London, UK (SPX) Jul 09, 2025
A new UK-led satellite mission concept aims to strengthen the country's position in space weather observation and forecasting by deploying a suite of homegrown scientific instruments on a low-cost spacecraft in low-Earth orbit. The proposal was presented Wednesday at the Royal Astronomical Society's National Astronomy Meeting 2025 in Durham. UK-ODESSI (UK-Orbital pathfinDEr for Space

Tokyo, Japan (SPX) Jul 09, 2025
In a strategic move to reinforce India's space sovereignty in the quantum era, Space TS and Synergy Quantum have signed a Memorandum of Understanding to co-develop the nation's first indigenous quantum-secure satellite systems and supporting technologies. This collaboration unites Space TS's expertise in satellite systems engineering with Synergy Quantum's leadership in post-quantum cybers

Tokyo, Japan (SPX) Jul 14, 2025
The Moon's near and far sides differ dramatically in terrain, crust, and volcanic history-a mystery that has long perplexed scientists. This disparity is now better understood thanks to China's Chang'e-6 mission, which launched on May 3, 2024, and returned 1,935.3 grams of lunar material from the South Pole-Aitken Basin (SPA) on June 25, 2024. The SPA, a 2,500-kilometer-wide structure, is the ol

London, UK (SPX) Jul 14, 2025
If we're to land humans on Mars in the coming decades, we'll have to know what challenges await them when they get there. Enter M-MATISSE, a potential precursor to a crewed mission to the Red Planet which could use UK instrumentation being promoted at the Royal Astronomical Society's National Astronomy Meeting 2025 in Durham to revolutionise our understanding of space weather on Mars.

London, UK (SPX) Jul 14, 2025
A mystery interstellar object discovered last week is likely to be the oldest comet ever seen - possibly predating our solar system by more than three billion years, researchers say. The "water ice-rich" visitor, named 3I/ATLAS, is only the third known object from beyond our solar system ever spotted in our cosmic neighbourhood and the first to reach us from a completely different region o

Tokyo, Japan (SPX) Jul 14, 2025
In a concerted push to support China's rapidly expanding low-altitude space sector, six leading universities will introduce an undergraduate major in the field this fall. The program, approved in April by the Ministry of Education, is part of a national strategy to cultivate professionals for an industry projected to surpass 1.5 trillion yuan ($207 billion) in value by the end of 2025. The

Tokyo, Japan (SPX) Jul 14, 2025
In a major breakthrough, scientists from Chengdu University of Technology have analyzed a newly discovered Martian meteorite that could help explain how volcanoes once shaped Mars. The meteorite, named Northwest Africa (NWA) 16254, is a rare type known as a gabbroic shergottite and offers a unique glimpse into the planet's deep interior and ancient volcanic systems. The research, published

Los Angeles CA (SPX) Jul 14, 2025
Space Forge Inc., a leader in orbital materials engineering, has entered into a strategic partnership with Intuitive Machines to deploy its semiconductor manufacturing payload aboard the Zephyr orbital return vehicle. The collaboration forms part of Intuitive Machines' Earth Reentry Program and is backed by the Texas Space Commission. This joint effort aims to rapidly advance the U.S. dome

All its parts have been built and put together. It has been wrapped in shiny gold insulating foil. Its launch is getting closer. But the Smile spacecraft had one major phase to pass before it could be certified ready for space – and it involved testing, testing and yet more testing.

After 20 days in space, ESA project astronaut Sławosz Uznański-Wiśniewski and his Axiom Mission 4 (Ax-4) crewmates returned safely to Earth today, 15 July 2025.