Space

Three Russian cosmonauts descended safely to Earth aboard their Soyuz MS-21 spacecraft early Sept. 29, continuing an International Space Station (ISS) crew exchange process that has been extended due to Hurricane Ian’s threat to NASA’s Kennedy Space Center.

Analysis is needed determine whether slamming a spacecraft into an asteroid belongs in the Earth’s future planetary defense arsenal.

The National Reconnaissance Office on Sept. 28 increased its work with commercial space companies, awarding six study contracts for commercial radio frequency remote sensing.

Over the past two weeks, SpaceX has started selling two “high performance” user terminals.

NASA is looking to mid-November as the most likely opportunity for its next attempt at launching the Artemis I test flight around the Moon, though it has not completely ruled out a late-October opportunity, agency officials said Sept. 27.

The UK Space Agency has awarded £4 million ($4.3 million) to two companies—ClearSpace and Astroscale—to design spacecraft capable of removing space debris, such as defunct satellites.

NASA's probe slammed into a targeted asteroid on Sept. 26 to demonstrate a kinetic impact strategy as a potential means of shielding the Earth from a disastrous collision in future.

In response to the approach of Hurricane Ian toward the eastern Gulf of Mexico, NASA announced early Sept. 26 that the Artemis I Space Launch System rocket and Orion crew capsule will be rolled back from the launchpad to the Vehicle Assembly Building at Kennedy Space Center.

Concerns about the approaching Tropical Storm Ian, which was moving toward the Florida peninsula, spurred managers to postpone the launch.

After the U.S. Treasury announced exemptions to new sanctions, Elon Musk said SpaceX is “activating Starlink” internet in Iran.

Satisfied with the outcome of a cryogenic-propellant demonstration on Sept. 21, NASA has confirmed plans to proceed at least temporarily toward a third attempt to launch the Artemis I test flight of the Space Launch System rocket and Orion crew capsule.

Our roundup of the main aerospace and defense stories making the news this week.

NASA reports all systems with the Double Asteroid Redirection Test mission spacecraft are “go” for its planned Sept. 26 collision with a small asteroid named Dimorphos.

An SES-led consortium of 20 European companies plans to develop and launch the Eagle-1, a communications satellite that uses quantum key distribution for end-to-end encryption.

Dynetics says it has matured its technology and plans to compete in a follow-on program for additional crewed lunar landing services.

Axiom Space plans to train and fly two Saudi astronauts on a flight to the International Space Station as early as next year.

Russia has reassessed how long it plans to remain a partner on the International Space Station program and now is eyeing a 2028 departure.

After the loss of Soyuz, Amazon helps buttress Arianespace’s manifest.

NASA on Sept. 21 released a picture of distant Neptune, taken by the James Webb Space Telescope, that reveals a system of rings not seen since NASA’s Voyager 2 spacecraft flew by in 1989.

Just as they did on Sept. 3, NASA’s Artemis I Launch Control Team members encountered hydrogen leaks while initiating a Space Launch System (SLS) propellant loading demonstration test on Sept. 21.

Dawn Aerospace plans to start test flights of its rocket-powered spaceplane technology demonstrator before year-end.

Russia’s Soyuz MS-22 soared into a two-orbit launch to docking with the International Space Station on Sept. 21.

The European Commission has chosen Thales Alenia Space to lead the next phase of the European Robotic Orbital Support Services program, slated to culminate with an in-orbit demonstration in 2026 and potentially follow on with commercial missions.

SpinLaunch, a startup looking to commercialize a centrifuge-based mass accelerator for space access, said Sept. 20 it has closed $71 million in a Series B round of venture-capital funding.

Europe and the U.S. are pursuing a powerful pair of infrared telescopes that, taken together, could help provide rapid warning of an asteroid hitting the planet.