A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket lifted off from Space Launch Complex 4 East at Vandenberg Space Force Base on October 15, 2026, carrying a classified payload for the United States Space Force.

The launch occurred at 5:01 p.m. PDT (8:01 p.m. EDT / 0001 UTC), following a five o’clock bugle call and the playing of the National Anthem across the base. The vehicle followed a southerly trajectory and entered a low Earth orbit inclined approximately 80 degrees from the equator, according to hazard warnings.

The mission, designated USSF-481 and also referred to as “TH-2” in public notices, marked the second “TH” launch within a two-month span. The first “TH” mission, USSF-259 or TH-1, had launched on September 16, 2026.

The Falcon 9 first stage booster used, designated B1081, completed its 28th flight. It had previously supported four NASA missions, three national security launches, two Transporter rideshare missions, two European missions, and 16 Starlink deployments.

Approximately eight minutes after liftoff, the booster landed on the droneship Of Course I Still Love You in the Pacific Ocean. This marked the 228th landing for the droneship and the 671st successful Falcon booster recovery to date.

Spaceflight Now contacted the Department of the Air Force to request details about the mission’s purpose. The organization indicated it would update the report if additional information became available before the launch.

NASA's Artemis II mission marked the first crewed flight of the Orion spacecraft, sending four astronauts on a lunar flyby and returning them safely to Earth.

Engineering teams conducted a detailed review of the heat shield's performance during reentry, confirming that it functioned as designed.

During descent, Orion reached speeds near 39 times the speed of sound and encountered external temperatures above 4,000 degrees Fahrenheit, while internal cabin conditions remained comfortable, hovering around the mid-70s Fahrenheit.

Prior to launch, trajectory adjustments were made to limit the spacecraft's downrange distance, reducing exposure to a specific thermal environment that had shown anomalies during the uncrewed Artemis I flight.

The modified approach brought Orion within 192 feet of its intended entry point and resulted in a splashdown just 0.59 miles from the target zone off the coast of San Diego.

Post-recovery inspections revealed minimal damage to the heat shield, with only nine areas showing charring, a stark contrast to the 103 instances observed after Artemis I.

The shield, constructed from 186 blocks of the ablative material Avcoat, was later transported to Marshall Space Flight Center for further examination, including X-ray analysis and sample extraction.

Laser scanning efforts are now underway to compare post-flight surface data with pre-launch predictions, helping refine models of material recession.

Engineers noted that the seams between Avcoat blocks and the surrounding compression pads performed consistently with expectations, indicating design stability across missions.

The backshell, composed of approximately 1,300 ceramic tiles, also showed no signs of overheating or structural compromise during visual and instrumental reviews.

These findings suggest that the heat shield design has matured between Artemis I and II, with trajectory changes proving effective in mitigating earlier performance concerns.

The data gathered will inform upgrades for Artemis III, where enhanced uniformity and permeability in the Avcoat blocks are being implemented.

The heat shield for that mission was installed at Kennedy Space Center in July, and the integrated spacecraft has since undergone power-up and systems checks.

Looking ahead, Artemis III aims to land astronauts on the lunar surface, with subsequent missions building on the operational experience gained from earlier flights.

The SLS rocket and Orion spacecraft are scheduled to carry a new crew—including NASA astronauts and an ESA specialist—on a cislunar mission that will test systems in preparation for future landing operations, potentially as early as 2028.

NASA is contributing to Japan's Martian Moons eXploration (MMX) mission, which seeks to analyze Mars' moons Phobos and Deimos and return a sample from Phobos to Earth. The spacecraft is scheduled to launch from Japan's Tanegashima Space Center on October 19 at 3:41 p.m. EDT, with arrival at Mars planned for August 2027. Sample collection is expected to begin no earlier than December 2028, with delivery to Earth targeted for 2031.

NASA's involvement includes providing the MEGANE spectrograph, which will measure neutrons and gamma rays from Phobos' surface to assess its chemical makeup, and the Pneumatic Sampler (P-Sampler), a device that uses bursts of high-pressure nitrogen to gather surface material. The agency will also manage communications and navigation via its Deep Space Network and fund U.S.-based scientists on the mission team. Approximately 15% of the returned sample will be curated at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston.

Tom Statler, MMX program executive at NASA Headquarters, noted that the moons may originate from a giant impact on Mars or from captured asteroids. Studying their composition could shed light on the early solar system and the distribution of water and organic materials among the inner planets. Nicky Fox, NASA's associate administrator for Science, emphasized that the samples will offer long-term scientific value as humanity prepares for crewed missions to Mars.

The MEGANE instrument was developed by the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory, while Honeybee Robotics, a Blue Origin subsidiary, built the P-Sampler. The mission is managed under NASA's Discovery Program, overseen by the Marshall Space Flight Center. Researchers from NASA and international partners will collaborate on analyzing mission data and returned samples to better understand the moons' origins and their role in the evolution of the Martian system.

NASA announced on Tuesday that it has selected twelve U.S. universities to share a $12 million grant package under its Minority University Research and Education Project Space Technology Artemis Research, or M‑STAR, initiative. Each institution will receive up to $1 million to expand its aerospace research capabilities, engage faculty and students in projects related to lunar and Martian exploration, and strengthen its ability to compete for future federal and commercial research funding.

Alicia Baturoni Cortez, manager of the MUREP program within NASA’s Office of STEM Engagement, said the agency is eager to begin work with the new cohort of investigators. She emphasized that NASA’s investments in research institutions provide students and faculty with opportunities to develop technical skills, build infrastructure, and help close technology gaps for long‑duration missions on the Moon and eventually Mars.

The selected projects span a range of disciplines, including robotics, materials science, and energy systems. California State University, Sacramento, will develop adaptive vision‑language‑action models for multi‑robot collaboration in unstructured planetary environments. The University of Central Florida, Orlando, will focus on multi‑fidelity aerothermal simulation and testing for Artemis. The University of Hawaii at Manoa will train students in radiation instrumentation and detection through its HI‑STRIDE program. The University of Houston will explore rover‑carried deployables for exploration operations, while the University of Texas, San Antonio, will characterize regolith properties at cryogenic temperatures using a multi‑planetary surface simulator.

Other awardees include Kean University, which will integrate terrain understanding with robust control for autonomous path planning; Virginia Commonwealth University, working on radiation‑tolerant composites for nuclear thermal propulsion hardware; and Shaw University, which will develop a materials‑by‑design platform for environmental control and surface infrastructure. Howard University will build a lunar monolithic spatial heterodyne Raman spectrometer for mini‑rover sensing, and Prairie View A&M University will research functionally graded interfaces for repairing propulsion hardware using directed‑energy deposition. The University of New Mexico will develop extreme‑environment batteries and fuel cells for sustained lunar and Martian operations, and Fayetteville State University will apply generative AI to streamline model‑based systems engineering for the Artemis program.

NASA’s Office of STEM Engagement aims to create a collaborative ecosystem among education, industry, and government to prepare a skilled talent pool. Meanwhile, the agency’s Research and Technology Mission Directorate continues to develop transformative space technologies that support future missions and maintain U.S. leadership in aerospace. Together, these efforts seek to align technological innovation with the workforce needed to advance exploration goals.

A new software platform enables engineers to assess the environmental footprint of spacecraft and launch vehicles during early design phases. Developed by a consortium led by the EPFL Space Center in Switzerland, the Assessment and Comparison Tool (ACT) integrates life-cycle assessment methodology with space-specific considerations such as orbital emissions and reentry dynamics. The project received funding from the European Space Agency and was created to address gaps in sustainability evaluation for space systems, which traditionally focus only on cost and performance metrics.

The tool accounts for factors including emissions from high-altitude launches, production of specialized space materials, and end-of-life disposal scenarios in orbit or during atmospheric reentry. It incorporates regulatory frameworks like the EU's REACH chemical guidelines and aligns with emerging ESA standards for space system lifecycle assessments. Partner institutions contributed specialized expertise: ISAE-SUPAERO analyzed launch profiles, the Institute of Space Systems in Stuttgart provided emissions data per altitude layer, and the Paul Scherrer Institute contributed life-cycle assessment methodology.

ACT generates detailed environmental impact reports for space hardware, including complete mission scenarios spanning launch, in-space operations, and return phases. The software outputs quantitative assessments of environmental hotspots, allowing designers to modify elements early in development to reduce ecological impact. A spin-off company, EcoDeltaV, now commercializes and maintains the tool, offering it as a subscription-based service with additional consultancy support. EcoDeltaV co-founder Emmanuelle David stated the platform helps companies identify sustainability improvements that could strengthen funding proposals and market positioning while meeting evolving regulatory requirements.

The development reflects growing emphasis on minimizing space sector environmental impacts across Earth, orbit, lunar environments, and deep space missions. By embedding sustainability metrics into design processes from inception, ACT aims to prevent environmental considerations from becoming an afterthought in space system development.

A circular hole in the left shoulder blade of a Neanderthal who died over 70,000 years ago may represent the earliest known case of a human ancestor killed by a wooden spear. The injury was identified in skeletal remains recovered from Shanidar Cave in the Kurdistan region of Iraq, where five Neanderthals were buried beneath nearly eight meters of sediment. One adult, estimated to be about 45 years old, displayed three fractures radiating from a 1.5 cm‑wide hole in the scapula. Microscopic analysis indicated the fracture pattern matched a high‑velocity impact from a pointed wooden projectile thrust from the front, likely piercing the chest and damaging the lung and major blood vessels. Researchers noted the wound’s morphology and the force required to produce it point to a deliberate, lethal strike rather than an accidental mishap. The individual had previously suffered a severe facial injury that left a front tooth split and surrounded by hardened plaque, suggesting prior trauma and possible need for assistance. While the exact circumstances remain uncertain, the find adds to evidence that Neanderthals engaged in complex social behaviors, including intentional burial of the dead and potentially violent interpersonal interactions. The presence of wooden spears in the archaeological record, some dating back over 400,000 years, supports the plausibility of such weapon use, though definitive proof of intentional violence in this case cannot be established.

Satellite data reveal a sharp rise in fire activity across the central and eastern Amazon as the 2026 El Niño event intensifies drought conditions. NASA Earth Observatory imagery captured dense smoke drifting over Manaus on October 12, 2026, when air quality monitors recorded PM2.5 levels exceeding 135 micrograms per cubic meter—placing the city among the world's most polluted urban centers that day. Local officials responded by closing schools and suspending public events for over two million residents amid hazardous air conditions.

Scientists tracking the regional fire cascade note that drought patterns originating in equatorial Asia precede heightened fire activity in South America by several months. Douglas Morton, an Earth system scientist at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, explained that the current sequence mirrors the 2015-2016 El Niño event documented in prior research. "We're seeing the second domino fall in the tropics fire cascade," Morton stated, describing how drought-fueled fires in Indonesia have now progressed to the Amazon basin.

The affected zone spans from forests near Manaus and Santarém to the Amazon River's mouth. Analysis by University of Maryland researcher Shane Coffield indicates approximately 50 to 70 uncontrolled fires are burning in the Santarém region alone, with additional outbreaks reported across Pará state. Independent satellite verification suggests official fire detection systems may undercount actual incidents due to dense smoke, cloud cover, and canopy obstruction that hinder infrared sensor visibility, particularly for lower-intensity understory fires.

Brazil's National Institute of Meteorology reported rainfall in Manaus was 95 percent below normal for August and 60 percent below average in September 2026. Under these conditions, most fires originated as agricultural management burns that have since escaped into surrounding forests. Morton emphasized that human-started fires account for nearly all current outbreaks, noting "lightning ignites less than 1 percent of fires" in this wetter-than-expected region.

Fire scientists anticipate the crisis will expand northward through November and December 2026 into Roraima, northern Pará, and Amapá states, as well as parts of Venezuela, Guyana, and Suriname. A subsequent peak in southern Amazon fire risk is projected for August and September 2027. The recurring nature of these events—where previously burned forests become increasingly vulnerable to intense combustion—raises concerns about long-term ecosystem resilience in fire-adapted tropical forests.

Morton urged heightened caution regarding intentional burning practices, stating, "Given the intensity of this El Niño, this really is the year for people to avoid burning at all costs."

The situation underscores broader climate connections between tropical rainfall disruptions and global fire patterns, with researchers highlighting the need for improved detection systems to address observational gaps in smoky conditions.

Norman McCubbin, a particle physicist who worked on experiments at the Large Hadron Collider, died at the age of 77. He spent the final years of his career as director of the particle physics department at the Rutherford Appleton Laboratory in Oxfordshire, retiring in 2012. After retiring, he served as a stipendiary lecturer in physics at St Anne’s College, Oxford, where he continued to tutor undergraduate students.

McCubbin was born in Pinner, Middlesex, to Hugh McCubbin, an accountant, and Pat McCubbin (née Rosenberg). He was the eldest of three children. His family relocated several times during his childhood, moving to Leicester, then to Kenya in 1958 when his father took a post with the Kenya Farmers’ Association, followed by stints in Lesotho and Taiwan. He attended Repton School in Derbyshire as a boarder before studying at New College, Oxford, where he earned a first-class degree in physics and completed a doctorate.

From 1973 to 1979, he worked as a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Lancaster and later at RAL, contributing to the first hadron collider at CERN. He subsequently joined CERN as a senior scientific officer, focusing on heavy-ion collisions. Between 1990 and 1999, he led the Zeus experiment at RAL in Hamburg, investigating proton structure. From 1999 to 2003, he served as computing coordinator for the Atlas experiment at the Large Hadron Collider. He later became divisional head of RAL’s particle physics department, continuing to collaborate with CERN until 2007, when he assumed leadership of the department.

In retirement, McCubbin remained active as a tutor, known for engaging students in topics such as thermodynamics, statistical mechanics, and quantum theory. He also answered questions remotely from his great-nephew in New Zealand about physics concepts, including gravity and quantum entanglement.

He is survived by his brother Richard, two nieces, two nephews, three great-nephews, and one great-niece.

Astronomers using data from NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory have identified the likely source of a radio emission that resembles a treble clef symbol. The structure, observed on October 14, 2026, appears in a composite image combining X-ray, infrared and radio wavelengths. Researchers determined that the unusual pattern originated from an outburst of a supermassive black hole, which was subsequently followed by a collision between two galaxy clusters. The findings were published in a scientific journal based on observations from the Chandra X-ray Observatory, the LOFAR radio telescope and other instruments. The image was produced by combining data from multiple wavelengths to highlight the shape of the emission. No additional details about the black hole's mass or the clusters' composition were provided in the announcement.

A near-infrared photograph captured above Manhattan reveals the Milky Way arching over the city's skyline, demonstrating that the galaxy remains observable even in one of the world's most densely lit urban environments. The image, taken on October 15, 2026, was produced using a specialized filter that isolates near-infrared wavelengths — light with longer wavelengths and lower energy than visible light. In this spectral range, common sources of artificial light pollution exhibit distinct behaviors: traditional incandescent bulbs and certain neon signs continue to emit detectable radiation, while modern fluorescent and light-emitting diode fixtures largely do not. This contrast enables the faint glow of stars and galactic structures to emerge against the urban backdrop. The photograph was produced through a collaborative effort involving astrophotographers Jason Kurth and Ty Buckley, with scientific oversight from researchers affiliated with NASA, the University of Michigan, and Michigan Technological University. It forms part of NASA's Astronomy Picture of the Day series, which showcases daily celestial imagery accompanied by expert commentary. The observation underscores the persistence of astronomical phenomena despite widespread artificial illumination and highlights the utility of non-visible wavelength imaging in urban astronomy.