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Silicon Valley Space Week Speaker Focus: Ron Faith, RBC Signals
Original Publication Date: 2026-08-28 18:38
Blue Origin currently operates three ground stations and plans to add six more by December. The company has partnered with RBC Signals, which is responsible for surveying, procuring, deploying, and hosting the new stations. Ron Faith, Blue Origin’s president and CEO, will join a ground‑bottleneck panel at the opening of Satellite Innovation during Silicon Valley Space Week. The event underscores the growing focus on expanding satellite infrastructure to meet increasing demand.
NASA Sets Coverage for Roman Space Telescope Launch from Florida
Original Publication Date: 2026-08-28 23:00
NASA’s Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope is set for pre‑launch and launch coverage that will begin at 6:20 a.m. EDT on Sunday, Aug. 30. The observatory, designed to probe dark energy and other cosmic mysteries, will lift off at no earlier than 7:26 a.m. Aboard a SpaceX Falcon Heavy from Launch Complex 39A at Kennedy Space Center. Live coverage will stream across multiple platforms, with details available on NASA’s live page. Tune in to witness the next leap in space exploration.
ESA awards first European Launcher Challenge contracts
Original Publication Date: 2026-08-29 11:09
ESA has awarded €543.6 million in its European Launcher Challenge to three rocket startups—Isar Aerospace, Rocket Factory Augsburg, and PLD Space—to broaden Europe’s launch options beyond Ariane 6 and Vega‑C. The contracts, split into operational and upgrade phases, will fund vehicle development, infrastructure, and future missions through 2030, with a fourth deal with MaiaSpace pending. Isar Aerospace received the largest share of €197.8 million, followed by Rocket Factory Augsburg’s €186.9 million and PLD Space’s €158.9 million. The program aims to deliver competitive, cost‑effective access to space, with the first orbital launches expected before 2028.
Launch Concerns Cast a Shadow Over SmallSat 2026
Original Publication Date: 2026-08-28 12:45
The Small Satellite Conference in Salt Lake City highlighted new payload technologies, a surge in collaborative contracts, and a favorable funding market, but the industry remains uneasy about a looming launch market bottleneck.
Meeting Nancy Grace Roman: What was the 'mother of Hubble' really like?
Original Publication Date: 2026-08-29 12:00
Nancy Grace Roman, the pioneering astronomer dubbed the “mother of Hubble,” was honored this week when NASA announced a new space telescope bearing her name. In 2017, the author met Roman at the March for Science event, where she shared a brief, heartfelt moment with Bill Nye and astronaut Leland Melvin.
Who was Nancy Grace Roman? NASA's next big space telescope is named after the 'Mother of Hubble'
Original Publication Date: 2026-08-29 10:00
NASA’s next flagship telescope, set to launch this Sunday, is named after Nancy Grace Roman, the agency’s first chief astronomer and its first female executive. A pioneer who helped create NASA’s space‑astronomy program in 1959, Roman earned the nickname “Mother of Hubble” for her key role in bringing the Hubble Space Telescope to life. Born in 1925, she grew up fascinated by the stars, founded an astronomy club at age 11, and broke barriers by becoming the first woman on the academic staff at Yerkes Observatory. The Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope will probe dark matter, dark energy, and distant worlds, continuing her legacy of expanding humanity’s view of the universe.
What time will SpaceX launch NASA's Roman Space Telscope on Aug. 30? (Full mission timeline)
Original Publication Date: 2026-08-28 22:31
Tariq J. Malik has served as Space.com’s Editor‑in‑Chief since 2019, after climbing the ranks from intern to managing editor in 2009, and he reports on human spaceflight, exploration, and skywatching. The New York‑based journalist earned the Harry Kolcum Award in 2022 and the Space Pioneer Award in 2025 for excellence in space reporting, and he holds a BA in journalism with an astronomy minor from USC and an MS in science journalism from NYU. A former Los Angeles Times reporter, Tariq began covering NASA missions in 2004, debuting with the STS‑114 Return to Flight launch in 2005.
'It's going to be beautiful': President Trump signs order to create US Space Academy
Also covered by: NASA
Original Publication Date: 2026-08-28 18:44
President Donald Trump signed an executive order on August 28, 2026 to establish the U.S. Space Academy at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston, a new institution modeled after the traditional service academies that will train engineers, scientists, technicians, operators and astronauts for the nation’s future in space. The academy will focus on technical education, leadership, and public service to build a workforce that supports national security, economic growth, and scientific discovery, with NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman and Deputy Administrator Matt Anderson chairing a commission that must report on governance, location, and graduate obligations within 120 days. Trump highlighted the academy’s role for the Space Force, NASA, and the civilian spaceflight industry, noting it will be a transformational step toward lunar exploration, a nuclear‑powered space economy, and future scientific missions. The signing ceremony also featured the presentation of Congressional Space Medal of Honor awards to the Artemis II crew, underscoring Trump’s commitment to sustaining U.S. Leadership in space.
Relive private Chinese rocket's explosive 1st landing attempt (video)
Original Publication Date: 2026-08-28 17:00
LandSpace’s Zhuque‑3 rocket, which reached orbit on its debut in December 2025, attempted to land its first stage but exploded in a fiery crash just before touchdown, as new CCTV footage shows. The dramatic footage, released by state broadcaster CCTV on August 20, captures the booster’s final moments and highlights the use of hypersonic grid fins similar to SpaceX’s Falcon 9. Learning from that failure, LandSpace launched Zhuque‑3 again on August 18, successfully placing a satellite into orbit and achieving the first soft landing by a private Chinese orbital rocket.