May 10, 2026

NASA’s Twin Voyager Spacecraft Are Very Low on Power After Nearly 50 Years. How Long Can They Keep Going? (Source: Space.com)
The pioneering Voyager probes might only have a few years left to explore interstellar space, and that's assuming a planned, risky maneuver in 2026 goes well. NASA's twin Voyager 1 and Voyager 2 spacecraft, both running on nuclear power, now have access to just a portion of the 470 watts of energy that they generated immediately after their 1977 launches. Originally tasked with exploring the giant planets in our solar system, the pair have long passed their expected lifespans and are still transmitting data, far from home. (5/9)

NASA Welcomes Paraguay as 67th Artemis Accords Signatory (Source: NASA)
The Republic of Paraguay signed the Artemis Accords on Thursday during a ceremony in Asunción, becoming the latest nation to commit to the shared principles guiding civil space exploration. The Paraguayan Space Agency was established in 2014 and has worked to develop capabilities in satellite technology and Earth observation, including with international partners. Its first satellite, GuaraníSat‑1, launched from the International Space Station in 2021. The agency now is preparing to launch its second satellite, GuaraníSat‑2, in October aboard a Falcon 9 from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California. (5/7)

FCC Chair: Starlink Isn't Enough. We Need at Least 3 Satellite-to-Phone Services (Source: PC Mag)
The FCC chair, who has gone out of his way to laud SpaceX’s connectivity from space and sometimes critique its rivals, said Wednesday that the market for direct-to-phone service needs more than one competitor to Starlink. “We think the market wants to be, should be, at least three facilities-based providers,” Brendan Carr opined. Today, US options for more-than-messaging cellular satellite service stop at SpaceX’s Starlink roaming. It's limited to a select set of apps and has seen less uptake among T-Mobile subscribers than the carrier expected after inking its deal with SpaceX in 2022. (5/7)

Meet Rassvet, Russia’s Answer to Starlink (Sources: WIRED, DCD)
In late March, Russian company Bureau 1440 brought into low orbit the first 16 broadband internet satellites of the new Rassvet constellation, already dubbed by observers and local media the Russian answer to SpaceX's Starlink. It's an ambitious global internet project that experts say could conceal much broader strategic goals, with functions including military and communications control.

The constellation’s current satellite generation, the 370kg Rassvet-3, built by Bureau-1440, features optical intersatellite links, designed to enable 1Gbps speeds, but is not thought to match the hardware of industry-standard NewSpace LEO satellites in the West.

The Russian satellite Internet service is expected to begin operation in 2027 once its minimum fleet of 250 is established. Roscosmos chief Dmitry Bakanov has told Russian newspaper Kommersant that Rassvet’s next stage involves “dozens more launches.” Only 15 additional launches are required, so long as 16 satellites are launched apiece. (5/8)

Can Pakistan Make Its Space Program Great Again? (Source: The Diplomat)
Pakistan is quietly picking up the pace in its spacefaring ambitions. On April 22, two Pakistani men – Muhammad Zeeshan Ali and Khurram Daud, both pilots with the Pakistan Air Force – were selected to undergo training in Beijing in a milestone in their country’s scientific history. Both aspiring astronauts are in deep training at China’s Astronaut Center; one of them will be the first Pakistani astronaut in space on an official mission, and the first foreign national to board China’s Tiangong Space Station. The Tiangong is China’s answer to the International Space Station after the United States blocked China from becoming a part of the ISS.

The Pakistani astronaut will not be a symbolic stowaway, but rather an integral part of the team on the Tiangong as a working scientist expected to work on microgravity experiments, use specialized equipment, and respond to emergencies in orbit. Departure for the mission is scheduled to take place in late 2026.

Back home, Pakistan is facing skyrocketing inflation, soaring energy prices and bills, insurgencies in Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and border clashes with India and Afghanistan. Back in 2023, the Economist Intelligence Unit’s Democracy Index downgraded Pakistan to the status of an authoritarian regime due to the encroaching powers of the Pakistan Army in politics. (5/8)

Applied Aerospace Files for IPO, Joining Pre-SpaceX Rush (Source: Bloomberg)
Applied Aerospace & Defense Inc. filed for a US initial public offering, joining a recent rush of space and defense firms to public markets ahead of the potential listing of SpaceX later this year. The Huntsville-based space and defense engineering firm made a net loss of $15.1 million on revenue of $134.4 million for the first three months of this year, compared with a net loss of $7.3 million on revenue of $111 million in the same period a year earlier, according to a filing Friday with the US Securities and Exchange Commission. (5/8)

MDA Space Proceeds With Canadarm3 Work Amid Reset Talks (Source: Aviation Week)
MDA Space is proceeding "full steam ahead" with Canadarm3 development, confirming that its contract with the Canadian Space Agency (CSA) remains unaffected despite NASA's decision to pause the Lunar Gateway project. The company is actively working with the CSA to assess the project's future, as the AI-driven robotic system was originally destined for the now-halted space station. While designed for the Gateway, MDA is evaluating other uses for the technology, including commercial space station applications. (5/8)

SaxaVord Spaceport Appoints Conservative Peer and UK Space Agency Chairman Lord David Willetts as Director (Source: Shetland Times)
The Conservative lord who chairs the UK Space Agency has been appointed as a director of SaxaVord Spaceport. Documents lodged with Companies House show that Lord David Willets was appointed on 1st May. (5/9)

Space Force Releases Officer Career Development Path (Source: AFNS)
The U.S. Space Force released a new officer career development path and accompanying narrative document to provide officers, supervisors and mentors with clearer expectations for career progression, leadership development and assignment planning. The framework is designed to develop combat-credible Guardians through deliberate career progression and mentorship. Built on the “Guardian First, Specialist Second” philosophy, the framework ensures officers develop a multidisciplinary foundation across space operations, intelligence, cyber and force modernization before advancing into more specialized tracks. (5/8)

Chinese Team Makes Breakthrough in Space-Based Gravitational Wave Detection (Source: Xinhua)
A Chinese research team has announced a key breakthrough in the space-based gravitational wave detection program named Taiji, according to the Institute of Mechanics under the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS). The team designed a full-function interferometer optical bench (OB) for the Taiji program, constructed a first-generation Taiji interferometer OB and ground test system, and conducted preliminary testing and calibration.

The research program Taiji aims to study gravitational waves from the merging of binary black holes and other celestial bodies, according to the institute. The full-function interferometer OB can effectively mitigate interference from temperature fluctuations in the measurement. Boasting picometer-level measurement accuracy, it can detect tiny variations equivalent to one ten-thousandth of the diameter of a human hair, the research team said. (5/9)

Chinese Scientists Discover New Extreme Particle Accelerator in Cosmos (Source: Xinhua)
For decades, scientists have been trying to solve a mystery: Where do high-energy cosmic rays come from? These charged particles travel from outer space to Earth, but their origins remain unknown. Now, a major discovery by Chinese scientists is bringing them closer to the answer.

Based on observations from China's Large High Altitude Air Shower Observatory (LHAASO), researchers have detected ultra-high-energy gamma rays from a special type of object in the Milky Way. This object is a gamma-ray binary system, meaning it consists of two stars: one massive star and one compact object. The compact object could be either a neutron star or a black hole. (5/9)

MDA Space: High-Volume Canadian Satellite Factory On Schedule for Telesat and Globalstar, Should Appeal to Military Demand Too (Source: Space Intel Report)
MDA Space said it remains on schedule to open the high-volume production facility that will be producing Telesat’s Lightspeed broadband and Globalstar’s direct-to-device (D2D) satellites, an event the company hopes will draw new customers, including defense ministries interested in satellites for space defense applications. The 185,000-square-foot plant, located 34 kilometers west of Montreal, is scheduled to be inaugurated on May 8. (5/7)

Venture Capital, Regulations, and Medium-Lift: What Canada’s 'Launch the North' Startups Need Next (Source: SpaceQ)
As everyone in Canadian space knows these days, sovereign launch is having a moment. Just a few weeks ago, the Canadian government announced it would commit on the order of $300 million for sovereign launch, including a 10-year, $200-million pledge for Maritime Launch Services launch pad access and money for the Launch the North effort for homegrown rockets.

The three companies selected for the first stage of Launch the North were NordSpace, Reaction Dynamics and Canada Rocket Company, each receiving $8.3 million for early-stage funding. The three companies came together on stage on Tuesday (May 5) at NordSpace’s Canadian Space Launch Conference, held at the Canada Aviation and Space Museum in Ottawa, to provide an update on how things are going so far.

They also pointed to a few gaps that they would love to see the federal government fill: more access to venture capital (which is more limited in Canada than the U.S.), more clarity on launch regulations (which may come through the new Bill C-28, the Canadian Space Launch Act), and some help on having the companies develop medium-lift opportunities to expand their customer base. Click here. (5/8)

Astrophotographer Teamed with Artemis 2 Crew for Farside Shots (Source: Space.com)
Just weeks before the first Artemis 2 launch window, astrophotographer Andrew McCarthy had a last-minute idea: What if he could get the Artemis 2 astronauts to shoot the moon the same way he shoots the moon? Artemis 2 commander and NASA astronaut Reid Wiseman "was immediately onboard," McCarthy said. "It was a dream come true, obviously, for me, but I saw it as this very unique opportunity."

The astronauts snapped breathtaking photos of the moon, which showed beautifully haunting views of the lunar far side that Artemis 2 crew member Christina Koch of NASA described as "the most ominous thing I've ever loved." On Earth, McCarthy combines hundreds to thousands of photos of the moon to bring out details you can't see in a single image. The results are colorful landscapes that look more like paintings than the gray orb we're used to seeing hang in the night sky, but the diversity he presents in his images come down to lunar spectroscopy rather than artistic interpretation. (5/8)

Are Trump and Musk Giving Up on Mars? (Source: NBC)
The Trump administration is pushing a pivot to the Moon over Mars, with budget proposals seeking to cut science spending. While SpaceX continues developing Starship, official focus has shifted toward building lunar infrastructure, challenging the immediate, exclusive focus on Mars exploration. The White House's proposed budget seeks to prioritize lunar surface missions (Artemis 3/4) and commercial partnerships, rather than a direct, near-term mission to Mars.

While Elon Musk continues to push for Mars in the long term, SpaceX is currently focusing on landing Starship on the Moon and developing orbital refueling, which are necessary for both lunar and Martian missions. The Mars Society and other experts have expressed concern that budget cuts to science divisions (like Mars Curiosity) could threaten the foundational research needed for eventual human exploration of Mars. (5/9)

Watch Out, SpaceX—NASA Is Already Training on Blue Origin’s Moon Lander Prototype (Source: Gizmodo)
On Thursday, NASA shared a photo of a full-scale prototype of the MK2 crew cabin, which has arrived at Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas, to support training and testing. In a statement, the agency said it and its industry partners will use this prototype for Artemis 3 and 4 mission simulations.

“Blue Origin’s lander, launching uncrewed on top of the company’s New Glenn rocket, will meet astronauts aboard NASA’s Orion spacecraft in lunar orbit,” the statement reads. “Two astronauts will board the Blue Moon crew lander, which will ferry them to the surface and back to other crew members aboard Orion in lunar orbit following the conclusion of their surface stay.”

Meanwhile, Starship HLS development has been more of a black box. At the end of October 2025, SpaceX said its HLS team had completed “49 milestones tied to developing its subsystems, infrastructure, and operations needed to land astronauts on the Moon,” but the company has not provided a detailed update since then. (5/8)