Deep Space Extra

Here is a list of news that were published in our Newsletter during the week of July 19, 2026:

Human Space Exploration

• SpaceX will now try to launch the critical Starship Flight 13 test on July 24 after delays. Here’s what to expect;
• Artemis II astronaut advocates for equatorial lunar landings;
• China’s space crew assesses emergency choices, emotions in long-stay study;
• NASA’s Artemis III lander test will be a “dress rehearsal” for returning to the Moon!;

Space Science

• Astronomers discover two super puff planets lighter than cotton candy;
• Hawai’i serves as model for Western researchers studying the Moon’s volcanic history;
• Shape-shifting mirrors on NASA’s new space telescope could unveil Jupiter is like our own;
• NASA’s Roman Space Telescope could reveal black holes ripping up stars. It’s set to launch August 30;
• Electrically charged Mars storms threaten future exploration;
• NASA’s nuclear Mars mission to cost over $2 billion;
• Cosmic gymnastics: How the Milky Way once underwent a dramatic flip;
• Researchers narrow down the type of meteorite that killed the dinosaurs;
• Scientists discover mystery molecule on Pluto and Saturn’s moon Titan: ‘We cannot say what it is’;
• The propellantless spacecraft technologies that could help us reach the stars;
• China prepares to hit asteroid using projectile with 26 times the speed of sound;
• Did Viking 1 find life on Mars 50 years ago? Here’s why the debate continues;
• Researchers advance tech that could help scientists detect habitable worlds beyond our solar system;
• NASA’s Psyche mission delivers Mars flyby data, time-lapse video;
• A shattered asteroid may have bombarded Earth 800 million years ago;
• Are we underestimating the threat of solar storms? A ‘once-in-a-thousand-year’ disaster is worth considering, scientists say;

Opinion

• Artemis II was an incredible reminder of our shared humanity just when we needed it most (op-ed);

Other News

• Scientists turn radio telescopes into space scanners sharpening view of hidden orbital threats;
• Extra $11 billion to fund huge leap in Space Force launches;
• Department of Commerce takes step towards mission authorization;
• Mars Society and South Seattle College strike a deal to build a simulated space habitat;
• Rescuing satellites is harder than it looks. A growing space junk problem will make doing so more important;
• SpaceX will launch Starship on a crucial flight 13 test today. Here’s what to expect;
• SpaceX will launch Starship, the world’s largest rocket, on critical Flight 13 test on July 23. Here’s what to expect;
• Rocket launch costs have dropped 96% since 1960. How low can they go?;
• Earendil-1 getting to “yes — or no“;
• Private mission launches to extend life of out-of-gas communication satellites
  Coalition Member in the News – Northrop Grumman;
• Should we trust AI in the search for alien life? Scientists aren’t so sure;
• Mauritius becomes 70th nation to sign the Artemis Accords;
• ‘The dawn of a new space era’: Vikram-1, India’s 1st private orbital rocket, aces debut launch;
• The U.S. wants to turn abandoned oil rigs into spaceports;

Major Space-Related Activities for the Week

• Monday marks two spaceflight anniversaries, the 57th for the July 20, 1969 Apollo 11 Moon landing and the 50th for NASA’s July 20, 1976 Viking 1 landing on Mars.
• Delayed from last Thursday, SpaceX is now looking to this Thursday for the next test flight of the Super Heavy/Starship, with liftoff during a 90-minute launch window that opens at 6:45 p.m. EDT.
• Early Sunday, Russia’s Soyuz MS-28 crew capsule is to depart the ISS with cosmonauts Sergey Kud-Sverchkov, the orbital lab’s current commander, and Sergei Mikaev along with NASA astronaut Chris Williams. They are concluding an eight-month mission with a parachute assisted landing in remote Kazakhstan.
• Explore Mars is hosting its annual Moon to Mars summit on Tuesday through Thursday.
• While the U.S. House and Senate are in session this week, time is running down for passing a budget for the 2027 fiscal year that begins October 1. The House and Senate are scheduled to be in recess for most of August, and U.S. Rep. Tom Cole, chair of the House Appropriations Committee, has introduced a Continuing Resolution (CR) that would keep the government funded through December 4 should the budget making process not be complete on time.

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