NASA's colossal Space Launch System (SLS) rocket might have crawled back to the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB) at Florida's Kennedy Space Center yesterday for repairs, delaying the Artemis 2 mission by at least a month, but one space-based endeavor that's go for launch in March is Apple TV's "For All Mankind", as the full Season 5 trailer reveals.

It's the year 2012 in the newest 10-episode offering which kicks off March 27, 2026, and a heated rivalry is brewing between Earth and Mars that is quickly bubbling over into interplanetary violence.

Apple TV's exceptional alternative history sci-fi series has been steadily fortifying its fanbase since debuting back in 2019, and has attracted even more acolytes as NASA is preparing to return to the moon after 53 years when the crew of Apollo 17 came home back in December of 1972.

According to the official synopsis, "Season five of 'For All Mankind' picks up in the 2010s, years since the Goldilocks asteroid heist. Happy Valley has grown into a thriving colony with thousands of residents and a base for new missions that will take us even further into the solar system. But with the nations of Earth now demanding law and order on the Red Planet, friction continues to build between the people who live on Mars and their former home."

Created by Ronald D. Moore, Matt Wolpert and Ben Nedivi, this edition of "For All Mankind" features a few new faces including Mireille Enos, who will portray an agent of the Red Planet's Peacekeeper Security Force named Celia Boyd. Bad blood is manifesting a defiant "The Expanse"-like rift with Earth and Mars, causing social and economic unrest and it’s only a matter of time before a full-blown rebellion erupts.

Joel Kinnaman reprises his role as famed ex-astronaut Ed Baldwin, now a salty octogenarian. He’s joined by return cast members Toby Kebbell, Edi Gathegi, Cynthy Wu, Coral Peña and Wrenn Schmidt. Added series regulars include Costa Ronin ("Homeland"), Sean Kaufman ("The Summer I Turned Pretty"), Ruby Cruz ("Bottoms"), and Ines Asserson ("Royalteen").

For more upcoming small-screen sci-fi shows, check out our comprehensive list of upcoming sci-fi shows.

Produced by Sony Pictures Television, all four previous seasons of "For All Mankind" are currently available to stream on Apple TV, so if you’ve not discovered this provocative space-based show yet, now’s your ideal time to fuel up before its March 27 launch.

Showrunners Matt Wolpert and Ben Nedivi will executive produce in collaboration with Ronald D. Moore and Maril Davis of Tall Ship Productions, Kira Snyder, David Weddle, Bradley Thompson, and Seth Edelstein.

Perched on Kennedy Space Center’s Launch Pad 39B, NASA's Artemis 2 SLS rocket is poised to propel itself into the heavens as early as Feb. 8, for a 10-day lunar flyby mission carrying astronauts Reid Wiseman, Jeremy Hansen, Victor Glover and Christina Koch in their Orion spacecraft.

While the world holds its collective breath and awaits humanity's return to the moon after more than a half-century for a record-breaking lunar voyage, Time magazine is celebrating the momentous event with a special Artemis 2 cover issue that hit newsstands on Friday (Jan. 30).

Showcasing the images of the four Artemis 2 astronauts and paired with a deep-dive interview article written by Time Executive Editor and New York Times bestselling author Jeffrey Kluger ("Apollo 13," "The Apollo Murders"), this can't-miss collectors' item is an ideal way for global space fans of all stripes to prime themselves for the historic blastoff.

Kluger's main Artemis 2 feature, entitled "Back to the Moon," delivers engaging context and provides contrasts and comparisons to Apollo 8. That 1968 NASA mission was the first crewed flight to orbit the moon and return safely, and helped pave the way for Apollo 11's lunar landing in July 1969. The importance of that first flight beyond Earth orbit can't be overstated, as the fate of the entire program relied on the success of its crew of Jim Lovell, Frank Boorman and William Anders.

Artemis 2's official trajectory will push humans 4,700 miles (7,560 kilometers) beyond the far side of the moon. That will be farther than our species has ever traveled, breaking the old record of 158 miles (254 km) past the moon, held by the Apollo 13 astronauts during that ill-fated 1970 flight.

"58 years after Apollo 8's historic trip around the moon, NASA is heading back," NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman wrote in a Friday post on X that featured side-by-side Time magazine covers from 1968 and 2026. "This time, our crew is going farther into space than any human in history."

"Artemis 2 marks the beginning of the boldest series of missions the world has ever seen," he added. "Through the Artemis campaign, we will maintain American superiority in space, land American astronauts on the moon, and establish a lunar base all before the end of 2028."

As Jeffrey Kluger summarizes in the new Time magazine cover story, the Artemis 2 launch can also be experienced as an uplifting, unifying moment at a tumultuous time when it's needed most — something it would have in common with Apollo 8.

"A return to the lunar neighborhood will not only represent a significant — if temporary — edge in any space race that does exist with China, but also offer a kind of public uplift that, since the 1960s, spaceflight has uniquely been able to provide," he writes. "Not every mission, of course, touches the collective soul, but some do: John Glenn's three orbits of the Earth in 1962; Apollo 8's Christmas Eve lyricism; Apollo 11's lunar landing; Apollo 13's hair's-breadth rescue — all were less American experiences than global dramas, global triumphs, global joys.

"With Artemis 2, the lunar ledger will at last be reopened and four more names inscribed — a fine and fit crew who will be sent into the cosmic deep as emissaries of the 8.3 billion of us who will remain forever earthbound. Apollo 8 saved 1968. Artemis 2 may work similar magic today."

The countdown has begun… no, not for the upcoming Artemis II launch (slated for February), but for Apple TV's compelling space saga "For All Mankind," which will officially lift off for its 10-episode fifth season on March 27, 2026. And now, we’ve got a fresh teaser trailer, poster, and images to prove it.

Created by Ronald D. Moore, Matt Wolpert, and Ben Nedivi, "For All Mankind" first debuted on Apple TV back in 2019 and centers around the alternative history notion of what would have transpired if the global space race of the '60s and '70s had never ended.

Since its inception, the popular series has explored the intriguing alternative-history world where NASA astronauts, engineers, scientists, and their families find themselves in a skewed timeline where Soviet cosmonaut Alexei Leonov becomes the first man to step onto the surface of the Moon in 1969.

According to the detailed synopsis, this latest season "picks up in the years since the Goldilocks asteroid heist. Happy Valley has grown into a thriving colony with thousands of residents and a base for new missions that will take us even further into the solar system. But with the nations of Earth now demanding law and order on the Red Planet, friction continues to build between the people who live on Mars and their former home."

"Everything that's happened has led to this moment," actor Joel Kinnaman’s astronaut Ed Baldwin narrates in the teaser as the first Martian, Alex Poletov Baldwin, streaks across dunes on a futuristic motorbike. "You’re gonna do things people can’t even fathom. It’s on you to make the next move."

"For All Mankind's" ensemble cast also includes Toby Kebbell, Edi Gathegi, Cynthy Wu, Coral Peña, and Wrenn Schmidt, beside new series regulars Mirelle Enos, Costa Ronin, Sean Kaufman, Ruby Cruz, and Ines Asserson.

Season 5 also showcases Barrett Carnahan as Marcus, a recent high school graduate residing on Mars, and Tyler Labine as a Mars Peacekeeper named Fred, both joining as recurring talent.

Matt Wolpert and Ben Nedivi are showrunners and executive producers with Ronald D. Moore and Maril Davis of Tall Ship Productions, in collaboration with Kira Snyder, David Weddle, Bradley Thompson, and Seth Edelstein.

Produced for Apple TV by Sony Pictures Television, Apple TV's "For All Mankind" Season 5 lands March 27, 2026, followed by new single episodes rolling out each Friday through May 29, 2026.

All four previous seasons of For All Mankind are now available to stream and binge exclusively on Apple TV.

If you're a space buff but haven't already seen the 1995 film "Apollo 13," it's worth the watch. It recreates the near-disaster mission marked by an oxygen tank explosion and emergency ocean-landing back to Earth starring Tom Hanks as Jim Lovell, Kevin Bacon as Jack Swigert and Bill Paxton as Fred Haise: the heroic crew at the center of the story. But in addition to telling the tale that involved the infamous (and often misquoted) line "Houston, we've had a problem here," it also weaves in the intimate family lives and relationships of the three people on that fateful mission.

I remember first watching the movie as a kid; it was those family details that stuck with me (and Kevin Bacon's screentime, to be fair — I was a huge fan of "Tremors"). Specifically, I vividly recall scenes in the Lovell family living room where Jim's wife, Marilyn Lovell, and all the other astronaut family members gathered around a TV, watching the destiny of their husbands and fathers dangling perilously in outer space.

The public's interest in astronaut family lives, and specifically the Lovell family's experience, isn't a novel one — there's even a book and TV series called "The Astronaut Wives Club" documenting, you guessed it, the lives of astronauts' wives. But Hollywood spins and fictionalized glamour aside, how are the families of astronauts really impacted by their space travel day-to-day? Are there metrics to show the consequences, such as divorce rates or child well-being statistics? How do the space travelers themselves feel about leaving everyone they've ever loved or known down below?

Similarities with the military

While astronauts do not leave home to go to war or face combat, families of space travelers may share a few commonalities with military families in which one member is an active service member. In both cases, a parent or partner leaves for extended periods of time due to work and there is heavy risk associated with that work.

"Just like the military spouse feels every time they're deployed, you don't really know if something's going to happen. You just kind of live in vigilance the whole time, Air Force Col. Catie Hague told Military.com. Hague's husband, Nick Hague, was on the rocket that experienced a booster failure a couple of minutes into launch.

According to a 2018 systemic review published in Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Mental Health, which compared kids from military and non-military families, having a deployed parent led to a greater risk of some adjustment issues in kids, such as substance use. The authors concluded that on the whole, the well-being of military and civilian children wasn't that different.

The same journal also pointed out that children of military families see benefits that positively affect the family structure, such as a parent having steady income and a stable job. Lower socioeconomic status has been linked to a likelihood of poor health outcomes for children.

While there are similarities between military life and space life for people who love someone who participates in either, there are also big differences, according to Stacey Morgan, wife of astronaut U.S. Army Col. Andrew Morgan. In an article originally written for Houston Moms Blog and then republished by the U.S. army, Morgan writes that the "public nature of the astronaut persona" makes for a different experience.

For example, an astronaut's family member at home watching footage of them traveling to space is watching it at the same time as everyone else.

"The idea that we as a family are sharing these phenomenal yet perilous moments with the world, literally at the same time as we experience them for ourselves, can be unsettling," Morgan wrote.

In a 2023 Viewpoint article published in Space Policy, the authors make the case that families of space travelers may be better prepared to handle their family member's flight by utilizing the Families Overcoming Under Stress (FOCUS) model — a behavioral health model and program made for the families of active military members to help them better-manage the stress and potential mental health problems that may arise. The same article points out that all space travel may not be created equal: Loved ones of people who pay to go to space (SpaceX and Blue Origin space tourists, for example) may feel that they "did not sign up for the stress and dangers" associated with space travel, the authors write, while the family of a trained astronaut or space scientist may be better accustomed to whatever occupational hazards the job entails.

All types of space strains

At least at the time of this writing, there appears to be a lack of official research on how space travel and astronaut life affects the family unit, how it impacts an astronaut's ability to parent, and how it affects personal relationships — friendships, romantic relationships and beyond. Much of the information about astronaut family strain is anecdotal and can be based on reports and observations from loved ones of astronauts. The 2016 documentary "A Year in Space," for example, follows astronaut Scott Kelly — who spent a year on the International Space Station — and includes insight into his relationships with his daughter, twin brother Mark Kelly and people he knows and loves here on Earth.

In an article for Today, astronauts Anne McClain and Nick Hague provided parenting guidance, which include things like being honest with kids about the work, creating meaningful traditions with family and being present.

"A lot of the parenting — there is no way around it — it is going to fall on the shoulders of the spouse at home," Hague told Today. "Constant dialogue helps involve me."

In addition to more granular information on how having an astronaut parent affects a child's well-being, how or if tourist space travel impacts relationships and maybe even some nitty-gritty on how astronauts' romantic relationships fare compared to non-astronaut romantic partnerships, it'll also be important to take into perspective the whole spectrum of family. And that includes its creation.

Kellie Gerardi, a commercial astronaut and influencer who gained more mainstream attention for sharing her experience with secondary infertility, has been sharing her journey with in vitro fertilization and the road to having a second child. Her stories highlight the specific family demands required of astronauts who are pregnant, or plan to be during their work years in space — scheduling IVF and trying to plan a pregnancy, for example.

Gerardi told NPR earlier this year that her daughter, Delta, is named after a space science term Delta V, or change in velocity. According to NPR, Gerardi has a second space mission scheduled for 2026. As she's documented on Instagram in recent posts, she's currently pregnant.

NASA officially signed over the ownership of Endeavour, its youngest space shuttle, to the California Science Center in Los Angeles today (Oct. 11), setting the stage for the retired spaceship's delivery to the museum next year.

Space agency officials handed over Endeavour's title during a ceremony at the science center and plan to deliver the space shuttle sometime in the second half of 2012.

"NASA is pleased to share this wonderful orbiter with the California Science Center to help inspire a new generation of explorers," NASA chief Charles Bolden said in a statement. "The next chapter in space exploration begins now, and we're standing on the shoulders of the men and women of the shuttle program to reach farther into the solar system." [NASA's Shuttle Program in Pictures: A Tribute]

The California Science Center is one of four institutions across the country selected by Bolden to serve as the permanent home for NASA's space shuttle vehicles. Bolden announced his decision on April 12 of this year, the 30th anniversary of the first space shuttle launchin 1981.

"Endeavour now will begin its new mission to stimulate an interest in science and engineering in future generations at the science center," said California Science Center president Jeffrey Rudolph.

Endeavour flew its final space voyage in May, when the shuttle visited the International Space Station to deliver a $2 billion astrophysics experiment during NASA's STS-134 mission commanded by astronaut Mark Kelly. NASA built Endeavour to replace the shuttle Challenger, which exploded and broke apart just after liftoff in 1986 while carrying a crew of seven astronauts.

While Endeavour is destined for California, its sister ship Atlantis will be displayed at the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex in Florida. Discovery, the oldest and most-flown of NASA's shuttle fleet, will be sent to the Smithsonian Institution's National Air and Space Museum in Washington, D.C.

The museums had to commit to cover the $28.8 million cost of preparing and delivering a space shuttle for display.

NASA's Enterprise prototype shuttle, which was used for landing tests but never flew in space, will be sent to New York City to be displayed at the Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum.  Enterprise is currently on display at the National Air and Space Museum's Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center near Washington's Dulles International Airport. Enterprise will eventually be replaced by the shuttle Discovery, according to NASA's plan.

One other NASA shuttle, the Columbia orbiter, broke apart in 2003 while returning its seven-astronaut crew to Earth. Damage to the shuttle's left wing heat shielding caused the accident, NASA later found.

NASA retired its space shuttles in July after the shuttle Atlantis returned to Earth to end the 135th and final mission of the space shuttle program. That mission delivered vital supplies to the crew of the International Space Station.

Space agency engineers are currently working on Discovery, Atlantis and Endeavour to make them museum-safe, work that includes removing propellant tanks that carried toxic rocket fuel.

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