March 11, 2026

NASA Authorizes Use of Smartphones on Artemis II (Source: EcoNews)
For the first time in NASA history, astronauts heading for the Moon will carry something most of us toss into a pocket every morning, a smartphone. The agency has approved personal phones, including iPhones, for the upcoming Artemis II lunar flyby and for the SpaceX Crew-12 mission to the International Space Station, breaking a long tradition of banning such devices on government flights. (3/8)

Ex-Google Boss May Launch a Bigger-Than-Hubble Space Telescope Within Three Years (Source: BBC)
A new space telescope has been announced, Lazuli, with a three-meter (10ft) mirror capable of observing in the optical and infrared. This makes it larger than Hubble, and it will fly a sophisticated spectrograph and camera, plus a coronagraph for spotting planets around nearby stars. What’s really notable is that the entire cost of Lazuli is being covered by Eric and Wendy Schmidt. (3/8)

Stars With Low Magnetic Activity Are Likely To Support Exoplanetary Systems, Making the Hunt for These Celestial Objects Less Random (Source: Live Science)
Scientists have found a potential shortcut for identifying stars that host planets. The technique, based on specific signals in starlight, could make it easier to search for exoplanets, according to a new study. The team has already used their new method to turn up half a dozen previously undiscovered planets — but because most of the alien worlds are very close to their stars, they are unlikely to be habitable, the study authors say. (3/7)

ISRO and ESA Sign Agreement for Earth Observation Missions (Source: The Hindu)
The Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) and the European Space Agency (ESA) have jointly signed an agreement on ‘ESA-ISRO Arrangement concerning Joint Calibration and Validation Activities and Scientific Studies for Earth Observation Missions’. The agreement was signed on March 4 by M. Ganesh Pillai, scientific secretary, ISRO, and Simonetta Cheli, director, Earth Observation Program, ESA, in a virtual meeting mode. (3/9)

Lower-Cost Space Missions Like NASA’s ESCAPADE Are Starting To Deliver Exciting Science – But at a Price in Risk and Trade-Offs (Source: The Conversation)
After a yearslong series of setbacks, NASA’s Escape and Plasma Acceleration and Dynamics Explorers, or ESCAPADE, mission has finally begun its roundabout journey to Mars. This low-cost mission is only getting started, and it’s taking bigger risks than typical big-ticket NASA missions.

NASA classifies payloads on a four‑tier risk scale, from A to D. Class A missions are the most expensive and highest priority, like the James Webb Space Telescope, Europa Clipper and the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope. They use thoroughly proven hardware and undergo exhaustive testing. ESCAPADE is at the other end. It’s a class D mission, defined as having “high risk tolerance” and “medium to low complexity.”

A concept put forward by Jared Isaacman is that 10 $100 million missions would be better than one $1 billion flagship – or top-tier – mission. This approach could encourage faster mission development and would diversify the types of missions heading out into the solar system. But that reorganization comes with trade-offs. For example, low‑cost missions rarely match flagship missions in scope, and they typically do less to advance the technology necessary for doing innovative science. (3/7)

Reentry of NASA Satellite Will Exceed the Agency’s Own Risk Guidelines (Source: Ars Technica)
A NASA satellite that spent more than a decade coursing through the Van Allen radiation belts encircling Earth is about to fall back into the atmosphere. This reentry is notable because it poses a higher risk to the public than the US government typically allows. The risk of harm coming to anyone on Earth is still low, approximately 1 in 4,200, but it exceeds the government standard of a 1 in 10,000 chance of an uncontrolled reentry causing a casualty. (3/10)

The Risks of Concentrating National Space Power in Private Hands (Source: Space.com)
Private companies are no longer peripheral participants in U.S. space activities. They provide key services, including launching and deploying satellites, transporting cargo and astronauts to the ISS, and even sending landers to the Moon. Commercial integration is now embedded in US space policy and shapes national space strategy. While the US has begun developing alternatives, in operational reality the concentration of commercial control gives companies disproportionate leverage. If private power and public strategy were to diverge, would Washington have a credible Plan B? (3/7)

New Study Addresses Clotting Risks for Female Astronauts (Source: Universe Today)
It's no secret that prolonged periods spent in microgravity takes a toll on the human body. This includes muscle atrophy, bone density loss, and changes to the cardiovascular, endocrine, and nervous systems. But for female astronauts, there is also the greater risk of developing blood clots, according to recent findings. This highlights the fact that, to date, most studies of human health in space have involved male astronauts. But as the number of female astronauts continues to grow, more research is required to address potentially gender-related health risks. (3/10)

Starlab Space Fully Books Commercial Payload Space on Planned Space Station (Source: Space News)
The Starlab commercial space station has fully booked its commercial payload space as the joint venture developing it awaits the next phase of a NASA program. Starlab and other commercial stations are awaiting the next phase of the CLD program. (3/10)

SSC Space Brings New Optical Ground Station into Service (Source: Via Satellite)
SSC Space is bringing a new optical ground station (OGS) into service at its site in Santiago, Chile. It will enable free-space laser communication between satellites and the ground. The new station is part of the SSC Space optical service development project NODES within ESA's Optical and Quantum Communications – ScyLight program, designed to accelerate the development of optical ground capabilities. (3/10)

Astroscale France is Contributing to ESA’s ECO-Tethers Project for Propellant-Free In-Space Mobility and Deorbiting (Source: Spacewatch Global)
Astroscale France, the French subsidiary of Astroscale Holdings Inc. has announced its participation in ECO-Tethers, a new system study under the European Space Agency’s FIRST! Technologies in Sustainability for Future Space Transportation program. Led by PERSEI Space as prime contractor, and delivered in collaboration with Thales Alenia Space Italy and Astroscale France, the ECO-Tethers project will assess propellant-free technologies for in-space propulsion and deorbiting using electrodynamic tethers. (3/10)

Megaconstellation Regulation Takes Center Stage at DC Moot Court (Source: Payload)
Future space lawyers will gather in DC this month to debate how far federal jurisdiction extends in regulating commercial megaconstellations. The American Space Law Foundation will hold its first moot court on March 20 to 21. The two-day event will give students an opportunity to argue in a hypothetical—but very realistic—commercial space law case, in front of a panel of judges representing government and industry. (3/10)

European Space Merger Faces Pushback From Local Competitors (Source: Wall Street Journal)
A potential three-way merger between the space units of Airbus, Leonardo and Thales is facing pushback from some rivals that fear the deal could curtail competition in the European satellite market. Marco Fuchs, chief executive of German satellite maker OHB, said he is concerned about the deal’s potential impact on European consortia formed to bid for European Union and European Space Agency contracts. (3/10)