The Mangled Remains of Probes Sent to Venus May Still Be There
A new study challenges the long‑held belief that Venus’s extreme heat and pressure would instantly destroy any hardware that lands there. By recreating Venusian conditions in NASA’s GEER lab, researchers found that at least seven of the twenty probes sent over the past six decades could still be intact on the surface. The analysis of the 1978 Pioneer Venus Day Probe showed titanium and aluminum components would survive, even if seals failed. The findings suggest future missions like DAVINCI and private ventures may be able to locate and image these relics, opening a new chapter for space archaeology.
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How Does the Space Economy Work? [NASA, SpaceX, Blue Origin, and More]
Harvard Business School professor Matthew Weinzierl appeared on Network Capital to unpack the rapidly expanding space economy and promote his new book, *Space to Grow: Unlocking the Final Economic Frontier*. He reframes orbit as a geographic market with scarce real...
SpaceX IPO Targets $1.75 Trillion Valuation, Retail Allocation Up to 30%
Elon Musk’s SpaceX is slated for a summer 2026 IPO that could value the company at $1.75 trillion. Reuters reports the prospectus will appear in late May, with a roadshow in early June and up to 30% of the offering reserved...
NASA Psyche Team Fixes Cold‑Gas Thruster Issue Days Before Launch
NASA engineers resolved a malfunctioning cold‑gas thruster on the Psyche spacecraft just 12 days before launch, averting risk to the $1.2 billion mission. Principal Investigator Lindy Elkins‑Tanton praised the team’s rapid, collaborative response that kept the schedule intact.
Declassified Apollo 12 Images Show UFOs on the Moon — Space Photo of the Week
Declassified Department of Defense files released May 8 include Apollo 12 photographs that appear to show unexplained lights over the lunar horizon. Astronaut Alan Bean reported seeing flashes while descending to the surface, describing them as particles sailing off into space. NASA...
Rethinking Industrial IoT From Space.
In this episode of T‑Minus, host Maria Varmazas talks with Dave Roscoe, President of Satellite IoT for Orbcom and SkyWave, about the company’s newest industrial satellite IoT network, OGX, and the SkyWave brand that bundles satellite and cellular connectivity, devices,...
What Happens When Something Breaks on the International Space Station
When a component fails on the International Space Station, the response begins with alarm detection, sensor verification, and isolation before any repair is attempted. Astronauts work hand‑in‑hand with ground controllers, robots, spare parts stored on‑board, and cargo vehicles to execute...
Apollo Flight Director and Former Director of Johnson Space Center Gerry Griffin to Keynote at ISDC
The National Space Society announced that former NASA Flight Director Gerry Griffin will deliver the keynote at the 44th International Space Development Conference in McLean, Virginia, June 4‑7, 2026. Griffin, who guided every Apollo mission from Apollo 7 through Apollo 17 and...
VanEck Unveils WARP ETF to Capture $600B Space Economy
VanEck has launched the WARP ETF, ticker WARP, to give investors direct exposure to firms that generate at least 50% of revenue from commercial space activities. The fund tracks the MarketVector Space Index and arrives as the global space economy,...
NASA’s $500 Million Swift Telescope Rescue Clears Key Test
NASA announced that the Link servicing spacecraft finished its environmental testing at Goddard, clearing a critical pre‑launch hurdle for the $500 million Swift Observatory rescue. The milestone moves the mission, funded by a $30 million contract with Katalyst Space Technologies, closer to...
GalaxEye CEO Declares India’s First OptoSAR Satellite Drishti Operational
GalaxEye’s chief executive Suyash Singh announced that Drishti, India’s first privately built OptoSAR imaging satellite, is fully functional and on schedule, refuting circulating reports that the spacecraft was tumbling. The confirmation comes as the 190‑kg satellite completes its commissioning phase...
MDA Space Continues Work on Gateway Robotic Arm
MDA Space announced it will continue development of Canadarm3, Canada’s robotic contribution to NASA’s lunar Gateway, despite NASA’s recent decision to cancel the Gateway in favor of a lunar base. The company is executing a CAD 1 billion (≈ $730 million) contract for design...
NATO and Japan Weigh Shared Use of Satellite Launch Sites
NATO is exploring shared use of satellite launch sites with Japan under its Starlift initiative, which seeks rapid replacement of disabled satellites. The proposal would give NATO access to Japanese launch facilities such as the H‑IIA complex. Japanese officials view...
Rush Rescue Mission for NASA's $500M Space Telescope Passes Key Milestone
NASA’s aging Swift space telescope, a $500 million gamma‑ray observatory launched in 2004, is slated to re‑enter Earth’s atmosphere later this year unless its orbit is boosted. A commercial rescue mission, dubbed Link and built by Katalyst Space Technologies, has just...
NASA Is Set to Begin Training with a Prototype of Blue Origin's Crew Moon Lander
NASA announced that a full‑scale prototype of Blue Origin’s crew cabin for its Mark 2 lunar lander has arrived at Johnson Space Center. The 15‑foot‑tall mock‑up will be used for human‑in‑the‑loop training, including mission scenario rehearsals, suit checkouts, and simulated Moonwalks....
Planet Labs Secures Seven‑Figure Deal to Supply Imagery for Greece’s National Satellite Project
Planet Labs Germany has signed a two‑year, seven‑figure agreement with the Greek government, via the European Space Agency, to deliver near‑daily medium‑resolution and high‑resolution satellite imagery for Greece’s National Satellite Space Project. The contract gives Greek ministries access to a...
What Would Happen If Voyager 1 Crashed on an Alien Planet
Voyager 1, the farthest human‑made object, continues drifting through interstellar space with only two instruments still operating as of May 2026. A collision with an alien world is astronomically unlikely because planets occupy minuscule targets in the vastness between stars. If a...
Bell-Northern Research, Nortel, and Canada’s Space Satellite Programs
Bell‑Northern Research (BNR) and its successor Nortel were pivotal telecom innovators, not satellite builders, in Canada’s space communications era. Their work linked satellite links to telephone networks through digital switching, traffic simulation, and network architecture studies. Northern Telecom also served...
Rocket Lab Posts Record $200M Q1 Revenue, Secures $190M US Defense Contract
Rocket Lab reported first‑quarter revenue of $200 million, a 63% jump year‑over‑year, and clinched a $190 million contract with the U.S. Department of War for hypersonic test flights. The New Zealand‑founded launch provider also grew its backlog to $2.2 billion and added 31 new...
Viasat Wins $307 Million Marine Corps Satellite Communications Contract
Viasat has been awarded a five‑year, $307 million contract to provide satellite communications for the U.S. Marine Corps under the MECS2 program. The deal, awarded by the Space Systems Command’s Commercial Space Office, retains Viasat after it won a recompete, despite...
Katalyst Completes Final Ground Testing of Its Swift Rescue Spacecraft
Katalyst announced it has completed the final ground‑testing campaign for its Swift rescue spacecraft, LINK. The tests included vibration, thermal‑vacuum, and ion‑thruster firings at NASA Goddard and an Arizona facility. Integration onto a Northrop Grumman Pegasus launch vehicle is slated for...
Rocket Lab Has Signed An Agreement To Purchase Motiv Space Systems
Rocket Lab announced on May 7, 2026 that it has signed an agreement to acquire California‑based Motiv Space Systems, with the transaction slated to close in the second quarter of 2026. The deal will rebrand Motiv as Rocket Lab Robotics and bring...
Irreversible Space Settlement: The Overlooked Existential Threat
What's the most underrated existential risk? Irreversible space settlement. 1. AI could make space settlement possible in our lifetimes: 1 minute of solar energy is enough to accelerate 10 billion 1kg self-replicating AI probes to 99% the speed of light.
SpaceX to Launch NASA's 34th Commercial Resupply Mission with 6,500‑lb Cargo to ISS
SpaceX is set to launch NASA's 34th Commercial Resupply Services (CRS) flight in mid‑May, sending roughly 6,500 pounds of scientific hardware, crew provisions, and equipment aboard a Dragon capsule on a Falcon 9 from Cape Canaveral. The mission sustains the...
Into the Light
NASA’s Artemis II mission completed a historic lunar flyby, sending astronauts Victor Glover, Christina Koch, Jeremy Hansen and Reid Wiseman around the Moon and back—the first crewed deep‑space flight since Apollo 17. The 40‑minute communications blackout on the Moon’s far side highlighted the mission’s technical achievement...
Lunar Outpost Secures $30 Million Series B to Mass‑Produce Moon Rovers
Lunar Outpost announced the close of a $30 million Series B round led by Industrious Ventures, funding the ramp‑up of its Pegasus and Eagle rover lines for upcoming Artemis‑era missions. The financing arrives as NASA readies a $20 billion, seven‑year push for a...
NASA's Twin Voyager Spacecraft Are Very Low on Power After Nearly 50 Years. How Long Can They Keep Going?
NASA’s twin Voyager probes, launched in 1977, are now operating on roughly half their original 470‑watt power output, leaving only a few instruments active. A risky engineering maneuver dubbed the “Big Bang,” scheduled for mid‑2026, will swap heater devices to...
Muon Space Scales Workforce Following Transition to Constellation-Scale Manufacturing
Muon Space, fresh from a $146 million Series B round and high‑value defense contracts, is scaling its workforce to shift from custom satellite builds to a mass‑production "Mission Foundry" model. The company opened a 130,000‑square‑foot San Jose facility capable of delivering up...
T-Mobile Teams Up With Starlink to Improve Its Internet Service
T‑Mobile has launched SuperBroadband, a business internet service that fuses its nationwide 5G network with SpaceX’s Starlink satellite broadband. The hybrid solution provides automatic failover between terrestrial and satellite links, delivering continuous connectivity even in remote ZIP codes or during...
SpaceX IPO Speculation Surges as Valuation Nears $2 Trillion
Elon Musk's SpaceX has confidentially filed for an IPO that could value the company at up to $2 trillion, with a prospectus expected in late May and a roadshow slated for the week of June 8. The filing promises a 30% retail...
SpaceX Secures EchoStar’s $17 B Spectrum to Power Next‑Gen Starlink Direct‑to‑Cell
SpaceX has agreed to purchase EchoStar’s AWS‑4 and H‑block spectrum licenses for $17 billion—half cash, half stock—to expand its Starlink Direct‑to‑Cell service. The deal adds 50 MHz of exclusive S‑band and global mobile satellite service rights, positioning SpaceX to deliver broadband to...
Internet Apocalypse: Can a Solar Storm Actually Disconnect the World?
Scientists warn that the 2025‑2026 solar maximum could trigger geomagnetically induced currents that damage submarine fiber‑optic cables, fragmenting the global internet. Research originating from a 2021 SIGCOMM paper shows that repeaters’ power conductors act as massive antennas for solar storms....
The Mercury Program
Project Mercury, NASA’s first human‑spaceflight effort, was approved in November 1958 to put an American into orbit and prove humans could survive space. After a series of uncrewed tests and sub‑orbital flights by Alan Shepard and Gus Grissom, the program...
Life Aboard the International Space Station: How Astronauts Eat, Sleep, Work, and Stay Healthy
Astronauts aboard the International Space Station live on a tightly coordinated 24‑hour schedule that blends scientific research, system maintenance, exercise, meals, sleep, and personal time. Microgravity forces redesign of everyday actions—food is packaged to avoid crumbs, water forms floating blobs,...
NASA Keeps Track As Mexico City Sinks Into the Ground
NASA’s NISAR satellite is now delivering weekly, centimeter‑scale radar maps that track Mexico City’s ongoing subsidence. The capital, built on a former lake bed, is sinking up to 2 cm per month as groundwater extraction compacts soft clay soils. NISAR’s ability...
First Full V3 Starship Stack Assembled for Flight 12
For the first time both vehicles for Flight 12 are at the launch site together. Starship 39 has been delivered to pad 2 and (hopefully) soon will be stacked on top of Booster 19 completing the first ever full stack of...
Spire Global Opens Munich Facility to Build Small Satellites for ESA’s Eurialo Program
Spire Global inaugurated a satellite manufacturing plant in Munich on May 7, 2026, targeting the European Space Agency‑backed Eurialo program. The move strengthens Europe’s push for home‑grown space‑based intelligence and data services.
TakeMe2Space Shifts to SpaceX After ISRO PSLV‑C62 Failure
Hyderabad‑based TakeMe2Space announced it will ride SpaceX’s Falcon 9 to launch its replacement MOI‑1a satellite after ISRO’s PSLV‑C62 mission failed in January, wiping out its maiden satellite and 15 other payloads. The move underscores growing reliance on private U.S. launch providers...
Amazon Moves to Acquire Globalstar as Revenue Grows 17% in Q1
Amazon is advancing a deal to buy Globalstar while the satellite operator posted $70 million in first‑quarter revenue, up 17% year‑over‑year. The growth was driven by higher wholesale capacity fees and expanding IoT subscriptions, underscoring the market’s appetite for integrated satellite‑terrestrial...
Blue Moon Mark 1 Live: Blue Origin Begins NASA Center Lander Tests
Blue Origin has started physical testing of its first lunar lander, Blue Moon Mark 1, at multiple NASA facilities across the United States. The test programme is intended to verify the vehicle’s propulsion, navigation and landing systems ahead of a cargo‑delivery mission slated...
SAR Penetrates Clouds, Detects Changes Anytime—ICEYE Showcases
Synthetic Aperture Radar is cool af — a change detection machine that rips through cloud cover, day or night. And ICEYE knows how to show it. https://t.co/z9UHDCcyHB
USS Cobia – Its History and Future
Robert Zimmerman’s “Genesis: The Story of Apollo 8” recounts the historic 1968 mission that first took humans around another world. The book is now available in hardback, paperback, ebook, and audiobook formats, with autographed copies priced at $60 for hardback and...
Booster 19 Completes Static Fire as Ship 39 Prepares for Rollout
SpaceX successfully performed a full‑duration, full‑thrust static fire of Booster 19’s 33 Raptor 3 engines on May 7, 2026, marking the first liftoff‑level test on the new Pad 2. The test demonstrated the upgraded deluge system’s ability to manage the immense energy release, while...
Interstellar Comet 3I/ATLAS Formed in Ultra‑cold Space, Study Finds
Astronomers using ALMA and ESA’s JUICE spacecraft have measured a deuterium‑to‑hydrogen ratio in comet 3I/ATLAS that is 30‑40 times higher than in Solar System comets. The finding indicates the object formed in an ultra‑cold interstellar environment, offering a rare glimpse...
Swift Reboost Mission Completes Environmental Tests
NASA and Katalyst Space announced that the Link spacecraft, built to grapple and re‑boost the aging Swift gamma‑ray observatory, has cleared a full suite of environmental tests at Goddard. The tests included launch‑vibration, thermal‑vacuum cycling, robotic‑arm deployment and electric‑thruster firings....
This Major Airline Is Finally Letting You Make Calls at 30,000 Feet
British Airways has partnered with SpaceX’s Starlink to install satellite‑based broadband on its fleet, enabling free voice and video calls at cruising altitude. The rollout, involving structural modifications and software integration, will span two years and deliver speeds up to...
United Airlines Gets FAA Nod for Starlink-Enabled Embraer 175 Jets
United Airlines has secured FAA approval to outfit its Embraer 175 regional jets with SpaceX's Starlink low‑latency satellite broadband. The airline plans to launch passenger flights using the system in May and will install the hardware on dozens of aircraft...
Greek Government Taps Planet for New Satellite Data Deal
Planet Labs Germany has landed a two‑year, seven‑figure contract—estimated between $1 million and $9 million—with the Greek government. The agreement, brokered through ESA, provides near‑daily medium‑resolution imagery, high‑resolution tasking, and a decade of PlanetScope data to support Greece’s National Satellite Space Project....
Operational AI Is Hitting the Limits of Earth Observation Data
AI models are moving from experimental Earth Observation (EO) datasets to operational deployments that must function across diverse geographies, seasons, and sensor changes. However, satellite imagery suffers from calibration drift, uneven revisit schedules, and fragmented data supply, forcing users to...
Brian Hughes Returns to NASA in Charge of Kennedy and Wallops Launch Operations
Brian Hughes, a former Trump campaign Florida director and brief NASA chief of staff, has been appointed senior director of launch operations overseeing Kennedy Space Center and Wallops Flight Facility. He will not serve as center director but will report...