Industry News
Headlines from space publications, linked back to the original articles
Industry / News
- NASA to attempt second full fueling test of its Space Launch System rocket Spaceflight Now · 17 Feb 2026 The operation comes a week after NASA conducted a so-called ‘confidence test’ on Feb. 12, which was the process of loading some liquid hydrogen on the rocket’s core stage.
- NASA Will Conduct Second Artemis II WDR on Thursday SpacePolicyOnline.com · 16 Feb 2026 NASA will conduct a second Wet Dress Rehearsal (WDR) on Thursday in preparation for the launch of Artemis II. The nearly 50-hour test actually begins Tuesday evening as launch teams
- Launch Preview: Firefly to launch Alpha, SpaceX to launch three Starlink missions NASASpaceflight · 16 Feb 2026 After a brief grounding earlier this month following the Starlink Group 17-32 second stage deorbit…
- Launching the first Ariane 6 with four boosters ESA · 16 Feb 2026 This first launch of the four-booster version of Ariane 6, operated by Arianespace, took 32 satellites for Amazon’s Leo constellation to low-Earth orbit. Liftoff occurred at 13:45 local time (16:45 GMT/17:45 CET) from Eu...
- NASA work on several programs pending responses to White House executive order SpaceNews · 16 Feb 2026 NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman said he expects to provide details about several agency priorities, including lunar exploration and commercial space stations, in the coming weeks.
- RFA Begins Final Preparations for Inaugural RFA ONE Launch European Spaceflight · 16 Feb 2026 German rocket builder Rocket Factory Augsburg (RFA) is making significant progress toward once again attempting an inaugural flight of its RFA ONE rocket. The company is currently moving forward with commissioning its la...
- The space nuclear power bottleneck — and how to fix it SpaceNews · 16 Feb 2026 No technology holds more transformative potential for America’s space aspirations than nuclear power. Radioisotopes can safely produce heat that will enable deep space exploration and survival of the frigid lunar night w...
- Let there be design: ESA’s Genesis mission passes PDR ESA · 16 Feb 2026 In December last year, teams from the European Space Agency (ESA) and industry completed the system Preliminary Design Review (PDR) for ESA’s Genesis mission, which will measure Earth down to the millimetre. The improved...
- Genesis satellite ESA · 16 Feb 2026 From the ESA Blogs.
- Low-profile Chinese launch firm conducts first stage static fire SpaceNews · 16 Feb 2026 One of China’s lower profile launch startups, Zenk Space, has conducted a first stage static fire for its Zhihang-1 rocket ahead of a planned launch.
- Portions of the Pentagon’s LEO constellation on hold as acquisition reviews proceed SpaceNews · 16 Feb 2026 Changes anticipated for ‘custody’ and ‘transport’ layers
- International crew arrives at space station SpaceDaily · 16 Feb 2026 Washington, United States (AFP) Feb 14, 2026 Four astronauts docked at the International Space Station on Saturday for a months-long research mission, replacing a crew forced to return to Earth early over a medical issue...
- Sophie Adenot, the second French woman to fly to space SpaceDaily · 16 Feb 2026 Paris, France (AFP) Feb 13, 2026 When she was growing up, Sophie Adenot plastered her childhood bedroom with posters of rockets launching from Cape Canaveral. On Friday, she blasted off from that very launchpad, fulfilli...
- Smart Dragon 3 rocket sends seven satellites to orbit from sea platform SpaceDaily · 16 Feb 2026 Tokyo, Japan (SPX) Feb 16, 2026 China has launched a Smart Dragon 3 carrier rocket from a sea based platform off the coast of Yangjiang in Guangdong province, placing seven satellites into orbit on Thursday afternoon. Li...
- Cheops spots inside out exoplanet quartet SpaceDaily · 16 Feb 2026 Paris, France (SPX) Feb 16, 2026 Many students learn memory tricks to remember the order of the Solar System's planets, with rocky worlds close to the Sun and gas giants farther out. Astronomers have now found a nearby p...
- Einstein probe catch may show black hole shredding white dwarf SpaceDaily · 16 Feb 2026 Tokyo, Japan (SPX) Feb 16, 2026 An unusual high energy outburst captured by the China led Einstein Probe space telescope is offering a rare look at how an intermediate mass black hole may tear apart and consume a white d...
- Mexican Gxiba-1 CubeSat Starts Mission After Kibo Deployment SpaceDaily · 16 Feb 2026 Tokyo, Japan (SPX) Feb 16, 2026 On February 3, 2026, the Mexican CubeSat Gxiba-1 was deployed from the Japanese Experiment Module Kibo on the International Space Station, beginning its on orbit mission. The small satelli...
- China retrieves Long March 10 booster from South China Sea after test flight SpaceDaily · 16 Feb 2026 Tokyo, Japan (SPX) Feb 16, 2026 China has carried out its first maritime recovery of a rocket first-stage booster, retrieving the main stage of a Long March 10 heavy-lift carrier rocket from the South China Sea following...
- Vietnam licenses Musk's satellite internet firm Starlink SpaceDaily · 16 Feb 2026 Hanoi, Vietnam (AFP) Feb 15, 2026 Vietnam has granted a licence to Elon Musk's Starlink to operate its satellite internet services in the communist country, a government agency said. The radio frequency regulator said lo...
- Infrared archive reveals quiet birth of new black hole in Andromeda SpaceDaily · 16 Feb 2026 Los Angeles CA (SPX) Feb 16, 2026 Astronomers have used nearly two decades of infrared and optical observations to watch a massive star in the Andromeda galaxy quietly collapse into a black hole instead of ending its lif...
- Microbes harvest metals from meteorites aboard space station SpaceDaily · 16 Feb 2026 Ithaca, NY (SPX) Feb 16, 2026 If humankind is to explore deep space, one small passenger should not be left behind: microbes. In fact, it would be impossible to leave them behind, since they live on and in our bodies, su...
- Mohe ground station boosts polar satellite data coverage SpaceDaily · 16 Feb 2026 Beijing, China (SPX) Feb 16, 2026 For engineer Shi Shengpu and his colleagues, this Spring Festival will be their first spent at the Mohe Satellite Data Receiving Station of the China Remote Sensing Satellite Ground Stat...
- China tests AI satellite swarm for space-based computing SpaceDaily · 16 Feb 2026 Tokyo, Japan (SPX) Feb 16, 2026 China has advanced its vision for space-based computing with a satellite network that deploys 10 artificial intelligence models in orbit and demonstrates inter-satellite networking capabil...
- Isaacman planning to meet with head of Roscosmos SpaceNews · 16 Feb 2026 NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman said he is interested in meeting with his Russian counterpart and attending an upcoming Soyuz launch.
- What’s Happening in Space Policy February 15-21, 2026 SpacePolicyOnline.com · 15 Feb 2026 Here is SpacePolicyOnline.com’s list of space policy events for the week of February 15-21, 2026 and any insight we can offer about them. The House and Senate are in recess
- Space Station returns to a full crew complement after a month Ars Technica · 15 Feb 2026 "It's only possible because of the incredibly talented workforce we have."
- Live coverage: SpaceX to launch predawn Starlink mission on President’s Day Spaceflight Now · 15 Feb 2026 The Starlink 6-103 mission is the 10th orbital flight from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in 2026. Liftoff from pad 40 is scheduled for 12:34:20 a.m. EST (0534:20 UTC) on Monday, Feb. 16.
- Replacement crew docks at space station, boosts crew back to seven Spaceflight Now · 15 Feb 2026 The Crew Dragon docked at the space-facing port of the lab's forward Harmony module at 3:15 p.m. EST, 34 hours after launch Friday from the Kennedy Space Center atop a Falcon 9 rocket.
- Crew-12 Arrives on Station Space Scout · 14 Feb 2026 NASA’s Crew-12 mission docked to the International Space Station at 3:15 PM Eastern Time on February 14th, carrying 4 crew members aboard Crew Dragon Freedom.
- Official start of ESA astronaut Sophie Adenot’s εpsilon mission ESA · 14 Feb 2026 The SpaceX Dragon Freedom capsule carrying ESA astronaut Sophie Adenot, NASA astronauts Jessica Meir and Jack Hathaway, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Andrei Fedyaev, docked with the International Space Station on 14 February,...
- Official start of ESA astronaut Sophie Adenot’s εpsilon mission ESA · 14 Feb 2026 The SpaceX Dragon Freedom capsule carrying ESA astronaut Sophie Adenot, NASA astronauts Jessica Meir and Jack Hathaway, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Andrei Fedyaev, docked with the International Space Station on 14 February,...
- Live coverage: SpaceX to launch 600th Falcon 9 rocket to date with Starlink flight from Vandenberg Spaceflight Now · 14 Feb 2026 The Starlink 17-13 mission also represents the 180th Falcon 9 launch from pad 4E at Vandenberg Space Force Base. Liftoff is scheduled for 5:58:50 p.m. PST (8:58:50 p.m. EST / 0158:50 UTC).
- Docking of Crew-12 to the International Space Station ESA · 14 Feb 2026 Watch the replay of the Crew-12 docking operations at the International Space Station (ISS).
- NASA continues SLS hydrogen leak tests SpaceNews · 14 Feb 2026 A NASA test to confirm repairs to seals in the Space Launch System’s liquid hydrogen fueling system was only partially successful because of problems with ground equipment.
- Did the UK Block The Exploration Company’s Purchase of Orbex? European Spaceflight · 14 Feb 2026 In a statement to European Spaceflight, a spokesperson for The Exploration Company suggested that the failure of its acquisition of launch services startup Orbex was linked to the UK government’s decision not to approve...
- ‘Very lucky day’: NASA, SpaceX ace astronaut launch to the space station on Friday the 13th Spaceflight Now · 14 Feb 2026 This was the first time that the space agency happened to launch a crewed mission to the International Space Station on a Friday the 13th. The Crew-12 mission took flight onboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket at 5:15 a.m. EST...
- Crew-12: Docking, hatch opening and welcome remarks ESA · 13 Feb 2026 Watch the docking operations of Crew-12 to the International Space Station (ISS), which took place on 14 February 2026 at 21:15 CET. The docking is followed by the hatch opening and the welcome remarks by the astronauts...
- A new book captures the forces shaping space: China, the moon and industry SpaceNews · 13 Feb 2026 In this episode of Space Minds, Mike Gruss sits down with David Ariosto to discuss his new book, “Open Space.” David talks about how some of the themes of the […]
- Senate committee advances FCC satellite licensing bill after changes SpaceNews · 13 Feb 2026 The Senate Commerce Committee approved a bill intended to streamline satellite licensing after revising provisions related to automatic approval of applications.
- Crew-12 Launches NASA · 13 Feb 2026 A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket carrying the company’s Dragon spacecraft is launched on NASA’s SpaceX Crew-12 mission to the International Space Station with NASA astronauts Jessica Meir, Jack Hathaway, ESA (European Space Agen...