From its new headquarters in the U.S., Tokyo-based startup ispace will develop its Apex 1.0 lunar lander to transport NASA payloads to the Moon in 2026.
In preparation of landing humans on the Moon as part of the ongoing Artemis program, SpaceX recently ran a test of one of its lunar lander engines while simulating the cold temperatures of space.
More than 50 years ago, the Apollo program was crafted as a result of rising political tensions between two competing nations. As a new group of countries and emerging space companies set their eyes on the Moon once more, they aren’t going back for national pride but rather to further their space ambitions beyond the…
The new era of space exploration is opening entirely new possibilities, including the tantalizing prospect of mining for resources on the Moon and asteroids. Sounds exciting—and potentially very profitable—but the reality of the situation is that space mining is completely uncharted territory. Plenty of prospecting…
Update: September 7, 9:06 a.m. ET: Mitsubishi Heavy Industries has succeeded in launching the H-IIA rocket, which blasted off yesterday from Tanegashima Space Center, Japan.
NASA’s trusty Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) has captured images revealing a fresh crater on the Moon’s surface. This crater is suspected to be the impact site of the ill-fated Luna 25 mission, Russia’s first lunar attempt in nearly five decades.
The Luna-25 mission crashed on the surface of the Moon this weekend, ending Russia’s quest to prove it still has what it takes to land on the lunar surface.
Intuitive Machines is gearing up for the launch of its mission to the Moon, hoping to become the first private space venture to land on the lunar surface. The company recently stated that its lunar lander would be ready to fly in September, with plans to launch the Nova-C lander to the Moon in November.
Russia has successfully launched its Luna-25 mission to the Moon, which will attempt to land on the lunar south pole later this month. If it sticks the landing, Russia will become the first country to pull off a soft landing on the south polar region of the Moon.