Wednesday, 23 September 2026
Wednesday, 23 September 2026
- In brief
- 1NASA's chief says China is heading for the same few landing spots on the Moon. Partners now have to bring something NASA needs, in time.
- 2Judge lets SpaceX swap land in a wildlife refuge
- 3Top US officer says the battlefield reaches the Moon
- 4Starship's booster is on the pad, but not its licence
- 5A camera firm joins NASA's nuclear Mars craft
- TruthThe truth, across the day
23 Sept · Space · In brief
Space · Wednesday, 23 September 2026
Space, in brief
5 stories · 8 sources
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What is moving · 1 of 4
A race with China to the Moon
NASA's head says China and Russia are aiming for the same few landing spots near the Moon's south pole.
What is moving · 2 of 4
The calendar deciding arguments
NASA waved away a Moon lander because it would arrive after China's.
What is moving · 3 of 4
Permission still to come
Starship cannot fly to orbit until the US aviation regulator approves a licence it has never given for a craft this big.
What is moving · 4 of 4
US companies doing NASA's work
Isaacman said partners should not bring parts that compete with what US companies are already building.
5 stories
- 1NASA's chief says China is heading for the same few landing spots on the Moon. Partners now have to bring something NASA needs, in time.
- 2Judge lets SpaceX swap land in a wildlife refuge
- 3Top US officer says the battlefield reaches the Moon
- 4Starship's booster is on the pad, but not its licence
- 5A camera firm joins NASA's nuclear Mars craft
6 sources
Space, in brief
- 1NASA chief: I'm only interested in "good deals" from international partners
- 2The battlefield now extends all the way to the moon, U.S. military's highest-ranking officer says
- 4Judge won't block Trump administration from giving SpaceX acres of wildlife refuge in land swap
- 5SpaceX's Super Heavy booster arrives at pad ahead of first orbital Starship launch
- 6SpaceX rolls giant Super Heavy booster to pad ahead of Starship's 1st orbital flight
- 8TRL11 Will Build Imaging Tech for SR-1 Freedom
NASA's chief says China is heading for the same few landing spots on the Moon. Partners now have to bring something NASA needs, in time.
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Jared Isaacman, the head of NASA, spoke on 16 September at a conference for US military leaders and defence companies near Washington, DC.
Blue Moon Mark 1 is due to fly to a ridge near the south pole next year
it has already slipped; Isaacman had spoken of a launch in two months
US organisations took 68%
Who is involved
Jared Isaacman
the head of NASA, in his tenth month; he says NASA will take only partner deals that speed up the Moon programme
Who is involved
ESA
the European Space Agency, run by 23 member countries; it wants Moon seats for its astronauts but has no agreed part in NASA's Moon base
Why it matters
Watch whether ESA offers NASA a part no US company is building, since Isaacman says that is now the price of a seat for Europe's astronauts on the Moon.
What's really going on
NASA is now choosing its Moon partners by whether their part arrives before China reaches the south pole, and a European lander promised for the mid-2030s failed that test.
Who gains
US companies building Moon landers, such as Blue Origin
Isaacman said partner offers that compete with what US industry is building will not work, which keeps that work for them.
Who gains
Italy and Japan
Each gets two astronaut seats to the Moon for building a part NASA had no US contract for: a Moon home and a rover with air inside.
Who pays
ESA and its astronauts
Its Argonaut lander was waved away as too slow and too small, and its role in the Moon base is still undefined.
Who pays
Canada
The Gateway arm it was building lost its purpose when NASA cancelled the station.
Nobody knows yet
Which partner offered the mid-2030s lander.
Isaacman did not name it. Ars Technica says it was almost certainly ESA and its Argonaut lander, but neither side has confirmed it.
Nobody knows yet
Whether ESA's astronauts keep the Moon seats promised under Gateway.
Those seats came with Europe's parts for Gateway, which NASA cancelled in March, and no new deal has been agreed.
Nobody knows yet
Whether China is really aiming for the exact spots NASA wants.
That is Isaacman's claim, made to a defence audience. China's Chang'e 7 has already slipped to early 2027.
Nobody knows yet
What Canada will now build for the Moon.
Its robot arm was meant for Gateway, and an arm on the Moon's surface needs a different design. A US trade war with Canada makes a new deal harder.
Good news
Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen flew around the Moon on Artemis II earlier this year, the first time Canada has had a seat on an Artemis mission.
The short version
That's the story in short.
The whole story has 11 more parts.
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The whole story, in 11 parts ↓
Part 1 of 11 · Who else is involved
Italy and Japan
countries building a Moon home and a Moon rover for NASA; each gets two astronaut seats
Part 1 of 11 · Who else is involved
China
plans its own base near the Moon's south pole, with Russia; its Chang'e 7 robot mission is due in early 2027
Part 2 of 11 · How it unfolded
2024
The US and Japan sign the deal for Japan's Moon rover
March 2026
NASA cancels Gateway, its planned station circling the Moon, and signs Italy's Moon home deal
Part 2 of 11 · How it unfolded
March 2026
NASA cancels Gateway, its planned station circling the Moon, and signs Italy's Moon home deal
Early 2027
China's Chang'e 7 robot mission is due to head for the south pole
Part 3 of 11
He said the best place for a Moon base is a small area near the Moon's south pole.
Part 3 of 11
Deep craters there hold water ice.
Part 4 of 11
That ice could give a base water, air and rocket fuel.
Part 4 of 11
A few crater ridges above it get sunlight almost all the time, which means power.
Part 5 of 11
Isaacman compared the area to a city with only so many good parking spots.
Part 5 of 11
He said China, working with Russia, is heading for the same places.
Part 6 of 11
So NASA will now take help from other countries only when it is a good deal that speeds up the mission, he said.
Part 7 of 11
He praised Italy, which is putting more than $5bn into one of the first homes for astronauts on the Moon.
Part 7 of 11
Two Italian astronauts get to walk on the surface in return.
Part 8 of 11
He also praised Japan, which is building a rover with air inside for astronauts to drive.
Part 8 of 11
Japan also gets two seats to the Moon.
Part 9 of 11
He described one partner offering a robot lander for the mid-2030s, and said China would be launching there long before then.
Part 10 of 11
Ars Technica says that partner was almost certainly ESA, the European Space Agency, whose Argonaut lander would carry half the cargo of Blue Origin's first Moon lander.
Part 11 of 11
Europe wants more space power of its own.
Part 11 of 11
At a Paris summit on 10 September, France's president Emmanuel Macron said Europe must fly its own astronauts.
3 sources
NASA's chief says China is heading for the same few landing spots on the Moon. Partners now have to bring something NASA needs, in time.
The full story
NASA's chief says China is heading for the same few landing spots on the Moon. Partners now have to bring something NASA needs, in time.
Jared Isaacman, the head of NASA, spoke on 16 September at a conference for US military leaders and defence companies near Washington, DC.
He said the best place for a Moon base is a small area near the Moon's south pole. Deep craters there hold water ice.
That ice could give a base water, air and rocket fuel. A few crater ridges above it get sunlight almost all the time, which means power.
Isaacman compared the area to a city with only so many good parking spots. He said China, working with Russia, is heading for the same places.
So NASA will now take help from other countries only when it is a good deal that speeds up the mission, he said.
He praised Italy, which is putting more than $5bn into one of the first homes for astronauts on the Moon. Two Italian astronauts get to walk on the surface in return.
He also praised Japan, which is building a rover with air inside for astronauts to drive. Japan also gets two seats to the Moon.
He described one partner offering a robot lander for the mid-2030s, and said China would be launching there long before then.
Ars Technica says that partner was almost certainly ESA, the European Space Agency, whose Argonaut lander would carry half the cargo of Blue Origin's first Moon lander.
Europe wants more space power of its own. At a Paris summit on 10 September, France's president Emmanuel Macron said Europe must fly its own astronauts.
Why it matters. Watch whether ESA offers NASA a part no US company is building, since Isaacman says that is now the price of a seat for Europe's astronauts on the Moon.
Judge lets SpaceX swap land in a wildlife refuge
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A US federal judge in Texas, Fernando Rodriguez Jr., refused on Monday to block a land swap that gives SpaceX more than 700 acres of a wildlife refuge.
SpaceX hands over 683 acres it owns, and gets land in the Lower Rio Grande Valley refuge closer to its launch pad near the Mexican border.
The US Fish and Wildlife Service approved the deal in June.
The judge said the groups suing had weak evidence of harm, and that a pause would hurt SpaceX's ability to meet its milestones and contracts.
Why it matters
The Center for Biological Diversity, which sued alongside tribal groups, says bulldozers could move in as soon as next week, and that the lawsuit will continue.
Why it matters
The new land sits closer to SpaceX's Texas launch site, which the company has been growing for more than a decade.
How it works
When a rival sets the date, a late offer gets turned down
How it works
Once a rival plans to reach a place first, a partner's help is judged by when it arrives, not by how big it is.
How it works · step 1 of 5
A rival names a date to reach the same place
How it works · step 2 of 5
That date becomes your deadline too
How it works · step 3 of 5
Every offer of help is now judged by when it arrives
How it works · step 4 of 5
A big offer that comes after the date is turned down
How it works · step 5 of 5
A smaller one that fills a gap now is taken
The twist
Once a rival has a date, a partner's help is measured by its arrival date.
The twist
A lander promised for the mid-2030s was worth little to NASA, because China plans to reach the same spot in 2027.
The picture
Two dates for reaching the Moon's south pole. NASA judged the offer on the right by the gap between them.
Seen the same day
The judge counted a delay to SpaceX's milestones and contracts as a real harm, while the groups suing had to prove damage to the land.
Seen the same day
General Caine told the forces to change now, because rivals could contest space as far out as the Moon.
The catch
It only works while the rival's date is real.
The catch
China's Chang'e 7 has already slipped to early 2027, and a buyer who refuses slow help can find it needs that help once the rival's date moves.
The whole
China's Moon timetable changed plans this week for engineers at ESA and for astronauts in Italy, Japan and Canada.
The whole
None of them chose that timetable, and each of them sees only the part that lands on their own work.
Who gains
SpaceX
The judge's ruling lets it take refuge land closer to its Texas launch pad while the lawsuit goes on.
Who pays
The Lower Rio Grande Valley wildlife refuge
More than 700 acres of it pass to SpaceX, and campaigners say bulldozers could arrive as soon as next week.
Nobody knows yet
Whether the lawsuit can still undo the refuge land swap.
The judge only refused to pause the swap while the case goes on. The groups suing say they will keep fighting.
1 source
Judge lets SpaceX swap land in a wildlife refuge
The full story
Judge lets SpaceX swap land in a wildlife refuge
A US federal judge in Texas, Fernando Rodriguez Jr., refused on Monday to block a land swap that gives SpaceX more than 700 acres of a wildlife refuge.
Why it matters. The Center for Biological Diversity, which sued alongside tribal groups, says bulldozers could move in as soon as next week, and that the lawsuit will continue.
Top US officer says the battlefield reaches the Moon
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General Dan Caine, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and the highest-ranking US military officer, said on 16 September that today's battlefield runs from the seabed to the space around the Moon.
He spoke at the Air & Space Forces Association's conference near Washington, the same one where NASA's head gave his Moon speech.
Caine did not name China and gave no details of what fighting there would look like.
He said US forces cannot assume they will have safe, open access anywhere, and must adapt now.
Why it matters
Both the US and China plan bases near the Moon's south pole, the area Isaacman described the same week.
Why it matters
The day before, the Space Force's own chief said openly that it already runs weapons in orbit.
How it works
General Caine told the forces to change now, because rivals could contest space as far out as the Moon.
The idea, in story 2: When a rival sets the date, a late offer gets turned down →What's really going on
The same week, the top US military officer called the space out to the Moon a battlefield, and a Texas judge refused to slow SpaceX down on a land swap.
Nobody knows yet
What fighting around the Moon would actually look like.
General Caine used the phrase twice and gave no details.
3 sources
Top US officer says the battlefield reaches the Moon
The full story
Top US officer says the battlefield reaches the Moon
General Dan Caine, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and the highest-ranking US military officer, said on 16 September that today's battlefield runs from the seabed to the space around the Moon.
Why it matters. Both the US and China plan bases near the Moon's south pole, the area Isaacman described the same week.
Starship's booster is on the pad, but not its licence
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SpaceX rolled Super Heavy, the giant first stage of its Starship rocket, onto its Texas launch pad overnight on 20 to 21 September.
Starship's first try at reaching orbit is set for 28 September, six days later than first planned.
It can only fly once the US Federal Aviation Administration approves an orbital licence, which it has never given for a spacecraft this size.
If the upper stage could not steer itself home, large pieces could survive reentry and hit the ground, which is why the regulator is checking.
Why it matters
The flight is meant to carry 26 larger Starlink internet satellites, the first of a new kind that only Starship can launch.
Why it matters
Why it matters
SpaceX says this one flight adds about ten times the internet capacity of a Falcon 9 load of its current satellites.
Who pays
People under Starship's path home
If the upper stage failed to steer down, large pieces could survive reentry, which is the risk the regulator is checking.
Nobody knows yet
When the US aviation regulator will approve Starship's first orbital flight.
The 28 September date depends on a licence it has never given for a craft this size, and it has not said when it will decide.
Good news
On Starship's last test flight in July, the new Starlink satellites it carried unfolded their solar panels, photographed the rocket's heat shield and linked up with the rest of the network by laser before they came down as planned.
3 sources
Starship's booster is on the pad, but not its licence
The full story
Starship's booster is on the pad, but not its licence
SpaceX rolled Super Heavy, the giant first stage of its Starship rocket, onto its Texas launch pad overnight on 20 to 21 September.
Why it matters. The flight is meant to carry 26 larger Starlink internet satellites, the first of a new kind that only Starship can launch.
A camera firm joins NASA's nuclear Mars craft
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TRL11, a US company that makes cameras for spacecraft, has won a NASA contract to build the cameras and small onboard computers for Space Reactor-1 Freedom.
SR-1 is a $2bn NASA mission due to launch to Mars in late 2028, the first craft to travel between planets on power from a nuclear reactor.
It will also drop three small helicopters, called SkyFall, at Mars to scout for future crews.
Why it matters
Its chief executive said it will be the first time a camera the company built travels to another planet.
Why it matters
Firefly Aerospace has a $13m contract for the shell that protects the helicopters on the way down.
Who gains
TRL11
The contract puts its cameras on a NASA mission to another planet for the first time.
Nobody knows yet
How much TRL11's camera contract is worth.
Neither NASA nor the company has published a figure.
1 source
A camera firm joins NASA's nuclear Mars craft
The full story
A camera firm joins NASA's nuclear Mars craft
TRL11, a US company that makes cameras for spacecraft, has won a NASA contract to build the cameras and small onboard computers for Space Reactor-1 Freedom.
Why it matters. Its chief executive said it will be the first time a camera the company built travels to another planet.
The truth, across the day
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Why it works on people
A race with a named rival makes any delay sound like losing, so the question of whether going faster is worth its cost rarely gets asked out loud.
That's the whole Space day.
5 stories, 8 sources.