On August 30, 2026, NASA launched the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope aboard a SpaceX Falcon Heavy from Kennedy Space Center, placing the observatory on a trajectory toward the second Sun‑Earth Lagrange point about one million miles from Earth. The launch was successful and the telescope entered a 90‑day commissioning phase; the first images are expected early next year.

The House reconvened on August 31 after a five‑week recess and considered the Senate’s fiscal year 2027 continuing resolution. The House had previously passed a separate continuing resolution on a partisan vote, while the Senate approved a bipartisan measure extending funding through December 11. The House planned to take up the Senate bill under an expedited suspension procedure that requires a two‑thirds vote; President Trump’s signature would be needed to avert a shutdown on September 30. The Senate bill includes a provision prohibiting the White House from implementing a rule on federal grant awards during the continuation period.

Lieutenant General Douglas Schiess was confirmed on August 6 to succeed General B. Chance Saltzman as Chief of Space Operations. The change‑of‑responsibility ceremony took place on September 3 at Joint Base Andrews and was livestreamed. This marked the second such event in U.S. Space Force history.

NASA conducted a fourth spacewalk on September 1, extending a planned three‑walk series. Astronauts Jessica Meir and European Space Agency astronaut Sophie Adenot performed a 6.5‑hour extravehicular activity to replace a navigational aid, prepare the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer radiator for upgrade, and install jumper cables to enhance data‑relay systems. Meir’s seventh spacewalk and Adenot’s third, together with two earlier all‑female spacewalks, made this the sixth all‑female EVA.

Crew‑12, composed of Meir, Adenot, NASA’s Jack Hathaway and Roscosmos cosmonaut Andrey Fedyaev, received additional time aboard the International Space Station. Launch of their replacements on Crew‑13 was delayed due to an oxidizer leak in the SpaceX Crew Dragon propulsion system, and a new launch date was pending.

The NASA Aerospace Safety Advisory Panel released its findings on August 30 via telephone conference, and the Aerospace Corporation held a Space Policy Forum at the National Press Club on September 2, featuring former NASA Deputy Administrator Pam Melroy and White House Office of Science and Technology Policy’s Aaron Miles. Additional meetings included a Space Weather Roundtable and a Global Space Traffic Management Workshop in Edinburgh.

Türkiye became the 71st signatory to the Artemis Accords on September 1 at NASA headquarters, increasing the total number of signatories from 70 to 71. The nation also hosts the 2026 International Astronautical Congress in Antalya.

The week’s schedule also included a U.S. Space Force change‑of‑responsibility ceremony, a NASA/ESA spacewalk, policy briefings on the BepiColombo mission to Mercury, and various technical workshops and webinars throughout the period.