Space Exploration

Artemis 2 and Tiangong space station astronauts set record for farthest distance between humans

By Julian Dossett published 18 April 26

For a few moments on April 6, the four Artemis 2 moon astronauts and the three crewmates aboard China's Tiangong space station were farther away from each other than any humans had ever been.

Artemis 2's heat shield seems to have aced its trial by fire

By Mike Wall published 17 April 26

The heat shield on Artemis 2's Orion capsule appears to have held up incredibly well during its scorching downward trip through Earth's atmosphere, mission commander Reid Wiseman said.

Landing astronauts on the moon 'is absolutely doable, and it's doable soon,' NASA's Artemis 2 commander says

By Josh Dinner published 16 April 26

The Artemis 2 astronauts said they gained a deeper understanding of their Orion capsule during their moon mission — and what they learned bodes well for future Artemis flights.

'That was a wonderful toilet': Artemis 2 commander defends mission's lunar loo

By Mike Wall published 16 April 26

Artemis 2's groundbreaking space toilet doesn't deserve the bad press it's gotten over the past two weeks, according to mission commander Reid Wiseman.

Blue Origin fires up used New Glenn rocket ahead of landmark reflight (photo)

By Mike Wall published 16 April 26

Blue Origin conducted a static fire test today (April 16) with a flight-proven New Glenn booster, paving the way for a planned launch on Sunday morning (April 19).

Space junk cleanup tech that could 'shepherd' debris into Earth's atmosphere gets US patent

By Andrew Jones published 16 April 26

Astroscale's 2027 ISSA-J mission will mark the first attempt to inspect multiple spacecraft across different orbits in a single flight.

A new Earthrise: An Apollo historian experiences Artemis 2

By Andrew Chaikin published 16 April 26

As Artemis 2 approached, my anticipation was mixed with uncertainty. Would this new Moon mission spark the wonder and excitement I'd felt during Apollo? Those doubts didn't last long.

SpaceX fires up next-gen 'Version 3' Starship ahead of landmark May test flight (photos)

By Mike Wall published 15 April 26

SpaceX just conducted the first full-duration static fire test with the upper stage of its 'V3' Starship, clearing a big hurdle on its path to launch, which is expected next month.

Space combat was 'critical to mission success' in US war in Iran, Space Force chief says

By Brett Tingley published 15 April 26

The head of the U.S. Space Force said the United States' ongoing war in Iran shows the service has become a fully "combat credible" force.

NASA astronauts joke around with an optical illusion on the ISS | Space photo of the day for April 15, 2026

By Chelsea Gohd published 15 April 26

Two NASA astronauts had some fun during the ISS' capture of a robotic cargo spacecraft on April 13, pretending to hold onto it from into the station.