Launch is scheduled for 1:43 p.m. EDT on May 27, 2021. It'll bring OneWeb’s fleet to 218, 2nd-largest global internet network in Earth orbit after Starlink.
The Discovery Channel announced on May 18, 2021, that it's launching a new reality show competition called "Who Wants to Be an Astronaut?" It aims to send one ordinary person to the International Space Station for an 8-day stay.
The core stage of China's Long March 5B rocket - which launched the Tianhe space station module - plummeted into the Indian Ocean on May 8, 2021. In a statement issued that day, new NASA administrator Bill Nelson criticized China's handling of the re-entry.
SpaceX's test flight of Starship SN15 went off without a hitch today, May 5, 2021. Following 4 Starship prototypes that exploded upon landing after their high-altitude flight tests, the SN15 landed safely.
In and around Florida, at least, no more "finders keepers" once a new bill becomes law on July 1. The Spaceflight Assets bill affirmed by the Florida legislature in late April 2021 requires that anyone who finds "reasonably identifiable" spacecraft parts make a "reasonable effort" to notify the hardware's owner.
Northrop Grumman said last week that its Mission Extension Vehicle 2 - a robot spacecraft designed to help prolong the life of satellites in space - successfully docked to a commercial communications satellite. "We are now the only provider of life extension services for satellites," a company spokesperson said.
China and Russia are cooperating in plans to build a lunar research outpost on the moon. The China National Space Administration and Roscosmos - Russia's space agency - made the announcement in a memorandum dated March 9, 2021.
NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope went into a protective safe mode early March 7, after on onboard software program failed during a guide star acquisition. NASA has now announced that spacecraft was moved out of safe mode, into a pre-science state with the plan of returning to normal operations.
Lia De La Cruz is a journalist based in Southern California. She joined EarthSky in September 2020, with previous writing published in outlets including SkyFeed, Smore Magazine, and Bang It Out on Science. In her free time, she enjoys reading and volunteering.