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Space.com • Keith Cooper

NASA posts record high-power plasma ion engine tests using lithium-metal vapor propellant for Mars-bound missions

NASA has completed a new round of tests on a high-power plasma engine fueled by liquid lithium, reporting record performance. A prototype ion engine using lithium metal vapor as a propellant has achieved 25x more power than the ion engine configuration used on the Psyche mission.

2026-05-05T06:55:51.334053-07:00

European Spaceflight

ESA awards Thales Alenia Space €26.1M Phase 1 contract for LISA gravitational-wave telescope development

2026-05-05T08:34:37.409747-07:00

SpaceNews.com

Ireland and Malta become Artemis Accords signatories, adding to the growing Artemis partner framework after Artemis II

2026-05-05T04:26:49.100609-07:00

Space.com

Blue Origin’s Blue Moon MK1 lands key NASA milestone: post-Artemis II race for a 2028 crewed lunar landing

2026-05-05T03:51:16.136752-07:00

News Timeline

European Spaceflight

ESA awards Thales Alenia Space €26.1M Phase 1 contract for LISA gravitational-wave telescope development ESA has awarded Thales Alenia Space a €26.1 million Phase 1 contract to develop six optical telescopes for LISA (Laser Interferometer Space Antenna), its future space observatory dedicated to gravitational-wave detection. The work is intended to advance the mission’s core telescope subsystem development.

2026-05-05T08:34:37.409747-07:00

ESA awards Thales Alenia Space €26.1M Phase 1 contract for LISA gravitational-wave telescope development

Space.com

NASA posts record high-power plasma ion engine tests using lithium-metal vapor propellant for Mars-bound missions NASA has completed a new round of tests on a high-power plasma engine fueled by liquid lithium, reporting record performance. A prototype ion engine using lithium metal vapor as a propellant has achieved 25x more power than the ion engine configuration used on the Psyche mission.

2026-05-05T06:55:51.334053-07:00

NASA posts record high-power plasma ion engine tests using lithium-metal vapor propellant for Mars-bound missions

SpaceNews.com

Ireland and Malta become Artemis Accords signatories, adding to the growing Artemis partner framework after Artemis II Ireland signed the Artemis Accords on May 4, joining the agreement as its 66th participating country, with U.S. officials and NASA welcoming the pledge to peaceful space exploration. Malta also signed the Accords the same day, reflecting a broader European surge of new partner subscriptions following Artemis 2.

2026-05-05T04:26:49.100609-07:00

Ireland and Malta become Artemis Accords signatories, adding to the growing Artemis partner framework after Artemis II

Space.com

Blue Origin’s Blue Moon MK1 lands key NASA milestone: post-Artemis II race for a 2028 crewed lunar landing Blue Origin says its Blue Moon MK1 lunar lander cleared major environmental testing inside NASA’s Thermal Vacuum Chamber A in Houston. With Artemis II completed, NASA is leaning on two still-unproven commercial landers—timelines and readiness for an astronaut landing targeted for 2028 remain the critical constraint.

2026-05-05T03:51:16.136752-07:00

Blue Origin’s Blue Moon MK1 lands key NASA milestone: post-Artemis II race for a 2028 crewed lunar landing

SpaceWatch Global

Opinion: Germany’s microgravity ecosystem is already fueling an emerging LEO commercial economy A new #SpaceWatchGl opinion argues Germany has built a comprehensive, operational microgravity research and commercialization ecosystem rather than a long-term ambition. The piece positions Germany as a distinctive enabler for low-Earth-orbit (LEO) market development by connecting microgravity capabilities to growing on-orbit economic activity.

2026-05-05T02:28:21.240624-07:00

Opinion: Germany’s microgravity ecosystem is already fueling an emerging LEO commercial economy

Space.com

JWST directly analyzes the surface of a distant super-Earth—reporting a dark, hot, airless, Mercury-like world Astronomers using the James Webb Space Telescope have, for the first time, directly analyzed an exoplanet’s surface. The observations indicate a dark, hot, barren, airless rock—described as Mercury-like—expanding JWST’s role from atmospheric characterization to direct surface study.

2026-05-04T12:42:00.213314-07:00

JWST directly analyzes the surface of a distant super-Earth—reporting a dark, hot, airless, Mercury-like world

SpaceNews.com

Pixxel and Sarvam to launch India’s first orbital data-centre satellite (Pathfinder) by end-2026 Pixxel says it is partnering with Sarvam to design, build and launch India’s first “orbital data centre” satellite, intended to act like a space-based data centre for geospatial intelligence. The Pathfinder mission will bring high-performance remote sensing and India-built AI together to run models and analyse satellite data in near real time.

2026-05-04T09:57:51.816761-07:00

Pixxel and Sarvam to launch India’s first orbital data-centre satellite (Pathfinder) by end-2026

SpaceNews.com

IonQ launches Capella radar change-detection product for ground-movement monitoring IonQ says it will start offering a satellite data product designed to detect subtle changes on the Earth’s surface using radar imaging from satellites operated by its Capella Space subsidiary. The launch positions Capella’s SAR capability as a ground-movement monitoring tool.

2026-05-04T08:03:41.480760-07:00

IonQ launches Capella radar change-detection product for ground-movement monitoring

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Space Exploration & Science Missions News

NASA posts record high-power plasma ion engine tests using lithium-metal vapor propellant for Mars-bound missions

ESA awards Thales Alenia Space €26.1M Phase 1 contract for LISA gravitational-wave telescope development

Ireland and Malta become Artemis Accords signatories, adding to the growing Artemis partner framework after Artemis II

Blue Origin’s Blue Moon MK1 lands key NASA milestone: post-Artemis II race for a 2028 crewed lunar landing

News Timeline