Mars Exploration News

Space Policy Online • Marcia Smith

SpaceX’s Starship has 50% chance of uncrewed Mars mission by end of 2026, Musk says

Elon Musk told SpaceX employees he sees about a 50% chance that the company’s Starship will fly uncrewed to Mars by the end of 2026. His projection follows a string of recent Starship test-flight failures, underscoring the technical and production hurdles ahead.

2025-05-29T18:52:01.367346-07:00

CNN

SpaceX Starship Test Flight 9 Breaks Up on Uncontrolled Reentry

2025-05-27T16:45:41.810943-07:00

Reuters

China Launches Tianwen-2 Mission to Retrieve Asteroid and Comet Samples

2025-05-29T02:31:05.994368-07:00

douglasmmessier.substack.com

Elon Musk to Outline Mars Colonization Blueprint Ahead of Starship Launch

2025-05-25T20:29:36.583703-07:00

Mars Exploration News Timeline

Space Policy Online

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SpaceX’s Starship has 50% chance of uncrewed Mars mission by end of 2026, Musk says Elon Musk told SpaceX employees he sees about a 50% chance that the company’s Starship will fly uncrewed to Mars by the end of 2026. His projection follows a string of recent Starship test-flight failures, underscoring the technical and production hurdles ahead.

2025-05-29T18:52:01.367346-07:00

SpaceX’s Starship has 50% chance of uncrewed Mars mission by end of 2026, Musk says

Payload

Sierra Space to Adapt Expandable Station Tech for NASA’s $3.6M Lunar Logistics Study Sierra Space will adapt its inflatable station modules for lunar surface logistics after securing a $3.6 million contract from NASA under NextSTEP-2 Appendix R. The study will assess structural upgrades to withstand the Moon’s harsher gravity and abrasive regolith.

2025-05-29T05:24:13.796988-07:00

Sierra Space to Adapt Expandable Station Tech for NASA’s $3.6M Lunar Logistics Study

Reuters

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China Launches Tianwen-2 Mission to Retrieve Asteroid and Comet Samples China's space agency on May 28 launched its Tianwen-2 probe aboard a Long March 3B from Xichang to collect and return samples from near-Earth asteroid Kamo’oalewa. After delivering these materials to Earth, the spacecraft will embark on a seven-year cruise to main-belt comet 311P/Pan-STARRS for an inaugural flyby study.

2025-05-29T02:31:05.994368-07:00

China Launches Tianwen-2 Mission to Retrieve Asteroid and Comet Samples

CNN

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SpaceX Starship Test Flight 9 Breaks Up on Uncontrolled Reentry SpaceX's ninth Starship test reached space on May 27 but suffered a loss of attitude control during atmospheric reentry, causing the booster to break apart and the spacecraft to tumble uncontrolled. The incident follows debris-related disruptions from earlier flights and underscores further hurdles for Starship's development toward lunar and Mars missions.

2025-05-27T16:45:41.810943-07:00

SpaceX Starship Test Flight 9 Breaks Up on Uncontrolled Reentry

douglasmmessier.substack.com

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Elon Musk to Outline Mars Colonization Blueprint Ahead of Starship Launch SpaceX CEO Elon Musk will deliver a presentation titled “Making Life Multiplanetary” on May 27 at 1 p.m. ET, outlining the company’s roadmap for Mars colonization and the technical milestones leading into Tuesday’s planned Starship launch from the Starbase, Texas facility.

2025-05-25T20:29:36.583703-07:00

Elon Musk to Outline Mars Colonization Blueprint Ahead of Starship Launch

The Conversation

A decade after 'The Martian', real-life robotic missions redefine Mars exploration A decade after Ridley Scott’s 'The Martian' imagined human survival on the Red Planet, NASA’s fleet of robotic explorers—from rovers to orbiters—has mapped and sampled Mars’s surface in unprecedented detail, transforming our understanding of Martian geology and refining plans for future crewed missions.

2025-05-22T14:24:50.535139-07:00

A decade after 'The Martian', real-life robotic missions redefine Mars exploration

The Independent

NASA’s Perseverance Captures Selfie With Martian Dust Devil Swirling By During a recent photo session at Jezero Crater, NASA’s Perseverance rover recorded a dust devil twirling across the backdrop as it snapped a selfie. The image provides new data on Martian atmospheric dynamics that are key for surface operations and future mission planning.

2025-05-21T11:24:11.085538-07:00

NASA’s Perseverance Captures Selfie With Martian Dust Devil Swirling By

Space.com

New Study Challenges Liquid Water Hypothesis for Martian Dark Streaks Dark streaks on Martian slopes captured by orbital imagery since the 1970s were long interpreted as brine flows, suggesting possible extant water. New research, however, attributes their seasonal appearance to dry granular processes rather than liquid, undercutting one of the key signs of modern-day surface water on Mars.

2025-05-19T08:02:25.812999-07:00

New Study Challenges Liquid Water Hypothesis for Martian Dark Streaks

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Our Mars Exploration news feed is the go-to source for the latest discoveries, mission updates, and technological advancements related to the Red Planet. With a focus on the international efforts to explore Mars, from robotic rovers to plans for human colonization, our coverage tracks humanity's progress in uncovering the secrets of our celestial neighbor.