Deep Space Extra

Here is a list of news that were published in our Newsletter the week of August 18, 2025:

Human Space Exploration

• NASA selecting new astronauts, gearing up for Artemis II
  Coalition Member in the News – Boeing;
• Acting NASA administrator Sean Duffy says the agency will ‘move aside’ from climate sciences to focus on exploring Moon and Mars;
• Artemis II astronauts suit up for night time Moon launch dress rehearsal (photos, video);
• NASA begins processing Artemis III Moon rocket at Kennedy;
• After recent tests, China appears likely to beat the United States back to the Moon;
• Sean Duffy on NASA efforts to beat China in race back to the Moon;
• Washington state workers on NASA Artemis Moon mission feel pressure, and pride
  Coalition Members in the News – Aerojet Rocketdyne, Boeing, L3Harris
• FAA approves Starship Flight 10 after mishap probe, eyes August 24 launch;

Space Science

• The stunning astrogeology of the Apollo missions;
• Watch 2 fiery blasts erupt from the Sun – is Earth in the danger zone? (video);
• What came before the Big Bang remains a mystery, but new tools may help;
• NASA tests potential bone loss treatment for long-duration missions;
• Russia launches Bion-M No.2 research satellite;
• Smallsat missions proposed to study asteroid Apophis;
• The backward tail of comet 3I/Atlas;
• It’s official: Asteroids Ryugu and Bennu are siblings;
• SpaceX partners with astronomers to protect radio astronomy from satellite interference;
• Scientists find tiny new moon around Uranus with the James Webb Space Telescope (photos, video);
• Hubble telescope uncovers rare star born from cosmic collision: ‘A very different history from what we would have guessed’;
• ‘Devil Comet’ contains ‘strongest evidence yet’ that comets delivered water to Earth;
• Evaluating Blue Origin’s Mars Telecom Orbiter proposal
  Coalition Member in the News – Lockheed Martin;
• Where are the interstellar objects 1I/’Oumuamua, 2I/Borisov, and 3I/Atlas headed now?;
• NASA and Google test AI medical assistant for astronaut missions to the Moon and Mars;
• Russia to launch 75 mice, 1,000 fruit flies on August 20 to study spaceflight effects;
• NISAR satellite successfully deploys radar antenna to track Earth’s changes: Key mission details

Other News

• SpaceX launches Space Force’s X-37B spaceplane to demo laser communications, quantum navigation
  Coalition Member in the News – Boeing;
• SpaceX to launch secret X-37B space plane Thursday
  Coalition Member in the News – Boeing;
• X-37B mission: What to know about secret Space Force space plane launch this week
  Coalition Member in the News – Boeing
• Orbital debris detection system developed for spacecraft;
• Canada’s 1st commercial spaceport is officially under construction. When will it open for launches?;

Major Events This Week:

• • The 10th flight test of the NASA contracted SpaceX Super Heavy/Starship from South Texas is planned for next Sunday at 7:30 p.m. EDT.
  • The 8th orbital mission of the U.S. Space Force’s Boeing developed X-37B orbital space plane is scheduled for launch on Thursday, though the time has not yet been announced.
  • NASA’s 33rd SpaceX Commercial Resupply Mission to the ISS is planned for launch on Sunday at 2:45 a.m. EDT with a new propulsive reboost capability for the ISS, adding to those provided by Russia’s Zvezda Service Module and Progress resupply capsules.
  • On Tuesday at 1 p.m. EDT NASA and the ISS National Laboratory will host a news briefing on research headed to the ISS as part of the resupply mission. Recently returned from a five-month mission to the ISS, NASA’s two Crew-10 astronauts and their Japanese astronaut colleague will host a news briefing on Wednesday at 4:15 p.m. EDT to discuss their activities.
  • The NASA Exoplanet Program Analysis group (ExoPAG) is hosting a virtual session on Tuesday from 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. EDT.
  • The agency’s leadership focused on exoplanet research has been undergoing changes. Also, on Wednesday from 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. EDT the National Academies is hosting an in-person and virtual workshop on Operationalizing Very Low Earth Orbit.

Subscribe to our Daily Newsletter:
Don’t miss the latest developments in space policy, science, and exploration with Deep Space Extra, delivered directly to your inbox from Monday to Friday.