Blue Origin Boosts Moon and Mars with NS-35, New Glenn, EscaPADE and Blue Moon
Blue Origin working with New Shepard NS-35 mission which is planned to launch asap, from Launch Site One in West TX, carrying over 40 research payloads, including 24 NASA TechRise student experiments on space farming and medical solutions. Johns Hopkins, University of Florida, Carthage College, Teledyne, and Teachers in Space contribute payloads, marking the 200th flown on New Shepard. The uncrewed RSS H.G. Wells capsule offers three minutes of microgravity. On NET September 29, 2025, Blue Origin New Glenn rocket lifts off from LC 36A, Cape Canaveral FL, for NASA US$80M EscaPADE mission. Twin spacecraft, built by Rocket Lab for University of California Berkeley Space Sciences Laboratory, will study Mars magnetosphere with NASA Goddard, Embry-Riddle, and Advanced Space support. Viasat adds a $20M communications payload. The 98-meter tall New Glenn aims for booster recovery on drone ship Jacklyn, challenging SpaceX and United Launch Alliance services. Potentially, as soon as November 2025, Blue Origin Blue Moon MK-1 lander could launch to Moon South Pole region, testing systems for Artemis missions. Founded by Jeff Bezos, Blue Origin drives competition, advancing sustainable exploration. (Image Credit: Blue Origin, NASA) |
MONDAY☆ Sep 1 — International Space Station, ~415-km LEO: Expedition 73 seven members with Commander Takuya Onishi (JAXA), and NASA Astronauts Anne McClain, Nichole Ayers, Jonny Kim, along with Roscosmos Cosmonauts Kirill Peskov, Sergey Ryzhikov, and Alexey Zubritsky will continue as a team until December 2025; maintaining spacesuit helmet-mounted cameras inside the Quest airlock, planning to receive cargo from SpaceX CRS-33. ☆ Sep 1 — Tiangong Space Station, ~390-km LEO: Shenzhou 20 three-member crew working with life sciences experiments involving nucleic acid drugs, will store samples for return to Earth in Nov; so far 58 experiments have been completed on TSS, 800+ kg of scientific and application payloads have been delivered, 27 types of samples transferred back down to Earth with 110TB of scientific data. ☾ Sep 1 — Moon Enterprise News: Weekly lunar advisories coming soon…. ☆ Sep 1 — Deep Space, Interstellar Space: NASA Voyager 1, now 24B km (about 160 AU) from Earth — continues its voyage through interstellar space; it recently detected a “fiery‑hot” zone exceeding 30,000 °C just beyond the heliopause, and continues to transmit scientific and engineering data. o Sep 1-4 — GSI Helmholtz Centre for Heavy Ion Research, University of Frankfurt, Buenos Aires, Argentina: Magic 2025: 2nd Workshop on Matter, Astrophysics, Gravitation, Ions and Cosmology. o Sep 1-5 — National Astronomical Research Institute of Thailand (NARIT), Chiang Mai, Thailand: K-12 Astro Asia 2025; education conference for teachers of astronomy, a separate subject in the mandatory curriculum of Thai schools; at Princess Sirindhorn AstroPark. |
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● = Terrestrial and o = International terrestrial events in local time; ☾ = Moon, ★ = Space and ☆ = International space events in Hawai’i time unless noted. |
Weekly Planet Watch – Morning Planets: Mercury (E), Venus (E), Jupiter (E), Saturn (E), Uranus (E), Neptune (E); Evening Planet: Mars (W).
DSEL 3rd Tiandu Forum Advances Lunar, NEO, Solar System Complete Exploration
The 2025 International Deep Space Exploration Conference (Tiandu Forum) is being held in Hefei, China on September 2-6 by main sponsor Deep Space Exploration Laboratory (DSEL) for academic and industry exchanges. China is boosting Hefei to become a 21st Century Science City. International experts will focus on the engineering planning of China’s deep space exploration and promote in-depth international cooperation for large-scale projects. The public and invite-only events include the 4th International Workshop on Lunar and Deep Space Exploration, International Lunar Research Station Workshop, 3rd National Near-Earth Asteroid Defense Conference, 3rd International Deep Space Exploration Conference and a Deep Space Night 2025 Gala Dinner. DSEL is a public institution of the People’s Government of Anhui Province, headquartered in Hefei and has branches in Beijing and Hainan. China is a leader in deep space exploration through a combination of groundbreaking robotic missions (the Chang’E lunar and Tianwen deep space programs), the operation of the Tiangong Space Station (its in 3rd year of continuous human occupation — the Tiangong-1 space station operated from 2011-2018), and ambitious future plans which include a permanent human lunar base, Mars sample return missions, and exploration of outer Solar System planets + beyond. (Image Credit: DSEL, CNSA, NASA)
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Ongoing… ● Jun 10 – Sep 30 — Adventures in Astronomy, Online / Bridgeport CT: Adventures in Astronomy-Approaching Infinity; 17 Zoom classes with George Roush. ★ NET Jul — United Launch Alliance, Launch Vulcan VC4L / Dream Chaser CRS2 Flight 1, SLC41, Cape Canaveral SFS FL: Uncrewed Sierra Space ~9-meter-long space plane to deliver ~3,500kg of cargo to ISS, whose Astronauts will use Canadarm2 to grapple and dock it. o Aug 1 – Sept 7 — CNSA, Hong Kong Science Museum, et al, Hong Kong, China: On display are near- and far-side lunar samples from Chang’E-5 and -6 and Chang’E-6 return capsule and parachute. ● Aug 25 – Oct 1 — American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA), Online / Reston VA: Orbital Mechanics and Mission Simulation Course; instructor Ken Ernandes of L3Harris and Florida Institute of Technology. ● Aug 26 – Sep 15 — NASA, Online / Washington DC: Accepting Proposals for 2026 Human Exploration Rover Challenge. ● Aug 31 – Sep 2 — Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex, KSC FL: Meet Astronaut Mike Foreman. ☆ NET Sep — Rocket Factory Augsburg, Launch RFA One / TBD, SaxaVord Spaceport, Shetland Islands, Scotland: RFA.space plans inaugural orbital launch since receiving vertical launch license from UK Civil Aviation Authority. TUESDAY★ Sep 2 — SpaceX, Launch Falcon 9 / Starlink Group 17-8, SLC 4E, Vandenberg SFB CA: Next batch of 24 satellites to launch for Starlink mega-constellation; Falcon 9 first stage B1097 to attempt landing on Of Course I Still Love You (OCISLY) barge. ☆ Sep 2 — Mercury: 1.17° NNE of Regulus, 06:00. WEDNESDAY● Sep 3 — Lunar Surface Innovation Consortium (LSIC), Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Lab, Online / Laurel MD: Maintenance and Repair for Sustainable Lunar Surface Infrastructure Workshop; 10:00-17:00 EDT. ☆ Sep 3 — Apollo Asteroid 2025 PF3: Near-Earth Flyby (0.041 AU) |
THURSDAY
o Sep 4-5 — Deep Space Exploration Lab (DSEL), CNSA, Hefei, China: 3rd International Deep Space Exploration Conference (Tiandu Forum 2025); and a ceremony for the International Deep Space Exploration Association (IDSEA).
☆ Sep 4 — Apollo Asteroid 2025 OX12: Near-Earth Flyby (0.058 AU)
FRIDAY
● Sep 5 — Gemini Observatory, Hilo HI: Maunakea Observatories Talk Story event; open to staff from all telescopes at 16:00 followed by a Pau Hana open to staff, ʻohana and friends at 17:00.
● Sep 5 — Lunar and Planetary Institute, Online: Award Applications Due: Eugene M. Shoemaker Impact Cratering Award; US$3,000 award winner announced at annual GSA conference, Oct 19-22.
☆ Sep 5 — Apollo Asteroid 2025 OG1: Near-Earth Flyby (0.037 AU)
SATURDAY
☆ Sep 6 — X-Ray Imaging and Spectroscopy Mission (XRISM), ~550-km LEO: JAXA XRISM studying galactic plasma, reaches 2nd full year / enters 3rd year in space, having launched 2023.
● Sep 6-7 — International Space Elevator Consortium, Orlando FL: International Space Elevator Conference 2025.
☆ Sep 6 — Apollo Asteroid 2025 MR92: Near-Earth Flyby (0.066 AU)
SUNDAY
o Sep 7-12 — EuroPlanet, American Astronomical Society, Helsinki, Finland: EPSC-DPS 2025 (EuroPlanet Science Congress); includes session TP11, Lunar Space Environment.
☾ Sep 7 — Moon: Full Corn / Blood Moon, 06:09; total lunar eclipse, and final eclipse of the year, visible in its entirety in Asia and Western Australia, with partial visibility in Europe, Africa, eastern Australia, and New Zealand– Penumbral begins 05:28:25, maximum 08:11:47, Penumbral ends 10:55:08.