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Space.com • Sharmila Kuthunur

NASA holds out hope for silent MAVEN Mars orbiter: 'We're still looking for it'

NASA says it has not officially declared the MAVEN Mars orbiter lost and continues efforts to reestablish contact, despite a prolonged outage; mission managers say "we're still looking for it." The agency's search will determine whether MAVEN can resume its role in Mars science and communications relay.

2026-03-20T06:01:03.961296-07:00

European Spaceflight

ESA to purchase dedicated SpaceX Crew Dragon mission to ISS

2026-03-20T01:50:20.726515-07:00

Bloomberg

NASA shifts lunar-orbit propulsion to SpaceX Starship, trims Boeing's role in Artemis

2026-03-19T11:38:50.690926-07:00

Flying Magazine

Firefly’s Blue Ghost becomes first commercial lander to operate on the Moon, wins 2025 Collier Trophy

2026-03-19T09:04:05.103573-07:00

News Timeline

Space.com

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NASA holds out hope for silent MAVEN Mars orbiter: 'We're still looking for it' NASA says it has not officially declared the MAVEN Mars orbiter lost and continues efforts to reestablish contact, despite a prolonged outage; mission managers say "we're still looking for it." The agency's search will determine whether MAVEN can resume its role in Mars science and communications relay.

2026-03-20T06:01:03.961296-07:00

NASA holds out hope for silent MAVEN Mars orbiter: 'We're still looking for it'

Universe Today

Long‑Lived Solar Active Regions Are Major Flare Factories — Cause Still Unclear Emily Mason and Kara Kniezewski report in The Astrophysical Journal that long‑lived solar active regions act as disproportionate producers of major flares and CMEs. By addressing the longstanding AR tracking problem, the study identifies persistent magnetic‑complexity and lifecycle patterns that help explain their flare productivity.

2026-03-20T05:29:56.578601-07:00

Long‑Lived Solar Active Regions Are Major Flare Factories — Cause Still Unclear

European Spaceflight

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ESA to purchase dedicated SpaceX Crew Dragon mission to ISS The European Space Agency has approved purchase of a dedicated SpaceX Crew Dragon mission to the International Space Station, securing a medium‑duration flight opportunity for ESA astronauts. The decision was taken at the agency's 345th council meeting in Interlaken to expand crew access to LEO.

2026-03-20T01:50:20.726515-07:00

ESA to purchase dedicated SpaceX Crew Dragon mission to ISS

Space.com

PROBA‑3 coronagraph regains contact after month‑long outage A month after an anomaly forced the PROBA‑3 Coronagraph into survival mode and cut ground contact, mission teams report the spacecraft has phoned home, re‑establishing communications. The recovery restores telemetry from the formation‑flying coronagraph used to create eclipse‑style observations of the Sun.

2026-03-19T13:09:43.220567-07:00

PROBA‑3 coronagraph regains contact after month‑long outage

Space Intel Report

NASA to convene Artemis international partners in Washington as ESA updates cooperation and ISS plans NASA will convene international Artemis partners in Washington next week to discuss the agency's new Artemis plan, ESA Director General Josef Aschacher said. The meeting follows ESA Council endorsements of a new crewed ISS mission concept and intensified NASA–ESA coordination after the Mars Earth Return Orbiter shutdown.

2026-03-19T11:38:52.482394-07:00

NASA to convene Artemis international partners in Washington as ESA updates cooperation and ISS plans

Bloomberg

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NASA shifts lunar-orbit propulsion to SpaceX Starship, trims Boeing's role in Artemis NASA is revising its Artemis lunar-landing architecture, cutting Boeing's role and elevating SpaceX's Starship to perform the lunar-orbit propulsion task previously assigned to Boeing systems, according to people familiar with the agency's plans — a significant reshuffle of contractor responsibilities for upcoming crewed Moon missions.

2026-03-19T11:38:50.690926-07:00

NASA shifts lunar-orbit propulsion to SpaceX Starship, trims Boeing's role in Artemis

Flying Magazine

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Firefly’s Blue Ghost becomes first commercial lander to operate on the Moon, wins 2025 Collier Trophy Firefly Aerospace’s Blue Ghost became the first commercial lunar lander to achieve a soft touchdown and sustained surface operations on the Moon, earning the 2025 Collier Trophy. The mission validates private-sector lunar delivery capability and establishes a commercial baseline for payload delivery, surface operations and follow-on missions.

2026-03-19T09:04:05.103573-07:00

Firefly’s Blue Ghost becomes first commercial lander to operate on the Moon, wins 2025 Collier Trophy

Universe Today

As 100+ lunar missions loom, experts urge protection of human-made heritage on the Moon A Smithsonian–AIAA summit paper warns that protecting lunar heritage is urgent: more than 100 metric tons of human-made material already rests on the Moon and NASA predicts 100+ new lunar missions this decade. The paper catalogs risks to historic sites and proposes policy and operational safeguards.

2026-03-19T07:20:11.986724-07:00

As 100+ lunar missions loom, experts urge protection of human-made heritage on the Moon

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Space Exploration & Science Missions News

NASA holds out hope for silent MAVEN Mars orbiter: 'We're still looking for it'

ESA to purchase dedicated SpaceX Crew Dragon mission to ISS

NASA shifts lunar-orbit propulsion to SpaceX Starship, trims Boeing's role in Artemis

Firefly’s Blue Ghost becomes first commercial lander to operate on the Moon, wins 2025 Collier Trophy

News Timeline