The Latest Update on One of the Orbital Successors to the ISS...

Vast

Vast Advances Haven‑1 Into Integration Phase (News Release)

Vast, the company developing next-generation space stations, announced that integration has begun on Haven-1. Scheduled to be the world’s first commercial space station, Haven-1 is designed as a standalone, crewed station and serves as the first step for Haven-2, a multi-module station capable of supporting a continuous human presence in low-Earth orbit (LEO) that is Vast’s proposed successor to the International Space Station (ISS).

Haven-1 is an integral part of the company’s hardware-rich development approach that is putting flight-hardware and systems through rigorous ground and in-space testing to accelerate learning, reduce technical and schedule risk, and unlock new commercial and government capabilities in LEO. Haven-1 is designed to expand access to space and provide an affordable platform for microgravity research, manufacturing, and both national and international space infrastructure.

The first phase of Haven-1 integration includes installation of the station’s pressurized fluid systems, including thermal control, life support, and propulsion system tubes, and component trays and tanks. These systems will undergo pressure, leak and functional testing. The second phase of integration will incorporate avionics, guidance, navigation and control systems, and air revitalization hardware.

The third and final phase will complete the vehicle with crew habitation and interior closeouts, exterior micrometeoroid and orbital debris (MMOD) shielding, thermal radiator installation, and solar array integration, bringing Haven-1 to a fully flight-ready configuration. Vast remains focused on completing integration and conducting a suite of system environmental tests at NASA’s Neil Armstrong Test Facility later in 2026.

Based on the current integration timeline, Vast is updating its schedule for Haven-1 to be ready to launch Q1 2027. Haven-1 is contracted to launch on a SpaceX Falcon 9 from Cape Canaveral, Florida. With each milestone, the team gains more data and greater certainty, enabling timelines to become progressively more precise.

Haven-1 represents a true zero-to-one development, and as Vast moves on to its second, third and subsequent stations, schedule precision will continue to improve as systems, processes, and integration maturity increases. Throughout this process, human safety remains the team’s top priority, with development and manufacturing pace carefully balanced to ensure mission integrity.

“From the beginning, our business plan has been about building a sustainable future in orbit, one that meets today’s market while creating the foundation for what comes next,” said Max Haot, CEO of Vast. “Haven-1 is not a concept; it is real, flight-tested hardware designed to carry forward a continuous human presence in low-Earth orbit for America and its allies. By vertically integrating design, manufacturing, testing and operations, we’re moving with both speed and autonomy. Haven-1 brings the next era of space stations within reach and helps ensure there is no gap in our ability to live and work in space beyond the ISS.”

Vast’s hardware-rich, stepping-stone approach accelerates development while improving safety and reducing cost by building, testing and flying systems early. This is reinforced by Vast’s vertically-integrated model, which has already delivered a 10X reduction in primary structure manufacturing costs compared to traditional space station programs, while increasing capability, improving schedule certainty, and shortening manufacturing timelines.

Haven-1 Development: Recap of 2025 Milestones

Throughout 2025, Vast completed a series of major Haven-1 milestones, advancing the station from component-level development to a fully-qualified flight structure.

In October, Vast installed and completed fit verification of the passive docking system on Haven-1, confirming mechanical alignment, and interface compatibility with visiting crewed spacecraft.

In late 2025, Vast conducted acceptance testing of the Haven-1 flight primary structure, culminating in full-scale pressure testing at Vast’s testing site in Mojave, California. The flight primary structure was pressurized beyond nominal operating conditions to validate structural margins, weld integrity, and leak performance, marking a critical step towards human-rated operations.

The Haven-1 primary structure represents the second primary structure that Vast has completed in one year and demonstrates the company’s leadership in returning space station manufacturing and testing to the United States after more than two decades.

Vast is now the only operational commercial space station company to have successfully flown and operated its own spacecraft in orbit. On November 2, 2025, Haven Demo, an in-orbit testbed for key space station technologies and the first step in our stepping stone approach, achieved mission success. Through Haven Demo, core systems, including power, avionics, ground systems, propulsion, and guidance, navigation and control, were validated in space, directly informing the final design of Haven-1.

Source: VastSpace.com

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Vast

A Momentous Milestone for the Second Flight of SLS Has Been Achieved...

NASA / Keegan Barber

NASA’s Moonbound Artemis II Rocket Reaches Launch Pad (News Release)

At 6:42 p.m. EST on Saturday, January 17, NASA’s Artemis II SLS (Space Launch System) rocket and Orion spacecraft reached Launch Complex 39B after a nearly 12-hour journey from the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB) at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

Hours earlier, NASA’s Crawler-Transporter 2 began its 4-mile trek with the integrated SLS and Orion stacked on top. Moving at a maximum speed of just 0.82 mph, the crawler carried the towering Moon rocket and spacecraft slowly but surely toward the pad.

Once outside the VAB’s high-bay doors, the rocket made a planned pause allowing teams to reposition the crew access arm – a bridge that provides astronauts and a closeout crew access to Orion on launch day.

In the coming days, engineers and technicians will prepare the Artemis II rocket for the wet dress rehearsal, a test of fueling operations and countdown procedures. Targeted for no later than February 2, the team will load the rocket with cryogenic, or super-cold, propellants, run through the countdown, and practice safely draining the propellants from the rocket – all essential steps before the first crewed Artemis mission.

Additional wet dress rehearsals may be required to ensure that the vehicle is completely checked out and ready for flight. If needed, NASA may roll back SLS and Orion to the Vehicle Assembly Building for additional work ahead of launch after the wet dress rehearsal.

The Artemis II test flight will send NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover and Christina Koch, and CSA (Canadian Space Agency) astronaut Jeremy Hansen on an approximately 10-day journey around the Moon and back. It is another step towards new U.S.-crewed missions to the Moon’s surface, leading to a sustained presence on the Moon that will help the agency prepare to send the first astronauts – Americans – to Mars.

Source: NASA.Gov

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NASA / Reid Wiseman


NASA / Sam Lott


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NASA / Keegan Barber


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NASA / Keegan Barber


NASA / Aubrey Gemignani


NASA / Aubrey Gemignani


NASA / Keegan Barber


NASA / Keegan Barber


NASA / Aubrey Gemignani


NASA / Keegan Barber


NASA / Brandon Hancock

Crew-11 Has Safely Returned to Earth After a Shortened Stay at the ISS...

SpaceX

NASA’s SpaceX Crew-11 Dragon Splashdown at 3:41 a.m. EST (News Release)

At 3:41 a.m. EST, the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft, carrying NASA astronauts Zena Cardman and Mike Fincke, JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) astronaut Kimiya Yui, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Oleg Platonov splashed down off the coast of San Diego, California.

This completes a stay in space of 167 days for the four-person crew. The mission returned to Earth earlier than originally planned as teams monitored a medical concern with a crew member living and working aboard the orbital laboratory. The crew member is stable.

Teams aboard the recovery ship, including two fast boats, are securing the SpaceX Dragon and ensuring that the spacecraft is safe for the recovery effort. As the fast boat teams complete their work, the recovery ship will move into position to hoist Dragon onto the main deck with the astronauts inside. Once on the main deck, the crew will egress the spacecraft.

NASA previously announced that all four crew members will be transported to a local hospital for additional evaluation, taking advantage of medical resources on Earth to provide the best care possible.

Following a planned overnight hospital stay, the crew will return to NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston, where they will reunite with their families and undergo standard post-flight reconditioning and evaluations. Due to medical privacy, it is not appropriate for NASA to share more details about the crew member.

NASA will host a post-splashdown media conference at 5:45 a.m. on NASA+, Amazon Prime and the agency’s YouTube channel, with the following participants:

-- NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman
-- Joel Montalbano, deputy associate administrator, NASA’s Space Operations Mission Directorate

Source: NASA.Gov

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NASA / Bill Ingalls

The Latest Step Is Taken to Prep for the Second SLS Rocket's Journey to LC-39B This Week...

NASA / Ben Smegelsky

Crawler Preps for Entry into VAB for Artemis II Rollout Ops (Photo Release - January 9)

NASA’s Crawler-Transporter 2 moves toward the Vehicle Assembly Building at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Friday, January 9, 2026.

The crawler will transport NASA’s SLS (Space Launch System) rocket with the Orion spacecraft to Launch Complex 39B ahead of the Artemis II launch - which will journey 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 back to Earth no later than April 2026.

Source: NASA.Gov

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NASA / Ben Smegelsky


NASA / Ben Smegelsky


NASA / Ben Smegelsky

The Second SLS Rocket Is Set to Roll to the Launch Pad a Week from Today!

NASA / Joel Kowsky

Final Steps Underway for NASA’s First Crewed Artemis Moon Mission (News Release - January 9)

As NASA moves closer to launch of the Artemis II test flight, the agency will soon roll its SLS (Space Launch System) rocket and Orion spacecraft to the launch pad for the first time at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida to begin final integration, testing and launch rehearsals.

NASA is targeting no earlier than Saturday, January 17, to begin the multi-hour trek from the Vehicle Assembly Building to Launch Complex 39B. The four-mile journey on Crawler-Transporter 2 will take up to 12 hours. Teams are working around the clock to close out all tasks ahead of rollout.

However, this target date is subject to change if additional time is needed for technical preparations or weather.

“We are moving closer to Artemis II, with rollout just around the corner,” said Lori Glaze, acting associate administrator for NASA’s Exploration Systems Development Mission Directorate. “We have important steps remaining on our path to launch and crew safety will remain our top priority at every turn, as we near humanity’s return to the Moon.”

As with all new developments of complex systems, engineers have been troubleshooting several items in recent days and weeks. During final checkouts before rollout, technicians found that a cable involved in the flight termination system was bent out of specifications. Teams are replacing it and will test the new cable over the weekend.

Additionally, a valve associated with Orion’s hatch pressurization exhibited issues leading up to a December 20 countdown demonstration test. On January 5, the team successfully replaced and tested it. Engineers also worked to resolve leaky ground support hardware required to load gaseous oxygen into Orion for breathing air.

Rollout

Once the integrated rocket and spacecraft reach the launch pad, NASA will immediately begin a long checklist of launch pad preparations, including connecting ground support equipment such as electrical lines, fuel environmental control system ducts, and cryogenic propellant feeds. Teams will power up all integrated systems at the pad for the first time to ensure that flight hardware components are functioning properly with each other, the Mobile Launcher, and ground infrastructure systems.

Once complete, the Artemis II astronauts, NASA’s Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover and Christina Koch, and CSA (Canadian Space Agency) astronaut Jeremy Hansen, will conduct a final walkdown at the pad.

Wet dress rehearsal, tanking

At the end of January, NASA will conduct a wet dress rehearsal, which is a prelaunch test to fuel the rocket. During wet dress, teams demonstrate the ability to load more than 700,000 gallons of cryogenic propellants into the rocket, conduct a launch countdown, and practice safely removing propellant from the rocket without astronauts onsite.

During launch, a closeout crew will be responsible for securing astronauts in Orion and closing its hatches. The closeout crew will also use this rehearsal to practice their procedures safely without astronauts aboard the spacecraft.

The wet dress rehearsal will include several “runs” to demonstrate the launch team’s ability to hold, resume and recycle to several different times in the final 10 minutes of the countdown, known as terminal count.

The first run will begin approximately 49 hours before launch when launch teams are called to their stations, to 1 minute 30 seconds before launch, followed by a planned three-minute hold and then countdown resumption to 33 seconds before launch – the point at which the rocket’s automatic launch sequencer will control the final seconds of the countdown. Teams will then recycle back to T-10 minutes and hold, then resume down to 30 seconds before launch as part of a second run.

While NASA has integrated lessons learned from Artemis I into the launch countdown procedures, the agency will pause to address any issues during the test or at any other point should technical challenges arise. Engineers will have a close eye on propellant loading of liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen into the rocket, after challenges encountered with liquid hydrogen loading during Artemis I wet dress rehearsals. Teams will also pay close attention to the effectiveness of recently-updated procedures to limit how much gaseous nitrogen accumulates in the space between Orion’s crew module and launch abort system hatches, which could pose an issue for the closeout crew.

Additional wet dress rehearsals may be required to ensure that the vehicle is completely checked out and ready for flight.

If needed, NASA may roll back SLS and Orion to the Vehicle Assembly Building for additional work ahead of launch after the wet dress rehearsal.

Next steps toward launch

Following a successful wet dress rehearsal, NASA will convene a flight readiness review where the mission management team will assess the readiness of all systems, including flight hardware, infrastructure, and launch, flight, and recovery teams before committing to a launch date.

While the Artemis II launch window opens as early as Friday, February 6, the mission management team will assess flight readiness after the wet dress rehearsal across the spacecraft, launch infrastructure, and the crew and operations teams before selecting a launch date.

To determine potential launch dates, engineers identified key constraints required to accomplish the mission and keep the crew inside Orion safe. The resulting launch periods are the days or weeks where the spacecraft and rocket can meet mission objectives. These launch periods account for the complex orbital mechanics involved in launching on a precise trajectory towards the Moon while the Earth is rotating on its axis and the Moon is orbiting Earth each month in its lunar cycle.

This results in a pattern of approximately one week of launch opportunities, followed by three weeks without launch opportunities.

There are several primary parameters that dictate launch availability within these periods. Because of its unique trajectory relative to subsequent lunar landing missions, these key constraints are unique to the Artemis II test flight.

-- The launch day and time must allow SLS to be able to deliver Orion into a high-Earth orbit where the crew and ground teams will evaluate the spacecraft’s life-support systems before the crew ventures to the Moon.

-- Orion must also be in the proper alignment with the Earth and Moon at the time of the trans-lunar injection burn. The Artemis II trans-lunar injection burn places Orion on course to fly by the Moon, and also sets it on a free return trajectory, in which the spacecraft uses the Moon’s gravity to send the spacecraft back to Earth without additional major propulsive maneuvers.

-- The trajectory for a given day must ensure Orion is not in darkness for more than 90 minutes at a time so that the solar array wings can receive and convert sunlight to electricity, and the spacecraft can maintain an optimal temperature range. Mission planners eliminate potential launch dates that would send Orion into extended eclipses during the flight.

-- The launch date must support a trajectory that allows for the proper entry profile planned during Orion’s return to Earth.

The periods below show launch availability through April 2026. Mission planners refine the periods based on updated analysis approximately two months before they begin and are subject to change.

Launch Period: January 31 – February 14

- Launch opportunities on February 6, 7, 8, 10 and 11

Launch Period: February 28 – March 13

- Launch opportunities on March 6, 7, 8, 9 and 11

Launch Period: March 27 – April 10

- Launch opportunities April 1, 3, 4, 5 and 6

In addition to the launch opportunities based on orbital mechanics and performance requirements, there are also limitations on which days within a launch period can be viable based on commodity replenishment, weather, and other users on the Eastern Range schedule. As a general rule, up to four launch attempts may be attempted within the approximate week of opportunities that exist within a launch period.

As the agency prepares for its first crewed mission beyond Earth orbit in more than 50 years, NASA expects to learn along the way, both on the ground and in flight, and will let the readiness and performance of its systems dictate when the agency is ready to launch.

As part of a 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 to the Moon’s surface, leading to a sustained presence on the Moon that will help the agency prepare to send the first astronauts – Americans – to Mars.

Source: NASA.Gov

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NASA

The Latest Update on Crew-11's Departure from the ISS...

NASA

NASA, SpaceX Set Target Date for Crew-11’s Return to Earth (News Release)

NASA and SpaceX are targeting no earlier than 5 p.m. EST on Wednesday, January 14, for the undocking of the agency’s SpaceX Crew-11 mission from the International Space Station, pending weather conditions.

On January 8, NASA announced its decision to return the agency’s SpaceX Crew-11 mission to Earth from the space station earlier than originally planned as teams monitor a medical concern with a crew member currently living and working aboard the orbital laboratory, who is stable. Due to medical privacy, it is not appropriate for NASA to share more details about the crew member.

NASA astronauts Zena Cardman and Mike Fincke, JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) astronaut Kimiya Yui, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Oleg Platonov will splash down off the coast of California at approximately 3:40 a.m. on Thursday, January 15.

Mission managers continue monitoring conditions in the recovery area, as undocking of the SpaceX Dragon depends on spacecraft readiness, recovery team readiness, weather, sea states and other factors. NASA and SpaceX will select a specific splashdown time and location closer to the Crew-11 spacecraft undocking.

NASA’s coverage is as follows (all times Eastern and subject to change based on real-time operations):

Wednesday, January 14

3 p.m. – Hatch closure coverage begins

3:30 p.m. – Hatch closing

4:45 p.m. – Undocking coverage begins

5 p.m. – Undocking

Thursday, January 15

2:15 a.m. – Return coverage begins

2:50 a.m. – Deorbit burn

3:40 a.m. – Splashdown

5:45 a.m. – Return to Earth media news conference

NASA will share more details about its coverage plans in the coming days.

Source: NASA.Gov

SpaceX's Crew-11 Astronauts Will Return to Earth Early...

NASA

NASA Shares Latest Update on International Space Station Operations (News Release)

NASA announced on Thursday its decision to return the agency’s SpaceX Crew-11 mission to Earth from the International Space Station earlier than originally planned as teams monitor a medical concern with a crew member currently living and working aboard the orbital laboratory. As NASA reviews Crew-11 return dates, the agency is also working with SpaceX, and its international partners, to review the options available to advance launch opportunities for the Crew-12 mission. The agency anticipates a decision on a target Crew-11 return date in the coming days.

For the full details discussed, watch a replay of the news conference from the agency’s headquarters in Washington. The participants in the news conference included:

-- NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman
-- Amit Kshatriya, associate administrator
-- Dr. James Polk, chief health and medical officer, NASA Headquarters

NASA will provide additional details later.

Source: NASA.Gov

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NASA TV

The Latest Update on the Biggest Space Mission of 2026...

Richard T. Par

Happy belated New Year, everyone! Since yesterday was a holiday, there were no major space-related news to be shared on this blog...until this afternoon.

NASA tweeted the update below that announced the Space Launch System (SLS) rocket for Artemis 2 will be rolled from the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB) to Launch Complex (LC)-39B at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida less than two weeks from now! It also maintained that the first day of the Artemis 2 launch window is still set for Friday, February 6.

We can obviously expect another update next week which will reveal the exact date that SLS and the Orion Integrity capsule will make their 4.2-mile (6.8-kilometer) journey from the VAB to LC-39B. When that happens, the reality that humanity is very close to returning to the Moon for the first time since 1972's Apollo 17 will become more tangible. It's when NASA conducts its agency-wide Flight Readiness Review and officially confirms a launch date that the spaceflight community, and the general public in particular, can start expressing even more excitement in the historic moment that's about to transpire early next month!

Stay tuned.

🚨Mission Update: Rollout for Artemis II is less than two weeks away.

This milestone begins final, system-wide testing as NASA prepares to send astronauts around the Moon for the first time in more than 50 years, with a launch window opening as soon as February 6. pic.twitter.com/gKRqUXIfMg

— Bethany Stevens (@NASASpox) January 2, 2026