New Space EconomyBusiness, Technology, and Trends

The Space Launch System represents the backbone of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration(NASA) architecture for deep space exploration. This super heavy-lift expendable launch vehicle enables the transport of astronauts and large cargo payloads to the Moon, Mars, and other destinations beyond low Earth orbit. Designed to facilitate the Artemis program, the vehicle integrates proven hardware from previous programs with modern manufacturing techniques and avionics. The system prioritizes high-mass throughput and volume, allowing for the launch of the Orion spacecraft along with co-manifested payloads in a single mission profile.

Peru’s journey into the stars is managed by a specialized institution known as the National Commission for Aerospace Research and Development (CONIDA) . Operating as the central nervous system for the country’s space activities, this organization bridges the gap between scientific theory and practical application. While many perceive space exploration as a pursuit reserved for global superpowers, Peru has carved out a distinct niche that focuses on sovereign data management and regional atmospheric research. The agency functions under the Ministry of Defense , reflecting its role in national security, yet its work influences agriculture, environmental monitoring, and urban planning across the South American continent.

NASA's Curiosity rover has been exploring Martian boxwork formations, suggesting prolonged groundwater presence, which raises new questions about ancient microbial life on Mars.

More than sixty years ago, Dr. Frank Drake and his colleagues conducted the very first experiment dedicated to the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence (SETI). Since then, astronomers have continued to scan space for signs of alien transmissions, predominantly in the radio spectrum. In more recent years, the search has expanded to include thermal signatures and optical flashes, and additional forms of technological activity ("technosignatures") are already being incorporated. So far, all these experiments have produced null results, prompting SETI researchers to consider what they might be missing.

Lunar dust remains one of the biggest challenges for a long-term human presence on the Moon. Its jagged, clingy nature makes it naturally stick to everything from solar panels to the inside of human lungs. And while we have some methods of dealing with it, there is still plenty of experimentation to do here on Earth before we use any such system in the lunar environment. A new paper in Acta Astronautica from Francesco Pacelli and Alvaro Romero-Calvo of Georgia Tech and their co-authors describes two types of flexible Electrodynamic Dust Shields (EDSs) that could one day be used in such an environment.

Science fiction stands as a literary genre that allows humanity to examine its potential futures, its technological trajectory, and the fundamental nature of existence. Throughout history, specific authors have elevated this form of storytelling from pulp entertainment to serious literature. These iconic figures did not merely predict the future; they constructed frameworks for understanding the human condition through the lens of the fantastic. The following examination identifies the most influential writers in the field, analyzing their contributions, their distinct styles, and the recognition they received from the literary community.

The Global Navigation Satellite System market, usually written as GNSS , is the set of commercial and institutional activities that deliver positioning, navigation, and timing services to people, devices, and critical infrastructure. GNSS exists because modern economies rely on location and time in ways that are easy to overlook. A smartphone map, an aircraft approach procedure, a container terminal schedule, a cellular network’s synchronization, and a power grid’s timing all depend on signals that provide a shared reference for “where” and “when.”

The ability to place a satellite into orbit using a domestically built rocket represents one of the most demanding technical and industrial achievements a nation can pursue. It requires mastery across propulsion engineering, avionics, structural design, materials science, and complex systems integration. Unlike building a satellite, which dozens of countries can do, constructing an orbital launch vehicle and operating a spaceport demands a level of industrial capacity that relatively few nations have achieved.

Theory shows that stars can collapse directly into black holes without first exploding as supernovae. In fact, this should be a relatively common occurrence. But despite that, astronomers have found scant observational evidence to support it.

Nearly two years after Boeing’s botched Starliner mission to the International Space Station, NASA put the mishap in the same category as the Challenger and Columbia space shuttle disasters — and said the spacecraft wouldn’t carry another crew until dozens of corrective actions are taken.

The history of human spaceflight is anchored by two definitive eras of lunar exploration. The first, driven by the geopolitical urgency of the Cold War, produced the Apollo Command and Service Module, a vehicle purpose-built to deliver three men to the Moon and return them safely before the end of the 1960s. The second, currently unfolding under the Artemis program, centers on the Orion spacecraft. While visually similar due to the immutable laws of aerodynamics, these two vehicles represent vastly different technological epochs, mission philosophies, and engineering methodologies.

The pursuit of space exploration often conjures images of massive orbital rockets and distant planetary landers. However, a significant portion of the most vital scientific data comes from the edge of space, collected by smaller vehicles known as sounding rockets. These rockets don't enter orbit; instead, they follow a parabolic path that takes them into the upper atmosphere before they return to Earth. Peru has established itself as a central hub for this specialized field, leveraging its unique geography and a legacy of indigenous engineering. At the heart of this endeavor is the National Commission for Aerospace Research and Development (CONIDA) , which manages the nation's primary space infrastructure and spearheads international collaborations that place Peru at the forefront of equatorial atmospheric science.

The development of the Artemis II spaceflight has encountered unexpected technical hurdles during late February 2026. After months of rigorous preparation, engineers recently executed a second wet dress rehearsal at the launch pad in Florida. This intricate procedure involves loading super-cooled propellants into the massive rocket to simulate a full countdown sequence without actually igniting the main engines. The initial part of this rehearsal concluded smoothly on February 19, with the massive tanks filling successfully and no significant leaks detected on the pad. The ground teams monitored the flow rates and temperature gradients, looking for any signs of instability within the complex plumbing.

Many factors influence a planet's habitability. The more obvious ones include being in a star's habitable zone and having a magnetic shield to protect it from radiation. But other important factors are less obvious.

Using local resources will be key to any mission to either the Moon or Mars - in large part because of how expensive it is to bring those resources up from Earth to our newest outposts. But Mars in particular has one local resource that has long been thought of as a negative - perchlorates. These chemicals, which are toxic to almost all life, make up between 0.5-1% of Martian soil, and have long been thought to be a hindrance rather than a help to our colonization efforts for the new planet. But a new paper from researchers at the Indian Institute of Science and the University of Florida shows that, when making the bricks that will build the outpost, perchlorates actually help.