Cmdr Reid Wiseman, pilot Victor Glover, and mission specialists Christina Koch and Jeremy Hansen will receive the Congressional Space Medal of Honor on 28 August, NASA announced. The Artemis II crew achieved the greatest distance from Earth of any crewed spacecraft during its lunar flyby, the first crewed lunar mission since the Apollo program.
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President Donald J. Trump will award NASA’s Artemis II crew—astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch and Canadian Space Agency astronaut Jeremy Hansen—the Congressional Space Medal of Honor on Aug. 28 at 11 a.m. EDT at the Johnson Space Center in Houston.
NASA astronauts completed a 10‑day mission around the Moon on April 10, marking the first crewed flight beyond the Moon in more than 50 years and traveling farther than any previous human spaceflight.
NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman will attend the ceremony, which will be streamed live and is open to limited media credentials applied for by Aug. 25.
The medal recognizes the accomplishment of the Artemis II test flight, the first crewed mission of the Orion spacecraft.
Details on how to view the event are available at https://www.nasa.gov/live.
The award highlights the partnership between NASA and international partners as the agency prepares for future lunar and deep‑space missions.
NASA scientists traveled to Crater Island in Utah in June 2026 to field‑test cameras and instruments for the DAVINCI mission, which will descend through Venus’s atmosphere. The site, called “Venus on Earth,” consists of flat playas and salt flats left by the receding ancient Lake Bonneville, a lake that formed about 55,000 years ago and lost more than 350 feet of water in a six‑week flood about 18,000 years ago. The dried lakebed, composed of clay, marl and sand, appears pale in satellite images and hosts evaporite minerals such as halite and gypsum. In deeper areas, groundwater pools create brines that support mining of potash and other minerals. Geologists mapped the basin using three‑dimensional terrain models derived from helicopter‑borne images taken during DAVINCI rehearsals. The maps match existing geologic charts and provide a reference for the mountainous region on Venus that DAVINCI will study, called Alpha Regio. Historical records show that the Bonneville Salt Flats have been used for land‑speed attempts; in 1960 Mickey Thompson broke the 400‑mile‑per‑hour barrier with a speed of 406.60 mph, and in August 2026 Andy Green set a record of 406.32 mph in a hydrogen‑fuel vehicle, producing no carbon dioxide. Earlier, in August 1846 members of the Donner‑Reed Party encountered difficulties when their wagons broke through the thin salt crust near Crater Island. NASA’s Earth Observatory released the image, credited to Michala Garrison, using Landsat 8 OLI data. The DAVINCI team plans to use the data to refine the mission’s descent instruments and to compare the geology of the Bonneville playas with that of Venus.
The Curiosity rover resumed its scheduled scientific activities on Mars after completing a brief detour to examine an erosional surface near the base of Mount Sharp.
The mission team conducted a series of observations from Sols 4982 to 4987, reacquiring images for a mosaic of the target "Tres Morros" with MAHLI and measuring bedrock at "El Motacusal" and "Alto de Carmen" using APXS.
ChemCam performed laser‑induced breakdown spectroscopy on "Lagunas Bravas" and "Parququcha" and captured remote micro‑imaging of "Mishe Mokwa" and earlier LIBS sites.
Mastcam produced near‑field mosaics of the erosional ridge "Los Toldos" and a distant exposure "Los Ladrillos," along with color documentation of previous ChemCam observations.
The rover drove 30 meters to a new location where it performed contact science on "Mamorecillo" and "Aguas Claras" with MAHLI and APXS, and imaged its calibration target.
ChemCam planned laser analysis of the dark‑toned layer "Yura Kasa," while Mastcam prepared mosaics of the stratigraphic unit above the erosional contact.
Environmental monitoring included Mastcam measurements of atmospheric optical depth, APXS overnight atmospheric readings, and Navcam dust‑devil surveys, zenith observations, in‑crater line‑of‑sight views, and suprahorizon cloud movies.
Curiosity will continue its ascent of Mount Sharp with a planned 47‑meter drive southwest of its current position, and operations will resume next week with further contact science, remote sensing, and driving.
A Chinese startup, StarRF, announced a Pre‑A+ financing round on August 21, led by Shandong‑based Luxin Venture Capital and including Tianqi Capital, Haitang Fund and existing backer Junyuan Capital. The funding amount was not disclosed.
Founded in November 2023, StarRF is developing the “Diting” low‑Earth‑orbit constellation to detect, geolocate and analyze radio‑frequency emissions over land and sea using proprietary receivers and signal‑processing technology.
The capital will support research and development, market expansion and hiring. The company says its three‑satellite formation‑flying approach mirrors China’s Yaogan triplet series, which open‑source analysts link to electronic‑intelligence missions that track naval radio emissions.
StarRF positions itself alongside U.S. and European firms such as HawkEye 360, BAE Azalea and Unseenlabs, which operate constellations for maritime domain awareness and electronic‑warfare support. Junyuan Capital noted that StarRF’s investors have described the firm as “China’s HawkEye 360.” HawkEye 360 reported $21 million in Q2 revenue, a 134 % increase year‑over‑year, with 42 % of revenue from international customers and more than $100 million in recent contracts, including work for the Indian Navy.
Junyuan Capital said StarRF’s data products target spectrum management, maritime and shipping, public security, safety, railway and national‑defense applications. The investor composition reflects a pattern in China’s commercial space sector, with regional state‑linked capital but no involvement from national space or defense agencies such as CASC or CASIC. Luxin Venture Capital is tied to Shandong’s state‑owned asset system, and Haihe Fund carries a Tianjin affiliation, indicating regional policy support. Recent central‑government statements have signaled openness to commercial space‑based RF sensing alongside remote‑sensing and communications activities.
StarRF has not disclosed a launch schedule or the eventual size of the Diting constellation.
NASA's Chemical Equilibrium with Applications (CEA) code, a tool for propulsion system analysis, has been modernized by the NASA Engineering and Safety Center into CEA v3, a Fortran 2008 object‑oriented package that expands interface support and thermochemical data while preserving backward compatibility.
The original CEA2, released in 2002, is widely used for propulsion and thermochemistry calculations but its procedural Fortran implementation limited maintainability and integration with modern workflows. Growing demand for automated parametric sweeps, integration with multidisciplinary design tools, and support for new propellants such as green propellants and sustainable aviation fuels drove the modernization effort.
CEA v3 implements a thread‑safe equilibrium solver, stricter typing, and a subroutine interface that enables direct integration into automated pipelines. It adds support for negative reactant amounts, inert hydrocarbon fuels such as RP‑1, Jet‑A, and JP‑series, and analytic total derivatives for optimization and sensitivity analyses. The thermodynamic database now includes green propellant constituents (ADN, HAN, LMP‑103S) and sustainable aviation fuel candidates (n‑Butanol).
Although individual equilibrium calculations run about 40 % slower than CEA2—roughly 0.004 seconds longer per case—the modernized architecture yields substantial gains for large‑scale workflows. A benchmark of 108,500 cases completed in about 1.11 seconds with CEA v3, compared with roughly 15 minutes using CEA2, representing an approximate 800‑fold reduction in runtime for such sweeps.
NASA recommends using CEA v3 for new propulsion and thermochemistry analyses to leverage the updated interfaces and database. It suggests employing the Python, MATLAB, or C interfaces for automated studies, parametric sweeps, and optimization, and using the classic command‑line interface when continuity with legacy input files is required. Users should conduct appropriate engineering review and validation before transitioning established CEA2 workflows, especially for mission‑critical analyses.
ESA released a weekly image set for the period of 17–21 August 2026, featuring observations from its Earth observation satellites, deep‑space probes, and launch activities. The collection highlights the agency’s ongoing monitoring of climate variables, planetary science experiments, and routine spacecraft operations.
NASA's Roman Space Telescope is nearing launch after completing final integration and rehearsal milestones.
NASA's Roman Space Telescope is nearing launch after completing final integration and rehearsal milestones. Engineers at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center conducted integrated system checks and simulated launch conditions to verify performance. The project has met its scheduled milestones, positioning the observatory for a launch later this year. The mission is planned to study cosmic acceleration and exoplanet atmospheres, and the launch timeline remains on track.
Landspace, a Chinese commercial launch company, plans to reflight its Zhuque-3 first stage within six months after a successful vertical landing on August 18, 2026 at a recovery site in Minqin County, Gansu province. The second Zhuque-3 flight delivered the Honghu-03 satellite to orbit and returned the first stage for a vertical landing, making Landspace the third entity worldwide after SpaceX and Blue Origin to land an orbital-class booster on legs and the first Chinese firm to achieve a land recovery. The first orbital booster recovery in China occurred in July when a Long March 10B was captured by a net-equipped vessel at sea. The landing followed a failed attempt on the debut flight eight and a half months earlier. After that failure, Landspace reduced the number of engines used in the landing burn, added a predicted landing point to its autonomous safety control system, and improved thermal protection to handle reentry heating. The flight also carried a technology demonstration payload for China Mobile, developed with the Chinese Academy of Sciences’ Institute of Computing Technology and Hongqing Technology, representing the company’s first orbital edge-computing payload. Landspace aims to reuse the Zhuque-3 first stage at least 20 times and increase launch cadence, joining other Chinese firms pursuing reusable launch vehicles.
On August 4, 2026, Sentinel-1 satellite data recorded the breakaway of a 76‑square‑kilometre segment from the floating ice tongue of Petermann Glacier in northwest Greenland, marking the biggest loss of floating ice since 2012. Sentinel-1 uses radar to observe the Arctic day and night, penetrating cloud cover and enabling continuous monitoring of remote glaciers. An international research team, including scholars from the University of Ottawa, the Universities of Stirling, Lancaster and Leeds, and the Canadian Ice Service, has tracked Petermann Glacier since 2019. In April 2026, interferometric observations revealed deformation and fractures within the ice tongue, indicating progressive weakening. By August 3, Sentinel-1 radar images showed pronounced deterioration along the centreline, and on August 4 the ice segment detached from the eastern edge of the glacier. The resulting tabular iceberg, estimated to be up to 150 metres thick, covers an area comparable to Manhattan. Adam Garbo, a PhD candidate at the University of Ottawa, said the event highlights the rapid changes possible in this system. Anna Crawford of the University of Stirling noted that, although tabular icebergs are common in Antarctic waters, Arctic ice islands are far less frequent. The research team expects two additional ice islands, with areas of about 97 and 87 square kilometres, to calve as rifts continue to propagate. Processed Sentinel-1 data by Molly Hammond, a PhD student at the University of Leeds, enabled precise measurement of fracture propagation and ice motion relative to tidal cycles, illustrating the utility of one‑day repeat synthetic aperture radar observations. Martin Wearing of ESA described the calving as a rare Arctic opportunity to study the dynamics of large tabular icebergs, emphasizing that systematic satellite observations are essential for understanding calving processes and their broader impacts on sea‑level rise and polar ecosystems. Environment and Climate Change Canada is monitoring the iceberg’s trajectory to assess potential risks to shipping routes and offshore infrastructure, as the mass may persist for years before fragmenting into smaller, harder‑to‑detect pieces. Ongoing observations from satellites, aerial surveys and tracking data will continue to document the iceberg’s movement and eventual disintegration, providing further insight into Arctic ice dynamics and associated environmental implications.
From August 23‑30, 2026, a series of space policy activities are planned, including the launch of the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope, the postponement of China’s Chang’e‑7 lunar mission, and a Congressional Space Medal of Honor ceremony for the Artemis II crew.
Congress is in recess except for pro forma sessions, with the House returning on August 31 and the Senate on September 14. The 40th Small Satellite Conference begins today in Salt Lake City and runs through Wednesday. Additional meetings include an assessment of NASA technical capabilities, a closed‑door National Academies workshop on cislunar governance, and the 2026 AFCEA/INSA Intelligence and National Security Summit in Bethesda.
NASA said the Roman Space Telescope is scheduled for launch on August 30 at 7:26 am ET from Kennedy Space Center on a Falcon Heavy rocket and is reported to be ahead of schedule and under budget. The China Manned Space Agency said the Chang’e‑7 probe “does not meet launch conditions” and cannot launch during the planned 2026 window, with no new date announced. President Trump will present the Congressional Space Medal of Honor to the Artemis II crew—Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch, and Jeremy Hansen—on Friday at Johnson Space Center; the crew completed the first crewed lunar flyby since Apollo 17 in April. The 40th Small Satellite Conference in Salt Lake City will continue through Wednesday, featuring technical sessions and industry exhibits. NASA astronaut Anil Menon and ESA astronaut Sophie Adenot will conduct a second spacewalk on August 25 to replace an external antenna on the International Space Station, following a dress rehearsal on August 18. A luncheon on Tuesday hosted by the Washington Space Business Roundtable will discuss “From Demo to Dollars: Why Promising Space Companies Still Hit a Wall on the Way to a Program of Record.” A closed National Academies meeting on August 26 will address “Designing Governance and Economic Frameworks for the Emerging Cislunar and Lunar Economy.” Katalyst Space’s attempt to reboost NASA’s Swift telescope was cancelled due to attitude control problems with its LINK spacecraft, and Swift is expected to reenter later in 2026. Ukrainian forces reported striking the aircraft hardware servicing hall and the Soyuz rocket engine assembly hall at a plant in Samara; the next Progress cargo launch, Progress MS‑35, remains scheduled for September 9 on a Soyuz‑2.1b, and rockets for near‑term missions are reportedly at their launch sites.
The Roman Space Telescope launch is set for August 30, while the timeline for the Chang’e‑7 mission and any operational effects on the Soyuz plant remain uncertain.
CNES is seeking an industrial partner to develop and qualify a compact optical telescope that can be mass‑produced in volumes exceeding 1,000 units. The request for information published on 18 August specifies that the telescope must measure no more than 200 by 200 by 100 millimetres, use diamond machining for rapid production, and be built from aluminium with a reflective coating to reduce cost. The design would incorporate multiple mirrors on a single substrate and require no adjustment during assembly.
The agency says the optical concept, already defined by CNES, has reached an advanced stage and the partner would complete the design and assess performance under thermal and mechanical stresses. Demonstration activities are targeted before the end of 2026, with qualification expected in 2027 or 2028.
The project supports a range of imaging applications, including detection, surveillance and identification, and fits within CNES’s broader effort to develop smaller, lower‑cost optical systems for high‑revisit missions. The agency’s 2024 optical‑imaging technology roadmap listed compact telescopes for NewSpace missions as a priority area, a focus retained in its 2025 technical policy. While the RFI mentions dual‑use potential, it does not indicate that the telescope is intended specifically for military purposes.
Paris, France — August 2026 — Novaspace's latest Earth Observation Satellite Systems report forecasts that more than 6,500 Earth observation satellites will be launched by 2035, generating an estimated $155.9 billion in manufacturing revenue as governments expand sovereign intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance capabilities.
Historically, Earth observation performance was measured by image resolution, but defense users now prioritize revisit rates, persistence, and wide-area coverage to enable continuous monitoring and rapid decision-making, driving demand for larger constellations and varied sensor architectures.
The report notes that multi-sensor constellations combining synthetic aperture radar, optical, and radio frequency payloads are becoming standard, allowing operators to fuse complementary intelligence sources for more resilient and comprehensive coverage. It also describes the emerging “Skyscraper Model,” in which satellite buses are increasingly standardized while value shifts toward advanced payload integration and multiple intelligence layers.
Growing needs for interoperability, federation, and fleet management are accelerating convergence between commercial and defense markets and positioning sovereign Earth observation capabilities as a key growth driver through 2035.
Novaspace expects the expanding satellite manufacturing and launch markets to sustain this trajectory, though the report does not address potential regulatory or technology‑supply constraints that could affect the forecast.
NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope captured an infrared image on August 6 2026 of a region of the Carina Nebula, a star‑forming area that also contains the Cosmic Cliffs. The image shows a feature nicknamed the “Treasure Chest,” which is a cometary globule—a dense, dark head with a trailing cloud of gas and dust. The photograph was released by ESA, NASA and CSA, with acknowledgment to M. H. Özsaraç.
White House and Office of Space Commerce acknowledge that space is a complex system and favor adaptive governance.
The COSMOSIS framework, created by M.C. Sungaila, offers a seven‑part approach to space law that emphasizes interconnection, stewardship, and the rights of all stakeholders while supporting innovation.
First, it applies the Outer Space Treaty and the Overview Effect to frame governance as a responsibility to the cosmos and future generations.
Second, the Cynefin framework guides leaders in classifying governance issues as clear, complicated, complex, or chaotic and selects the appropriate response—established protocols, expert analysis, experimentation, or rapid stabilization.
Third, it maps governance levels and polycentric nodes across international, national, subnational, and private actors to promote resilience.
Fourth, it treats space governance as a living system that encourages diversity, redundancy, and distributed decision‑making, allowing parallel experiments and solution propagation.
Fifth, feedback loops and horizon‑scanning mechanisms are built into the system to incorporate outcomes, stakeholder input, emerging risks, and long‑term impact assessments.
Sixth, regular retrospectives use multi‑dimensional metrics that reflect COSMOSIS principles such as actor diversity, shock absorption, adaptability, stewardship, and stakeholder trust.
The OSTP July 2026 report “Science: A New Golden Age” recommends a self‑improving science enterprise, mapping grantmaking gaps, intra‑agency metascience capabilities, risk‑benefit regulatory analysis, regulatory sandboxes, and iterative rulemaking.
OSTP previously issued executive orders on AI, quantum, nuclear and space, recognizing these technologies as foundational and interdependent.
The Office of Space Commerce Mission Authorization framework aims to streamline licensing, treat risk proportionately, and allow iterative certification of novel space activities.
To fully realize the vision, OSTP should establish a White House‑level cross‑agency metascience hub, and OSC should adopt a risk‑profile rubric for ongoing supervision and create an ombudsperson role to expedite certification decisions.
NASA released a composite image of the total solar eclipse that occurred on August 12, 2026, as it passed over Greenland, Iceland and Spain. The eclipse briefly revealed the Sun’s corona to observers in the path of totality. A NASA photographer in Spain recorded the total and partial phases until the Sun set. In northern Maine, a NASA photographer captured the International Space Station with its seven‑person crew as it passed the partially eclipsed Sun. An astronaut aboard the space station took photographs of the partial eclipse from orbit. NASA pilots flew a WB‑57F research jet at 50,000 feet through the eclipse’s shadow to extend observation time; the aircraft carried cameras that recorded the corona and prominences in multiple wavelengths. In Iceland and Spain, student teams participating in the NASA‑funded Nationwide Eclipse Ballooning Project launched balloons equipped with instruments to measure the eclipse’s shadow and atmospheric effects; cloud cover in Iceland did not impede data collection. Before the event, Predictive Science Inc., supported by NASA grants, used spacecraft and ground‑based observations to model the corona, and a comparison was made with images from the DEB Initiative near León, Spain. Scientists will analyze the data over the coming months and use the findings to prepare for the August 2, 2027 total solar eclipse visible in southern Spain and northern Africa.
A partial lunar eclipse will be visible in the UK, Europe and parts of Africa on the early morning of 28 August. The eclipse begins at 3:33 am BST when the Moon moves into Earth’s shadow, reaching its maximum coverage around 5:10 am, when only a thin sliver remains illuminated. At that time the Moon will appear mostly in shadow, taking on a muted coppery hue as sunlight is refracted through Earth’s atmosphere. The event is partial, not total, and does not require special equipment to view. The next total lunar eclipse visible from the region will occur on 15 February 2029.
LandSpace’s Zhuque-3 rocket toppled after completing a successful landing milestone. LandSpace, a private Chinese aerospace firm, developed the Zhuque-3 rocket as part of its ambitions to provide commercial launch services. The recent flight achieved a soft touchdown on the launch pad, confirming the company’s landing technology. Following the touchdown, the rocket tipped over and came to rest on its side, though no personnel were reported injured and no payload was lost. LandSpace said the incident would be investigated to determine the cause of the post‑landing collapse. The company plans to review the data and implement corrective measures before resuming launch operations.
Astronomers recorded 1,706 meteors during the night of August 12‑13, 2026, most of which were Perseids, according to a composite image released by NASA's Astronomy Picture of the Day.
The image combined data from four all‑sky cameras at the Valašské Meziříčí Observatory in Czechia, which were aligned and merged to produce an all‑night, all‑sky view.
The radiant of the meteors was located in the constellation Perseus, confirming their association with the Perseid meteor shower, the most active annual meteor event.
Meteors from the Kappa Cygnid shower were also visible, crossing the Perseid trails.
The antihelion complex near Aquarius showed a weaker meteor source, as indicated by the image analysis.
The Perseid shower typically peaks in mid‑August, and the 2026 event demonstrated high activity, though the exact cause of year‑to‑year variation remains under study.
Ship 41 completed its engine test series on August 12, 2026, ahead of Flight 14 according to NASASpaceflight. The test took place at the SpaceX launch facility in Texas. Engineers measured engine performance parameters and confirmed that the vehicle meets pre‑flight requirements. Flight 14 is planned for early September 2026 with a final launch date pending. The test represents a key step in the vehicle’s development timeline.
Sophie Adenot Conducts Second Spacewalk to Install Replacement Antenna. Astronaut Sophie Adenot will perform her second spacewalk on 25 August, accompanied by NASA astronaut Anil Menon, to install a Space‑To‑Ground antenna on the International Space Station. The first spacewalk, EVA‑97, took place on 18 August and removed a failed antenna but could not install the spare because of stuck bolts. EVA‑98 is scheduled to begin at approximately 13:35 BST (14:35 CEST) from the Quest airlock. The two astronauts will spend about six and a half hours outside the station. They will be assisted into their suits by NASA astronauts Jessica Meir and Jack Hathaway. Menon, as EV1, will wear red stripes on his suit, while Adenot, as EV2, will wear a suit without stripes. Commander Jessica Meir and flight engineer Jack Hathaway will operate the Canadarm2 robotic arm from inside the station to support the spacewalk. The antenna is a critical communication system used by NASA to transmit data between mission control in Houston and the station. This spacewalk makes Adenot the fifth French astronaut to perform a spacewalk, the 13th by a French astronaut, and the 32nd by a European astronaut during the εpsilon mission.
SpaceX launched its 100th orbital mission of 2026 on August 22, 2026, carrying 29 Starlink satellites from Space Launch Complex 4E at Vandenberg Space Force Base in California. The mission, designated Starlink 15-20, used the Falcon 9 first stage booster with tail number B1100, which marked its ninth flight after previous missions including NROL-105 for the National Reconnaissance Office and seven earlier Starlink launches. SpaceX founder Elon Musk confirmed that the company’s constellation now exceeds 11,000 satellites. Liftoff occurred at 12:25 a.m. PDT (3:25 a.m. EDT / 0725 UTC) on a south‑easterly trajectory. Nearly 8.5 minutes after launch, B1100 landed on the droneship Of Course I Still Love You in the Pacific Ocean, the 220th landing for the vessel and the 653rd Falcon booster landing to date. The added satellites increase broadband coverage for the Starlink constellation, and SpaceX continues its regular launch schedule.