NASA is requesting feedback from American companies on the next phase of its commercial space stations strategy to ensure a seamless transition of activities in low Earth orbit from the International Space Station. The agency released a draft Phase 2 Announcement for Partnership Proposals (AFPP) Friday, asking for feedback from industry partners by 1 p.m. […]
Category: Commercial Space
NASA Seeks Volunteers to Track Artemis II Mission
NASA seeks volunteers to passively track the Artemis II Orion spacecraft as the crewed mission travels to the Moon and back to Earth. The Artemis II test flight, a launch of the agency’s SLS (Space Launch System) rocket and Orion spacecraft, will send NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, and Christina Koch, along with CSA […]
Human Rating and NASA-STD-3001
Human-rating is a critical certification process that validates the safety, reliability, and suitability of space systems—including orbiters, launch vehicles, rovers, spacesuits, habitats, and other crewed elements—for human use and interaction. This process ensures that systems are designed not only to protect human life but also to accommodate human needs and effectively integrate human capabilities. Human-rating requires […]
U.S. Transportation Secretary & Acting NASA Administrator Sean P. Duffy Joins President Trump Executive Order Signing to Boost U.S. Space Competitiveness
U.S. Transportation Secretary and acting NASA Administrator Sean Duffy joined President Donald J. Trump at the White House Wednesday for the historic signing of the Executive Order (EO), “Enabling Competition in the Commercial Space Industry.” “People think the Department of Transportation (DOT) is just planes, trains, and automobiles – but we have a critical role […]
NASA Selects Six Companies to Provide Orbital Transfer Vehicle Studies
NASA has selected six companies to produce studies focused on lower-cost ways to launch and deliver spacecraft of various sizes and forms to multiple, difficult-to-reach orbits. The firm-fixed-price awards comprise nine studies with a maximum total value of approximately $1.4 million. The awardees are: “With the increasing maturity of commercial space delivery capabilities, we’re asking […]
NASA Sees Key Progress on Starlab Commercial Space Station
As NASA continues its transition toward a commercial low Earth orbit marketplace, an agency-supported commercial space station, Starlab, recently completed five development and design milestones. Starlab’s planned design consists of a service module and a habitat that will be launched to orbit on a single flight. The milestones, part of a NASA Space Act Agreement […]
NASA to Provide Coverage of Axiom Mission 4 Departure from Station
NASA will provide live coverage of the undocking and departure of the Axiom Mission 4 private astronaut mission from the International Space Station. The four-member astronaut crew is scheduled to undock from the space-facing port of the station’s Harmony module aboard the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft at approximately 7:05 a.m. EDT Monday, July 14, pending weather, […]
NASA, SpaceX Invite Media to Watch Crew-11 Launch to Space Station
Media accreditation is open for the launch of NASA’s 11th rotational mission of a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket and Dragon spacecraft carrying astronauts to the International Space Station for a science expedition. NASA’s SpaceX Crew-11 mission is targeted to launch in the late July/early August timeframe from Launch Complex 39A at the agency’s Kennedy Space […]
NASA Hosts ISRO Officials at Johnson, Kennedy
NASA astronaut Raja Chari and Dr. V. Narayanan, chairman of ISRO (Indian Space Research Organisation), interact outside the Orion spacecraft mockup at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston. Narayanan and Indian officials visited NASA Johnson and NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, ahead of the Axiom Mission 4 launch to the International Space Station. As […]
NASA Welcomes Axiom Mission 4 to the International Space Station
A SpaceX Dragon spacecraft carrying the Axiom Mission 4 crew docks to the space-facing port of the International Space Station’s Harmony module on June 26. Axiom Mission 4 is the fourth all-private astronaut mission to the orbiting laboratory, welcoming commander Peggy Whitson, former NASA astronaut and director of human spaceflight at Axiom Space, ISRO (Indian […]