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• Jeff Foust
San Marino has become the latest country to sign NASA-led Artemis Accords, joining two other nations that signed within the same week. The additions bring renewed momentum to the framework for international cooperation and responsible exploration of the Moon ahead of a key meeting.
NASA
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The large robotic arm on the International Space Station has stopped working, with NASA providing limited information and indicating the issue may be temporary. The arm is a key external maintenance and cargo-handling asset, making the status relevant to station operations and upcoming activities.
San Marino has become the latest country to sign NASA-led Artemis Accords, joining two other nations that signed within the same week. The additions bring renewed momentum to the framework for international cooperation and responsible exploration of the Moon ahead of a key meeting.
KBR is appointing a veteran defense executive to run Trinzic, a government technology business spanning national security, NASA and military space. The move comes as KBR prepares to separate the business into an independent public company.
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James Webb Space Telescope observations indicate that galaxies were producing and dispersing heavy elements just 500 million years after the Big Bang. Separately, NASA selected PRIMA, a far-infrared mission concept using spare Webb hardware, for further development toward a potential 2033 launch.
A private robotic spacecraft launched in July to raise the orbit of NASA’s aging Swift astrophysics observatory has re-entered Earth’s atmosphere, ending a mission that failed to extend the telescope’s life. Swift is expected to follow with its own re-entry in the coming weeks, while NASA and the company assess the mission’s lessons.
Rocket Lab is challenging NASA’s decision on a Mars mission contract while emphasizing that the agency represents a limited share of its broader business. The dispute highlights the company’s effort to balance government space work with a more diversified commercial strategy.
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NASA has selected PRIMA as the inaugural mission in its new Probe Explorers class, advancing development of a far-infrared space telescope. The mission is planned for launch in 2033, establishing the first operational path for the agency’s new class of space science probes.
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