Two images taken more than half a century apart show the first-ever U.S. flag to be planted on the moon during the July 1969 Apollo 11 mission (L), and the first-ever Chinese flag to be planted on the moon during the December 2020 Chang'e 5 mission. China became the second
By Alison Snyder, Published by Axios, 5 May 2024 Earth gained a record number of satellites — nearly 3,000 — last year, adding to the congestion around the planet, according to new data. Why it matters: Crowded orbits and collisions between satellites raise the risk of creating dangerous space debris and making parts of the planet's orbit
Illustration from The Times - by Julian Osbladstone By Ben Spencer, Published by The Times, 5 May 2024 Start-ups from Bromley to Rotherham are joining industry giants and boosting a sector that employs 50,000 people, launching satellites and clearing debris Visitors getting off the train in Stevenage may be surprised
The Chang'e 6 lunar probe and its Long March 5 rocket: from Cosmic Curiosity By Helen Davidson, Published by The Guardian, 3 May 2024 The launch of the uncrewed Chang’e-6 is part of China’s effort to put a human on the lunar surface by 2030 China has launched a probe
Assistant Secretary of Defense John Plumb [Source: spacenews.com] By Audrey Decker, Published by Defense One, 1 May 2024 Pentagon’s space-policy leader noted with concern Moscow’s recent veto of a UN resolution against putting nuclear weapons in space. The detonation of a Russian nuclear space weapon could render low-Earth orbit unusable
Photograph Source: The US Army – Public Domain By Gregory Elich, Published by Counter Punch, 1 May 2024 Since the U.S. military brought its Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) system to South Korea in 2017, it has met with sustained local resistance. THAAD is the centerpiece of the numerous
Rendering of the SDA Foo Fighter constellation. Credit: Millennium Space Systems By Theresa Hitchens, Published by Breaking Defense, 30 April 2024 While the Space Development Agency initially intended to make awards to more than one vendor, the agency determined that a sole-source contract with the Boeing-owned firm was "best value."
By Thomas Moore, Published by Sky News, 26 April 2024 The spaceport, which is on the northern tip of the Shetland Islands, hopes to launch rockets vertically into orbit from British soil. A spaceport that hopes to launch the first rockets vertically into orbit from British soil has been given
