A craft circling Mars picks up gas leaking from cracks by a giant volcano, a clue that magma may still be down there

The stories

19 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

   A craft circling Mars picks up gas leaking from cracks by a giant volcano, a clue that magma may still be down there

   4 Mars years

   of data, and the out-of-season gas appeared around Alba Mons and nowhere else

   A Mars year is close to 2 Earth years [3]

   6.8 km

   the height of Alba Mons, the widest volcano on Mars

   Some of its volcanic deposits are over 3 billion years old [2]

   -120 C

   how cold the cracks get in winter, when ice seals them

   The team thinks the trapped gas gets out in early summer [2]

   What happened

   • A craft circling Mars picked up a possible signal of hydrogen chloride gas leaking from cracks near a huge volcano. [3] On Earth, this gas escapes from vents over magma. [1]
   • The study came out in the journal Science Advances on 4 November. [1] Its authors read the gas as a sign of hot magma under the surface. [3]
   • The team then found sharp spikes in early northern summer, always around Alba Mons. [2]
   • The team ran a special watching campaign lasting 2 Mars years, roughly 4 Earth years. [3] A Mars year is close to 2 Earth years. [3]
   • Over 4 Mars years of data, the out-of-season gas appeared here and nowhere else, co-author Kevin Olson said. [3]
   • A camera on the orbiter then found young, narrow cracks tens to hundreds of metres long. [2] Colour changes around them may be deposits left by escaping gas. [2]

   Who is involved

   The craft is the ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter, a joint mission of Europe and Russia. [2] It has circled Mars since October 2016. [2]

   The volcano is Alba Mons, the largest on Mars by area. [3] It rises 6.8 km at its highest point. [2]

   Olympus Mons, also on Mars, is the tallest volcano in the solar system, at about 26 km. [1] Alba Mons is lower, but covers more ground. [1]

   The first author is Alexander Trokhimovskiy of Russia's Space Research Institute. [3] He calls it the strongest evidence yet of gas from sleeping volcanoes on Mars. [3]

   • Trace Gas Orbiter a Europe and Russia spacecraft at Mars since 2016; it picked up the gas
   • Alexander Trokhimovskiy a scientist at Russia's Space Research Institute; first author of the study
   • Daniel Mege a planetary geologist at the Polish Academy of Sciences; he found the cracks
   • Kevin Olson a Mars gas researcher visiting the University of Oxford; he says the link remains a hypothesis

   How it unfolded

   The orbiter first detected hydrogen chloride in the air of Mars in 2021. [2] Scientists hesitated to link it to volcanoes. [3]

   That gas usually peaks over the north of Mars in winter, and follows the planet's dust and water. [2] It should be gone by summer. [1]

   A study of quakes felt by NASA's InSight lander also pointed to magma this year. [3] This orbiter's evidence comes from the air above. [3]

   1. 2021 the gas is first seen
   2. Then scientists hesitate
   3. 2016 The orbiter settles into its path around Mars. [2]
   4. 2021 It first detects hydrogen chloride in the air of Mars. [2]
   5. Earlier in 2026 NASA's InSight lander data is read as a sign of magma. [3]
   6. 4 Nov 2026 Science Advances publishes the study. [1]

   Why it matters

   No eruption has ever been seen on Mars. [2] Co-author Daniel Mege says the findings suggest it kept volcanic heat until recently, 'and possibly still does'. [2]

   Mege says warm, wet cracks could shelter microbes from the harsh surface, if such systems are active. [1] But life would need stable conditions for millions of years, he cautioned. [3]

   How it works

   Geologists call gases like this magmatic gases, because they come from hot magma underground. [1]

   At Alba Mons, ice blocks the cracks in winter, at as low as -120 C. [2] The team thinks gas builds up, then escapes when that ice goes in early summer. [2]

   Seen it before

   A shaken fizzy drink holds its gas until the cap comes off, then it all rushes out.

   Why scientists first work out what they would see if nothing were there

   Before anyone can claim a sign of magma or of life, they must know what the same data looks like without it, and show it does not fit.

   The twist

   Scientists do not prove the exciting idea directly. They first work out what they would see if nothing special were there, then ask whether the data can still be explained that way.

   The picture

   Usual peak of the gasWinter

   vsvs

   Spike at Alba MonsEarly summer

   Step by step

   1. 1 You see something odd in your data
   2. 2 You write down the dull explanation first: the null hypothesis, which says nothing special is going on
   3. 3 You work out what you would see if that dull explanation were true: your baseline
   4. 4 You measure how far the real data sits from that baseline
   5. 5 Only a gap the dull explanation cannot cover counts as a sign of something

   The same force, elsewhere today

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

   • Gas near a volcano on Mars

     The team knew hydrogen chloride normally peaks in northern winter, so a spike in early summer stood out against that pattern.

   • A computer model of Earth with no life

     The model is the dull explanation made real: if it can reproduce what a far planet shows, no life is needed to explain that planet.

   • New software for the Webb telescope

     FLIP works out what a star's glare alone would look like, takes that away, and anything left over may be a planet.

   • SETI's search for alien radio

     All 1.9 million signals came from humans, so a signal counts only after human sources are ruled out.

   Where you've seen this

   Drug trials

   One group gets a dummy pill, which shows what patients would do with no drug at all.

   Criminal courts

   The accused is treated as innocent, and the evidence has to knock that down.

   Bank fraud checks

   Your usual spending is the baseline, so a card used far from it gets flagged.

   The catch

   A gap shows only that the dull explanation failed. It does not prove your favourite idea, and a poor baseline can make a gap that is not real.

   And the whole of it

   Each of them compares one reading with an idea of normal: the team at Alba Mons, the people modelling a dead Earth, and anyone reading a medical test result. That idea of normal could itself be wrong, and none of them can see all of it from where they sit.

   The truth

   • What is really going on Scientists studying Mars have a strong clue and no proof: a gas appears in one place at one time of year, and a co-author calls the link to magma a hypothesis. [3]
   • Why it works on people The word life pulls attention, so a gas near a volcano reads as a story about living things, though nobody has found any.
   • Olson says 'the link remains a hypothesis'. [3] Other volcanic gases, such as sulphur, were not present when hydrogen chloride was first seen, he said. [3]
   • Who gains The Trace Gas Orbiter team — Colin Wilson, its project scientist at the European Space Agency, says this may prove the craft's greatest success. [2]
   • Nobody knows yet

     Whether magma still sits under Alba Mons.

     The team reads the gas as a sign of it, and no eruption has ever been seen on Mars. [2][3]

   • Nobody knows yet

     When in the Martian year the gas really spikes.

     NASASpaceflight and Space.com say early northern summer. [1][2] Live Science quotes co-author Kevin Olson on measurements from the start of northern winter. [3] We could not read the paper itself to settle it.

1. 02

   Swift falls over Sumatra

   What happened

   • NASA's Swift telescope fell back to Earth on 4 November at 12:39 UTC, over North Sumatra in Indonesia. [4]
   • The US Space Force had predicted a window of 11:42 to 13:42 UTC earlier that day. [4] Swift came down near the middle of it. [4]
   • NASA expected most of it to burn up, though some parts may have survived. [4] No damage or injuries have been reported. [6]

   How it unfolded

   The telescope weighed about 1,450 kg and cost $500 million. [5][9]

   It watched gamma-ray bursts, the most powerful explosions in the universe. [5] Over its life it saw about 2,000 of them, and more than 1,400 exploding stars. [4][7]

   NASA paid Katalyst Space $30 million to push it higher, but the rescue craft lost control and fell in September. [4][8]

   1. 11:42 window opens
   2. 12:39 Swift falls
   3. 13:42 window closes

   Why it matters

   Swift usually swung to a blast within about a minute, and alerted observatories worldwide. [4][5] Scientific American says the gap it leaves is unlikely to be filled soon. [7]

   It had to swing round fast, before the afterglow of each blast faded. [5]

   How it works

   Space engineers call this orbital decay: drag from thin air slows a craft until it falls. [6]

   Swift had no engine to fight the drag, and a busy Sun swelled the upper air. [4] That made more drag than NASA expected, and it hastened Swift's fall. [4]

   Seen it before

   A bike slows when you stop pedalling, and a strong headwind stops it sooner.

   The truth

   • The time and place come from US Space Force tracking, which NASA later confirmed. [4] Few sensors cover those regions, which likely delayed the news, Scientific American says. [7]
   • Who pays Astronomers who followed Swift's alerts — They lose the telescope that alerted observatories worldwide to each new blast. [4]
   • Nobody knows yet

     How much of Swift reached the ground.

     AP says it was not immediately known how much burned up. [8]

   Good news

   • Swift was built for 2 years of work and kept going for nearly 22. [4]
   • Data from NASA's Swift telescope has gone into about 7,000 scientific papers, and scientists can keep studying it for years after its fall.
2. 03

   SpaceX's home state turns Democratic

   What happened

   • Elon Musk, who runs SpaceX, spent almost $450 million backing Republicans in the US midterm elections, the BBC reports. [11]
   • Much of his political focus seemed to be on Texas, home of SpaceX's headquarters and its Starship rockets. [11][10]
   • In Texas, Democrat James Talarico won the Senate seat and Democrat Gina Hinojosa won the governor's race. [10]
   • Musk's first post about the result read: 'Data centers in space looking pretty appealing right now'. [10]
   • Data centres are big buildings full of computers that run AI. [11] Hinojosa won support from rural Texans who do not want them nearby. [10]

   Who is involved

   • James Talarico new senator
   • Gina Hinojosa new governor

   Why it matters

   SpaceX has gained an estimated $10 billion in new US government contracts since Trump was elected, the BBC says. [11]

   Democrats could now investigate Musk's role in cutting Starlink service to Ukraine. [10] US Senator Ed Markey said tech chiefs will need 'new forests' for all the legal orders to appear. [11]

   Yet NASA and the US Space Force need SpaceX more than it needs them, Ars Technica argues. [10] Taking its contracts away would hurt the space station and the Moon programme. [10]

   How it works

   Investors call this political risk, and Ars Technica says Musk's is now priced into SpaceX shares. [10]

   The shares were down about 5% on Monday, before the vote, while wider markets rose. [10] They were down 3.4% on Wednesday morning, the BBC says. [11]

   Seen it before

   A shop worth a lot under a friendly landlord can be worth less when that landlord might leave.

   The truth

   • The BBC counts almost $450 million of Musk's spending. [11] Ars Technica, citing the New York Times, says $474 million. [10]
   • Ars Technica's reading of Musk rests on its writer's own view and 2 people close to his thinking. [10]
   • Who gains SpaceX's plan for data centres in orbit — Public opposition to data centres on the ground is one reason orbit might one day make sense for them, Ars Technica says. [10]
   • Who pays People holding SpaceX shares — Musk's politics are now part of what the company's shares are worth, Ars Technica says. [10]
   • Nobody knows yet

     What Democrats will actually do about SpaceX.

     Ars Technica says whether they investigate Musk or bargain with him is the main open question. [10]

   What comes next

   SpaceX plans a major expansion in Louisiana from as early as next year. [10] Ars Technica says that state could one day become its headquarters. [10]

3. 04

   Space Force plans Falcon 9 flights to 2032

   What happened

   • SpaceX plans to wind down its Falcon 9 rocket within the next few years, Scientific American reports. [13]
   • Falcon 9 made 85% of US launches in 2025. [13]
   • SpaceX wants to move to Starship, its giant rocket built to be fully reusable. [13]
   • Some companies have been unable to book future Falcon 9 flights, the Wall Street Journal reported. [13]
   • The US Space Force now says Falcon flights are planned through its 2032 budget year. [13] It adds that up to 6 others will soon be able to fly them. [13]

   Who is involved

   • New Glenn grounded since May
   • Vulcan grounded since February

   How it unfolded

   Blue Origin's New Glenn blew up on its pad on 28 May. [13] ULA's Vulcan was grounded after a February fault with its boosters. [13]

   1. Mid-November Starship Flight 15
   2. Mid-November Vulcan returns

   Why it matters

   NASA books most of its trips through SpaceX, yet is only a fraction of SpaceX's launch business. [13] Start-ups could fail if rides get dearer, Weinzierl says. [13]

   Harvard researcher Matthew Weinzierl suggests the US government could pay to license Falcon 9 and keep it flying. [13]

   How it works

   Business strategists call this supplier power: SpaceX has so far rebuffed Space Force requests for more launches, Politico reported. [13]

   A buyer with choices can walk away, but New Glenn and Vulcan are grounded. [13] So the Space Force says it is 'talking through all scenarios'. [13]

   Seen it before

   When one shop on your street sells bread, it can shut early and you still come back.

   The truth

   • What is really going on But NASA and the US Space Force still depend on SpaceX, which plans to wind down the rocket they use. [13]
   • SpaceX did not respond to Scientific American's questions. [13]
   • Who pays Space start-ups that need cheap rides — If launch prices rise, some may never get off the ground, says Harvard's Matthew Weinzierl. [13]
   • Nobody knows yet

     Whether Falcon 9 flights for the US military end in 2028 or go on to 2032.

     Scientific American says Space Force contracts run through 2028. [13] The Space Force speaks of flights planned through its 2032 budget year, and the article does not explain the gap. [13]

   What comes next

   Starship's next test, Flight 15, is slated for mid-November. [13] ULA says Vulcan flies again that same month. [13]

4. 05

   Artemis II's launch may have thrown off GPS

   What happened

   • A study finds NASA's Artemis II launch in April could have caused GPS errors of several metres. [14]
   • Artemis II carried 4 astronauts around the Moon. [15]
   • It found the biggest disturbance yet from any rocket, up to 10 times what SpaceX's Starship tests caused. [14] Starship is twice as powerful. [14]
   • 2 holes stretched about 5,000 km across America, like giant contrails. [14] The stronger one came from upper-stage burns at about 185 km, inside the layer. [14]

   Who is involved

   The team, at National Cheng Kung University in Taiwan, used ground receivers built to track shifting tectonic plates. [14]

   The ionosphere is the electrically charged layer of air above about 50 km. [14] GPS signals must pass through it to reach the ground. [14]

   • National Cheng Kung University Taiwan

   Why it matters

   A couple of metres is 'enough to cause an autonomous car to change lanes', co-author Charles Lin said. [14] Drones could be hit too, he said. [14]

   Lin expects these effects to grow as more missions go to the Moon and Mars. [14]

   How it works

   Scientists call this space weather: changes in the upper air that disturb signals, here made by a rocket. [14]

   The rocket's shock wave and burns changed how many free electrons sat on the signal's path. [14] That made signals arrive faster or slower, so receivers misjudged where they were. [14]

   Seen it before

   If roadworks slow your friend, you might guess from the late arrival that they live further away.

   The truth

   • The study is a preprint, posted online ahead of full publication. [14] The article names no car or drone that actually went wrong. [14]
   • Nobody knows yet

     How much rocket launches will disturb GPS as Moon flights grow.

     Charles Lin expects these effects to become much more significant, and the article gives no figure for how much. [14]

5. 06

   Trump's declaration on space adds no money

   What happened

   • President Trump issued 'The American Declaration of Freedom in Space' on 3 November, election day in the US. [15][16]
   • It calls space the 'province of all humans'. [15] It also says Americans may develop and settle the solar system under US laws. [15]
   • It says the commercial space industry helps ensure 'American space superiority for all eternity'. [15]
   • It repeats NASA's aims: a Moon landing by 2028 and, later, astronauts to Mars. [15]
   • It adds no new money, no new programmes and no orders to any agency, Space.com reports. [15]

   How it unfolded

   A December 2025 order had already restated the 2028 date, and called for a Moon outpost's first parts by 2030. [15]

   The same week he declared 'Anti-Communism Week', the Guardian noted. [16]

   1. 2028 Moon landing
   2. Later Mars

   Why it matters

   'The nation that leads in space will shape the future of humanity,' the declaration says. [15]

   How it works

   In space law, the 1967 Outer Space Treaty guarantees free exploration and bars any nation from claiming a planet. [15]

   The declaration's language on freedom echoes that treaty, Space.com says. [15] It gives no agency any instruction, Space.com adds. [15]

   Seen it before

   A school can say the field is for everyone, and that gives nobody a right to fence off a corner.

6. 07

   A radio fault ends a NASA inspection craft

   What happened

   • Starfish Space, a company that builds craft to reach other satellites, says it has lost contact with Otter 24C. [17]
   • That ends a $15 million NASA mission called SSPICY, one month after launch. [17]
   • Otter launched on a SpaceX shared ride on 1 October. [17] Its job was to approach dead US satellites and inspect them. [17]

   Who is involved

   Otter's body, the basic frame with its power and radio, came from another company, Astro Digital. [17]

   • Astro Digital built Otter's body

   How it unfolded

   It is Starfish's second failure traced to someone else's hardware. [17] In 2023 a ride left its first craft spinning at 330 degrees a second. [17]

   Starfish got that first craft back under control after 6 weeks. [17]

   Why it matters

   Payload, a space news site, calls this NASA's first try at funding commercial inspection of space junk. [17] After Swift's failed rescue, it is NASA's second such loss running. [17]

   How it works

   Engineers call the system that reacts to faults fault protection, and on Otter that system failed. [17]

   During start-up checks, Otter's fault protection made an error and turned off its radio. [17] With the radio off, Starfish could not reconnect. [17]

   Seen it before

   A phone that locks itself and needs a code sent to that same phone stays locked.

   The truth

   • Who pays NASA's plan to inspect dead satellites — The mission ended before any inspection was reported, and NASA and Starfish are exploring whether other missions can do the work. [17]

   Good news

   • Starfish's older craft, Otter Pup 2, shared pictures last week from a pass 33 m from another satellite. [17]

   What comes next

   Starfish says it may finish some of the goals on other missions, and is fixing the Astro Digital body. [17]

7. 08

   New software sharpens Webb's view of planets

   What happened

   • Astronomers have written software that helps the James Webb Space Telescope see planets closer to their stars. [18]
   • A big planet can be more than 10,000 times fainter than its star. [18] Its light gets lost in the glare. [18]
   • The software, called FLIP, was 2 to 15 times more sensitive than the usual methods on 3 star systems. [18]
   • It also caught the giant planet 51 Eridani b at wavelengths where Webb had not seen it. [18]

   Who is involved

   The study, in the journal Nature, is led by Rodrigo Ferrer-Chavez of Northwestern University. [18]

   • Rodrigo Ferrer-Chavez Northwestern University

   How it unfolded

   Webb uses a mask called a coronagraph to block most of a star's light. [18] A little still leaks through. [18]

   Why it matters

   The aim is to make NASA's next big telescope, the Habitable Worlds Observatory, easier to build. [18] It is planned for the 2040s. [18]

   How it works

   Astronomers use a reference star for this: they image a similar star and subtract its glare from the picture. [18]

   The usual way images a similar star, but Webb's 6.5-metre mirror flexes between shots. [18] FLIP instead simulates the telescope itself to work out the glare. [18]

   Seen it before

   Rubbing a friend out of a holiday photo works best if the empty shot was taken at the same moment.

   FLIP works out what a star's glare alone would look like, takes that away, and anything left over may be a planet.

   The idea, in story 01: Why scientists first work out what they would see if nothing were there →

   The truth

   • Dimitri Mawet of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, not part of the study, calls it 'a significant result'. [18] Earth-sized worlds would still need a telescope 100 to 1,000 times steadier. [18]
   • Nobody knows yet

     Whether Webb's new software can ease the design of NASA's next telescope.

     Dimitri Mawet says it could plausibly ease part of the stability needed, and the telescope is not due until the 2040s. [18]

   Good news

   • New software for the James Webb Space Telescope was 2 to 15 times more sensitive than the usual methods on 3 star systems, and it caught a giant planet at wavelengths where Webb had not seen it.
8. 09

   Spacewalkers fit the last new panel

   What happened

   • 2 astronauts began a spacewalk outside the International Space Station at 13:36 UTC on Thursday 5 November. [31] They finished at 20:35 UTC, after 6 hours and 59 minutes. [32]
   • They fitted and unfolded the 8th and last roll-out solar panel, called an iROSA. [32]
   • The job began in 2021 and took 18 spacewalks. [32] It takes the station's power from 160 kW to about 215 kW, about 30% more. [19]
   • 5 other astronauts share the station with them. [19]

   Who is involved

   They are NASA's Anil Menon and Joshua Kutryk of the Canadian Space Agency. [19]

   • Anil Menon NASA
   • Joshua Kutryk Canadian Space Agency

   How it unfolded

   It was their second spacewalk in a week. [19] On 29 October they fitted the 7th, on the 100th US spacewalk from the station. [19]

   1. 29 October the 7th panel
   2. 5 November the 8th panel

   Why it matters

   The station is scheduled to retire around 2030. [25]

9. 10

   A computer model of Earth with no life

   What happened

   • A University of Washington team has built a computer model of Earth as it would be with no life. [20]
   • It runs from 50 million years to 5 billion years after Earth formed. [20] It matches 19 key measurements of Earth before industry. [20]
   • Those include carbon dioxide and water in the air, surface temperature and the mass of the oceans. [20]
   • It predicts a planet can stay fit for life for a long time without any life on it. [20]

   Who is involved

   The lead author is Samantha Gilbert-Janizek, and the work is in The Planetary Science Journal. [20]

   • Samantha Gilbert-Janizek lead author

   Why it matters

   NASA's planned Habitable Worlds Observatory will look for life on rocky worlds around Sun-like stars. [20] The team's tool will help judge how likely it is that a reading means life. [20]

   How it works

   Scientists call this a false positive: a sign that looks like life with no life behind it. [20]

   If the lifeless model can reproduce what a planet shows, that suggests nobody lives there. [20]

   Seen it before

   A smoke alarm beeps when you burn toast, so a beep alone does not prove a fire.

   The model is the dull explanation made real: if it can reproduce what a far planet shows, no life is needed to explain that planet.

   The idea, in story 01: Why scientists first work out what they would see if nothing were there →

   The truth

   • The model assumes plate tectonics, the slow shifting of Earth's crust, ran for almost all of its history. [20] That is widely believed, but other ideas exist. [20]
10. 11

    SETI listens where aliens might expect us

    What happened

    • The SETI Institute, which listens for alien signals, has shared early results from a new search. [21] It is its largest yet with the Allen Telescope Array. [21]
    • It listens at the point in the sky directly opposite the Sun, which shifts as Earth orbits. [21]
    • The test run went from 30 August 2024 to 25 August 2026. [21]
    • It picked up about 1.9 million radio signals in 17 hours of listening. [21] All of them came from human sources. [21]

    How it unfolded

    1. 30 August 2024 test run starts
    2. 25 August 2026 test run ends

    Why it matters

    Co-author Sofia Sheikh says the puzzle is not only where to point a telescope but when someone might transmit. [21]

    How it works

    Game theorists call this a Schelling point: a choice two sides both reach without talking. [21]

    Aliens at that spot would see Earth pass across the Sun once a year. [21] So both sides could pick the same place and time to look. [21]

    Seen it before

    2 friends who lose each other in a town may both head for the clock tower.

    All 1.9 million signals came from humans, so a signal counts only after human sources are ruled out.

    The idea, in story 01: Why scientists first work out what they would see if nothing were there →

    The truth

    • The plan assumes aliens hunt planets the way human astronomers do. [21] The test run found no alien signal. [21]
    • Nobody knows yet

      What SETI's other 121 nights of recordings hold.

      They have not been shared yet. [21]

    What comes next

    Another 121 nights have been recorded and not yet shared. [21] The full search will take 4 years. [21]

11. 12

    Giant crashes may help planets keep their air

    What happened

    • 2 scientists say giant crashes may have helped young rocky planets keep their air, not lose it. [22]
    • The most common planets found around other stars are super-Earths, big rocky worlds, and sub-Neptunes, which keep puffy air. [22] Our solar system has neither. [22]
    • The work suggests sub-Neptunes grew through bigger crashes and held their air. [22] Super-Earths missed those crashes and lost theirs to starlight. [22]

    Who is involved

    They are Darius Modirrousta-Galian of Shanghai Jiao Tong University and Jun Korenaga of Yale, writing in Nature Astronomy. [22]

    • Darius Modirrousta-Galian Shanghai Jiao Tong University
    • Jun Korenaga Yale University
    • Super-Earths big, rocky, air lost
    • Sub-Neptunes rocky core, puffy air

    How it unfolded

    Scientists had thought the heat of such crashes drove early air away. [22]

    Why it matters

    Why nature makes both kinds in such numbers is 'a fundamental puzzle', Modirrousta-Galian said. [22]

    How it works

    Planetary scientists call a planet's grip on its air gravitational binding. [22]

    A crash adds heat and mass, but part of the heat goes deep where it cannot drive air away. [22] All the new mass adds to the planet's grip. [22]

    Seen it before

    A heavier anchor holds a boat in place even when the wind picks up.

12. 13

    DARPA pays Redwire for a very low flight

    What happened

    • Redwire, a US space company, won a $20 million contract from DARPA, the US military's research agency. [23]
    • It is for a test under a DARPA programme called Otter, which is not Starfish's Otter craft. [23][17]
    • That programme wants satellites that can fly between 90 km and 250 km up. [23]

    Who is involved

    Redwire also leads Skimsat, the European Space Agency's own low-flying craft, aiming to fly from 2027. [23]

    How it unfolded

    It follows a $44 million award to Redwire in November 2025. [23]

    1. Late 2027 small test flight
    2. No date the full mission

    Why it matters

    Being closer to the ground is the prize, and militaries everywhere are spending more to move around in space. [23]

    How it works

    Engineers call this air-breathing electric propulsion, DARPA's answer to the drag of very low flight. [23]

    Thin air at that height drags on a craft and can end a low mission early. [23] So these engines are meant to run on the air around them. [23]

    Seen it before

    A sailing boat moves on the wind around it, and carries no fuel for that.

    The truth

    • DARPA has not given a date for the full mission. [23] Export laws also limit what Redwire can share between the US and European projects. [23]
    • Who gains Redwire — It is paid to learn very low flight on both sides of the Atlantic, by DARPA and by the European Space Agency. [23]

    What comes next

    The test craft flies in late 2027, for less than a day, on a small version of Redwire's SabreSat. [23]

13. 14

    Orbital Matter plans a printed solar panel

    What happened

    • Orbital Matter, a start-up that 3D-prints in orbit, plans a new mission with EnduroSat, a satellite maker, in 2028. [24]
    • It aims to print the stiff beams that hold out a 5 kW solar panel about 5 m long. [24]

    Who is involved

    • Orbital Matter prints in orbit
    • EnduroSat builds the satellite

    How it unfolded

    This builds on Replicator 2, launched in July. [24] Its first print in August left gaps between layers. [24]

    Engineers spent 2 months testing on the ground, then updated its software. [24] It then printed a fully bonded beam 32.5 cm long. [24]

    1. July Replicator 2 launches
    2. August first print has gaps

    Why it matters

    The buyers it wants are data centres in orbit, which EnduroSat says will need hundreds of kW per satellite. [24]

    How it works

    Engineers call this in-space manufacturing: making a structure in orbit, not folding it for launch. [24]

    Chief executive Jakub Stojek says folding forces a craft to be designed mostly for launch. [24] A beam printed in orbit never has to fit inside a rocket. [24]

    Seen it before

    A tent has to fold into a bag, but a shed built on the spot can be any size.

    The truth

    • EnduroSat's talk of panels above 100 kW 'in the next few years' is the company's own claim. [24]

    Good news

    • Orbital Matter's first print in orbit left gaps in August. Two months and one software update later, the same satellite printed a fully bonded beam 32.5 cm long.
14. 15

    Varda has 3 drug capsules in orbit at once

    What happened

    • Varda Space Industries, a Californian company, now has 3 capsules in orbit at once, a record, the Guardian says. [25]
    • One is growing tiny crystals of a possible cancer drug. [25] The others test heat protection and navigation for the return. [25]
    • Each one flies up on a SpaceX rocket, then parachutes back to an empty part of Earth. [25]

    Why it matters

    Crystal size and shape affect how a drug dissolves and how it is given. [25] Some drip medicines could become simple injections. [25]

    How it works

    Materials scientists call this crystal growth in microgravity, near-weightlessness. [25] On Earth, gravity makes particles settle and stirs currents through the liquid. [25]

    Without those effects, crystals 'grow in a much more ordered sort of way', said Meganne Christian of Satellite Applications Catapult. [25]

    Seen it before

    Sugar crystals on a string grow neater if the jar is left completely still.

    The truth

    • 'It's not going to be commercially viable for every application,' Christian said. [25] Reliable results still have to be shown again and again. [25]

    What comes next

    Varda plans 7 more missions in 2027 and 10 in 2028. [25]

    Later this year, Britain's medicines regulator is expected to publish how its rules apply to drugs made in orbit. [25]

15. 16

    A British start-up plans a guard swarm in orbit

    What happened

    • Shield Space, a British start-up, wants to fly swarms of up to 100 tiny satellites to guard Western satellites. [26]
    • Chief executive Graeme Ritchie says 100 would cost under 100 million pounds, once the price of one satellite. [26]
    • The craft would use lasers or microwaves, and could keep working if controllers lost contact. [26]

    How it unfolded

    In May, 4 Russian military satellites came close to ICEYE-X36, a private radar satellite. [26] It is widely believed to help Ukraine. [26]

    In October, one of the 4 passed within 500 m of it. [26]

    1. Late 2027 Broadsword launches
    2. Then 100 km to 100 m

    Why it matters

    Those close passes have made Western countries keener on ways to defend satellites. [26]

    How it works

    Military planners call low-cost craft like these 'attritable', cheap enough to lose some. [26]

    Ritchie's sum: 100 small craft for the old price of 1, built from ready-made parts. [26]

    Seen it before

    In a board game you risk cheap pieces before you risk your queen.

    The truth

    • Bleddyn Bowen of Durham University likens it to Brilliant Pebbles, a Cold War plan. [26] He sees many years of testing, and a buyer still to find. [26]

    What comes next

    Its first test, Project Broadsword, flies in late 2027 on a SpaceX shared ride. [26] One small craft will close from 100 km to 100 m of another. [26]

16. 17

    SpaceX signs Qualcomm for its phone network

    What happened

    • SpaceX will use technology from Qualcomm, a big maker of phone equipment, in 'tens of thousands' of US 5G sites. [27]
    • This is for Starlink Mobile, SpaceX's plan to become a major US phone company. [27] It would compete with T-Mobile, AT&T and Verizon. [27]

    How it unfolded

    SpaceX has already bought a block of airwaves, the radio bands phones use. [27] Reports say it has looked at buying Boost Mobile. [27]

    Why it matters

    A new national rival would give US phone buyers another choice. [27] It would come from the company that launches most US rockets. [13]

    How it works

    SpaceX plans to combine sites on the ground with its satellites that talk directly to phones. [27]

    Seen it before

    A parcel firm uses vans in town and a long-distance lorry to reach everywhere else.

    The truth

    • The report gives no price for the deal. [27]

    What comes next

    The first go in during 2027, under a deal lasting several years. [27]

17. 18

    Taurid fireballs peak, with a second shower next week

    What happened

    • The Southern Taurids, a yearly meteor shower, reached their second peak overnight on 4-5 November. [28]
    • Up to 5 meteors an hour were expected. [28] This shower is known for fireballs, meteors at least as bright as Venus. [29]

    Who is involved

    Both come from debris left by Comet Encke, about 4.8 km wide. [29] It rounds the Sun every 3.3 years. [29]

    How it unfolded

    The first peak came on 14 October. [28] The American Meteor Society expected the fireballs to bunch around this second one. [29]

    1. 14 October first peak
    2. 4-5 November fireball peak

    Why it matters

    Fireballs are pebble-sized bits of that debris burning up as they hit the air. [28]

    How it works

    Astronomers call the spot meteors seem to fly from the radiant, here in the constellation Taurus. [28]

    Meteors near that spot strike almost head-on, so their trails look short. [28] Those further away skim the air and look longer. [28]

    Seen it before

    Snow flying at a car windscreen seems to burst from one point straight ahead.

    What comes next

    A second shower, the Northern Taurids, peaks overnight on 11-12 November in a nearly moonless sky. [28]

18. 19

    New faces in the US space committees

    What happened

    • Democrats took control of the US House and Senate, which brings new leaders to the committees covering space. [12]
    • Elaine Luria beat Jen Kiggans in the Virginia seat holding NASA's Wallops launch site. [12] Vicente Gonzalez won the Texas seat holding SpaceX's Starbase. [12]
    • In Colorado Springs, Jessica Killin led Jeff Crank by nearly 15,000 votes with 72% counted on Wednesday morning. [12]

    Who is involved

    Zoe Lofgren of California is the top Democrat on the House science committee, and Valerie Foushee on its space panel. [12]

    George Whitesides, who once ran the space-tourism firm Virgin Galactic, also returns. [12]

    In Florida, Republican Byron Donalds won the governor's race. [12] In August he set out a plan to boost the state's place in space. [12]

    • Zoe Lofgren House science committee
    • Valerie Foushee House space panel
    • Elaine Luria Wallops seat
    • Vicente Gonzalez Starbase seat
    • Byron Donalds Florida governor-elect

    Why it matters

    Payload says the result puts 'a big question mark' on money for Golden Dome, the US military's planned missile shield. [12]

    How it works

    Political scientists call this the committee system: winning gives a party the committees that help set the science agenda. [30]

    Payload expects the new leaders to champion space science. [12] The old US Congress still sits first, and a funding bill runs out in December. [30]

    Seen it before

    The pupils on a school council choose first what the money gets spent on.

    The truth

    • What is really going on In the US, Democrats won the Congress and will take over its space committees. [12]
    • Nobody knows yet

      Who wins the Colorado Springs seat, and how big the Democratic majorities are.

      Payload called that seat too close to call on Wednesday morning, and the final make-up of the US Congress is not settled. [12]