NASA asks companies how they could save the Hubble telescope before it falls, with no money set aside

The stories

17 stories on this beat today.

Every story told the same way: what happened, who is involved, why it matters, how it works, the truth and the good news.

1. 01

   NASA asks companies how they could save the Hubble telescope before it falls, with no money set aside

   470 km

   Hubble's height now, down from 583 km in 2002

   it has no engine of its own to climb back [1][2]

   600 km

   the height NASA wants a rescue to reach

   enough to keep it up for at least 25 more years [1]

   10%

   chance Hubble falls by September 2032 without help

   it will most likely fall in 2033 or 2034 [1][2]

   $30 million

   what NASA paid for the failed rescue of Swift

   the rescue craft was built and launched in about nine months [3]

   What happened

   • On Thursday NASA asked private companies how they could save the Hubble Space Telescope. [1]
   • Hubble has no engine to fight atmospheric drag, the slowing pull of thin air. [2]
   • Left alone, it will most likely fall and burn up in 2033 or 2034. [1]
   • NASA has set aside no money yet to pay for a rescue. [1]
   • NASA wants ideas to lift Hubble to at least 600 km, or to repair it. [1]
   • That height would likely keep Hubble up for at least 25 more years. [1]
   • Companies may also offer a controlled fall, steering Hubble down on purpose. [1]
   • NASA says the mission 'must not harm the HST' and should fly by 2032. [1]
   • Aviation Week reports a 10% chance Hubble falls by September 2032 without a boost. [2]
   • Forecasts of the date can change with how active the Sun is. [1]
   • A crewed visit is unlikely now, because SpaceX plans to retire Crew Dragon by 2030. [1]
   • Isaacman expects the request to 'draw interest from robotics companies'. [1]

   123

   400 km525 km650 km

   1. 1Hubble now470 km
   2. 2Hubble in 2002583 km
   3. 3NASA's goal600 km

   Who is involved

   Jared Isaacman, a billionaire who has flown in space himself, now runs NASA. [1]

   Two such firms, Astroscale and Starfish Space, already hold servicing test contracts. [1]

   • Jared Isaacman head of NASA
   • Astroscale builds servicing craft
   • Starfish Space builds servicing craft
   • Servicing firms want the job
   • NASA the US space agency, run by Jared Isaacman; it asked companies how to rescue Hubble
   • Katalyst Space Technologies an Arizona start-up; its $30 million attempt to rescue Swift failed
   • Astroscale and Starfish Space companies that build craft to service satellites; possible Hubble bidders
   • SpaceX Elon Musk's rocket company; it plans to stop flying Crew Dragon by 2030

   How it unfolded

   Hubble has studied the sky from orbit for 36 years. [1]

   Space shuttle astronauts last raised its orbit in 2002. [1]

   The last shuttle visit, in 2009, did not lift it, and shuttles retired in 2011. [1]

   Over those 24 years Hubble has sunk from 583 km up to about 470 km. [1]

   NASA tried a rescue like this once, for Swift, a smaller space telescope. [3]

   It paid Katalyst, an Arizona start-up, $30 million to boost Swift higher. [3]

   Katalyst launched its rescue craft on 3 July, a little over nine months after winning. [3]

   The craft got within about 10 km of Swift, then had power and steering problems. [1]

   Some researchers expect Swift to fall back into the air on 2 November. [4]

   In 2022 he offered to pay most of a crewed Hubble visit on SpaceX's Dragon. [1]

   NASA said no in 2024, calling the plans 'really just notional concepts'. [1]

   1. 2002 last lift to a higher orbit
   2. 2009 last shuttle visit, no lift
   3. 2011 shuttles stop flying
   4. The deal Katalyst wins the contract
   5. 3 July the rescue craft launches
   6. 2002 shuttle astronauts last raise Hubble's orbit [1]
   7. 2009 last shuttle visit, with no lift [1]
   8. 2022 Isaacman offers a crewed visit on Dragon [1]
   9. 2024 NASA turns the plans down [1]
   10. Thursday NASA asks companies for rescue ideas [1]
   11. 30 November company replies due [1]

   Why it matters

   Hubble sees visible and ultraviolet light; the newer Webb and Roman telescopes see infrared. [1]

   A better telescope for Hubble's kind of light is not due until the 2040s. [1]

   How it works

   In orbital mechanics, the pull of thin air on a satellite is called atmospheric drag. [2]

   Air thins out fast with height, so 600 km buys decades, not a few years. [1]

   The truth

   • What is really going on NASA has asked companies how they would save Hubble, but it has set aside no money, so Thursday's request is a search for prices and bidders, not a rescue.
   • Why it works on people A famous telescope with a date for its fall makes a rescue feel already under way, when no budget for one exists yet. [1]
   • Servicing firms gain a famous possible customer, but NASA has no money for it yet. [1]
   • Nobody has said what a rescue would cost; NASA is asking companies for a price. [1]
   • Who gains Satellite servicing firms such as Astroscale and Starfish Space — NASA's request invites them to bid on a famous job, after Katalyst showed a rescue craft can be built and launched in about nine months. [1][3]
   • Who pays Astronomers who study visible and ultraviolet light — If Hubble falls, no better telescope for that light is due until the 2040s. [1]
   • Nobody knows yet

     Which companies will answer NASA by 30 November, and what they will ask for.

     NASA only asked for information; it made no promise to buy a mission, and replies are not public. [1]

   • Nobody knows yet

     When Hubble will actually fall.

     Orbit experts say 2033 or 2034, Aviation Week gives a 10% chance by September 2032, and the date shifts with the Sun's activity. [1][2]

   What comes next

   Company replies are due on 30 November; NASA has not promised to buy anything. [1]

1. 02

   Rockets will run short until about 2030, analysts say

   What happened

   • Quilty Space, a firm that studies the space business, has published a report on rocket supply. [5]
   • It says rockets outside China will be about 150 launches short of demand by 2030. [5]
   • Counting US military demand, and if SpaceX ends Falcon flights, the gap could double. [5]
   • The squeeze will be worst in 2028, the report says, then slowly ease. [5]
   • Caleb Henry, Quilty's research director, said the crisis may last into the late 2030s. [5]
   • Henry said: 'If you haven't booked your launch already, and you need one, you're late.' [5]

   Who is involved

   • New Glenn Blue Origin
   • Vulcan ULA
   • Neutron Rocket Lab
   • Caleb Henry research director, Quilty Space
   • SpaceX's own satellites first in line
   • Other companies later

   How it unfolded

   Russia's war on Ukraine took Russian rockets off the Western market. [5]

   New rockets such as Blue Origin's New Glenn, ULA's Vulcan and Rocket Lab's Neutron ran late. [5]

   Why it matters

   Satellite firms without a booked rocket may wait years for a ride to orbit. [5]

   How it works

   Economists call supply that cannot grow quickly 'inelastic'; new rockets take years to build. [5]

   The truth

   • What is really going on In the same week, Quilty Space, a firm of space analysts, said rockets outside China will be about 150 launches short of demand by 2030. [1][5]
   • Telesat's boss expects Starship to carry SpaceX's own satellites first, then US government ones. [5]
   • The report says SpaceX has stopped promising Starship as a rocket for other companies. [5]
   • Who pays Satellite companies that have not booked a rocket — Quilty says they are already late, with the shortage worst in 2028. [5]
   • Nobody knows yet

     Whether the US military will make SpaceX fly the launches it needs.

     Quilty's Caleb Henry left military demand out of the report because he thinks the US government will compel SpaceX, but nobody has done so. [5]

2. 03

   Falcon 9 makes its 700th flight as SpaceX slows it

   What happened

   • SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket flew for the 700th time on Friday night, from California. [7]
   • It carried 27 Starlink satellites, part of SpaceX's satellite internet network. [8]
   • Starlink now has more than 11,000 satellites, by far the biggest network ever built. [8]
   • The rocket's first stage landed on a ship in the Pacific after its 18th flight. [8]
   • SpaceX is winding Falcon 9 down as it turns to its giant Starship rocket. [7]
   • By 27 October, its launches over the past 365 days had fallen below 150. [7]

   How it unfolded

   At its peak, in December 2025, SpaceX managed 171 launches in 365 days. [7]

   Why it matters

   Fewer Falcon flights make the rocket shortage worse, the Quilty report says. [5]

   How it works

   Rocket engineers land first stages so they can fly again; this one has flown 18 times. [8]

   The truth

   • More than 70% of this year's Falcon 9 flights carried SpaceX's own Starlink satellites. [8]
   • Who gains SpaceX — Telesat's chief expects Starship to carry SpaceX's own satellites first, so other firms must design satellites that fit its dispenser to get a ride. [5]

   Good news

   • It was the 675th landing of a Falcon booster so far. [7]
   • A Falcon 9 booster landed on a ship in the Pacific after its 18th flight, the 675th Falcon booster landing so far.

   What comes next

   Musk expects Starship to fly weekly at some point in the first half of 2027. [7]

1. 04

   Telesat has five weeks to sort out C$2.4 billion of debt

   What happened

   • Telesat, a Canadian satellite company, owes C$2.4 billion that falls due on 6 December. [9]
   • The old satellites bring in nearly all the money, and they owe the debt. [9]
   • Their income fell 21% last quarter as broadcast contracts ended. [9]
   • Lenders offered a rescue, selling new shares at C$31.50, about half the price then. [9]
   • Full Lightspeed service has slipped three months, to the end of June 2028. [9]
   • Its first two test satellites cannot fly until a shared rocket in mid-2027. [9]

   Who is involved

   Telesat runs two businesses: 12 ageing high satellites, and Lightspeed, 225 planned low ones. [9]

   • Lenders sued in January
   • Telesat denies wrongdoing
   • Lightspeed walled off

   How it unfolded

   In 2025 Telesat moved 62% of Lightspeed into a company free of that debt. [9]

   Lenders sued in January, saying the move put Lightspeed out of their reach; Telesat denies wrongdoing. [9]

   Why it matters

   Canada's military has a deal worth up to C$2.3 billion for Lightspeed. [9]

   How it works

   In finance this is called ring-fencing: walling one part of a firm off from another's debts. [9]

   Why a little more height keeps a satellite up for decades

   Air thins out very fast with height, so a satellite lifted a little higher meets far less of it and falls far more slowly.

   The twist

   A satellite's fall starts slowly and ends fast, because every kilometre it loses puts it in thicker air.

   The picture

   123

   400 km525 km650 km

   1. 1Hubble now470 km
   2. 2Hubble in 2002583 km
   3. 3NASA's goal600 km

   Step by step

   1. 1 Even 470 km up there is a trace of air
   2. 2 Each lap, Hubble hits a few air molecules, which slow it slightly
   3. 3 A slower satellite sinks to a lower orbit
   4. 4 Lower down the air is thicker, so the slowing speeds up
   5. 5 Lifted higher, it meets far thinner air, and the same fall takes decades

   The same force, elsewhere today

   Where this chain is also running, in today's other stories.

   • Telesat's ageing satellites

     They sit in a high orbit with almost no air, so they retire when they get old or lose customers, not by falling.

   • India's NVS-03 launch

     NVS-03 was sent towards a high orbit too, so drag will not be what ends its working life.

   Where you've seen this

   Mountain climbing

   the air thins so fast with height that climbers on the highest peaks carry bottled oxygen

   Melting ice sheets

   as the top of an ice sheet melts it sits lower, in warmer air, so it melts faster

   A leaking boat

   a boat that sits lower takes on water more easily, which makes it sit lower still

   The catch

   The Sun moves the clock: when it is active it heats the top of the air and puffs it up, so forecasts of a fall keep changing.

   And the whole of it

   Hubble's last years depend on thin air nobody can see, on how active the Sun is, and on whether anyone pays. Astronomers, rescue companies and the taxpayers who paid for the telescope each see only their own part of that.

   The truth

   • If Telesat misses the December payment, lenders could claim almost everything except Lightspeed. [9]
   • A 1991 law says Canada's bankruptcy rules do not apply; no court has tested it. [9]
   • Who gains Telesat's lenders, including Silver Point Capital and GoldenTree — Their latest offer repays them in full, with interest, through new shares and a new loan. [9]
   • Who pays Telesat's current shareholders — The lenders' plan sells new shares at C$31.50, about half the price at the time, so each old share would own a smaller part of the company. [9]
   • Nobody knows yet

     What Telesat's old business does after 6 December if no deal is struck.

     A source told The Globe and Mail that Telesat has not negotiated on two rescue offers, and its old business holds about C$287 million in cash against about C$3 billion of debt. [9]

1. 05

   Pentagon offers Stoke Space a $150 million loan

   What happened

   • A Pentagon office offered Stoke Space a conditional $150 million loan on Monday. [6]
   • Stoke, a US rocket start-up, would use it to build a second launch pad in Florida. [6]
   • The loan still depends on financial, legal and technical checks. [6]
   • It aims to launch its Nova rocket next year, and a bigger version in 2029. [6]
   • Its reusable upper stage is being tested in Moses Lake, Washington. [6]

   How it unfolded

   Stoke raised $1 billion in September, bringing its total to $2.3 billion. [6]

   1. Next year Nova's first launch
   2. 2029 the bigger Nova

   Why it matters

   Stoke's Devin Papandrew said assuming launch was solved 'may have been a strategic error'. [6]

   The truth

   • Stoke wants a share of US military launches, and this loan comes from the Pentagon. [6]
   • Who gains Stoke Space — A $150 million conditional loan from a Pentagon office would pay for a second launch pad in Florida. [6]
   • Nobody knows yet

     When Stoke's Nova rocket will first fly.

     Stoke aims for next year, and its $150 million loan still depends on checks that have not finished. [6]

2. 06

   Europe's reusable test rocket may miss 2026

   What happened

   • Themis, Europe's test rocket that lands so it can fly again, may not fly this year. [6]
   • Themis has done 2 practice countdowns at Esrange, a rocket base in Sweden. [6]
   • Sweden's harsh winter may stop it flying before the year ends. [6]

   Who is involved

   Geraldine Naja, the European Space Agency's head of transport, said on 22 October she was unsure. [6]

   ArianeGroup, which builds Europe's Ariane rockets, is the main builder of Themis. [6]

   • Geraldine Naja ESA's head of space transport

   How it unfolded

   ESA's chief had said in January the first hop would come by March 2026. [6]

   Officials first expected a low hop test back in 2022. [6]

   1. 2022 first hop planned
   2. Early 2026 new target
   3. Now may slip again

   Why it matters

   Themis tests ideas for a reusable rocket to replace Ariane 6, which is used once. [6]

   How it works

   Engineers start small: a hopper rises a short way and lands before any trip to space. [6]

   The truth

   • Nobody knows when Themis will fly; it has missed its dates since 2022. [6]
3. 07

   India launches a satellite for its own GPS

   What happened

   • India launched NVS-03, a navigation satellite, on Friday from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre. [10]
   • A GSLV Mark II rocket carried it towards a high orbit. [10]
   • It joins NavIC, India's own version of the US GPS system. [10]
   • NavIC covers India and about 1,500 km beyond its land. [10]
   • It needs four working satellites, and had only three. [10]
   • This was the GSLV Mark II's 14th launch, and 12 have succeeded. [10]

   How it unfolded

   In July Skyroot Aerospace became the first Indian company to reach orbit. [10]

   Why it matters

   With four working satellites, NavIC can give position and time signals across the region. [10]

   How it works

   Satellite navigation works by timing signals from several satellites at once. [10]

   NVS-03 was sent towards a high orbit too, so drag will not be what ends its working life.

   The idea, in story 04: Why a little more height keeps a satellite up for decades →

   The truth

   • Until NVS-03 passes its checks, NavIC still has 3 working satellites, one short. [10]

   Good news

   • ISRO, India's space agency, said 30 minutes after launch that the satellite was placed as planned. [10]
   • India's GSLV rocket put the NVS-03 navigation satellite on its planned path on Friday. India's own navigation system needs four working satellites, and had three.

   What comes next

   Engineers will now check NVS-03 and bring it into service. [10]

4. 08

   Hera sees both asteroids for the first time

   What happened

   • Hera, a European space probe, has sent its first picture showing two asteroids apart. [11]
   • It took the picture on 18 October from 1,280 km away. [12]
   • The pair are Didymos, about 780 m wide, and its moon Dimorphos, about 151 m. [11]
   • They are about 197 million km from Earth. [11]

   How it unfolded

   In 2022 NASA crashed its DART craft into Dimorphos on purpose. [11]

   The hit changed how long Dimorphos takes to circle Didymos by 32 to 33 minutes. [11]

   The goal had been a change of at least 73 seconds. [11]

   Hera was launched in October 2024 to look at what that crash did. [11]

   Why it matters

   It is a test of how to push a dangerous asteroid away from Earth. [11]

   How it works

   Planetary defence scientists study whether hitting an asteroid can change its path. [11]

   The truth

   • Nobody knows yet whether Dimorphos is solid rock or a loose pile of rubble. [11]

   Good news

   • Its mission manager, Ian Carnelli, said the views will grow sharper as Hera comes closer. [11]
   • Europe's Hera probe sent back its first picture showing both asteroids it was built to study, the pair NASA's DART craft hit in 2022. Close-up pictures of Dimorphos are due on 25 November.

   What comes next

   Detailed pictures of Dimorphos are due on 25 November. [11]

5. 09

   Google's chip satellite answers from space

   What happened

   • Google says its test satellite carrying AI chips has answered its first request from orbit. [13]
   • The chips, called TPUs, ran Gemma 4, one of Google's AI models. [13]
   • Asked for a short poem about space, it began: 'Blue marble below'. [13]
   • The project studies whether AI data centres could one day run in space. [13]

   How it unfolded

   Google launched the satellite earlier this month for Project Suncatcher. [13]

   1. Next heat and radiation tests
   2. 2027 2 linked satellites

   Why it matters

   Data centres in space would need chips that survive heat and radiation in orbit. [13]

   The truth

   • Nobody knows yet how long the chips will last; those tests have not run. [13]

   Good news

   • The chips switched on and worked in orbit, Google said in a blog post on Friday. [13]
   • Google's test satellite switched on its AI chips in orbit and answered a request from space for the first time.

   What comes next

   Next come heat and radiation tests, then 2 linked satellites in 2027. [13]

6. 10

   Russian satellites watched Saudi targets before Houthi attacks, firm says

   What happened

   • A private firm says Russian satellites watched Saudi sites before and after Houthi attacks. [18]
   • The firm, AURORAH GeoSignal Intelligence in Geneva, studied 40 attacks from 1 July to 19 October. [18]
   • In every case, it found Russian satellites watching the target areas. [18]
   • It worked out each satellite's path, then when it could see each target. [18]
   • They include Persona camera satellites and Kondor-FKA radar satellites. [18]
   • The Associated Press, a news agency, first reported the findings this week. [18]

   Who is involved

   The Houthis are an Iran-aligned armed group fighting Yemen's Saudi-backed government. [18]

   • The Houthis Iran-aligned group
   • Yemen's government Saudi-backed
   • Persona takes pictures
   • Kondor-FKA radar pictures

   How it unfolded

   In September Houthi strikes hit 3 pumping stations on Saudi Arabia's main oil pipeline. [18]

   Why it matters

   Ahmed Nagi of the International Crisis Group said Russia's role is widening Yemen's war. [18]

   How it works

   Orbit trackers can work out exactly when a satellite will pass over any spot. [18]

   The truth

   • Matching passes to attacks does not prove Russia shared the pictures, analyst Elijah Magnier said. [18]
   • Russian officials have not commented on the findings. [18]
   • Who pays Saudi Arabia's oil sites — In all 40 Houthi attacks AURORAH studied, Russian satellites were watching the target areas. [18]
   • Nobody knows yet

     Who handed satellite pictures to the Houthis, if anyone did.

     AURORAH says its work shows a wider intelligence link, and itself says tying one satellite to one missile launch needs more proof. [18]

7. 11

   UK picks Astroscale for a secret space-defence project

   What happened

   • Britain's defence ministry gave Astroscale UK a 15 million pound contract this week. [14]
   • It will lead LEDA, a new and secret British programme for defence in orbit. [14]
   • Its defence director said LEDA will help counter rival satellites that fly close. [14]
   • Blackswan Space, a Lithuanian firm, also urged a UK minister to spend more on space control. [14]

   Who is involved

   Astroscale builds craft that can approach other satellites and latch on to them. [14]

   • Alex Godfrey defence director, Astroscale UK

   How it unfolded

   This month a Russian spy satellite flew close to an ICEYE satellite working over Ukraine. [14]

   Why it matters

   European militaries are moving from only watching from orbit to building craft that can act. [14]

   The truth

   • Astroscale gains a military customer, but what LEDA's craft will do is secret. [14]
8. 12

   A rusting crust may have kept early Mars warm

   What happened

   • A geologist says rusting rock may have kept early Mars warm enough for flowing water. [15]
   • Cin-Ty Lee of Rice University in Texas told a geology meeting in Denver this month. [15]
   • His idea: heat inside Mars's thick southern crust melted ice into underground water. [15]
   • That hot water rusted iron in the rock, which frees hydrogen gas into the air. [15]
   • Hydrogen bumping into carbon dioxide helps trap heat, warming the planet. [15]
   • A few per cent of hydrogen could lift Mars's average temperature above freezing. [15]
   • The crust there may reach 80 km deep. [15]

   Who is involved

   • Cin-Ty Lee geologist, Rice University

   How it unfolded

   Mars once had flowing water, but scientists disagree on what kept its air warm. [15]

   Why it matters

   It would explain how Mars got its warming hydrogen for millions of years. [15]

   How it works

   Climate scientists call this the greenhouse effect: gases that trap heat warm a planet. [15]

   The truth

   • Ramses Ramirez, a Florida Mars scientist, is sceptical until he sees a full paper. [15]
   • Nobody knows yet

     Whether rusting rock really warmed early Mars.

     Ramses Ramirez wants to see a full paper first, and Lee's test needs rock from several kilometres down in the Martian crust. [15]

   What comes next

   Lee says looking deep would test it: rusted rock several kilometres down would prove it. [15]

9. 13

   A gamma-ray burst seen from the side

   What happened

   • Astronomers have explained a strange burst of gamma rays seen on 10 March, GRB 260310A. [16]
   • NASA's Fermi space telescope caught its first flash, which lasted almost a minute. [16]
   • The flash was weak, but its later glow was among the brightest ever seen. [16]
   • Its X-ray and visible glow ranked in the brightest 1% of such bursts. [16]
   • The team says the explosion's jet pointed away from Earth, so it was seen side-on. [16]
   • Yu-Han Yang of the University of Rome Tor Vergata led the study. [16]

   Who is involved

   Gamma rays are the most energetic kind of light; long bursts come from exploding stars. [16]

   • Yu-Han Yang University of Rome Tor Vergata

   How it unfolded

   Gamma-ray bursts were first found by accident in the 1960s, by satellites watching for nuclear tests. [16]

   1. 1960s bursts found by accident
   2. 10 March GRB 260310A seen

   Why it matters

   Most models were built from bursts seen head-on, so this one tests them. [16]

   How it works

   Yang said a jet, like a torch, looks brightest when seen head-on. [16]

   The truth

   • Why its X-rays brightened again after about three weeks is still not settled. [16]
10. 14

    Super-Earths may hide a soft layer deep inside

    What happened

    • Rocky planets heavier than Earth may hide a soft, runny layer deep inside, a study says. [17]
    • Scientists squeezed ferropericlase, a mineral in planets' deep rock, between diamonds and heated it with lasers. [17]
    • Near 200 gigapascals of pressure, it split into iron-rich and iron-poor parts. [17]
    • The samples were heated to 3,300 kelvin. [17]
    • In planets over about 1.5 Earth masses, this may make a weak layer above the core. [17]
    • The study came out in Nature Communications on 31 October. [17]

    Who is involved

    Super-Earths are rocky planets heavier than Earth, found around other stars. [17]

    Why it matters

    A softer deep layer could change how such planets move and change inside over time. [17]

    How it works

    Mineral physicists test planet insides by copying their crushing pressure in a lab. [17]

    The truth

    • It is a lab result; nobody has seen inside a super-Earth to check it. [17]
11. 15

    NEO Surveyor's sunshade is nearly ready

    What happened

    • NASA's asteroid-hunting telescope, NEO Surveyor, has its sunshade nearly ready for flight. [12]
    • Teams fitted solar panels onto the 6-metre shade. [12]
    • It carries 864 solar cells that make up to 2 kilowatts of power. [12]
    • The shade also blocks sunlight so the telescope can hunt asteroids hidden in the Sun's glare. [12]

    Why it matters

    It will search for near-Earth objects, space rocks whose paths come close to ours. [12]

    What comes next

    NEO Surveyor is due to launch in 2027. [12]

12. 16

    UAE rocks could stand in for Moon and Mars soil

    What happened

    • Researchers say parts of the UAE's Hajar Mountains could supply stand-in Moon and Mars soil. [19]
    • Such soil copies, called simulants, are used to test rovers and drills. [19]
    • Kosmas Pavlopoulos of Sorbonne University Abu Dhabi called the results 'exceptionally promising'. [19]
    • Satellite data pointed to sites in Ras Al Khaimah, Fujairah, Ajman and Dubai. [19]
    • Real samples are scarce: under 400 kg of Moon material has ever been collected. [19]
    • None has yet been brought back from Mars. [19]

    Why it matters

    The UAE needs simulants for its own Moon rover mission, the Emirates Lunar Mission. [19]

    How it works

    Engineers test on stand-in soil because real samples may not be broken up in tests. [19]

13. 17

    China's secret spaceplane can be seen over the US

    What happened

    • China's secret spaceplane, Shenlong, can be seen from the US in the coming days. [20]
    • It is on its 4th mission in orbit. [20]
    • China says it tests ways to make trips to space and back cheaper. [20]
    • It looks like a steadily moving point of light, sometimes bright enough to see by eye. [20]
    • The best passes over New York, Chicago, Denver and Los Angeles come before dawn. [20]

    Who is involved

    It launches on a rocket and comes back to land on a runway. [20]

    • New York
    • Chicago
    • Denver
    • Los Angeles

    How it unfolded

    Days ago the US Defense Intelligence Agency released a rare photo of it. [20]

    Why it matters

    Shenlong works much like the US military's X-37B spaceplane. [20]

    The truth

    • It has been seen working near other objects in orbit; China says little. [20]