Spacecraft

Japan launches uncrewed space mission to become first to gather samples from Mars' moon Phobos

The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency's Martian Moons eXploration spacecraft lifted off aboard an H3 rocket before dawn from the Tanegashima Space Center in southwestern Japan.

The H3 rocket carrying the Martian Moons Exploration (MMX) rover bound for Mars' moon Phobos lifts off from the Tanegashima Space Center in Minamitane, Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan, October 20, 2026 in this photo taken by Kyodo.
The SpaceX Starship and Super Heavy v3 Booster lift off on its 13th test flight from the SpaceX launch complex in Starbase, Texas, U.S., July 24, 2026.

SpaceX's Starship engine failure could cause problem for NASA's 2028 moon mission objectives

A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket carrying Northrop Grumman's Mission Robotic Vehicle (MRV) and Mission Extension Pods (MEPs) launches from Space Force Station's Launch Complex 40 in Cape Canaveral, Florida, on July 21, 2026.

SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket stage to crash into Moon at seven times the speed of sound

Blue Origin New Glenn explodes at Cape Canaveral, Florida, US, on May 29, 2026.

WATCH: Jeff Bezos's Blue Origin New Glenn rocket explodes on launch pad


Trump welcomes NASA Artemis II astronauts to Oval Office after Moon mission

“I don’t know how they do it. I wouldn’t want to do it, but it takes people like this to make our country great,” Trump stated in reference to the Artemis II crew.

Artemis II astronauts, NASA Commander Reid Wiseman, NASA Pilot Victor Glover, NASA Mission Specialist Christina Koch and Canadian Space Agency (CSA) Mission Specialist Jeremy Hansen, flank U.S. President Donald Trump as he speaks in the Oval Office, Washington, DC, US, April 29, 2026.

WATCH: Artemis makes lunar flyby as moon mission breaks record for human distance from earth

The Artemis II crew, flying in their Orion capsule since launching from Florida last week, awoke around 10:50 a.m. for their sixth flight day to a recorded message from late astronaut Jim Lovell.

NASA ASTRONAUT and Artemis II mission specialist Christina Koch peers out of one of the Orion spacecraft's main cabin windows, looking back at Earth, as the crew travels towards the Moon April 2, 2026.

Starlink to reconfigure satellites into lower, safer orbit in 2026

This comes after Starlink said in December that one of its satellites experienced an anomaly in space, creating a "small" amount of debris and cutting off communications with the spacecraft.

SPACEX STARLINK 5 satellites are pictured in the sky seen from Svendborg on South Funen, Denmark April 21, 2020.

NASA releases images of comet 3I/ATLAS, rejects alien spacecraft 'rumors'

While the comet's precise point of origin remains unclear, the NASA scientists said they believe it hails from a solar system older than our own, which formed about 4.5 billion years ago.

This image of interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS was captured by the Hubble Space Telescope’s Wide Field Camera, July 21, 2025.

Chinese astronauts' return delayed to Earth after debris hits spacecraft

China’s space agency said that the delay was to ensure the astronauts’ safety and health and has not yet announced alternative dates for Dong, Zhongrui, and Jie’s return.

Astronauts Chen Dong, Chen Zhongrui and Wang Jie attend a see-off ceremony for the Shenzhou-20 spaceflight mission at Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center near Jiuquan, Gansu province, China April 24, 2025.

How the world won’t be destroyed: NASA found a solution to a worrying problem

NASA proved for the first time that a small spacecraft can deflect an asteroid. The DART mission collided with Dimorphos, showing humanity can protect itself from cosmic disasters.

The spacecraft is on its way to crash into the asteroid’s moon

Beijing tests lunar lander tasked with putting first Chinese on the moon

The lunar lander will be used to transport astronauts between the lunar orbit and the moon's surface, as well as serving as a living space, power source, and data center.

 A large screen shows news footage of a Chinese national flag carried by Chang'e-6 probe's lander on the far side of the moon, in Beijing, China June 4, 2024

Solar Orbiter spacecraft obtains first images of the sun's poles

"The data that Solar Orbiter obtains during the coming years will help modelers in predicting the solar cycle," said solar physicist Hamish Reid.

Eight views of the sun's south pole obtained by the Solar Orbiter spacecraft are seen in this image released by the European Space Agency on June 11, 2025

Uncontrolled reentry of Soviet-era spacecraft Kosmos 482 expected in May

Experts say the Venus-bound probe's durable design could allow it to survive reentry, posing a small risk to populated areas.

 Uncontrolled reentry of Soviet-era spacecraft Kosmos 482 expected in May.

Going where no spacecraft has gone before: NASA shuts down cosmic ray instrument on Voyager 2

The decision comes as the Voyager spacecraft face diminishing power supplies due to the gradual decay of their radioactive plutonium.

 Going where no spacecraft has gone before: NASA shuts down cosmic ray instrument on Voyager 2. Illustration.