Moon Mission

Astrobotic staff examine a propulsion tank sitting in front of Griffin-1’s structure. Image: Astrobotic Astrobotic is now eyeing the summer of 2026 for the launch of its second mission with the goal of landing on the surface of the Moon. On Friday, the company based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, said it…

The exterior design of China's lunar spacesuit for a crewed moon mission before 2030. Credit: CMSA The United States’ goal of completing a crewed moon mission before China has been coined as the new space race, reminiscent of the days of Apollo. Similar to Apollo and the space race with…

Everything has to go right for China to launch a human moon mission in 2029 or even 2030. China is also building a new rocket and they have not assembled it yet or flown it. China is still testing a lunar lander. Long March 10 Rocket Certification (2026–2027) Verification: On…

Topline Elon Musk took aim at Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy in a series of social media posts Tuesday, accusing the acting NASA administrator of having a “2 Digit IQ” and claiming he was “trying to kill” NASA—after Duffy suggested NASA might drop Musk’s SpaceX as a contractor for an upcoming…

"We fully intend to recover the New Glenn first stage on this next launch." New Glenn lifts off on its debut flight on January 16, 2025. Credit: Blue Origin There's a good bit riding on the second launch of Blue Origin's New Glenn rocket. Most directly, the fate of a…

NASA’s Artemis II SLS (Space Launch System) rocket is getting ready to send four astronauts from Earth on a journey around the Moon in 2026. Engineers have upgraded the agency’s Moon SLS rocket inside and out after the Artemis 1 launch. SLS flew a good first mission on the Artemis…

Watch live! NASA introduces class of astronaut candidates for 2025 - YouTube Watch On NASA will announce its new astronaut class today and discuss its upcoming Artemis 2 moon mission this week, and you can watch the events live. The action starts on Monday (Sept. 22), when the agency will…

Artistic depiction of NASA astronauts at the lunar south pole carrying out early work to establish an Artemis Base Camp. (Image credit: NASA) As NASA prepares to put astronauts on the moon in the next few years, the agency is thinking about "how to live and operate away from the…

A photo of the Orion capsule during NASA's uncrewed Artemis 1 moon mission in late 2022. (Image credit: NASA) NASA is asking citizen scientists, space industry employees and other volunteers to help them track the first human mission to the moon in more than 50 years. The agency put out…

As four astronauts venture around the Moon on NASA’s Artemis II test flight in 2026, many people will support the journey from here on Earth. Teams directing operations from the ground include the mission management team, launch control team, flight control team, and the landing and recovery team, each with…