In April 1972, George Robert Carruthers, PhD (1939-2020) visited NASA Manned Space Center in Houston and watched as astronaut John Young positioned a gold-plated far ultraviolet camera / spectrograph on the Moon. The instrument, Carruthers's invention, was the first astronomical observatory on the lunar surface, landing in the Descartes Highlands […]
Featuring astrogeology, Spaceport America tour, et al with Kirby Runyon and Mark Wagner.
UCF Space Week includes Space Day
Luncheon Speaker / Topic TBA
NASA 12-U CubeSat Capstone acting as a pathfinder for planned International Lunar Gateway surpasses another year around Moon today; launched in 2022.
As USA and its international partners work toward Artemis 2 crewed mission around the Moon, Space Launch System and Artemis 1 mission is observed today for its successful uncrewed flight Nov 16 – Dec 11, 2022.
“Space” is one of 9 conference tracks. One speaker is Andreas Heitmann, Program Director, SpaceFounders, a space-tech accelerator, supporting 70+ startups from 20 countries that have collectively raised over €220 million.
Expecting 1500+ participants from 15+ countries
Webinar for astronomy educators in primary and secondary schools.
As China and international partners plan permanently occupied International Lunar Research Station and next-gen rockets for Solar System Complete exploration, observation of 1999 launch of Shenzhou-1, first experimental crewed spacecraft honored today.
Observing gamma-ray bursts & their afterglows in gamma-ray, X-ray, ultraviolet, optical wavelengths from LEO, multiwavelength craft surpasses another year of operations in space today, launched in 2004.
Announcement International Lunar Sample Research Symposium 2025 (http://www.ilsrs.org) After decades of lunar exploration since the Apollo era, lunar samples have become the largest treasure returned by human beings, as they have unlimited potentials to understand the Earth-Moon system. So far, lunar samples have been collected by USA’s Apollo-11, 12, 14, […]
Introducing youth to artificial intelligence, virtual reality, space, robotics. Includes WRO 2025: International Final events; follows regional robot competitions worldwide, for many ages and skill levels.
Will take crew to the International Space Station: cosmonauts Commander Sergey Kud-Sverchkov, Sergey Mikayev and Oleg Platonov, and NASA Astronaut Christopher Williams (a medical physicist on his 1st space flight); from spaceport operated by Russia within Kazakhstan.
Astrobotic Griffin to attempt Nobile Crater / Moon South Pole landing with Astrolab FLEX Lunar Innovation Platform (FLIP) rover; originally slated to carry with NASA Volatiles Investigating Polar Exploration Rover (VIPER).
Uncrewed 1st test flight for Gaganyaan orbital mission scheduled to occur before end of year, will carry fruit flies (Drosophila melanogaster); 1st crewed flight planned for 2026. Will launch aboard a Human-rated Launch Vehicle Mark 3 (HLVM3). Re-entering capsule will slow to 8m / sec before landing.
China National Space Administration (CNSA) Chang'E-5 lander at Statio Tianchuan "ship sailing in the Milky Way", Mons Rümker, Oceanus Procellarum, Moon (43° N, 51.9° W), surpasses another full year on lunar surface today; landed on this day in 2020, with sample return launching from the Moon 2 days later.
Conference intended for AIAA Region VII Students from around the world except Canada and Mexico, which have been incorporated into AIAA North America Regions. Online component to accommodate students not able to travel to Australia to present their paper in-person at University of Sydney. AIAA Region VII Student Conference is […]
European Space Agency (ESA) / National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) craft studying sun, surpasses another full year of operations in space today, launched 1995; discovered more than 3,000 comets.
OSMED 2nd annual conference. Shawna Pandya MD is Chair for OSMED International and Community Engagement Committee.
Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) Hayabusa surpasses another full year in space today; launched Dec 3, 2014, returned samples to Earth in 2020, and now in extended mission to flyby asteroid 98943 Torifune in 2026 and rendezvous with 1998 KY26 in 2031.
Topic: 2025 Recap, 2026 Look Ahead
European Space Agency (ESA) craft in Very Eccentric Elliptical LEO studying X-ray emissions, star-forming regions, galaxy clusters, environment of supermassive black holes, mapping dark matter, surpasses next full year in space today, launched 1999.
Topic / Speaker TBA
Appearing to radiate from constellation Gemini, shower can produce 80-130 meteors per hour; bright, medium-slow meteors (35 km/sec), few leave persistent trains; peak 00:00 UTC (Dec 13, 14:00 HST).
China National Space Administration (CNSA) spacecraft at Guang Han Gong "Moon Palace", Sinus Iridum / Mare Imbrium, 44.12°N 19.51°W, surpasses another full year on Moon surface, landed 2013.
NASA Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer spacecraft (redubbed Near-Earth Object WISE – NEOWISE) surpasses another full year in space today; launched 2009, went into hibernation February 17, 2011 and reactivated August 21, 2013.
Features Session P046-To the Moon: A New Era of Lunar Science, Session P030-Planetary Magnetism.
Korea Aerospace Research Institute (KARI) first lunar spacecraft Danuri surpasses another full year in lunar orbit today, having launched in Aug 2022 and reached Moon in Dec 2022.
Resupply mission to the International Space Station from spaceport operated by Russia within Kazakhstan.
ESA spacecraft surpasses another full year in space today; now in extended mission phase working to map more than 1 billion stars; launched in 2013.
Tent-camp by Falcon 9 rocket or Independence shuttle replica, and STEM activities.
Appearing to radiate from β star of Ursa Minor, Ursids are associated with comet 8P/Tuttle, they offer medium speed (33 km/sec), mostly faint with a few fireballs, 9-10 per hour, visible in northern Hemisphere 1 day before Last Quarter Moon; peak 14:00 UTC (00:00 HST).
NASA (STSci) / ESA / CSA infrared astronomy telescope surpasses next full year in space since launching on this day via Ariane 5 ECA rocket in 2021.
ESA spacecraft surpasses next full year in Mars orbit today; will continue to study Mars atmosphere & climate, planet structure, mineralogy, geology, and to search for traces of water; launched June 2, 2003 and arrived at Mars in Dec 2003.
Launch Long March 10A / First Test Flight: First flight of China Long March 10A rocket, precursor to Long March 10 intended to support crewed / cargo missions to the Moon with 2 launches, one for crew spacecraft Mengzhou and one for lander Lanyue that will rendezvous in lunar orbit; developed […]
Launch Soorya / Gaganyaan G2: India planning for 1st crewed flight of Gaganyaan to LEO ~400 km.
NET 2026 — Launch Blue Ghost Lunar Lander Mission 2 & Elytra Dark orbital transfer vehicle, TBD: Firefly Aerospace second lunar lander mission under $112M NASA CLPS to land on lunar far side with NASA payloads (RadPC, LuSEE-Night telescope, JPL User Terminal (UT), Australia’s Seismic Payload for Interplanetary Discovery, Exploration, and Research (SPIDER) by […]
NET 2026 — Launch Electron / Venus probe: Independent mission to Venus developed by Rocket Lab and MIT to send tiny probe flying in atmosphere for 5 minutes at altitude 48-60 km.
NET 2026 — Launch Martian Moons eXploration (MMX): Japan planning to launch its first Mars mission consisting of sample return probe; to conduct observations of Mars, Phobos and Deimos, collect Phobos sample, return to Earth.
NET 2026 — Launch Falcon Heavy / Astrobotic Griffin Lander Mission 2: Astrobotic Griffin planned to carry satellites to cislunar space and take commercial payloads to landing near Moon South Pole this year.
NET 2026 — Launch Atlas V / Starliner: Next launch of Starliner crew vehicle set to occur "early 2026", unknown whether craft will carry crew on this mission.
The 247th AAS meeting (joint with the High Energy Astrophysics and Historical Astronomy Divisions) will be held 4-8 January in Phoenix, Arizona.
The 7th China-Chile Bilateral Astronomy Conference for 2026 will be organized by the Laboratory for Space Research, FoS, the University of Hong Kong, in collaboration with the National Astronomical Observatories of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and the Chilean Astronomical Society, is scheduled to take place from January 5th to […]
AIAA SciTech Forum—the premier aerospace R&D event of the year exploring the science, technologies, and capabilities that are transforming aerospace.
Offering space, aviation and robotics program for girls ages 14-18, inspiring young women to aim for the stars.
SPIE Photonics West and subconference on Optical Power Delivery, key to development of Space Solar Power.
Although he went to the Moon with the name Edwin Eugene Aldrin Jr., he legally changed his name later. His older sister Fay Ann, as a toddler, mispronounced "brother" as "buzzer" when he was born. He was the 2nd person to walk on the Moon, arriving as the Lunar Module […]
NASA Astronauts Bob Crippen and Chris Ferguson will share personal highlights, stories and special moments of these historic flights, 45 years after STS-1 and 15 years after STS-135, at gala to raise funds for the Astronaut Scholarship Foundation. At Marriott West Palm Beach. Only 38 individual tickets are available, and […]
Covers main topics of the ESA JUICE Jupiter mission.
Increasing space awareness and education, remembrances and events honor three Apollo 1 crew members lost in 1967 during a launch pad test: Command Pilot Virgil “Gus” Grissom, Senior Pilot Edward H. White and Pilot Roger B. Chaffee.
Educational and ceremonial events held worldwide to advance space technology / education and honor 7 crew members killed in Shuttle accident 28 January 1986: Commander Francis R. “Dick” Scobee, Pilot Michael J. Smith, Astronaut Christa McAuliffe (the 1st ‘Teacher in Space’), Mission Specialists Ellison S. Onizuka, Judith A. Resnick and […]
Organized by Rocky Mountain Section of AAS; at Beaver Run Resort; US$225-780.
American Artemis Return to the Moon For Good is underway, Mars attention and planning advancing, Outer Solar System search for life ongoing, and Interstellar craft on outgoing trajectories while first USA satellite launch on this day in 1958 ‘Explorer 1’ is celebrated and remembered.