News

Universe Today • Andy Tomaswick

NASA begins integration and hardware testing of nuclear‑powered Dragonfly rotorcraft ahead of 2028 Titan launch

Engineers at Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory have started system integration and hardware testing for Dragonfly, the car‑sized, nuclear‑powered rotorcraft bound for Saturn’s moon Titan. The milestone advances the mission toward its planned 2028 launch after years of component development and simulation work across multiple organizations.

2026-03-25T04:35:21.214477-07:00

Space.com

Artemis 2 slated for April 1 launch — first crewed deep‑space mission in 50+ years

2026-03-25T03:15:19.447910-07:00

New York Times

NASA shelves Lunar Gateway, pivots to ~$20B Moon base and unveils nuclear Mars demonstrator for 2028

2026-03-24T07:18:58.654494-07:00

Space.com

NASA to Update Artemis Moon Plans Today — three livestreams start 9 a.m. ET

2026-03-24T03:10:01.956322-07:00

News Timeline

Universe Today

❗️

NASA begins integration and hardware testing of nuclear‑powered Dragonfly rotorcraft ahead of 2028 Titan launch Engineers at Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory have started system integration and hardware testing for Dragonfly, the car‑sized, nuclear‑powered rotorcraft bound for Saturn’s moon Titan. The milestone advances the mission toward its planned 2028 launch after years of component development and simulation work across multiple organizations.

2026-03-25T04:35:21.214477-07:00

NASA begins integration and hardware testing of nuclear‑powered Dragonfly rotorcraft ahead of 2028 Titan launch

Space.com

❗️

Artemis 2 slated for April 1 launch — first crewed deep‑space mission in 50+ years Artemis 2 is scheduled to launch April 1, marking the first crewed mission beyond low Earth orbit in more than 50 years. The flight will carry astronauts into deep space and validates deep‑space operational readiness.

2026-03-25T03:15:19.447910-07:00

Artemis 2 slated for April 1 launch — first crewed deep‑space mission in 50+ years

Space.com

Future Artemis missions could use fiber-optic cables to monitor moonquakes Artemis missions may lay fiber-optic cables across the lunar surface to create a new seismic network for detecting and characterizing moonquakes. Researchers say distributed fiber sensing could fundamentally change lunar seismic monitoring by enabling denser, long-range measurements than existing seismometers.

2026-03-24T09:10:42.594472-07:00

Future Artemis missions could use fiber-optic cables to monitor moonquakes

New York Times

❗️

NASA shelves Lunar Gateway, pivots to ~$20B Moon base and unveils nuclear Mars demonstrator for 2028 NASA will shelve the Lunar Gateway as Artemis' centerpiece and repurpose its components to build a ~$20 billion phased surface base on the Moon. The agency also unveiled Space Reactor‑1 “Freedom,” a nuclear‑powered spacecraft planned as a Mars power demonstration as early as 2028.

2026-03-24T07:18:58.654494-07:00

NASA shelves Lunar Gateway, pivots to ~$20B Moon base and unveils nuclear Mars demonstrator for 2028

Space.com

❗️

NASA to Update Artemis Moon Plans Today — three livestreams start 9 a.m. ET NASA will provide an update on its Artemis moon plans in a series of three livestreamed briefings, the first beginning at 9 a.m. ET. The sessions will be broadcast live and are intended to inform stakeholders about current program decisions and next steps.

2026-03-24T03:10:01.956322-07:00

NASA to Update Artemis Moon Plans Today — three livestreams start 9 a.m. ET

Payload

Beyond the Rocket: The Digital Infrastructure of the Artemis II Mission When Artemis II lifts off the world will see a rocket; it won't see the layered digital architecture—flight software, mission‑operations networks, ground systems and data pipelines—that enables navigation, crew support and communications. This piece examines those unseen systems and how they underpin the crewed lunar flyby.

2026-03-23T19:40:00.691046-07:00

Beyond the Rocket: The Digital Infrastructure of the Artemis II Mission

AINonline

❗️

X-59's second test flight cut short by system warning; nine-minute sortie still yields useful data NASA's X-59 completed a second flight but an in-flight system warning forced an early landing after roughly nine minutes. Engineers captured telemetry during the abbreviated sortie to diagnose the issue and feed an expanded series of test flights planned through 2026.

2026-03-23T09:50:40.147789-07:00

X-59's second test flight cut short by system warning; nine-minute sortie still yields useful data

SpaceNews.com

A dedicated software strategy for Artemis, lunar operations and U.S. space defense NASA’s Artemis missions and Gateway plans will place life‑support, guidance, manual control and mission‑operations software at the center of crewed deep‑space flights. A unified software strategy is needed to coordinate development, verification, reuse and cyber resilience across exploration and defense programs.

2026-03-23T06:02:23.126289-07:00

A dedicated software strategy for Artemis, lunar operations and U.S. space defense

Menu

NASA News

NASA begins integration and hardware testing of nuclear‑powered Dragonfly rotorcraft ahead of 2028 Titan launch

Artemis 2 slated for April 1 launch — first crewed deep‑space mission in 50+ years

NASA shelves Lunar Gateway, pivots to ~$20B Moon base and unveils nuclear Mars demonstrator for 2028

NASA to Update Artemis Moon Plans Today — three livestreams start 9 a.m. ET

News Timeline