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Artemis 2: Real-time telescope livestream tracks crewed Moon mission back to Earth
1 day ago•Source: Space
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Artemis 2 goes smartphone: astronauts snap history with iPhone 17s
Artemis 2’s crew is documenting the mission with iPhones on board (iPhone 17s, not connected to the internet) along with GoPros and Nikon cameras, capturing Earth, crew moments, and the lunar flyby. The effort accompanies a historic far-side lunar trajectory that set the record for farthest-ever human spaceflight, and signals a growing role for smartphones in space photography as the Orion crew (Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch, Jeremy Hansen) heads back to Earth.
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NASA hunts for silent MAVEN as Mars relay duties shift
NASA has not declared MAVEN lost after losing contact with the Mars orbiter on Dec. 6, 2025, and recovery attempts have yielded no signal since a solar conjunction ended Jan. 16. Officials say MAVEN may have rotated unexpectedly as it emerged from behind Mars, so recovery efforts continue while other orbiters take on relay duties; NASA has deployed assets like Green Bank Observatory and even tried to image MAVEN with the Curiosity rover, but no trace has been found. If the spacecraft is declared lost, NASA is weighing replacements for Mars’ relay network, aided by a $700 million budget line for a high-performance Mars telecom orbiter and proposals such as Blue Origin’s Mars relay concept. MAVEN launched in 2013 and spent over a decade studying Mars’ atmosphere.
Artemis 2 rolls to the pad as NASA primes crewed lunar mission
NASA’s Artemis 2 rocket and Orion crew capsule were moved back to Launch Complex 39B at Kennedy Space Center after recent maintenance, with rollout completing ahead of the April launch window. Artemis 2 will carry a four-person crew—Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch and Jeremy Hansen—for a 10-day loop around the Moon, as managers finalize systems and ground checks in case liftoff occurs starting April 1 (with potential extensions through April 6 and into late April if needed).
ESA's Proba-3 Coronagraph re-establishes contact after month-long silence
ESA says its Proba-3 Coronagraph spacecraft has reconnected with Earth after a month of silence; an anomaly in February disrupted attitude control and prevented safe-mode entry, and the spacecraft is now in safe mode with its solar panels powering the systems while health checks are conducted to assess possible damage as the Coronagraph and its Occulter continue their formation to study the solar corona by creating artificial eclipses.
AI-Powered Space Cyberattacks Could Trigger Satellite Doom in Two Years
AI-driven cyberattacks could hijack satellites or cause collisions, sparking a debris cascade in low Earth orbit within two years. Experts warn that older satellites often lack cyber protections, and autonomous AI could accelerate reconnaissance and exploitation of space assets, risking widespread orbital damage.
Artemis II Rolled to Launch Pad Ahead of April Moon Mission
NASA will roll the Artemis II stack—from the Vehicle Assembly Building to Launch Pad 39B at Kennedy Space Center, a roughly four-mile trek that could take up to 12 hours, on March 19 in preparation for an April 1 liftoff (with backup windows through early April and into May). The four-astronaut crew—Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch and Jeremy Hansen—will fly a 10-day lunar mission, the first beyond low Earth orbit since Apollo 17 in 1972. Following a hydrogen-leak issue and a prior wet-dress rehearsal, NASA does not plan another WDR for this rollout. Live coverage is available via Space.com and NASA.
Artemis 2 rolls toward pad after helium fix, launch window shifted to April
NASA’s Artemis 2 mission’s Space Launch System rocket rolled back to the Vehicle Assembly Building for repairs after a helium-flow issue, with teams aiming to return it to Launch Pad 39B no earlier than April 1. The four astronauts remain in quarantine, and officials must complete fueling checks and other inspections before liftoff on a roughly 10‑day lunar mission from Kennedy Space Center.
Earth as Titan's classroom: how terrestrial analogs prep Dragonfly's mission
Earth hosts Titan-like processes—methane rain, hydrocarbon rivers, seas and Titan-inspired geomorphology—that scientists are using as terrestrial analogs to test instruments and hypotheses. A new arXiv paper argues that field analog research on Earth can ground-truth Titan studies and refine data interpretation ahead of NASA’s Dragonfly mission to Titan (targeting Selk Crater) in 2036, linking Earth geophysics to the exploration of Saturn’s moon.
SpaceX lights up Starship V3 on Pad 2 ahead of April launch
SpaceX conducted the first static-fire test of Starship Version 3 — Booster 19 — on Pad 2 at Starbase, firing 10 engines as part of a campaign to activate Pad 2 ahead of an early-to-mid April orbital attempt; the V3 variant is taller and far more powerful than V2, capable of lifting over 100 tons to orbit, setting the stage for Starship's first flight of a V3 vehicle.
ISS spacewalk delayed by medical evacuation, astronauts set to step outside today
NASA astronauts Jessica Meir and Chris Williams are slated to conduct a long-delayed spacewalk outside the International Space Station around 8 a.m. EDT today, after a SpaceX Crew-11 medical evacuation postponed an earlier EVA that would have involved Mike Fincke. The outing will prep a power channel for the future iROSA solar arrays, with live coverage beginning at 6:30 a.m. EDT.
SpaceX hits 10,000 active Starlink satellites in orbit after dual launches
SpaceX completed two Falcon 9 launches from California and Florida, delivering 54 Starlink satellites and pushing the number of active Starlink satellites to 10,000 (with 10 non‑operational). Since 2019, 1,509 Starlink satellites have reentered Earth's atmosphere.