From Munich to the Moon
The European mission control centre near Munich, Germany, is set to undergo a transformation into a Moon mission control centre, tasked with supporting operations for missions to a lunar space station, the lunar surface and beyond. Today marks a significant…
Intuitive Machines makes first U.S. moon landing in 51 years
For the first time since the last of the Apollo missions in 1972, an American spacecraft reached the surface of the moon Thursday, a significant step toward NASA’s plan to eventually return astronauts to Earth’s closest celestial neighbor. After a…
Japan’s successful Moon landing was the most precise ever
Japan has become the fifth country to soft-land a spacecraft on the Moon, using precision technology that allowed it to touch down closer to its target landing site than any mission has before. However, the spacecraft might have survived on…
The Aqualunar Challenge, UK
The Aqualunar Challenge is a £1.2m international challenge prize focused on making human habitation in space possible by finding ways to purify water buried beneath the Moon’s surface. This is being delivered by Challenge Works on behalf of the UK…
DARPA picks 14 companies for lunar architecture study
WASHINGTON — DARPA has selected 14 companies, ranging from small startups to established aerospace corporations, to participate in a study on developing commercial lunar infrastructure. DARPA announced Dec. 5 that 14 companies will collaborate over the next seven months on…
Sierra Space Secures DARPA Contract for Lunar Oxygen Extraction Framework for LunA-10 Capability Study
LOUISVILLE, Colo. – Dec. 05, 2023 – Sierra Space, a leading pureplay commercial space company building the first end-to-end business and technology platform in space, announced today that it secured a significant contract with the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA). Under this contract,…
Chandrayaan-3: India becomes fourth country to land on the moon
HELSINKI — India’s Chandrayaan-3 lander successfully touched down on the moon Wednesday, making the country only the fourth to achieve the feat. The Chandrayaan-3 mission lander touched in the vicinity of the lunar South Pole region at 8:32 a.m. Eastern…
NASA Selects Geology Team for the First Crewed Artemis Lunar Landing
NASA has selected the geology team that will develop the surface science plan for the first crewed lunar landing mission in more than 50 years. NASA’s Artemis III mission will land astronauts, including the first woman to land on the Moon, near…
Identifying Challenges along the Lunar ISRU Value Chain
The European Space Agency (ESA), in partnership with the European Space Resources Innovation Centre (ESRIC) in Luxembourg, is seeking input to define its forward Challenge-Driven Innovation strategic roadmap aiming to develop novel solutions enabling the use of space resources and…