis II is a key test flight in our effort to return humans to the Moon’s surface and build toward future missions to Mars, and it’s also an opportunity to inspire people across the globe and to give them an opportunity to follow along as we lead the way in human exploration deeper into space,” said Lori Glaze, acting associate administrator, Exploration Systems Development Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters in Washington.

The collected names will be put on an SD card loaded aboard Orion before launch. In return, participants can download a boarding pass with their name on it as a collectable.

To add your name and receive an English-language boarding pass, visit:

https://go.nasa.gov/artemisnames
To add your name and receive a Spanish-language boarding pass, visit:

https://go.nasa.gov/TuNombreArtemis
As part of a Golden Age of innovation and exploration, the approximately 10-day Artemis II test flight, launching no later than April 2026, is the first crewed flight under NASA’s Artemis campaign. It is another step towards new U.S.-crewed missions on the Moon’s surface that will help the agency prepare to send the first astronauts – Americans – to Mars.

Source: NASA.Gov

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Brandon Hancock


NASA

A Reused Super Heavy Booster Is Tested for IFT-11...

SpaceX

Earlier today, Booster 15 successfully conducted a static fire at Starbase, Texas...paving the way for SpaceX's eleventh flight test of Starship Super Heavy that's currently scheduled for next month.

Booster 15 is now designated as Booster 15-2, since it last flew on Integrated Flight Test 8 six months ago. That demonstration obviously saw Booster 15 being successfully caught by the mechazilla arms of Starbase's first Orbital Launch Tower, but ended with the demise of Ship 34 over the Caribbean Sea.

Next up to be tested for Integrated Flight Test 11 is Ship 38—which will undergo its own static fire in a few weeks.

SpaceX has fired up B15-2 for the first time since it was caught by the chopsticks on Flight 8, for what appeared to be a successful full duration Static Fire. This should be one of the final milestones for the booster ahead of Flight 11@NASASpaceflight https://t.co/HLH1kzZM2f pic.twitter.com/8WleNrgVsD

— Elisar Priel (@ENNEPS) September 7, 2025

South Korea's CubeSat Is Now Attached to the Orion Stage Adapter for the Next SLS Flight...

NASA / Frank Michaux

Artemis II Secondary Payloads Blog and Photos (Photo Release)

Technicians install the Korea AeroSpace Administration's (KASA) K-Rad Cube within the Orion stage adapter inside the Multi-Payload Processing Facility at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida - on Tuesday, September 2, 2025.

The K-Rad Cube, about the size of a shoebox, is one of the CubeSats slated to fly on NASA’s Artemis II test flight in 2026.

Deploying in high-Earth orbit from a spacecraft adapter on NASA’s SLS (Space Launch System) rocket after Orion is safely flying on its own with its crew of four astronauts, K-Rad Cube will use a dosimeter made of material designed to mimic human tissue to measure space radiation and assess biological effects at various altitudes across the Van Allen radiation belts, a critical area of research for human presence at the Moon and Mars.

Source: NASA.Gov

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NASA / Frank Michaux


NASA / Frank Michaux


NASA / Frank Michaux

The Latest Update on the Fourth SLS Rocket...

NASA / Cory Huston

Artemis IV Engine Section in the VAB Transfer Aisle (Photo Release - August 27)

Teams at Kennedy Space Center in Florida transported the fourth core stage engine section from the spaceport’s Space Systems Processing Facility to the Vehicle Assembly Building in August 2025.

The flight hardware will remain in the facility’s transfer aisle until teams lift the section into High Bay 2 for assembly and integration with the remaining core stage elements.

Artemis will pave the way for a long-term human presence on the lunar surface while ushering in the Golden Age of Innovation and Exploration.

Source: NASA.Gov

A South Korean CubeSat Will Also Be Ready to Fly on the Next SLS Rocket...

NASA / Frank Michaux

Artemis II Payload Integration (Photo Release - August 27)

Inside the Multi-Payload Processing Facility at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, on Wednesday, August 27, 2025, technicians with the Korea AeroSpace Administration (KASA) completed closeouts on the K-Rad Cube, one of several international CubeSats slated to fly on NASA’s Artemis II test flight in 2026.

Deploying in high-Earth orbit from a spacecraft adapter on NASA’s SLS (Space Launch System) rocket after Orion is safely flying on its own with its crew of four astronauts, K-Rad Cube will use a dosimeter made of material designed to mimic human tissue to measure space radiation and assess biological effects at various altitudes across the Van Allen radiation belts, a critical area of research for human presence at the Moon and Mars.

Source: NASA.Gov

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NASA / Frank Michaux


NASA / Frank Michaux


NASA / Frank Michaux

A Saudi Arabian CubeSat Will Soon Be Ready to Fly on the Next SLS Rocket...

NASA / Frank Michaux

Artemis II Payload Integration (Photo Release - August 26)

Inside the Multi-Payload Processing Facility at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, on Tuesday, August 26, 2025, a technician inspects the Saudi Space Agency’s Space Weather CubeSat, one of several international CubeSats slated to fly on NASA’s Artemis II test flight in 2026.

Deploying in high-Earth orbit from a spacecraft adapter on NASA’s SLS (Space Launch System) rocket after Orion is safely flying on its own with its crew of four astronauts, the CubeSat will measure aspects of space weather – space radiation, solar X-rays, solar energetic particles, and magnetic fields – at a range of distances from Earth.

Source: NASA.Gov

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NASA / Frank Michaux

Orion Moves One Step Closer to its First Crewed Flight to the Moon...

NASA / Cory Huston

Artemis II Launch Abort Sytem Stacked in the LASF (Photo Release - August 27)

The launch abort tower on NASA’s Artemis II Orion spacecraft is pictured inside the Launch Abort System Facility at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Wednesday, August 27, 2025, after teams with NASA’s Exploration Ground Systems Program installed the tower on Wednesday, August 20, 2025.

Positioned at the top of Orion, the 44-foot-tall launch abort system is designed to carry the crew to safety in the event of an emergency during launch or ascent, with its three solid rocket motors working together to propel Orion – and astronauts inside – away from the rocket for a safe landing in the ocean, or detach from the spacecraft when it is no longer needed.

The final step to complete integration will be the installation of the ogive fairings, which are four protective panels that will shield the crew module from the severe vibrations and sounds it will experience during launch.

Source: NASA.Gov

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NASA / Cory Huston


NASA / Cory Huston

The Latest Update on Orion's First Crewed Lunar Flight...

NASA

NASA Seeks Volunteers to Track Artemis II Mission (News Release)

NASA seeks volunteers to passively track the Artemis II Orion spacecraft as the crewed mission travels to the Moon and back to Earth.

The Artemis II test flight, a launch of the agency’s SLS (Space Launch System) rocket and Orion spacecraft, will send NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover and Christina Koch, along with CSA (Canadian Space Agency) astronaut Jeremy Hansen, on an approximately 10-day mission around the Moon.

The mission, targeted for no later than April 2026, will rely on NASA’s Near Space Network and Deep Space Network for primary communications and tracking support throughout its launch, orbit and reentry. However, with a growing focus on commercialization, NASA wants to further understand industry’s tracking capabilities.

This collaboration opportunity builds upon a previous request released by NASA’s SCaN (Space Communication and Navigation) Program during the Artemis I mission, where ten volunteers successfully tracked the uncrewed Orion spacecraft in 2022 on its journey thousands of miles beyond the Moon and back.

During the Artemis I mission, participants – ranging from international space agencies, academic institutions, commercial companies, nonprofits and private citizens – attempted to receive Orion’s signal and use their respective ground antennas to track and measure changes in the radio waves transmitted by Orion.

“By offering this opportunity to the broader aerospace community, we can identify available tracking capabilities outside the government,” said Kevin Coggins, NASA’s deputy associate administrator for SCaN at NASA Headquarters in Washington. “This data will help inform our transition to a commercial-first approach, ultimately strengthening the infrastructure needed to support Artemis missions and our long-term Moon to Mars objectives.”

Read the opportunity announcement here
Responses are due by 5 p.m. EDT on Monday, October 27.

NASA’s SCaN Program serves as the management office for the agency’s space communications and navigation systems. More than 100 NASA and non-NASA missions rely on SCaN’s two networks, the Near Space Network and Deep Space Network, to support astronauts aboard the International Space Station and future Artemis missions, monitor Earth’s weather, support lunar exploration, and uncover the Solar System and beyond.

Artemis II will help confirm the systems and hardware needed for human deep space exploration. This mission is the first crewed flight under NASA’s Artemis campaign and is another step towards new U.S.-crewed missions on the Moon’s surface that will help the agency prepare to send American astronauts to Mars.

Source: NASA.Gov

SpaceX Update: Ship 37 Successfully Deploys Dummy Payloads on IFT-10...

SpaceX

Starship's Tenth Flight Test (News Release)

Starship’s tenth flight test lifted off on August 26, 2025, at 6:30 p.m. CT from Starbase, Texas, taking a significant step forward in developing the world’s first fully-reusable launch vehicle. Every major objective was met, providing critical data to inform designs of the next-generation Starship and Super Heavy.

The flight test began with Super Heavy successfully lifting off by igniting all 33 Raptor engines and ascending over the Gulf of Mexico. Successful ascent was followed by a hot-staging maneuver, with Starship’s upper stage igniting its six Raptor engines to separate from Super Heavy and continue the flight to space.

Following stage separation, the Super Heavy booster completed its boostback burn to put it on a course to a pre-planned splashdown zone. The booster descended and successfully initiated its landing burn, intentionally disabling one of its three center engines during the final phases of the burn and using a backup engine from the middle ring. Super Heavy entered into a final hover above the water before shutting down its engines and splashing down into the water.

Starship completed a full-duration ascent burn and achieved its planned velocity, successfully putting it on a suborbital trajectory. The first in-space objective was then completed, with eight Starlink simulators deployed in the first successful payload demonstration from Starship. The vehicle then completed the second ever in-space relight of a Raptor engine, demonstrating a key capability for future deorbit burns.

Moving into the critical reentry phase, Starship was able to gather data on the performance of its heatshield and structure as it was intentionally stressed to push the envelope on vehicle capabilities. Using its four flaps for control, the spacecraft arrived at its splashdown point in the Indian Ocean, successfully executed a landing flip, and completed the flight test with a landing burn and soft splashdown.

Over the course of a flight test campaign, success will continue to be measured by what we are able to learn, and Starship’s tenth flight test provided valuable data by stressing the limits of vehicle capabilities and providing maximum excitement along the way.

Source: SpaceX

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SpaceX

Images of the Day: The CRS-33 Freighter Arrives at the ISS...

NASA

A SpaceX Dragon Cargo Spacecraft Approaches the International Space Station (Photo Release)

A SpaceX Dragon cargo spacecraft with its nose cone open and carrying over 5,000 pounds of science, supplies and hardware for NASA's SpaceX CRS-33 mission approaches the International Space Station for an automated docking to the Harmony module's forward port.

Both spacecraft were flying 261 miles above the Atlantic Ocean south of the Azores, a Portuguese archipelago, at the time of this photograph.

Source: NASA.Gov

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NASA

The Last Component for the Second SLS Rocket Is Now in Florida!

NASA / Kim Shiflett

NASA Delivers Artemis II Hardware to Kennedy (News Release)

A significant piece of hardware for NASA’s Artemis II mission arrived on August 19 to the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida to complete final stacking operations. A semitrailer transported NASA’s Orion stage adapter nearly 700 miles from NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama.

NASA Marshall built and tested the Orion stage adapter which connects to the SLS (Space Launch System) rocket’s interim cryogenic propulsion stage to the Orion spacecraft. A diaphragm within the adapter protects Orion from flammable gases, such as hydrogen, generated during launch.

The Orion stage adapter is 5 feet tall (1.5 meters) with a diameter 18 feet wide (5.4 meters). The adapter can hold CubeSats, a miniature satellite about the size of a shoebox, to conduct science experiments and technology demonstrations. Artemis II will launch four CubeSats from NASA partners around the Earth while Orion is flying on its own towards the Moon.

The Orion stage adapter will remain at NASA Kennedy’s Multi-Payload Processing Facility to undergo CubeSat integration and then move to the Vehicle Assembly Building to be stacked on the SLS rocket.

The Artemis II test flight will take commander Reid Wiseman, pilot Victor Glover, and mission specialist Christina Koch from NASA, and mission specialist Jeremy Hansen from CSA (Canadian Space Agency) around the Moon and return them safely back home. The mission is the first crewed flight under NASA’s Artemis program and is another step towards missions on the lunar surface and helping the agency prepare for future human missions to Mars.

Source: NASA.Gov

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NASA / Kim Shiflett