SPACE EXPLORATION

New Horizon Sends First Close-up Picture of Most Distant Object Ever
The Associated Press reported on January 2, 2019 that NASA's New Horizons spacecraft sent the most distant object--a pin-shaped, fused twin spheres--from the Kuiper Belt. The picture of Ultima Thule, a 21-mile-long collection of a pair of fused spheres, one thrice the length of the other, was sent by the New Horizons to the Mission Control in the Johns Hopkins University's Applied Physics Laboratory, three-and-half years after the same spacecraft sent the close-up photo of Pluto. Ultima Thule--the bigger sphere is called the Ultima and the smaller one called the Thule--is 1 billion miles farther than Pluto. Kuiper Belt is thought to begin beyond Neptune.

JUPITER

Jupiter Found to have the Maximum Number of Confirmed Moons

The Associated Press reported on February 3, 2023 that the science and astronomy communities came to a reasonable conclusion now that the title of largest number of moons belonged to Jupiter. The discovery of 12 additional moons based on the readings and sightings of telescopes in Hawaii and Chile in 2021 and 2022 raises the total number of moons to 92, eclipsing the previous record holder Saturn's 83. Uranus has 27 confirmed moons, Neptune has 14, Mars two and our planet, Earth, has just one. Neither Venus nor Mercury has any moon. 

Europa Clipper to Explore Possibility of Life in Jupiter's Moon

The Associated Press has reported on October 12, 2024 that Europa Clipper spacecraft is getting ready to start its 1.8 billion miles journey to peer through one of 95 known moons of the gaseous planet Jupiter to explore whether the sloshing ocean underneath 15 miles of ice crust may support life. Europa has been discovered by renowned scientist Galileo in 1610 and forms one of the quartet of the Galilean Moons of Jupiter. Other three moons discovered by Galileo are Callisto, Io and Ganymeade. 

The liftoff is scheduled sometimes this month on the Space X' Falcon Heavy rocket and it will be as close as 16 miles from the Europa's surface around 2030. Once there, the $5.2 billion mission will unfurl its antenna and solar panels. Clipper is about 100 feet end to end and 13,000 pounds in weight. Clipper will peer through the miles-deep ice crusts to explore the oceanic atmosphere to assess whether the atmosphere is suitable to sustaining life, but it will not try to find any sign of actual life. Clipper's tortuous journey will take the spacecraft past Mars early 2025 and Earth in late 2026 en route to Jupiter where rendezvous is targeted around 2030. It will orbit Jupiter and cross paths with Europa 49 times. After about 4 years of science work, the spacecraft will be prodded to plunge onto the Jupiter's largest moon, Ganymeade, sometime around 2034. Because of the radiation risk from the Jupiter and its surrounding environment, all the instruments inside the Europa Clipper are boxed in securely.  

Spacecraft Launched for Research into Jupiter's Moon

A Falcon Heavy rocket of Space X, carrying Europa Clipper, was launched off from the Kennedy Space Center at the Cape Canaveral on October 14, 2024. Clipper's destination is an area close to Jupiter's moon Europa in quest of learning and gathering information on the water thought to be flowing under the icy crust of the moon's surface. 

VENUS

Tantalizing Finding of Life's Probable Existence Found in Venusian Clouds
A research published on September 14, 2020 in the Nature Astronomy detailed the finding of phosphine in the thick clouds of Venus. Normally phosphine is associated with microbes, and they may be present in the dense sulfuric acid layers in Venusian clouds. The surface temperature of Venus is around 800 degree Fahrenheit, but 30 miles above the surface, the temperature is like our room temperature. 

*********************** INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION *************************

20^th Anniversary of First Crew Arrival at Space Station

November 2, 2020 will mark a successful milestone of a spectacular 20-year journey of human’s travel back-and-forth to International Space Station. On October 31, 2000, three astronauts—NASA’s Bill Shepherd, Russian cosmonaut Yuri Gidzenko and another Russian, Sergei Krikalev—blasted off from Kazakh steppes, and arrived at International Space Station two days later, November 2, 2000.  Their first job was to turn on the light in the dark space station, turn on the hot water and ensure a running toilet. Twenty years ago, the space station was puny, included only three tiny rooms, humid and cramped. Many of the mundane works that might have taken minutes on the earth took almost several hours in the first months of their five-month stay. Twenty years and 241 visitors later, the International Space Station has morphed into a more complex, more advanced football field-size scientific module on the space that includes a lab, three toilets, 12 rooms and a lookout tower. The space station has functioned relatively free of any major hassle over the past 20 years.

Second Manned Flight Takes off in Six Months

After launching the first crewed test-flight in May 2020, Space X launched on November 15, 2020 the first full-fledged crewed flight to space station for long-term stay. The launch from the Kennedy Space Center at Cape Canaveral was thunderous and signified America’s return in a full-blown way to return crews to the International Space Station from its own soil and using its own vehicle instead of paying large sum to Russian space agency to commute between earth and ISS. Within minutes of the launch, the first stage booster separated from the launch vehicle and returned safely to a platform waiting on the Atlantic Ocean. The Space X Dragon Capsule is now on the orbit and on its way to dock at the International Space Station on November 16, 2020, night. The whole flight from the launch pad to docking at the ISS is automated although the crews can take control over the flight anytime. The four-crew astronauts are as diverse as they have ever been: the first African American, Navy Commander Victor Glover, to stay at the space station for long-term, one female, Shannon Walker, and one Japanese, Soichi Noguchi. Commander Michael Hopkins is the mission lead. Vice President Mike Pence joined NASA Administrator Jim Brindenstine to mark this moment of historic significance. The Dragon capsule has been named Resilience because of the challenging situation stemming not only from COVID-19 pandemic, but also racial injustice and contentious politics.

Space X Arrives at Space Station

After a completely automated, 27-hour flight, Space X on late November 16, 2020 brought four astronauts to the International Space Station. The Dragon capsule, named Resilience, docked as expected, marking the beginning of a six-month stay for three American and one Japanese astronauts.

Space X’ Will have Two Capsules at the Same Time at Space

Elon Musk’s Space X on December 6, 2020 has launched a cargo-carry Dragon capsule, paving the way for the first time that two Dragon capsules will be docked at the International Space Station. The other capsule, Resilience, already docked at the ISS carried four astronauts to the space station in mid-November 2020. The cargo-carry Dragon capsule is a reusable capsule and this launch has marked the fourth time it is being used to carry 6,400-pound cargo to the space station. Minutes after December 6, 2020, launch, the first stage of Falcon rocket returned and landed on an ocean platform in the Atlantic. After about a month, the capsule will splash in the Atlantic waters with the return cargo, a change from past practices when Dragon has descended onto Pacific waters with the help of parachute deployment, avoiding a longer commute later to take those cargo to Cape Canaveral.

Two Crew Dragon Capsules Dock Side by Side at ISS for the First Time

More than four months after a cargo Dragon capsule docked alongside a crew Dragon capsule at the space station, two crew Dragon capsules docked alongside at the space station on April 24, 2021, a day after a used and recycled capsule launched off the Kennedy Space Center carrying astronauts from the U.S., France and Japan. The new arrivals will stay in the space station for the next six months as four replaced astronauts will return to earth on April 28, 2021 in their own Dragon capsule. 

Crew of Four Returns to Earth after Longest Stay in the Space Station

Crew-1 team of NASA astronauts Victor Glover, Shannon Walker, Michael Hopkins and Soichi Noguchi returned to the earth with a dramatic splash on the Gulf of Mexico at 2:56 AM local time near the Panama City, Florida. The team stayed at the space station for 168 days, longest for any crew team. They returned in a Dragon capsule named Resilience. Space X and NASA welcomed the crew back to the earth. 

New Lab Module Launched

After repeated delays, a Proton-M booster rocket launched from Baikonur Cosmodrome on July 21, 2021 is carrying the Nauka module, also called the Multipurpose Laboratory Module, which will provide additional space for the International Space Station crew members as well as more room for experiments. After a flawless launch, the navigational antennas and solar arrays were deployed properly. The module will dock at the orbiting space station on July 29, 2021. 

Russian Lab Module’s Accidental Jerk Blamed on Faulty Software

Hours after the Nauka lab module docked the International Space Station on July 29, 2021, its thrusters accidentally fired off, and pushed the orbiting space station off its normal configuration. Staying on pre-defined configuration is key to sustaining solar power supply and communication with the scientists on the earth. After about 47 minutes, the space station was brought to its normal configuration after activating a propulsion system at another Russian module of the complex.

On July 30, 2021, Russian space agency, Roscosmos, issued a statement attributed to the International Space Station’s Russian Section Flight Director Vladimir Solovyov that blamed the mishap on a “short-term software failure”. Because of the software failure, a direct command to turn on the lab’s engines was mistakenly implemented, thus pointing to a possible human error too. Roscosmos Director Dmitry Rogozin on late July 30, 2021 acknowledged “human factor” for the accidental thrust that had led to minutes of misconfiguration of the orbiting complex.

Space X Takes 600th Astronaut to Space

November 10, 2021 marked a landmark day for the international space exploration as German astronaut Mathias Maurer became the 600th person to go to space since the humanity's first voyage to space nearly 60 years ago. A Space X rocket was launched on November 10, 2021, two days after Space X had brought back four other astronauts from the International Space Station, carrying Mathias Maurer and three other NASA astronauts.  

Three ISS Crews Welcome Four Arriving Astronauts, including the 600th 

Normally seven astronauts welcome the new arrivals, but only three astronauts have welcomed four astronauts who have taken off the NASA's Kennedy Space Center on November 10, 2021. It took 21 hours to reach the International Space Station. Before the latest launch, NASA brought back four astronauts during an opportune time window. 

Debris from a Russian Missile Test Pose Risk to Space Station

A Russian missile test on November 15, 2021 that had destroyed an old satellite, Cosmos 1408, had led to more than 1,500 pieces of debris orbiting at 17,500 mph, creating an immediate hazardous situation in space and putting the international space station and its seven crews at jeopardy. All seven--four NASA astronauts, one German and two Russians--were forced to abandon their research and take shelter in docked capsule. U.S. State Department Spokesperson Ned Price called the Russian missile test as "irresponsible". NASA Mission Control said that the  heightened risk from the space junk would stay for couple of days. 

Christmas Gifts, Goodies Sent to Space Station

At the foggy dawn of December 21, 2021, a Space X dragon capsule carrying 6,500 pounds of supplies, including gears, cold turkey, Christmas gifts and packages, was launched on a Falcon rocket. The first stage booster, few minutes later, was successfully returned on an ocean platform, marking the 100th such return, a landmark for Space X after the first successful booster landing had happened six years ago in 2015. This specific booster is the first time that it is being used. The previous booster was used 11 times. Reuse of boosters has minimized the need to mass-produce Falcon rockets and reduced the launch cost. The cargo capsule is carrying Santa-given gifts to seven astronauts from their families. 

Russia to Quit International Space Station in 2024

Russian space agency, Roscosmos, head, Yuri Borisov, said on July 26, 2022 that Moscow would leave the International Space Station in 2024 and focus on building its own space station. 

First Native American Woman Carries Spacewalk

NASA Astronaut Nicole Mann on January 20, 2023 made history by becoming the first Native American to walk on space. Mann, a Marine colonel and test pilot, and Japanese veteran astronaut Koichi Wakata installed struts and brackets to prepare for new solar panels to be launched this summer. Mann is a member of Wallacki of the Round Valley Indian Tribes in Northern California. 

***************** FIRST SAUDIS IN DECADES TO FLY TO SPACE

Saudis Part of  Space Tourism

A Space X rocket took off from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida on May 21, 2023, carrying three space tourists for an unknown price tag by the Houston-based space tourism company Axiom Space in its second such tourism trip to the International Space Station. Two Saudis are part of the trip. Rayyanah Barnawi is a stem-cell researcher and the first Saudi woman in the space, and Ali al-Qarni is a Saudi fighter pilot. The third person on commercial tourism ticket is John Shoffner of Knoxville, owner and a former driver of the sports car racing team. Peggy Whitson, a former NASA astronaut who holds the record for staying in space for 665 days and counting, is commandeering the vehicle as a Space X employee. The first-stage booster returned to the docking platform minutes after lift-off and will be reused in the future launch. The team will spend a little over a week before splashing down to waters off the Florida coast. 

***************** FIRST SAUDIS IN DECADES TO FLY TO SPACE

Astronauts from Four Nations Fly to Space Station

In a deepening bond of international collaboration in space science, August 26, 2023 will stay in the history of the space exploration as the one that marks the first time that a space taxi launched from the U.S. soil has each seat filled by an astronaut from a different nation. NASA Astronaut Jasmin Moghbeli is joined by European Space Agency's Andreas Mogensen of Denmark, Japan's Satoshi Furukawa and Russian Konstantin Borisov. The Space X capsule launched from the Cape Canaveral will hook up with the International Space Station on August 27, 2023 to supply four astronauts to replace four others who have been in the space station since March 2023. 

American Astronaut with Longest Time in Space Returns

An American Army doctor who spent 371 days in space returned to the earth on September 27, 2023 in a Soyuz capsule. Frank Rubio along with two Russian cosmonauts--Sergey Prokopyev and Dimitri Petelin--descended on Kazakh steppes. Rubio's 371-day stay in the space during a single mission beats out the previous U.S. record by about two weeks set by Mark Vande Hei. However, the record for the longest time that an astronaut has spent time in space on a single mission is still being held by Russia and it's 437 days. 

Soyuz Capsule Brings Back Three Astronauts from ISS

The last vestige of the West-Russia cooperation was relived to the world on April 6, 2024 after a Soyuz MS-24 capsule brought three space crews to the Kazakh Steppes near the remote town of Dzhezkazgan at 12:17 PM local time [on April 6]. The astronauts returned are NASA astronauts Loral O'Hara, Belarus cosmonaut Marina Vasilevskaya and Russian cosmonaut Oleg Novitsky. 

Loral O'Hara arrived at the International Space Station on September 15, 2023. Belarus cosmonaut Marina Vasilevskaya, Russian cosmonaut Oleg Novitsky and NASA astronaut Tracy Dyson blasted off on March 23, 2024. 

With the arrival of three crew members from the International Space Station, the space station is now home to NASA astronauts Michael Barratt, Matthew Dominick,  Tracy Dyson and Jeannette Epps as well as Russian cosmonauts Nikolai Chubs, Alexander Grebenkin and Oleg Kononenko. 

Boeing Starliner to Lift Two Astronauts to ISS

Stung by mishaps in its commercial airline program, Boeing is looking for a spate of fresh air and a moral boost. It now may get a boost--both moral boost and PR boost--if its spacecraft, CST-100 Starliner, is launched successfully from Cape Canaveral on May 6, 2024 to take two veteran astronauts to the International Space Station. Boeing spent almost $1.5 billion to develop the Starliner capsule. The capsule is placed atop United Launch Alliance's Atlas V rocket. ULA rolled the Atlas V rocket to Space Launch Complex 41 on May 4, 2024. ULA's first launch of Atlas rocket carried Astronaut John Glenn to space in 1962. The scheduled launch on May 6, 2024 will be ULA's 100th Atlas launch. Astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams will board the Crew Flight Test capsule atop ULA's  Atlas V rocket, and the launch time is expected to be 10:34PM on May 6, 2024. They will stay at the ISS for eight days.

Starliner's Safety Issues Delays the Launch 

Because of Helium gas leaks, the launch on May 6, 2024 was delayed. But a new problem has recently cropped up and the "design vulnerability" issue is the latest problem to have plagued the Starliner program. Now, June 1, 2024 is the tentative date of the launch. 

Starliner Launch Called off at the Last Minutes

With two astronauts strapped in the Boeing's Starliner capsule, it was all set for a lift-off to the International Space Station on June 1, 2024. However, an automated countdown was aborted with split-seconds remaining to the take-off moment. 

Starliner Lifts off with a Pair of Astronauts 

After fits and starts, Boeing's Starliner was launched on June 5, 2024 for the International Space Station at the top of a United Launch Alliance's Atlas V rocket. 

Boeing's Starliner Docks on ISS

The Starliner carrying two astronauts--Sunita Williams and Barry Wilmore--docked at the International Space Station on June 6, 2024 an hour later than expected because of two new leaks in its propulsion engine and losing power to its five thrusters. NASA and Boeing scientists triaged real-time to bring four of the five thrusters back online.  

Pair of Astronauts All Set to Spacewalk 

The Dallas Morning News reported on June 13, 2024 that NASA astronauts Tracy Dyson and Matthew Dominick would begin their 6 1/2-hour spacewalk at 8AM Eastern time in the vacuum of the space to conduct maintenance and research work. 

Astronauts May End up Staying in the Space Station for Several More Months

In another slap to the credibility of Boeing, NASA on August 7, 2024 said that Starliner won't be safe to bring astronauts Sunita Williams and Barry Wilmore, thus stranding them for the next several months. Boeing issued a statement countering the NASA findings.

NASA Ditches Plan to Bring Back Astronauts using Boeing's Starliner, Goes for Space X' Dragon Capsule

In another loss of face for Boeing, NASA on August 24, 2024 announced that astronauts Barry Wilmore and Sunita Williams who had been scheduled to stay only eight days in the International Space Station had to to stay put their return almost eight months after arriving at the space station as the agency chief Bill Nelson said that the safety of the astronauts was of the first priority. NASA is not confident in Starliner's safety cadence. Starliner capsule's five of 28 thrusters, required to orient the spacecraft, stopped firing as the spacecraft approached toward docking at the International Space Station on June 6, 2024. The ground controllers forced them to shut down and attempt to reboot them. Four of them eventually came back online. The Starliner spacecraft also suffered from a series of helium leaks from its propulsion system. Although Boeing assured that the Starliner was safe, NASA engineers were not so sure, and thus the decision to abrogate the return of astronauts in Starliner. Space X' Dragon capsule will bring the pair back to earth in February 2025. 

Starliner Returns to Earth without Crews

It was a "bull's eye landing", as per NASA's commercial crews program manager Steve Stich, for the Starliner, with four parachutes unfolding and landing on the White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico slightly after midnight on September 7, 2024. Although it would have been safe to fly the two NASA astronauts--Barry Wilmore and Sunita Williams--to earth, Mr. Stich didn't regret for stay-putting the pair at the International Space Station until a Space X capsule would bring them back in February 2025. 

Now, NASA and Boeing engineers will have opportunity to work collaboratively to probe the thruster problem and helium gas leaks from the capsule's propulsion system. 

Soyuz Takes Two Russians, one American to Space Station

It was expected to be a three-hour trip from Baikonur to the International Space Station. A Soyuz capsule on a towering rocket blasted off on September 11, 2024 with mission commander Alexei Ovchinin, and his fellow Russian cosmonaut Ivan Vagner along with American Donald Pettit. The mission is a welcome relief after abrogating a March 2024 mission because of an unanticipated voltage drop in the power system. 

Four Crew Members Back on Earth 

After staying almost eight months in the International Space Station, three NASA astronauts--Matthew Dominick, Michael Barratt and Jeannette Epps--and one Roscosmos cosmonaut, Alexander Grebenkin, are back on earth on October 25, 2024. The Crew Dragon Endeavor splashed in the Gulf of Mexico after a 34-hour journey back home. 

Space X Launch to Reach Four Astronauts to Space Station, Return Two Stranded to Home

After fits and starts, Space X launch to Space Station took place on March 14, 2025. Space X is carrying four astronauts and will return Suni Williams and Barry Wilmore to earth next week. 

Two Stranded Astronauts Return after Nine Months

As the Space X capsule splashed the waters of Gulf of Mexico off the coast near Tallahassee on March 18, 2025, a deeply entrenched saga in the American space program came to a sweet conclusion as Sunita Williams and Barry Wilmore--both of them were stuck at work for months--were now expected to be reunited with their respective families. 

*********************** INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION **************************

Japanese Capsule with Asteroid Sample Back on the Earth

It's a historic day for Japanese space exploration field as a capsule, carrying sample from a distant asteroid, released by a Japanese probe, Hayabusa2, returned to a remote landing place in southern Australia in the early hours of December 6, 2020. Hours later a helicopter retrieved the capsule from the expected area of landing in Australia's Woomera region. This marked a spectacular achievement for Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, or JAXA. JAXA's Hayabusa2 began the journey after collecting sample from the asteroid Ryugu about an year ago. After flying over 180 million miles, JAXA's Hayabusa2 probe released the capsule on December 5, 2020 and thrust it toward the landing place in southern Australia. The capsule entered the earth's atmosphere with a fireball look 75 miles above the earth and slowed down after unfolding a parachute about 6 miles above. Then it started to emit the beacon that had been caught by equipment deployed by JAXA scientists in Woomera. Meanwhile, Hayabusa2 moved away from earth and captured the descending of the capsule as it was en route to another distant asteroid, 1998KY26, for a 10-year one-way journey. 

***************************** CHINA'S SPACE STATION ****************************

China Launches the First of 11 Missions to Construct Its Own Space Station

Embarking on one of the most ambitious space programs that Beijing has ever undertaken, a Chinese rocket, Long March 5B, has blasted off from the Wenchang Launch Center in the southern island of Hainan on April 29, 2021, carrying the main module of China's space station. The main module, Tianhe, or "Heavenly Harmony", will be the living space for astronauts continuously for six months. Additional 10 launches will include carrying two more modules, where astronauts will conduct experiments, that is part of a bold effort to complete, supply and crew the space station by the end of next year. At least 12 astronauts are training for the crewed missions, first of which may happen as early as June 2021. 

Chinese Astronauts Set up Equipment outside the Country's Space Station

Two Chinese astronauts on July 4, 2021 took more than 7 hours of space walk and subsequent work to install cameras and other equipment outside China's own space station. Liu Boming and Tang Hongbo were shown on the Chinese TV as emerging out of the core module in a long robotic arm. The third astronaut, Nie Haisheng, stayed behind in the space station. All three arrived at the China's space station on June 17, 2021 aboard a Shenzhou capsule. On April 29, 2021, the first module, Tianhe, or Heavenly Harmony, was launched as the beginning of an 11-mission endeavor. The second mission involved an automated spacecraft with food and fuel, followed by the third mission that involved a Shenzhou capsule carrying the three astronauts who had arrived at the space station on June 17, 2021 for a three-month stay and research. 

Three Chinese Astronauts Arrive at Space Station

Two male and one female Chinese astronauts on October 16, 2021 arrived at the Chinese Space Station aboard a capsule, Shenzhou-13 spacecraft. Zhai Zhigang, 55, and Wang Yaping, 41, are veteran in space travel, but Ye Guangfu, 41, is making his maiden trip to space. They will undertake three spacewalks to install equipment as part of expanding the station, assess the living condition in the Tianhe, or Heavenly Harmony, module, and conduct experiments in space medicine and other fields. 

Near-Hit Disasters Averted involving Space X Satellites, Chinese Station

China formally submitted a complaint on December 6, 2021 to a U.N. panel responsible for safety of space. In that memo, China alleged that two Starlink satellites operated by Space Exploration Technologies Corporation, or Space X, came close to Chinese Space Station and crews had to intervene to evade the collisions on both instances. The memo called out a Starlink-1095 satellite descending from an altitude of about 345 miles earlier this year to 237 miles, leading to a "close encounter" with China Space Station on July 1, 2021. A separate Starlink satellite had a run-in with the China Space Station on October 21, 2021. Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Zhao Lijian said on December 28, 2021 that U.S. was not adhering with the provenance of Outer Space Treaty. 

Lab Module Launched for Chinese Space Station

China on July 24, 2022 leapt into another successful advancement in space exploration as it sent one of the two lab modules for its still-in-the-making space station. The Wentian module was launched from the tropical Hainan Island. The second lab module, the Mengtian, is due to be launched in October 2022. 

Third Lab Module Arrives at Space Station

China's ambitious space station program on November 1, 2022 received a prestigious boost as its third and final module, Mengtian, had connected with the main module. 

China Sends Three Crew Members to Space Station

A Long March 2-F rocket on May 30, 2023 is carrying Shenzhou 16 spacecraft to China's space station, Tiangong station. There are three crew members. The launch took place on May 30, 2023 at Jiuquan launch center.

***************************** CHINA'S SPACE STATION ****************************

*************************************** BLUE ORIGIN *****************************

Blue Origin's First Commercial Space Flight

July 20, 2021 will mark a new day and new chapter in the commercial space flight mission as Jeff Bezos, his brother, Mark, Wally Funk, 82, a woman space pioneer, and Oliver Daeman, son of a hedge fund billionaire and first paying Blue Origin customer who has been a runner-up in $28 million  sweepstakes in which the winner has not able to make it for this mission. The launch will happen on July 20, 2021 morning from a facility north of a small West Texas town, Van Horn, with Blue Origin's flagship New Shepard rocket. Space flights are turning out to be lucrative ventures for many of the billion dollar club's members as Virgin Galactic and Space X are racing to explore and launch their ventures in this domain. Early this month, Virgin Galactic upped the ante with its sub-orbital flight on its SpaceShip Two Unity with Sir Richard Branson and five other passengers. 

Historic First All-Civilian Space Travel Marks a New Era

On July 20, 2021 morning, a rocket launched off a launch facility about 24 miles north of Van Horn, carrying the world's youngest space traveler, 18-year-old Oliver Daeman, oldest space traveler, Wally Funk, an 82-year-old female aviation pioneer who had been trained to fly to space, but never got opportunity until now, richest person of the world, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, and his brother, Mark Bezos, for an 11-minute flight to the edge of space, including an awesome experience of 3 minutes of weightlessness. The rocket, New Shepard, and the capsule, RSS First Step space capsule, returned to the earth--few minutes apart--separately and safely. When the flight crossed the Karman Line at an altitude of 100 kilometers, the group experienced three minutes of weightlessness. 

Captain Kirk of Star Trek Fame Makes It to Space Frontier

Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin spaceship took a celebrity and space fixture for a generation of Americans to the space on October 13, 2021. Millions of people glued to the live-stream of William Shatner, 90, the oldest traveler to the space, and three other people to undertake this 10-minute travel to 66.5 miles above the earth, experience a three-minute weightlessness and return to the earth in a bright parachute near Van Horn.

Black Air Force Pilot First Selected as Candidate Eventually Flies to Space

Former Air Force pilot Ed Dwight, 90, on May 19, 2024 broke the record of the oldest person to fly to space, edging out the previous record holder, Star Trek-famous William Shatner, who had set the previous record in October 2021. Former President John Kennedy championed Dwight as a candidate for space program. However, Dwight was not selected for the 1963 class of astronauts. NASA didn't enroll a Black astronaut in its space program until 1978, and Guion Bluford became the first African American to fly to space in 1983, three years after the then-Soviet Union had sent a Cuban of African descent, Arnoldo Tamayo Mendez, to space in 1980. 

In 1966, Ed Dwight left the Air Force, and earned a Master's degree in sculpture in 70s. On May 19, 2024, he onboarded the Blue Origin with five other space tourists for the capsule's seventh voyage to space with tourists. 

*************************************** BLUE ORIGIN *****************************

NASA Spacecraft Launched to Chase Seven-Asteroid Trojan Clusters

In the darkness of the dawn of October 16, 2021, NASA sent a spacecraft, Lucy, aboard the United Launch Alliance's Atlas V rocket from Cape Canaveral. The first rendezvous will happen in 2027 with the first of the Trojans, a two-cluster seven asteroids which are stuck in the orbit of Jupiter. One cluster is stuck on the leading edge of Jupiter and the other cluster is in the trailing edge.  Lucy is on a 4-billion-mile journey to a region of the space that had not been explored before. Lucy will not make a landing on any of the asteroids In stead, it will take photos and collect data on the composition, texture, density and mass on these asteroids. First, it will have fly-bys of the earth in 2022 and 2024 to pick up speed and leverage the earth's gravity for a slingshot thrust to the leading group of asteroid clusters: Eurybates, Polymele, Leucus and Orus. It will be close to Euybates, largest of the seven asteroids, in 2027. Six years and another gravity assist from the earth later, Lucy will reach the trailing cluster of Patroclus, Menoetius and Queta in 2033. 

Space X Launches 53 Low-Orbit Satellites

A Space X rocket was launched on November 13, 2021, carrying 53 low-orbit Starlink satellites. Starlink is a satellite-based internet system that Elon Musk is building to provide affordable internet access to billions of impoverished people. The Falcon 9 rocket placed the satellites on the lower orbit of the earth 16 minutes after the launch. The reusable first stage of the rocket returned to "Just Read the Instructions" droneship in the Atlantic Ocean. 

************************** JAMES WEBB SPACE TELESCOPE ***********************

Most Sophisticated Telescope to be Launched to Peer the Earliest Time of Universe

European Space Agency's Arianne 5 rocket is to be launched from French Guiana on December 25, 2021, and it will carry the most powerful telescope ever built for its rendezvous with its orbit, some 932,000 miles from the earth, to peer through the deep space to the cradle of the universe and earliest of the time. James Webb Space Telescope, NASA's $11 billion project, is to be launched almost 30 years after its predecessor, Hubble Space Telescope, had been launched by NASA. The primary mission of the James Webb Space Telescope is two-fold: (1) Where did we come from? (2) Are we alone? The James Webb Space Telescope will empower the scientific community with the tool to gain insight into Andromeda Galaxy, next-door neighbor to our Milky Way Galaxy, by examining the infrared spectrum-thermal radiation. The additional layers of insight that the most powerful space telescope to date is going to glean pertain to the Universe's formative time, some 13.5 billion years ago, only hundreds of millions of years after the so called Big Bang.

James Webb Space Telescope Launched on a Beautiful Christmas Day

What could be a better and more heartening Christmas gift to humanity than launching the most powerful telescope to date to scour through cosmos and empower humanity's quest for discovering, according to NASA Administrator Bill Nelson, "incredible things that we never imagined". James Webb Space Telescope, an $11 billion joint collaboration of the U.S., European Space Agency and Canada, involving thousands of scientists and contractors from at least two dozen countries, was launched on an Arianne 5 rocket from the spaceport in French Guyana on the northeastern tip of South America on December 25, 2021. ESA Director-General Josef Aschbacher and NASA science mission chief Thomas Zurbhchen were present during the launch although Nelson and thousands of other scientists and contractors had bowed out because of Coronavirus pandemic. As the telescope is hurtling to an orbit about 932,000 miles from the earth, many things have to align and work correctly as it is in the midst of a month-long journey and another five months away from beaming back data to earth. First and foremost, the telescope's gargantuan mirror needs to unfolded and sunshield has to work perfectly within a matter of several hours.

"Golden Eye" Mirror Unfurls in a Historic Week

In a week that has punctuated with one landmark event after another for the James Webb Space Telescope, the finale has come with a splash of claps and sound of applause by the scientists from the missions operations team in Maryland on January 8, 2022 as the telescope's golden-eyed mirror has opened up. Earlier in the week, telescope's giant sunshield has been unfurled with a pointed precision, a very difficult and precious feat to ensure continuing with the key mission objective of perusing the cradle of universe by scouring the endless vista of distant galaxies and beyond. 

Telescope Reaches Its Orbit a Million Miles from Earth

James Webb Space Telescope on January 24, 2022 has reached the farthest distance ever, about one million miles from the earth, and fired its rocket thrusters to put itself into its designated orbit around the sun. James Webb Space Telescope's orbit at the Second Lagrange Point will help the telescope as the gravitational forces by sun and earth will be almost equal. After settling down in its new orbit and running some more arduous tests, James Webb Space Telescope will scour the dawn of the universe in the summer of 2022 in a time-backward journey of almost 13.7 billion years, only 100 million years after the Big Bang had created the universe. 

Most Powerful Telescope Sends Selfie 

NASA achieved another wow moment on February 11, 2022 as the James Webb Space Telescope's all 18 components of the primary mirror were working and it sent a selfie of its gargantuan mirror. In addition, the behemoth space telescope sent the first starlight of its mission, capturing the light from a star, 258 light-years away, belonging to the Ursa Major Constellation.

First of Images from James Webb Wows President, Public

The images from the dawn of the universe have been shared by the White House on July 11, 2022, with President Joe Biden quipping that the image represented the "oldest documented light in the history of the universe". The "deep field" image unveiled by the White House is from galaxies from the farthest distant of the cosmos as well as nearby collection of brilliant galaxies with sparkling stars enmeshed all around. Part of the image is light dating back to only hundred million years after the Big Bang that has happened about13.8 billion years ago. NASA Administrator Bill Nelson, capturing the magnanimity of the cosmos, called the images as reflection of "one little speck of the universe". More images are coming in the next several days. 

Brilliance of Galaxy Quintet Marvels Viewers 

On July 12, 2022, a collection of images captured by James Webb Space Telescope were shared with the public. Among them are Stephan's Quintet, a grouping of five galaxies in Constellation Pegasus. 

Six Massive Galaxies Found within 600 million years of Big Bang

The find that there are six massive galaxies from the nebulous beginning of the Universe, formed 13.8 billion years ago, tosses out the primary hypothesis that most of the galaxies formed close to the Big Bang (circa 13.8 billion years ago) are small. On February 22, 2023, the research was reported in the prestigious journal Nature. These six massive galaxies were formed about 600 million years after the birth of Universe. The James Webb Space Telescope's find of six massive galaxies formed 600 million years after the Big Bang doesn't mark the discovery of the oldest galaxies because the $10 billion telescope earlier has found other galaxies, dating to within a mere 300 million years after the Big Bang, but they are much smaller galaxies. The six galaxies about which the research has been published in the Nature on February 22, 2023 are by far the largest old galaxies. 

Biosignature of Microbial Life Found in Exoplanet 

The Dallas Morning News reported in its April 17, 2025, edition that scientists found the presence of Dimethyl Sulfide, or DMS, and Dimethyl Disulfide, or DMDS, in an exoplanet, K2-18 b, 750 trillion miles from the earth and located in the Constellation Leo outside our solar system. The finding is published in the journal Astrophysical Journal Letter based on the rich and rare data brought by the James Webb Space Telescope. The DMS and DMDS are normally formed because of biological processes, implying the possibility of abundance of microbial life. 

************************** JAMES WEBB SPACE TELESCOPE ***********************

More than Three Dozens Satellites Destroyed in Solar Storm

A geomagnetic storm on February 4, 2022 forced at least 40 of the 49 Starlink satellites, small satellites part of a system for bringing internet connectivity to various regions in the world, launched last week to veer off the low-altitude orbits, where they were orbiting around the earth, reenter the earth's atmosphere and get destroyed. SpaceX said in an online update on February 9, 2022. 

Space Junk to Hit Moon at a Speed of 5,800 mph

The far side of the moon is to be hit by a space debris, most likely on March 4, 2022. The debris is thought to be coming from the third stage of a Chinese rocket launched in 2014. It will crash into lunar surface at a speed of 5,800 miles per hour and create a crater 33 feet by 66 feet, according to research report published by The Associated Press. 

Light of Farthest Star Seen

Scientists have seen the light of the farthest star as Hubble has discovered this massive luminous star formed 12.8 billion years ago, only 900 million years after the Big Bang, according to a research published in Nature on March 30, 2022. The massive luminous star, Earendel, has been long gone, but its light from the cradle of Universe has just arrived. The previous record was held by Icarus, a blue supergiant star formed about 9.4 billion years ago. Hubble captured the light from Icarus too. Hubble spied on galaxies formed 300 to 400 million years after the Big Bang, but identifying individual stars within galaxies was a challenge. Scientists used a technique called the Gravitational Lensing to spot both Earendel and Icarus by leveraging the near-by clusters of galaxies as a magnifying glass to peek through the Universe to spot farthest galaxies and stars. 

Research Finds Massive Black Hole at the Center of Milky Way Galaxy

Astronomers found a massive Black Hole at the center of Milky Way. But, this massive Black Hole is a "gentle giant" as very little cosmic activities are happening. The picture is obtained from the Event Horizon Telescope, a collection of eight synchronized radio telescopes around the world. The images are shared with the public by astronomers from an international consortium on May 12, 2022. The Black Hole is about the size of an orbit of mercury as per what Einstein has espoused in his theory. The Milky Way Black Hole is called the Sagittarius A*, near the border of Sagittarius and Scorpius constellations and is more than 4 million times massive than our Sun. The same consortium in 2019 found the only other Black Hole 53 million lightyears away. That Black Hole is more violent and 1,500 times bigger than the Black Hole in our galaxy. Sagittarius A* is about 27,000 lightyears away. 

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Artemis Mission to Take America's Dream Beyond the Apollo-era Glory

After a splendid Apollo-era moon-landing and space exploration, the dream and imagination of American innovation are again on display with the upcoming launch of Artemis Mission tentatively scheduled for August 29, 2022. Vice President Kamala Harris will be on hand to mark the launch of Artemis I Mission. Tens of thousands of people will be on the Atlantic coast to witness the historic launch from Cape Canaveral. The entire system is 322 ft tall, and it includes 

* Orion Spacecraft (without crew for Artemis I Mission)

* ICPS (Interim Cryogenic Propulsion System) Engine to send the Orion to the moon 

* Space Launch System (SLS) rocket that will provide a record 8.8 million pound of thrust 

    -- SLS has (1) Core Stage, (2) Two Rocket Boosters on the both sides of Core Stage, (3) Launch Vehicle Stage Adapter on the top of Core Stage

Saturn V rocket that sent 24 Apollo astronauts to the moon was heavier and clunkier. SLS is lighter, but much more powerful. Two boosters will peel away two minutes after the launch. Core Stage will keep firing and will detach, eventually breaking down into pieces into Pacific Ocean. Two hours after the liftoff, the upper stage (LVSA) will hurl the Orion capsule towards moon. 

11-foot Orion capsule may contain four astronauts although Artemis I Mission will carry two Mannequins and one dummy astronaut. After a week-long voyage, Orion will enter the moon's environ at 240,000 miles away from the earth. It will settle into an orbit with the farthest end to be 38,000 miles from the moon. That will put Orion about 280,000 miles from the earth. After spending six weeks in the moon's orbit and garnering valuable datapoints, Orion will return to earth with 25,000 mph velocity and with its heat shield protecting the capsule as the temperature will spike as high as 5,000-degree Fahrenheit. 

Artemis II will take four crew personnel in Orion capsule and Orion will move on an orbit. Artemis II mission is likely to be in 2023.

As part of Artemis III program, Orion will have four astronauts, with two landing on the moon's south pole. Elon Musk's Space X will provide the starship that's going to hook up with Orion and take two of the astronauts for moon landing and back to Orion capsule. 

Artemis I Launch Postponed because of Faulty Components

At the last minute, NASA on August 29, 2022 scrubbed the launch of Artemis I due to an engine-related issue. The system that thermally conditions the engines did not chill one of the engines in the rocket's core stage, leading to Artemis I mission's scrubbing on August 29, 2022, said Mike Sarafin, NASA Artemis I mission manager. In addition, there was an issue related to a valve. 

Artemis I Mission Scrubbed Again

On September 3, 2022, the launch of Space Launch System, or SLS, rocket was abrogated because of hydrogen leak. Now, the next window is most likely in October 2022. 

Artemis I Mission Successfully Launched 

Artemis I mission, a sequel of Apollo mission that had seen 12 astronauts walking on the moon between 1969 and 1972, took off on November 16, 2022.

Capsule Sends Small Photo Dot of Earth 

The Orion capsule on November 21, 2022 has sent back to NASA scientists the pictures of how the earth looks like from the moon. It looks like a pale blue dot in the midst of vast blackness. The capsule is now on its way to an orbit of the moon with three dummies inside and will send valuable information streams and photos to the earth. It had to give a slingshot to reach at the present position and it has to give another slingshot on November 25, 2022. On November 28, 2022, Orion is likely to reach a point 270,000 miles from the earth, shattering a record that Apollo 13 has so far held after reaching a distance of 250,000 miles in 1970. 

Orion in an Expansive, but Stable, Lunar Orbit

On November 25, 2022, Orion entered a wide lunar orbit to circle the moon with its test dummies. 

Conclusion of a Very Successful Artemis Mission

The 26-day mission of Artemis I came to a successful conclusion and collective joy on December 11, 2022 as Orion splashed down to Pacific Ocean near Baja California. Since its much-awaited, long-delayed launch on November 16, 2022, Orion had done fly-by directly over the Apollo II landing site at Tranquility Base and came as close as 80 miles of the lunar surface. The splashdown occurred about 50 years to the date of Apollo 17 landing on the lunar surface. NASA Administrator Bill Nelson said the event "historic".

*********************** ARTEMIS II MISSION

Artemis II Mission Crew Named

On April 3, 2023, NASA named four astronauts who would be the part of Artemis II mission that would send astronauts flying by the moon in an Orion capsule. The crew are the one of the most diverse, and consist of an African-American, a woman and a Canadian. The crew include Reid Wiseman, the mission commander; Victor Glover, the mission pilot; Christina Koch, the mission specialist; and Canadian Jeremy Hansen, the mission specialist.  

Artemis II Mission to be Delayed after Inquiry into Test Mission's Heat Shield Damage Takes Time

NASA Administrator Bill Nelson on December 5, 2024 said that the agency's scientists needed more time to assess and understand the failure of the heat shield of the Orion capsule after the initial mission in 2022. That will push back the Artemis II Mission's timeline by several months to at least until April 2026. 

*********************** ARTEMIS II MISSION

************************ ARTEMIS ACCORDS

Denmark Becomes the 48th Nation to Sign Artemis Accords

The Washington Post reported on November 24, 2024 that Denmark was the 48th state to sign the Artemis Accords since 2020. The Artemis Accords are the legacy of NASA, the U.S. State Department and seven other signatories to foster collaboration among nations to drive innovation, safety, security and sustainability through space research and exploration. The accords commit the signatories to publicly share debris disposal, threat assessment and other relevant space-related information. 

************************ ARTEMIS ACCORDS

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Trappist Solar System Found to have no Environment

To the dismay of scientists, our neighboring solar system with maximum potential of having environments like ours has turned out to be a bummer, according to a research article published on March 27, 2023 in the journal Nature. The research has been focused on the innermost planet of the Trappist Solar System, a system that resembles our solar system with seven planets. Trappist system is a mere 40 lightyears from ours, a short distance on a cosmic scale. One rationale that the NASA scientists have not found any environment in the innermost planet is that because of the excessive radiation from the Trappist star, making innermost planet to have an average temperature as high as 450 degree Fahrenheit on its side facing the star. The lack of an atmosphere implies no water and no protection from cosmic rays, said the lead researcher Thomas Greene of NASA's Ames Research Center. The information and data have been collected by the most powerful space telescope, James Webb Space Telescope. Next phase of Trappist system study will involve other planets. 

New Insight into Supermassive Black Hole through Machine Learning

The first image came in 2019. It was a bright, orange-colored, doughnut-shaped Black Hole situated circa 54 million light-years away in a distant, giant galaxy named Messier 87. The picture, at that time, hazy, though, was obtained by the Event Horizon Telescope. EHT is a constellation of telescopes from around the world, collecting data in a method called the Very Long Baseline Interferometry. Then comes the Machine Learning algorithm named as PRIMO that has been trained and improved upon high-fidelity, high-scalability simulations of matters falling into black holes. Through PRIMO data, astronomers and scientists are now able to fill in plenty of blank spaces from the images originally obtained from the EHT data. The research and the finding have been published on April 13, 2023 in the Astrophysical Journal Letters. 

*************************************** LUNAR MISSION **************************

Bezo's Blue Origin Wins $3.4 billion Lunar Lander Bid

After bowing out to Space X on the debut lander contract, Jeff Bezo's Blue Origin on May 19, 2023 won a $3.4 billion contract to transport humans for lunar landing as early as 2029 after a pair of crew landings by Space X. In 2021, Blue Origin sued NASA, accusing the space agency of not having a fair bidding process when it had awarded Space X for the first lunar landing scheduled to be happening more than five decades after the Apollo moonshots. However, a federal judge rejected Blue Origin's argument. NASA used its own rocket (SLS) and capsule (Orion) in Artemis I Mission. It will continue using them to transport crew members to lunar orbit, but depend on private space entrepreneurs to complete the last leg of the journey. 

However, prior to crewed lunar landing, like Space X, Blue Origin will undergo several rounds of trial with uncrewed missions to moon, using its lunar lander, Blue Moon, and its powerful rocket, New Glenn rocket. 

************************************* CHANDRAYAN-3 

India Lands First on the South Pole of Moon

In an unmatched national pride that has touched more than billion hearts, India became the first nation on the earth to land on the South Pole of the moon and only the fourth nation--after the USA, Soviet Union and China--to make a successful lunar landing. On August 23, 2023, a riveted nation celebrated the historic touchdown of Chandrayan-3. 

************************************* CHANDRAYAN-3 

Japan the Fifth Nation to Land on Moon

Japan on January 20, 2024 (12:20AM Tokyo Time) / January 19, 2024 (9:20 AM CST) became only the fifth nation--after the U.S., Soviet Union, China and India--to land a spacecraft on the lunar surface. Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency launched the Smart Lander for Investigating Moon, or SLIM, and other objects on an H-IIA rocket from the Tanegashima Space Center on Tanegashima Island in Kagoshima Prefecture. Hitoshi Kuninaka, head of the Institute of Space and Aeronautical Science, a unit of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, said that SLIM's solar battery was not working, thus hurrying the information gathering as best as possible and as much as possible during the remaining few hours of existing battery life. Small rovers are being released on lunar surface in the hunt of insight and information. Kuninaka is yet to confirm whether SLIM has landed using the "pinpoint landing" technique, a technical marvel that can empower greater control over the effective operation of the rover. 

Private Rover to Land on Moon

As part of NASA's plan to collaborate with private companies in which the latter would bear the responsibilities for sending rovers to the Moon while NASA would be their customer, the second launch took place on February 15, 2024 as a Falcon-9 rocket of Space X blasted off from the launch pad of Cape Canaveral, carrying the Nova-C lander, named Odysseus, owned and operated by Houston-based Intuitive Machines. The successful blast-off, detachment, return and reuse of Falcon-9 rockets have made the commercial launches less costly in recent years. 

After traveling more than 620,000 miles in the past week, Odysseus on February 21, 2024 entered the lunar orbit at a height of 57 miles above the Moon's surface. Odysseus is expected to make a lunar landing on February 22, 2024. 

NASA has agreements with private firms to send at least nine rovers to Moon. The first rover, Peregrine, of Astrobotic Technology launched in January 2024 was not successful as a propellant leak forced the firm to reverse the course and led the rover to burn up upon reentry into earth's atmosphere. There are seven more launches as part of NASA's Commercial Lunar Payload Services, or CLPS, program, including at least three expected later this year. 

Private Lander Touches off Lunar Surface

For the first time since 1972 when Gene Cernan and Harrison Schmitt had last put their footprints on the lunar surface as part of the Apollo 17 program, America's quest for the first adventurous and successful lunar landing etched an important milestone on the calendar for the historic date of February 22, 2024. The mission control at the Intuitive Machines' headquarters was consumed with high tension as the scientists and technologists were waiting for minutes to receive the signal from Odysseus. Ahead of the landing attempt, Odysseus' laser rangefinders stopped working, thus inhibiting dataflow related to the rover's altitude and horizontal velocity. However, one of NASA's six payloads emerged as a savior. Navigation Doppler Lidar helped transmit key data during the time when Odysseus' laser rangefinders didn't work. Under NASA's Commercial Lunar Payload Services, or CLPS, program, the U.S. space agency paid Intuitive Machines $118 million for this mission. Under CLPS program, NASA is the customer of private firms which will own and operate launch operation, spacecraft development, safety and upkeep, and initiatives to help NASA to focus on conducting experiments. As part of the latter job, NASA has sent six payloads, including the Navigation Doppler Lidar, worth some $12 million with Odysseus. In addition to NASA's six payloads, Odysseus has taken six additional payloads for non-NASA-sanctioned research. NASA's Artemis III mission envisions first American astronauts--including the first-ever female, to be put on the lunar surface since 12 men have landed on the Moon during six Apollo missions between 1969 and 1972. 

************ CHINA'S AMBITIOUS LUNAR MISSION

China Launches Rover to Moon's Far Side

In a space exploration marvel, China on May 3, 2024 launched a three-component space vehicle from the Wenchang Launch Center on the island province of Hainan. The first component, Long March-5 rocket, the largest rocket that China has ever launched, provides ample thrust during the liftoff. After 35 minutes, Long March-5 rocket separated and the spacecraft was en route to Moon's orbit. Launch mission commander Zhang Zuosheng climbed a podium at the mission control center and declared the launch as a success. The spacecraft, upon entry into a lunar orbit, will adjust its speed, and the rover, Chang'e-6 lunar probe, will separate from the spacecraft. Upon landing on the far side of the Moon, Chang'e-6 will use its arms to scoop soil from the surface and store them in the containers. The rover will then rejoin with the spacecraft before beginning a return journey to home. The entire mission will take no more than 53 days.

China Makes History by Successfully Landing a Rover on the Far Side of Moon

After weeks of voyage, Chang'e-6 lunar probe made a landing on the far side of the Moon on June 2, 2024. On June 4, 2024, at the Beijing time of 7:38AM, an ascender lifted off from the lunar surface after collecting soil and rock. The samples are placed within a container inside the ascender of the probe. The container is scheduled to reach the earth around June 25, 2024 in the remote areas of Mongolia. A Chinese national flag was unfurled on June 4, 2024 on the far side of the Moon before the ascender had blasted off. Chang'e-6 probe landed on one of the largest and oldest lunar craters, South Pole Aitkin-Basin, an impact crater created over 4 billion years ago, 8 miles deep and 1,500 miles in radius. 

************ CHINA'S AMBITIOUS LUNAR MISSION

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********************************* VOYAGER MISSION ******************************

Voyager 2 Resumes Communication 

Voyager 2, launched in 1977 to study and explore the outer solar system, stopped communicating two weeks ago after wrong command had put its antenna away from the earth. That led to a stretched-out effort by the scientists to restore the position of the antenna. On August 2, 2023, a new command was sent from one of the highest powered transmitters in the world that was located in Australia. It took for the command to reach Voyager 2, which is about 12 billion miles from the earth, almost 18 hours. The return command took a similar 18 hours to reach the earth. On August 4, 2023, Project Manager Suzanne Dodd of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in California was ecstatic that Voyager 2 resumed communicating again. 

The twin craft of the Voyager 2 was launched two weeks after its own launch. Voyager 1 is the farthest-travelled spacecraft from the earth at a distance of 15 billion miles from the earth, and is still communicating. 

********************************* VOYAGER MISSION ******************************

SPACE X

Space X Starship Rocket Explodes Minutes after Liftoff

The first trial of gargantuan Starship rocket didn't go well, but it was still a "successful failure" as its explosion minutes after April 20, 2023, liftoff from the launchpad at Boca Chica in South Texas would provide necessary information and insight to improve the safety and operation of the next liftoff. Starship Rocket includes two stages: (1) Starship spacecraft and (2) a heavy-duty booster. After the launch, they were supposed to be decoupled, but the conjoined Starship rocket failed to separate, thus triggering the so called self-destruct, or "Rapid Unscheduled Disassembly" by the "Automated Flight Termination System". Both the Starship spacecraft and heavy-duty booster are salvageable and reusable unlike the Space Launch System, SLS, rocket used in Artemis I Mission. 

Two-part Starship rocket is 400-foot tall and can carry 220,000 pounds of load, and more powerful than NASA's SLS rocket. Starship rocket has twice the thrust of the Apollo-era Saturn V rocket. The Super Heavy first-stage booster is powered by 33 individual engines.  

NASA in 2021 awarded Space X $2.9 billion contract for Starship to facilitate human landing on moon. Space X won an additional $1.15 billion for a second lunar landing.

Space X Receives Approval for Third Launch of Starship Spacecraft 

The Federal Aviation Administration announced on February 26, 2024 that it was closing the investigation that it had launched after the November 18, 2023, mid-air destruction of the Starship Spacecraft. Space X called the second launch on November 18, 2023 as success as the Starship rocket had been successfully separated from the Starship Spacecraft and the Starship Spacecraft's successful eight-minute flight before the destruction of both stages by the onboard Flight Termination System (FTS). Space X is now cleared to try out its third Starship Spacecraft launch from its Boca Chica launch site. 

During the first launch on April 20, 2023, the Starship Spacecraft failed to separate from the Starship heavy-duty booster, leading to FTS-led self-destruction of the spacecraft portion of the two-stage space vehicle. 

Space X Starship's Third Launch Dubbed as a Success Despite Loss of Booster, Spacecraft 

Space X launched its third Starship mission on March 14, 2024 from its private launch site at Boca Chica in South Texas. All 33 of booster's engines worked successfully. After three minutes, the booster separated from the spacecraft. The spacecraft's six engines ignited successfully and after an hour of flight, it reentered the earth's atmosphere and burned up over the Indian Ocean. The Starship heavy-duty booster was lost in the Gulf of Mexico. Despite the destruction of the vehicle, collectively called the Starship, composed of a Super Heavy-Duty booster and a spacecraft atop it, the mission achieved several milestones and gathered data that would make the next mission more successful. 

Space X Falcon 9 Rocket Grounded after Fiery Return

Federal Aviation Administration on August 28, 2024 grounded all Falcon 9 rocket launch after Space X' iconic rocket launched 21 Starlink satellites from Cape Canaveral. Its Starlink launch was successful and all 21 satellites were placed onto orbit. It was the reusable first component--this  particular Falcon 9 rocket had been used a record 23 times, including this time--that returned to a ocean platform with a fiery mothball of descent. 

First Private Spacewalk by a Billionaire and a Space X Engineer

On September 12, 2024, Jared Isaacman, an entrepreneur and billionaire, became the first private person to venture into space and conduct spacewalk followed by Space X engineer Sarah Gillis. A four-member team, including Gillis and Isaacman, was taken to the space by Space X' Dragon capsule. 

Space X Receives License for Massive Starship Experimentation

Federal Aviation Administration on October 12, 2024 granted license to Space X for the fifth launch test for Elon Musk's company's gargantuan Starship rocket program. Space X will test on how the massive rocket will return to the earth with a straight and successful vertical landing. Space X will launch the test on October 13, 2024. 

Space X Mega Starship Returns with Successful Landing

A day after receiving the license for the fifth test of Starship program, Space X on October 13, 2024 earned the feat that marveled the space researchers and experts and gave hope that the firm would be at the forefront of a crewed lunar mission someday. At 7:25AM Dallas time, the mega rocket along with the Starship spacecraft lifted off the launchpad at Boca Chica. After flying through the atmosphere, the mega rocket detached from the spacecraft. While the spacecraft was guided to splash in the waters, the Super Heavy rocket was successfully caught by folding arms of the tall landing pad tower. Within minutes, the rocket came to rest hanging on a pair of two folding arms along the vertical tower of the landing pad. 

Space X is already using the successful landing of the Falcon 9 rocket boosters, but the second stage of the rocket is discarded while the booster is reused under the current operational practice. The significant difference between the existing operation [of booster reusability of the Falcon 9 rocket] and this test is the entire Super Heavy booster is being brought back to the arms of the landing pad's restraints, implying total reusability of the rocket. 

Starship Breaks apart Minutes in Flight

Space X's Starship spacecraft, 8-and-1/2-minute in flight, broke apart on January 16, 2025 because of an explosion in the upper portion of the spacecraft. Because of the debris-related danger, several flights were diverted and many were held back from taking off airports. The Super Heavy Booster returned to the launch pad. 

On January 17, 2025, the Federal Aviation Authority said that Space X would launch an investigation into the Starship explosion. 

Starship Explodes in Fiery Breakup 

Space X's massive Starship spacecraft blew up in a fiery explosion and the debris were seen falling from the sky over Florida. The Super Heavy Booster rocket returned to the designated platform and came to a standstill onto the arms of a holder column on the pad as planned minutes after the launch from South Texas on March 6, 2025. It's not clear whether the Starship spacecraft was blown up into flaming smithereens by a self-destruct function or due to uncontrolled failure. 

Space X Receives Permission for More Launches of Starship Rocket

The Federal Aviation Administration on May 6, 2025 granted permission to Elon Musk's Space X for up to 25 annual launches of its 40-story Starship rocket from Boca Chica, marking a significant  increase from the current annual number of six. 

Since 2023, Space X conducted eight test launches of its massive Starship. The Starship vehicle includes two components: (1) the first stage is called the Super Heavy Booster, a 232-foot tall reusable rocket that separates from the starship after the launch and aims to return to the rest on a sea platform after being caught by a column holder, and (2) the second stage is a 171-foot tall spacecraft known as Starship Spacecraft.

Space X Starship Spacecraft Spins out of Control

Another fiery crash occurred after May 27, 2025, launch of the Starship Spacecraft, another instance of failure as part of Elon Musk's perseverance and pursuit to master a strategy and product that would someday will carry humans to Moon, Mars and beyond. Space X issued a statement, saying the craft experienced a "rapid unscheduled disassembly". 

************************************* SOLAR MISSION ****************************

India Launches Solar Mission 10 Days after Successful Landing on the Far Side of the Moon

Barely the excitement of a nation has subsided for acclaiming the role of the first ever nation of landing a rover on the far side of the moon. On September 2, 2023, India launched Aditya-L1 spacecraft to study the Sun. The spacecraft will reach the so called the L-1 point, about 930,000 miles from the earth in about 125 days. Aditya will study the sun's corona, chromosphere, photosphere and solar wind, according to Indian Space Research Organization. 

NASA Probe to Traverse Closest ever to Sun

NASA's Parker Solar Probe launched in 2018 has traversed through Sun's Corona and is now expected to be in the closest distance from Sun--approximately 3.8 million miles from the solar surface--ever by any spacecraft on December 24, 2024. Parker's heat shield is expected to protect the probe from the searing blast of heat with temperature hovering around 2,500-degree Fahrenheit. 

************************************* SOLAR MISSION ****************************

Most Distant Radio Burst Reported

The Dallas Morning News reported on October 20, 2023 that scientists had heard the remotest blast ever in a so far galaxy that it had taken almost 8 billion years for the light to arrive. The blast was captured by the Fast Radio Burst, or FRB, technology. The blast, named FRB20220610A, was spotted by ASKAP radio telescope in Australia in June 2022.