Space

SpaceX conducted the fourteenth test flight of its Starship system, launching the vehicle and returning the Super Heavy booster for a splashdown. Coverage of the launch and booster descent drew large live audiences, with spaceflight commentators tracking the vehicle's performance during ascent and the booster's controlled descent over the ocean.

The UK military is jamming satellites belonging to other nations as a form of self-defence, according to information given to the BBC. The disclosure sheds light on Britain's offensive and defensive space warfare capabilities, an area militaries rarely discuss openly. It is likely to raise questions about the rules governing conflicts in orbit and how such operations fit within international law.

SpaceX launched its Starship rocket on Flight 14, and the mission played out in roughly 15 minutes. Summaries of the flight break down what happened during that window, from liftoff through the rocket's key test milestones. Space watchers are dissecting the performance of the vehicle and what the results mean for future Starship missions.

SpaceX's Starship is flying for the 14th time, lifting off on another test mission aimed at reaching orbit. Live coverage of the launch drew large audiences, with space enthusiasts following the flight's milestones and discussing how the test fits into SpaceX's effort to mature the vehicle for future missions.

SpaceX is conducting the 14th flight test of its Starship rocket, described as an orbital launch attempt, with live coverage drawing hundreds of thousands of viewers tracking the mission from launch through flight. Viewers are following the Super Heavy booster and Starship upper stage as the company continues its iterative test campaign toward a fully reusable heavy-lift vehicle.

French news programme 24H Pujadas on LCI is covering a US alert about Russia allegedly developing or deploying nuclear weapons in orbit. The report examines warnings from American officials about a possible space-based nuclear capability, a scenario that would violate the Outer Space Treaty and raise major security concerns for Western allies.

SpaceX has launched its supersized Starship rocket into orbit, a major milestone for the company's next-generation launch vehicle. The test flight marks a significant step in SpaceX's efforts to develop the most powerful rocket ever built, intended for future missions to the Moon and Mars. Observers are watching closely for details on the vehicle's performance during the flight.

The U.S. Federal Communications Commission can approve large spaceflight projects on its own, including ventures that could visibly alter the night sky worldwide. Critics have voiced strong objections, but space law experts note there are few other regulatory avenues to challenge such approvals, making the agency's decisions effectively final.

The US Air Force secretary has publicly acknowledged that the United States has weapons in space, a rare official confirmation of the country's orbital military capabilities. The statement is drawing attention to the growing militarisation of space and to how openly the Pentagon is now discussing systems long kept classified.

The next crewed flight of Boeing's Starliner spacecraft will not take place until 2028, according to a new report. The long gap underscores ongoing setbacks for the program, which has struggled with technical problems since its first astronaut mission. The news is drawing attention among space observers tracking how Boeing's crewed spaceflight plans fit with NASA's schedules and commercial crew operations.

SpaceX is reportedly targeting an unusually rapid cadence for its Starship program, with three flights planned within roughly five weeks. The ambitious schedule would mark a significant step up from the pace of previous test launches as the company works toward making the vehicle rapidly reusable. Space commentators are debating whether the timeline is realistic given past delays, regulatory approvals, and the technical work needed between flights at Starbase, Texas.

SpaceX is moving ahead with its Transporter-18 mission, the latest in its series of dedicated smallsat rideshare launches that carry large batches of satellites into orbit on a single Falcon 9 flight. The Transporter program has become a mainstay for small satellite operators, and interest is focused on the payload manifest and launch timing.

DW News examines whether India's growing space startup sector can transform the country into a leading global space power. The report looks at the rise of private companies in India's space economy, following the government's opening of the sector to private players, and weighs their ambitions in satellite launches and space services against the challenges of funding, technology and competition with established spacefaring nations.

Four environmental organizations filed a petition Thursday asking the Federal Communications Commission to reverse its approval of a startup's plan to beam on-demand sunlight from space to Earth. The groups argue the agency ignored the project's potential impacts on wildlife and astronomy, reopening debate over how the FCC assesses environmental harm from commercial space ventures.

Google is preparing to launch an experimental satellite into orbit, marking the first move by a major technology company toward building AI data centers in space. The project signals how Big Tech firms are looking beyond Earth to find power and cooling capacity for energy-hungry artificial intelligence systems. The announcement, reported by the New York Times, has drawn wide attention to the feasibility of orbital computing infrastructure.

The Canadarm2, the large robotic arm outside the International Space Station, has stopped working, according to an Ars Technica report. The arm is critical for capturing cargo spacecraft, moving equipment and supporting spacewalks, so any outage raises immediate concerns about station operations. Details on the cause and expected repair timeline remain limited.

New research reported by The Guardian shows Earth microbes can survive in laboratory conditions replicating the ocean beneath the ice of Enceladus, Saturn's icy moon. The findings strengthen the case that the moon's subsurface sea could be habitable, fuelling discussion among scientists and space enthusiasts about the search for life beyond Earth and future missions to Enceladus.

NVIDIA has announced an open platform aimed at securing AI agents across their full lifecycle, from testing through to production deployment. The initiative, revealed through the company's newsroom, is designed to help developers evaluate and safeguard autonomous agents before they go live. Details on partners and tooling remain limited, but the move signals NVIDIA's push into AI safety infrastructure as agentic systems see rapid adoption across enterprise software.

Google has announced Project Suncatcher, a research initiative to place machine learning infrastructure in orbit, harnessing solar power and the space environment to run AI workloads. Google Research published details of the plan, and the announcement is drawing significant attention from the tech community, with debate focusing on its feasibility, costs, and what it means for the future of AI data centers.

Experts, including former NASA administrator Sean O'Keefe, say that while being hit by falling space debris remains less likely than a lightning strike, the odds are shifting as more objects are launched into orbit. O'Keefe and others argue governments and companies should be required to use materials that will fully burn up on re-entry to reduce the risk to people on the ground.

ISRO is opening up to India's private space sector, according to Dr M G Suresh Kumar in a Malayalam-language discussion that has drawn wide attention. The conversation covers what greater private participation means for India's space programme, from satellite launches to commercial opportunities, as the space agency shifts from a state-run monopoly toward a broader space economy.

Japan is converting defunct golf courses into large-scale solar farms, as the country lacks open land for renewable energy projects. With mountainous terrain, limited flat space and strict farmland rules, closed golf courses offer ready-made cleared, sunny sites. The approach is being discussed as a practical model for expanding solar capacity in densely populated countries facing similar land shortages.

SpaceX's Starship mission ended with the vehicle breaking apart in a fiery failure, as reported by Al Jazeera. The loss of the spacecraft marks another setback in the test programme that Elon Musk's company hopes will eventually carry crews to the Moon and Mars. Attention is focused on what caused the destruction and what it means for the next planned flights.

NASA says it will attempt to put crews aboard Boeing's Starliner spacecraft, pressing ahead with the troubled capsule despite years of delays and technical setbacks. The decision keeps Starliner in contention as a second commercial crew vehicle alongside SpaceX's Dragon. Space observers are debating whether the program can overcome propulsion problems that sidelined the craft after its last crewed test flight.

SpaceX's Starship, the largest rocket ever built, lifted off from Boca Chica, Texas, on its first integrated orbital test flight, but the mission ended early when the vehicle broke apart before completing its planned flight profile. The company framed the launch as a valuable test that gathered data for future attempts.Observers note that the booster failed to separate as planned and that the loss of the vehicle was within the range of expected outcomes for a first flight.

SpaceX has launched its Starship into orbit for the first time, a milestone in the development of the giant rocket designed for deep space missions. The flight was cut short before completion, but the company and observers are treating the launch itself as a major step forward in getting the vehicle off the ground and into space.