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This Week in Spacetime

Issue #2 · Week ending August 23, 2026
Spotlight
SpaceX · Christmas Island, Indian Ocean

SpaceX tows an intact Starship across the Indian Ocean after 24 days adrift

The Starship from SpaceX's 13th test flight splashed down in the Indian Ocean on July 24 and, to everyone's surprise, stayed upright instead of breaking up. A recovery ship has now towed it engine-first several hundred miles to Christmas Island, an Australian territory, where SpaceX engineers will inspect it in calmer water. Crews kept it afloat in rough seas with air-filled fenders, and Elon Musk had said days earlier that recovery was "not looking good." The ship will not fly again, since salt water and the tip-over damaged it, but a close look at its roughly 18,000 heat shield tiles is the real prize. Getting it back to Starbase would take a sea voyage of more than 10,000 miles.

Read the full story at Ars Technica Aug 18
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Headlines
  1. 01
    Muon Space · Mountain View, California

    Muon Space raises $250 million to build satellites at higher volume

    Muon Space closed an oversubscribed $250 million Series C led by Eclipse Capital, with Google, Salesforce Ventures, Galvanize, Wellington Management and others taking part. The round lifts the company's total funding past $386 million. Muon says it has more than 50 satellites in development for customers and is working with SpaceX's Starlink on payloads, onboard AI computing and high-bandwidth connectivity.

    Read the full story at Silicon Republic Aug 21
    Muon Space
  2. 02
    Blue Origin · Cape Canaveral, Florida

    Blue Origin plans a second New Glenn pad while it repairs the first

    Blue Origin intends to return Launch Complex 36 to a two-pad site, adding LC-36B as the home for the taller New Glenn 9x4, which has nine first-stage engines and is still in development. A separate team is starting that work, with a vertical integration facility and a payload processing building planned nearby. The company is still rebuilding LC-36A after a New Glenn exploded during a static test on May 8, and CEO Dave Limp says the rocket will fly again this year. Blue Origin has given no date for LC-36B or the 9x4 debut.

    Read the full story at Space.com Aug 17
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  3. 03
    L3Harris · Melbourne, Florida

    L3Harris names its space chief Sam Mehta as CEO after Kubasik exits

    L3Harris appointed Sam Mehta president and CEO, effective immediately, after the board parted ways with Chris Kubasik over violations of the company's code of conduct. L3Harris says the matter was not tied to finances, operations or customers and reaffirmed its 2026 outlook. Mehta, 53, joined in 2023 and most recently ran the Space & Mission Systems and Communications & Spectrum Dominance segments, which together make up more than 80 percent of sales. Lauren Barnes now leads Space & Mission Systems, and lead director Lewis Hay III becomes independent chairman.

    Read the full story at Via Satellite Aug 18
    L3Harris
Also this week
International Spotlight
  1. 01
    LandSpace · Gansu, China

    LandSpace lands a Zhuque-3 booster, a first for Chinese commercial rocketry

    On its second flight, LandSpace's methane-fueled Zhuque-3 put its first stage down on legs in Gansu Province about eight minutes after launch from the Dongfeng site. LandSpace calls it China's first successful land recovery of an orbital-class first stage. A fire broke out in the aft section after landing, and the company says it cut the number of engines used in the landing burn and redesigned the heat shielding. The first flight reached orbit last December but the booster crashed.

    Read the full story at Spaceflight Now Aug 19
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  3. 03
    ESA · Arianespace · Paris, France

    Europe shelves the planned Ariane 6 upgrades

    ESA has dropped Ariane 6 "Block 3" improvements, including the lighter ICARUS upper stage, which affects science missions such as a probe to Enceladus. Ars Technica reads it as impatience over cost: ESA says each flight needs a 32 to 38 million euro subsidy even at nine launches a year. Ariane 6 has flown eight missions, all reaching orbit.

    Read the full story at Ars Technica Aug 20

Summaries are written by From Blue to Black. Headlines and reporting belong to the linked publications.