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NASA Spaceflight • Justin Davenport

NASA and Astrobotic pick lunar south pole site for VIPER and Griffin ahead of Artemis human landings

NASA and commercial partner Astrobotic have selected a site on the Moon’s south pole for the VIPER rover and Astrobotic’s Griffin lander, marking a coordinated robotic reconnaissance ahead of planned Artemis human missions. The designation focuses science on volatile‑rich terrain close to proposed Artemis 4 touchdown zones.

2026-04-03T16:12:35.997218-07:00

Universe Today

ISRU‑equipped aerobot concept could sustain multi‑year Venus atmospheric exploration, 50 years after Venera‑8

2026-04-03T15:50:52.644860-07:00

SpaceNews.com

White House requests $18.8B for NASA in FY2027, proposing 23% agency cut and deep science reductions

2026-04-03T08:38:02.850876-07:00

Space.com

Blue Ghost's first thermal readings upend Moon's nearside–farside temperature divide

2026-04-03T11:07:06.785586-07:00

News Timeline

NASA Spaceflight

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NASA and Astrobotic pick lunar south pole site for VIPER and Griffin ahead of Artemis human landings NASA and commercial partner Astrobotic have selected a site on the Moon’s south pole for the VIPER rover and Astrobotic’s Griffin lander, marking a coordinated robotic reconnaissance ahead of planned Artemis human missions. The designation focuses science on volatile‑rich terrain close to proposed Artemis 4 touchdown zones.

2026-04-03T16:12:35.997218-07:00

NASA and Astrobotic pick lunar south pole site for VIPER and Griffin ahead of Artemis human landings

Universe Today

ISRU‑equipped aerobot concept could sustain multi‑year Venus atmospheric exploration, 50 years after Venera‑8 Scientists propose an aerial robotic platform (an aerobot) using in‑situ resource utilization (ISRU) to harvest Venus’ atmosphere and power onboard systems, potentially enabling continuous operations for years. That capability would be a dramatic advance over the Soviet Venera‑8 mission, which returned data for under an hour 50 years ago.

2026-04-03T15:50:52.644860-07:00

ISRU‑equipped aerobot concept could sustain multi‑year Venus atmospheric exploration, 50 years after Venera‑8

Reuters

SpaceX pushes next Starship test flight from April to May, Musk says SpaceX CEO Elon Musk said the company's next Starship test flight has slipped from April to May, delaying the orbital test campaign by roughly one month. SpaceX did not provide a detailed reason for the postponement or a firm launch date.

2026-04-03T11:10:36.264127-07:00

SpaceX pushes next Starship test flight from April to May, Musk says

Space.com

Blue Ghost's first thermal readings upend Moon's nearside–farside temperature divide New measurements from Firefly Aerospace's Blue Ghost lunar lander challenge the decades‑old idea that the Moon is cleanly divided between a hotter near side and a cooler far side. The lander's in‑situ thermal data reveal surface‑temperature patterns that require rethinking lunar thermal and geologic models.

2026-04-03T11:07:06.785586-07:00

Blue Ghost's first thermal readings upend Moon's nearside–farside temperature divide

Space.com

1st results from Blue Ghost lunar lander reveal how much we still don't know about the moon

2026-04-03T11:07:06.785586-07:00

1st results from Blue Ghost lu

SpaceNews.com

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White House requests $18.8B for NASA in FY2027, proposing 23% agency cut and deep science reductions The White House has proposed an $18.8 billion FY2027 budget for NASA — a 23% reduction from FY2026 — that would sharply reduce science and STEM programs (with near‑50% cuts to some science accounts) while preserving priorities for lunar exploration and a surface base.

2026-04-03T08:38:02.850876-07:00

White House requests $18.8B for NASA in FY2027, proposing 23% agency cut and deep science reductions

Universe Today

Habitable Worlds Observatory will need precision astrometry to weigh Earth‑like exoplanets, paper argues The Habitable Worlds Observatory (HWO) is aimed at directly imaging Earth‑like exoplanets and obtaining atmospheric spectra, but a new arXiv preprint by Kaz Gary et al. says images and spectra alone won't suffice. HWO will require precision astrometry to measure planet masses—essential to interpreting biosignature signals.

2026-04-03T06:18:40.908171-07:00

Habitable Worlds Observatory will need precision astrometry to weigh Earth‑like exoplanets, paper argues

Payload

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Insurance identified as the lone 'show-stopper' for commercial space nuclear missions At an industry seminar, experts said commercial space nuclear missions face many technical, regulatory and supply‑chain hurdles but singled out insurance as the only potential “show‑stopper.” The assessment highlights unresolved questions around underwriter risk appetite, liability frameworks and reactor insurability.

2026-04-03T05:15:44.842007-07:00

Insurance identified as the lone 'show-stopper' for commercial space nuclear missions

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Space Exploration & Science Missions News

NASA and Astrobotic pick lunar south pole site for VIPER and Griffin ahead of Artemis human landings

ISRU‑equipped aerobot concept could sustain multi‑year Venus atmospheric exploration, 50 years after Venera‑8

White House requests $18.8B for NASA in FY2027, proposing 23% agency cut and deep science reductions

Blue Ghost's first thermal readings upend Moon's nearside–farside temperature divide

News Timeline