SATELLITE OVERLOAD: ASTRONOMERS LOOK TO UN TO PRESERVE THE NIGHT SKY - As satellite launches surge toward 1.7 million by 2030, astronomers and space companies are turning to multilateralism to mitigate satellite brightness and radio interference and keep astronomy alive. Last month, President Donald Trump signed an executive order on “American space superiority”, reaffirming US support for the rapid expansion of commercial satellite constellations and framing them as critical infrastructure for national security and economic growth. More (Source: Geneva Solutions - Jan 8)
CHINA SPACE STATION CONDUCTS IN-ORBIT EXPERIMENT ON LITHIUM-ION BATTERIES, AIMING TO ENHANCE PERFORMANCE OF SPACECRAFT ENERGY SYSTEM: REPORT - The Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) revealed that the project titled "In-situ electrochemical optical research on lithium-ion batteries for space applications" has been carried out on the China Space Station, with an ultimate goal to enhance the performance of spacecraft energy system. The Shenzhou-21 crew jointly conducted on-orbit operations for the experiment, with crew-member Zhang Hongzhang from CAS serving as the payload expert and leveraging his professional expertise, Xinhua News Agency reported on Wednesday. More (Source: Global Times - Jan 7)
THE FIRST COMMERCIAL SPACE STATIONS WILL START ORBITING EARTH IN 2026 - The space station industry is starting to take off. For decades, if you wanted to send an astronaut or experiment into orbit, the International Space Station (ISS) was the only option. But now, as NASA and its partners prepare to deorbit the ISS at the end of the decade, commercially owned stations are preparing to take over. More (Source: New Scientist - Jan 7)
EXPEDITION 74 GEARS UP FOR FIRST SPACEWALK OF 2026 - The Expedition 74 crew is gearing up for the first spacewalk of 2026 this week that will see two astronauts prepare the International Space Station for a new set of roll-out solar arrays. The orbital residents also had time on Monday to conduct microgravity research, pack a U.S. cargo craft, and maintain communications and life support systems More (Source: NASA - Jan 6)
SPANISH COMMUNICATIONS SATELLITE DAMAGED DURING MANEUVERING – IT WAS LAUNCHED LAST FALL - The Spanish satellite SpainSat NG II was damaged during a maneuver to reach its final orbit. According to the operator Hisdesat, the device collided with “space debris” at an altitude of about 50,000 kilometers, which happened after its launch on October 23, reports Defence Turk. Hisdesat immediately activated its contingency plan to guarantee the continuity of services to the Spanish Ministry of Defense and NATO allies. The company emphasized that its commitments to customers remain in effect. More (Source: militarnyi.com - Jan 6)
THE NEXT FRONTIER IN SPACE IS CLOSER THAN YOU THINK – WELCOME TO THE WORLD OF VERY LOW EARTH ORBIT SATELLITES - There are about 15,000 satellites orbiting the Earth. Most of them, like the International Space Station and the Hubble Telescope, reside in low Earth orbit, or LEO, which tops out at about 1,200 miles (2,000 kilometers) above the Earth’s surface. But as more and more satellites are launched into LEO – SpaceX's Starlink internet constellation alone will eventually send many thousands more there – the region's getting a bit crowded. More (Source: Space.com - Jan 5)
SPACEX LAUNCHES FIRST STARLINK DEPLOYMENT MISSION SINCE PROBLEM STRIKES SATELLITE - SpaceX launched its first Starlink mission since one of its satellites in orbit was knocked out of action in an incident on Dec. 17. Liftoff of the Starlink 6-88 mission happened at 1:48 a.m. EST (0648 UTC) from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. The rocket flew on a south-easterly trajectory after a nearly two-hour delay, likely due to poor weather conditions. More (Source: - Jan 5)
SPACE DEBRIS LED TO AN ORBITAL EMERGENCY IN 2025. WILL ANYTHING CHANGE? - Earth is surrounded by human-made debris that orbits our planet. The problem is worsening every year, and 2025 was no different. Space debris experts say nearly 130 million pieces of orbital junk are zipping around our planet: high-speed leftovers from rocket stage explosions, abandoned satellites, as well as bits and pieces of junk from space hardware deployments. Some of this meandering mess is the result of the deliberate demolition of spacecraft by way of anti-satellite weapons testing. More (Source: Space.com - Jan 4)
AFTER HALF A DECADE, THE RUSSIAN SPACE STATION SEGMENT STOPPED LEAKING - A small section of the International Space Station that has experienced persistent leaks for years appears to have stopped venting atmosphere into space. The leaks were caused by microscopic structural cracks inside the small PrK module on the Russian segment of the space station, which lies between a Progress spacecraft airlock and the Zvezda module. The problem has been a long-running worry for Russian and US operators of the station, especially after the rate of leakage doubled in 2024. This prompted NASA officials to label the leak as a “high likelihood” and “high consequence” risk. More (Source: Ars Technica - Jan 3)
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