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Payload • Payload Staff

Top Civil‑Space Stories of 2025: Budget Cuts, Staff Reductions and Leadership Turmoil

2025 was a chaotic year for civil space, driven by major budget cuts, workforce reductions and leadership turnover across agencies, forcing program delays, reshaped priorities and strained international partnerships. This roundup highlights five defining civil‑space developments that altered exploration and science timelines and risk profiles.

2025-12-24T05:40:51.822823-08:00

SpaceWatch Global

NASA confirms multinational crew for SpaceX Crew-12; Sophie Adenot to make first orbital flight, launch targeted Feb. 15, 2026

2025-12-21T23:50:01.079496-08:00

NASA

Soyuz lands in Kazakhstan, returning Jonny Kim and two Roscosmos cosmonauts after eight‑month ISS mission

2025-12-08T19:50:51.856165-08:00

Space.com

Cosmonaut Oleg Artemiev removed from SpaceX Crew‑12 for violating U.S. national‑security rules

2025-12-02T15:12:30.898134-08:00

News Timeline

Payload

Top Civil‑Space Stories of 2025: Budget Cuts, Staff Reductions and Leadership Turmoil 2025 was a chaotic year for civil space, driven by major budget cuts, workforce reductions and leadership turnover across agencies, forcing program delays, reshaped priorities and strained international partnerships. This roundup highlights five defining civil‑space developments that altered exploration and science timelines and risk profiles.

2025-12-24T05:40:51.822823-08:00

Top Civil‑Space Stories of 2025: Budget Cuts, Staff Reductions and Leadership Turmoil

SpaceWatch Global

NASA confirms multinational crew for SpaceX Crew-12; Sophie Adenot to make first orbital flight, launch targeted Feb. 15, 2026 NASA confirmed the four-person crew for SpaceX Crew-12: a multinational team from NASA, ESA and Roscosmos set to launch to the International Space Station on a long-duration science expedition with liftoff targeted as early as Feb. 15, 2026. French ESA astronaut Sophie Adenot will make her first orbital flight.

2025-12-21T23:50:01.079496-08:00

NASA confirms multinational crew for SpaceX Crew-12; Sophie Adenot to make first orbital flight, launch targeted Feb. 15, 2026

Ars Technica

NASA accelerates SpaceX Dragon resupply as Baikonur Site 31 damage threatens Soyuz/Progress launches NASA is accelerating SpaceX Dragon resupply missions to cover an imminent launch shortfall after structural damage to Russia’s Site 31 at Baikonur. Repair timelines are uncertain, threatening Soyuz/Progress cargo runs and crew rotations to the ISS and forcing the agency to rely more on commercial vehicles.

2025-12-10T12:09:18.068463-08:00

NASA accelerates SpaceX Dragon resupply as Baikonur Site 31 damage threatens Soyuz/Progress launches

NASA

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Soyuz lands in Kazakhstan, returning Jonny Kim and two Roscosmos cosmonauts after eight‑month ISS mission NASA astronaut Jonny Kim and Roscosmos cosmonauts Sergey Ryzhikov and Alexey Zubritsky undocked Monday evening aboard their Soyuz ferry, reentered and touched down on the Kazakhstan steppe early Tuesday, completing an on‑schedule, approximately eight‑month mission to the International Space Station.

2025-12-08T19:50:51.856165-08:00

Soyuz lands in Kazakhstan, returning Jonny Kim and two Roscosmos cosmonauts after eight‑month ISS mission

SpaceNews.com

NASA extends CASIS agreement to manage ISS National Lab, likely a final extension NASA granted a short extension to its agreement with CASIS to continue managing the ISS's U.S. National Laboratory, likely the final renewal as the agency shifts responsibility toward commercial low‑Earth‑orbit platforms. The move preserves in‑orbit research access while NASA accelerates commercialization plans.

2025-12-08T03:32:58.541123-08:00

NASA extends CASIS agreement to manage ISS National Lab, likely a final extension

Universe Today

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Accident at Baikonur destroys maintenance cabin, indefinitely halts Russia’s crewed and cargo launches to the ISS A severe accident at Russia’s Baikonur Cosmodrome destroyed a maintenance cabin and has indefinitely halted the country’s ability to launch crewed Soyuz and uncrewed Progress cargo missions to the International Space Station. The incident removes Russia’s sole operable ground capability for scheduled crew rotations and cargo deliveries pending repair.

2025-12-06T17:54:02.709431-08:00

Accident at Baikonur destroys maintenance cabin, indefinitely halts Russia’s crewed and cargo launches to the ISS

Space.com

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Cosmonaut Oleg Artemiev removed from SpaceX Crew‑12 for violating U.S. national‑security rules U.S. authorities removed Russian cosmonaut Oleg Artemiev from the upcoming SpaceX Crew‑12 flight to the ISS after finding he violated U.S. national‑security regulations, officials said. An interdepartmental investigation is underway while Roscosmos frames the change as an internal reassignment.

2025-12-02T15:12:30.898134-08:00

Cosmonaut Oleg Artemiev removed from SpaceX Crew‑12 for violating U.S. national‑security rules

Space.com

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ISS simultaneously hosts eight spacecraft for first time after Cygnus XL reinstallation For the first time in its history, the International Space Station had all eight of its docking ports occupied simultaneously on Dec. 3, 2025, following the reinstallation of Northrop Grumman's Cygnus XL cargo spacecraft. The milestone marks the current configuration's maximum on-orbit berthing and logistics capacity.

2025-12-02T13:08:11.716168-08:00

ISS simultaneously hosts eight spacecraft for first time after Cygnus XL reinstallation

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ISS News

Top Civil‑Space Stories of 2025: Budget Cuts, Staff Reductions and Leadership Turmoil

NASA confirms multinational crew for SpaceX Crew-12; Sophie Adenot to make first orbital flight, launch targeted Feb. 15, 2026

Soyuz lands in Kazakhstan, returning Jonny Kim and two Roscosmos cosmonauts after eight‑month ISS mission

Cosmonaut Oleg Artemiev removed from SpaceX Crew‑12 for violating U.S. national‑security rules

News Timeline