Stay updated with the latest events in spaceflight.
NASA and its international partners are set to receive scientific research samples and hardware as a SpaceX Dragon spacecraft is scheduled to depart the International Space Station on Tuesday, June 16, for its return to Earth. Watch NASA’s live undocking coverage beginning at 11:45 a.m. EDT on NASA+, Amazon Prime, and the agency’s YouTube channel. […]
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French launch startup Latitude has removed all mentions of the Zephyr name from its website, now referring to its rocket simply as “Our Launcher”. The rocket, previously known as Zephyr, is a two-stage launch vehicle that will stand 19 metres tall and is designed to deliver up to 200 kilograms to low Earth orbit. The […] The post Latitude Ditches the Name Zephyr for Its Two-Stage Rocket appeared first on European Spaceflight.
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This March 20, 2026, image of Messier 64, or the Black Eye Galaxy, is a composite view from NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope and James Webb Space Telescope. It shows Messier 64 captured at near- and mid-infrared wavelengths by Webb, while Hubble’s image shows the galaxy in ultraviolet, visible, and near-infrared light. Messier 64 is characterized […]
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Chris Kemp thinks he could be the last person left working at Astra — but not for the reason most people might think. His company rode the SPAC boom five […] The post All in on AI at Astra appeared first on SpaceNews.
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Japan’s H3 rocket launched June 11 on its first flight since a failure in December, placing six smallsats in orbit. The post H3 successfully returns to flight appeared first on SpaceNews.
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Spacecraft Undocking
The SpaceX CRS-34 Dragon spacecraft will undock from the International Space Station ahead of its reentry, splashdown and recovery.
Press Event
NASA will host an audio-only media teleconference to preview the Katalyst Space mission to boost the orbit of NASA’s Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory. Katalyst’s robotic servicing spacecraft, called LINK, will attempt to rendezvous with Swift and raise its altitude, extending its science mission lifespan and advancing a key capability for the future of space exploration. The LINK spacecraft will launch on Northrop Grumman’s Pegasus XL rocket later this month from Kwajalein Atoll in the Marshall Islands. Participants in the media teleconference include: - Shawn Domagal-Goldman, division director, Astrophysics, NASA Headquarters in Washington - Brad Cenko, principal investigator, Swift, NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland - Kieran Wilson, principal investigator, LINK, Katalyst Space - Robert Lamontagne, vice president, strategic partnerships, Katalyst Space - Wes Collier, vice president, launch systems, Northrop Grumman The Swift mission, which launched in 2004, leads NASA’s fleet of telescopes in studying changes in the high-energy universe, like gamma-ray bursts, which are the most powerful explosions in the cosmos. When a rapid, sudden event takes place in the sky, Swift serves as a “dispatcher,” providing critical information that allows other “first responder” missions to follow up to learn more about how the universe works. After 21 years, Swift’s low Earth orbit has begun to rapidly decay because of increased solar activity. Rather than allowing the observatory to re-enter Earth’s atmosphere, as many missions do at the end of their lifetimes, NASA is using this opportunity to advance U.S. spacecraft servicing technology. In September 2025, NASA awarded a contract to Katalyst to mount a robotic servicing mission for Swift in less than a year. The mission will use LINK to rendezvous with Swift and boost it to a higher altitude, demonstrating a key capability for the future of space exploration.
EVA
Two astronauts will replace a high-definition camera on camera port 3, install a new navigational aid for visiting spacecraft, called a planar reflector, on the Harmony module’s forward port, and relocate an early ammonia servicer jumper — a flexible hose assembly that connects parts of a fluid system — along with other jumpers on the station’s S6 and S4 truss.
Founded: 1998-11-20
The International Space Station (ISS) is a space station, or a habitable artificial satellite, in low Earth orbit. Its first component was launched into orbit in 1998, with the first long-term residents arriving in November 2000. It has been inhabited continuously since that date. The last pressurised module was fitted in 2011, and an experimental inflatable space habitat was added in 2016. The station is expected to operate until 2030. Development and assembly of the station continues, with several new elements scheduled for launch in 2019. The ISS is the largest human-made body in low Earth orbit and can often be seen with the naked eye from Earth. The ISS consists of pressurised habitation modules, structural trusses, solar arrays, radiators, docking ports, experiment bays and robotic arms. ISS components have been launched by Russian Proton and Soyuz rockets, and American Space Shuttles.
Founded: 1986-02-20
Mir was a space station that operated in low Earth orbit from 1986 to 2001, operated by the Soviet Union and later by Russia. Mir was the first modular space station and was assembled in orbit from 1986 to 1996. The station served as a microgravity research laboratory in which crews conducted experiments in biology, human biology, physics, astronomy, meteorology and spacecraft systems with a goal of developing technologies required for permanent occupation of space.
Founded: 1973-05-14
Skylab was a United States space station launched and operated by NASA, and occupied for about 24 weeks between May 1973 and February 1974 – the only space station the U.S. has operated exclusively. In 1979 it fell back to Earth amid huge worldwide media attention. Skylab included a workshop, a solar observatory, and other systems necessary for crew survival and scientific experiments. It was launched unmanned by a modified Saturn V rocket, with a weight of 170,000 pounds (77,000 kg). Lifting Skylab into low earth orbit was the final mission and launch of a Saturn V rocket (famous for carrying the manned Moon landing missions). Three missions delivered three-astronaut crews in the Apollo command and service module (Apollo CSM), launched by the smaller Saturn IB rocket. For the final two manned missions to Skylab, a backup Apollo CSM/Saturn IB was assembled and made ready in case an in-orbit rescue mission was needed, but this backup vehicle was never flown.