Celebrated as the first person to sequence DNA in space, NASA astronaut Kate Rubins returned from her second voyage to the International Space Station (ISS) April 17 having helped to advance the far-reaching technology and eager to see it become part of future human expeditions to the Moon and Mars.

Spire Global is to build a second smallsat to monitor microdebris in low Earth orbit with funding from Austrian new-space investor Findus Venture. 

The U.S. military has pushed launch of the Navigation Technology Satellite-3 (NTS-3) into fiscal 2023 at the request of a rideshare partner.

Bill Nelson, a former Democratic senator from Florida, soared through a hearing on his nomination to become the next NASA administrator before a Senate committee he once helped to lead.

Virgin Orbit has signed a six-flight contract to deliver a constellation of hyperspectral imaging satellites being developed by Qinetiq and HyperSat into low Earth orbit.

While it supports NASA’s ongoing Mars helicopter test campaign, the rover Perseverance on April 20 completed its first run of another technology demonstration, successfully converting some of the planet’s carbon dioxide atmosphere into oxygen.

Airbus’ OneSat new-generation satellite program is ready to enter the production phase, says Francois Gaullier, head of Airbus Telecom Systems.

As the U.S. Space Force plans to establish a Space Systems Command this summer, service leadership is already rallying Congress to alter the new command’s reporting structure for two important offices—the Space Development Agency and the Space Rapid Capabilities Office.