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Space.com • Elizabeth Howell

NASA begins construction of nuclear‑powered Dragonfly rotorcraft for 2028 Titan mission

NASA has begun construction of the nuclear‑powered Dragonfly rotorcraft for its Titan mission, a milestone the agency says "essentially marks the birth of our flight system." The work advances preparations for a 2028 launch to deliver a first‑of‑its‑kind rotorcraft to Saturn's moon Titan.

2026-03-13T06:13:58.828186-07:00

Ars Technica

SpaceX begins commissioning second Starbase launch pad in Texas

2026-03-13T06:00:45.244345-07:00

SpaceNews.com

China advances Mars science: Tianwen-3 enters construction; Tianwen-1 images interstellar visitor from Mars

2026-03-12T16:09:07.996102-07:00

New York Times

Blue Ghost lunar near‑miss exposes rising collision and deconfliction risk for commercial Moon missions

2026-03-12T07:58:07.814316-07:00

News Timeline

Via Satellite

ESA selects Terran Orbital's Tyvak to build 6U Farinella cubesat for Apophis planetary defense mission Tyvak International, a Terran Orbital subsidiary, has won an ESA contract to develop Farinella, a 6U cubesat that will fly on the agency's Planetary Defense Mission to monitor near‑Earth asteroid Apophis. The satellite will provide targeted reconnaissance and contribute to impact‑risk characterization.

2026-03-13T09:19:56.356187-07:00

ESA selects Terran Orbital's Tyvak to build 6U Farinella cubesat for Apophis planetary defense mission

Space.com

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NASA begins construction of nuclear‑powered Dragonfly rotorcraft for 2028 Titan mission NASA has begun construction of the nuclear‑powered Dragonfly rotorcraft for its Titan mission, a milestone the agency says "essentially marks the birth of our flight system." The work advances preparations for a 2028 launch to deliver a first‑of‑its‑kind rotorcraft to Saturn's moon Titan.

2026-03-13T06:13:58.828186-07:00

NASA begins construction of nuclear‑powered Dragonfly rotorcraft for 2028 Titan mission

Ars Technica

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SpaceX begins commissioning second Starbase launch pad in Texas SpaceX has begun commissioning a second launch pad at its Starbase facility in Texas, enabling parallel processing and higher sortie cadence for both Falcon and Starship campaigns. The additional pad increases operational resilience at the complex and supports an accelerating launch tempo for commercial and government missions.

2026-03-13T06:00:45.244345-07:00

SpaceX begins commissioning second Starbase launch pad in Texas

SpaceNews.com

China advances Mars science: Tianwen-3 enters construction; Tianwen-1 images interstellar visitor from Mars China's Tianwen‑3 Mars sample‑return mission has moved into spacecraft construction, targeting a late‑2028 launch to retrieve Martian material and search for biosignatures. Separately, Tianwen‑1's HiRIC camera imaged interstellar object 3I/ATLAS from Mars, showing a coma dominated by large (hundreds of μm) grains and dust speeds of 3–10 m/s.

2026-03-12T16:09:07.996102-07:00

China advances Mars science: Tianwen-3 enters construction; Tianwen-1 images interstellar visitor from Mars

Space.com

Northrop Grumman's Cygnus XL released from ISS by Canadarm2, heads for destructive reentry Northrop Grumman's Cygnus XL was released by Canadarm2 from the Earth‑facing port of the ISS Unity module at 12:06 CET (7:00 a.m. EDT), departing with thousands of pounds of disposable cargo bound for destructive reentry. The release completes the company's Cygnus resupply mission to Expedition 74.

2026-03-12T10:08:58.238840-07:00

Northrop Grumman's Cygnus XL released from ISS by Canadarm2, heads for destructive reentry

New York Times

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Blue Ghost lunar near‑miss exposes rising collision and deconfliction risk for commercial Moon missions A close collision warning during the private Blue Ghost mission in lunar orbit a year ago — one of several recent "red alert" incidents near the Moon — highlights mounting challenges in tracking, operator coordination and traffic management as commercial lunar activity accelerates.

2026-03-12T07:58:07.814316-07:00

Blue Ghost lunar near‑miss exposes rising collision and deconfliction risk for commercial Moon missions

Space.com

U.S. lawmakers push for permanent lunar base amid China competition — feasibility and industry implications U.S. lawmakers are pressing to establish a permanent lunar surface base, explicitly framed as a response to strategic competition with China. The proposal raises sharp questions about technical feasibility, costs, timelines and how commercial and NASA contractors would deliver and sustain lunar infrastructure.

2026-03-12T06:04:06.000636-07:00

U.S. lawmakers push for permanent lunar base amid China competition — feasibility and industry implications

Wall Street Journal

Jared Isaacman reshapes Artemis to accelerate U.S. return to the Moon Billionaire Jared Isaacman is overhauling NASA’s Artemis programme, bringing private-sector methods and an expedited agenda to the agency’s lunar effort to bring American astronauts closer to a crewed Moon landing than at any time in decades. His stewardship signals a major inflection in Artemis strategy and execution.

2026-03-12T05:09:16.626021-07:00

Jared Isaacman reshapes Artemis to accelerate U.S. return to the Moon

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Space Exploration & Science Missions News

NASA begins construction of nuclear‑powered Dragonfly rotorcraft for 2028 Titan mission

SpaceX begins commissioning second Starbase launch pad in Texas

China advances Mars science: Tianwen-3 enters construction; Tianwen-1 images interstellar visitor from Mars

Blue Ghost lunar near‑miss exposes rising collision and deconfliction risk for commercial Moon missions

News Timeline