Artemis 2, Apollo 8, and the Problem with History
Artemis 2’s lunar flyby mirrors Apollo 8’s historic 1968 mission, but its justification is largely technical rather than geopolitical. Recent declassified CIA memos reveal that intelligence on Soviet circumlunar plans was shared with NASA, yet historians argue the primary driver for Apollo 8 was schedule pressure after the Lunar Module delay. The article contrasts Cold‑War motivations behind Apollo with the more commercial and exploratory framing of Artemis, noting that modern intelligence now monitors China’s lunar ambitions. Ultimately, the decision‑making process for both missions reflects a blend of engineering constraints and strategic signaling.
Strategic Celestography and Lunar Competition: Artemis, CLEP, and the Struggle for Positional Advantage
The United States' Artemis program and China’s Lunar Exploration Program (CLEP) are racing to secure strategic footholds on the Moon and in cislunar space. Both powers target the lunar south‑pole for its water‑ice deposits and favorable solar illumination, while leveraging...
Thirty Years Later, Mars 96 Has Not Been Found
In November 1996 Russia launched Mars 96, a 6,500 kg, multinational probe designed to orbit Mars and deploy landers and penetrators. A malfunction in the Proton‑K upper stage left the spacecraft stranded in low‑Earth orbit, causing it to re‑enter the atmosphere weeks...
Ownership without Oversight: Australia's On-Orbit Supervision Gap
In late 2025 Australian firm HEO bought the in‑orbit satellite Continuum‑1 from Argentina’s Satellogic, marking Australia’s first privately owned space asset. While the United States remains the launching state, Australia now bears treaty‑based responsibility for supervising the satellite’s operations, yet its...
Review: Return to Launch
Stephen C. Smith’s new book *Return to Launch* chronicles how Florida’s Space Coast has shifted from government‑driven boom‑and‑bust cycles to a private‑sector‑led launch hub. The narrative highlights more than 100 orbital launches in 2025, driven largely by SpaceX’s presence at...
From Advantage to Arena: Space Power 1991-2026
On February 28, 2026, the United States launched Operation Epic Fury with space and cyber forces disabling Iran’s sensors and communications before any aircraft entered Iranian airspace, marking the first conflict where space opened the campaign. The operation highlighted four...
Artemis 2, Project Hail Mary, and the Risks and Benefits of Human Spaceflight
Artemis II is set to launch in early April, sending four astronauts on a lunar flyby that will test systems for a planned 2028 Moon base. The mission coincides with the release of the sci‑fi film *Project Hail Mary*, highlighting public fascination...
If China Returns to the Moon First, Will Americans Care?
China is targeting a crewed lunar landing by 2030, positioning itself to be the first nation on the Moon since Apollo. The United States, under the Artemis program, has pledged to beat that deadline but still lacks an operational lander...
The Next Phase of Space Ambitions in Texas
In 2023 Texas earmarked $350 million for its space sector, allocating $150 million through the Texas Space Commission to 24 projects and awarding a final $14.15 million grant to Rice University’s Space Institute for a lunar‑technology center. The state also invested $200 million in...
Artemis via the ISS? A Breakout Opportunity for Kickstarting a Sustainable Cislunar Economy
NASA’s new administrator is exploring an “Artemis via ISS” strategy that uses the International Space Station as a low‑Earth‑orbit staging point for lunar missions. By capitalizing on the ISS’s proven habitat, docking, and orbital alignment, the plan reduces reliance on...
Golden Domes, Fragile Firms: The Business Risks of AI-Enabled Space Infrastructure
AI‑driven routing is turning satellite constellations into real‑time, autonomous utilities that allocate bandwidth, imagery and sensing data in milliseconds. While this autonomy makes megaconstellations economically viable, it also embeds opaque decision‑making into models that can prioritize one user over another...
Reforging Vulcan
On February 12, United Launch Alliance’s Vulcan Centaur lifted off on the USSF‑87 mission but displayed a significant performance anomaly in one of its four solid rocket boosters. The anomaly, similar to the nozzle‑loss issue on the October 2024 Cert‑2 flight, prompted...
Big Wing Bird: NASA's WB-57 Gets Grounded
On January 27, 2026 NASA’s WB‑57F aircraft N927NA performed a gear‑up landing at Ellington Field, sustaining extensive damage that has left the high‑altitude research plane grounded. The WB‑57F fleet, originally derived from Cold‑War reconnaissance platforms, provides NASA with unique capabilities...
Review: Why Space?
Rick Tumlinson’s new book *Why Space?* argues that humanity’s purpose is tied to expanding life beyond Earth, leveraging the rapid growth of commercial space. He frames this mission through three "Principles of Purpose": protecting life, evolving humanity, and exploring the...
The Ghost in the Orbit: How Hybrid Surveillance Reshapes Risks
With the New START treaty expiring in February 2026, the United States lost its primary mechanism for on‑site nuclear verification, prompting a shift toward space‑based monitoring. The Pentagon’s Defense Innovation Unit has launched the GHOST‑R program, a hybrid procurement effort...
