Canaveral National Seashore will implement temporary schedule changes at Playalinda Beach to support NASA’s upcoming Artemis II mission, the National Park Service announced on January 9th.
Beginning Sunday, January 12th, the Playalinda District will operate on reduced hours of 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., two hours shorter than the normal 6:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. schedule. The modified hours will remain in effect through January 31st.
Playalinda Beach Closures – Artemis II
Playalinda Beach Schedule Changes
Canaveral National Seashore – Artemis II Launch Support
Dates
Hours
Status
January 12 – January 30, 2026
8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
Reduced Hours
January 31 – February 6, 2026*
—
Closed
Day after successful launch
6:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m.
Normal Hours Resume
*Closure continues until day of successful Artemis II launch
Starting January 31st, the entire Playalinda Beach District will close completely and remain closed through February 6th—or until the day of a successful Artemis II launch. The closure encompasses the period when NASA’s first launch window opens for the historic crewed lunar mission.
Normal operating hours will resume the day following a successful launch.
Visitors planning trips to the seashore during this period should check the National Park Service website or contact the park directly for the latest access information.
Day OR Night Launch, Most Of MINWR Won’t Be Open For Spectators For Liftoff
The redundantly named Playalinda Beach (playa – beach, linda – beautiful in Spanish) offers some of the closest public viewing locations for launches from Kennedy Space Center and the north end of Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, but that will definitely not the case for Artemis II’s launch.
A Falcon 9 lifts off from LC-39A at Kennedy Space. Photo: Charles Boyer
Not only will Playalinda be closed, but if Artemis I in 2022 serves as any guide, much of Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge will be in the official security zone and the public will have no access, with KSC Police turning away unauthorized cars at the entrance to the Refuge (near the end of the Max Brewer Bridge on Beach Road.) On the north side, on FL-3, the Haulover Bridge was as far south as people were allowed.
The 2022 Artemis I Launch Hazard Area Source: US Space Force
Artemis II in the Vehicle Assembly Building. Photo: NASA
NASA has published its launch window availability for Artemis II, the agency’s first crewed lunar mission in over 50 years, with opportunities spanning February through April 2026. The Space Launch System rocket and Orion spacecraft are scheduled to roll out from the Vehicle Assembly Building to Launch Complex 39B NET January 17th.
The four-mile journey aboard Crawler-Transporter 2 will take up to 12 hours before the integrated launch structure and rocket arrive at their final destination.
After Artemis II is rolled out to LC39B, engineers and technicians will start pad integration tasks, including connecting essential ground support equipment such as electrical lines, environmental control system ducts, and cryogenic propellant feeds. After those tasks are successfully completed, teams will then power up all integrated systems for the first time at the pad.
All windows are 120 minutes, except for March 11th, which offers a slightly shorter 115-minute window.
Lighting Constraints Drive Window Selection
The published windows reflect careful consideration of lighting conditions, so that Orion is not in darkness for more than 90 minutes at a time post-launch, therefore allowing its solar arrays to keep generating power and the spacecraft to stay within its thermal limits. Dates that would put Orion into extended eclipses are removed from consideration.
Another consideration is that the launch window constraints ensure optimal conditions for tracking cameras and abort scenarios during the critical ascent phase.
NASA notes all dates remain subject to adjustments as the mission progresses through final preparations.
First Launch Opportunities Open February 6
The earliest available launch window opens on February 6, 2026, at 9:41 pm ET, with a 2-hour window. Launch opportunities continue through February 11th, followed by a brief gap, then resume mid-month. Each window in the February series shifts progressively later into the night, with the final February opportunity on the 11th occurring at 1:05 AM EST.
Should weather or technical issues prevent a February launch, NASA has identified windows throughout March and April. The March series begins on the 6th at 8:29 PM ET, while April windows open as early as 6:24 PM ET on April 1st—notably the only daytime launch opportunity in the released schedule, occurring approximately 1.3 hours before sunset.
An RL-10 engine being test fired at a Rocketdyne facility in West Palm Beach, Florida Credit: L3 Harris
L3Harris Technologies is spinning off the majority of its space propulsion business less than two years after absorbing Aerojet Rocketdyne.
The defense contractor announced today that AE Industrial Partners will acquire a 60% stake in its Space Propulsion and Power Systems division for $845 million. L3Harris retains the remaining 40% and expects to finalize the deal in late 2026, following regulatory approval.
L3Harris is headquartered in Melbourne and currently employs between 47,000 and 50,000 people globally.
What AE Industrial Partners Is Getting
The divested unit manufactures the RL10 upper-stage engine—currently flying on United Launch Alliance’s Vulcan rocket—along with electric propulsion thrusters and spacecraft power systems. Its hardware supports missions ranging from Mars rovers to NASA’s planned lunar Gateway station. The division also pursues advanced concepts in nuclear surface power and in-space nuclear propulsion.
AEIP is expected to revive the Rocketdyne name, one of the oldest in spaceflight. It was coined in 1955 when North American Aviation created a propulsion division.
“Rocketdyne is the birthplace of American rocket propulsion,” said Kirk Konert, managing partner at AE Industrial. He described the deal as creating a hybrid structure that combines defense-prime resources with the agility of a focused investor, with plans to modernize RL10 production while honoring the engine’s heritage.
The acquisition expands AE Industrial’s growing space portfolio, which already includes Firefly Aerospace, Redwire Space, and York Space Systems. Both parties indicated they will prioritize development of next-generation propulsion systems, particularly nuclear technologies considered essential for deep-space and cislunar operations.
What L3Harris Is Keeping
L3Harris is keeping the RS-25 program entirely in-house. The legacy engine, which powers NASA’s Space Launch System for Artemis lunar missions, carries long-term government contracts that the company will continue to fulfill as prime contractor.
Company leadership framed the partial sale as a strategic pivot toward missile production and other defense priorities. CEO Christopher Kubasik said the transaction “further sharpens our portfolio around core mission priorities” while supporting faster, more responsive defense manufacturing.
Starlink 10-17 lifts off from SLC-40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station on October 17, 2025. Photo: Charles Boyer
2025 was an incredibly busy year in spaceflight, both here at the Cape and also globally. By Christmas, providers broke previous orbital launch records, with over 300 successful flights globally, largely driven by SpaceX’s Falcon 9 for Starlink satellite deployments.
SpaceX further extended its dominance in 2025 with over 130 orbital launches across the year, the vast majority using its Falcon 9 rocket. The company continued flying at a pace unmatched by any other launch provider, supporting satellite deployments, ISS crew and cargo missions, and national security payloads in addition to continuing building out its wildly popular Starlink offering.
SpaceX launching IMAP on September 24, 2025. At this point in the flight, the rocket was passing through the speed of sound. Photo: Charles Boyer
Starlink
On October 25, 2025, SpaceX launched its 10,000th Starlink satellite. Space.com quoted noted satellite tracker Dr. Jonathan McDowell of the Harvard–Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, saying that there are currently 9,357 Starlink satellites in orbit, with 9,347 in operational positions. The constellation serves over 9 million customers across 100 countries and territories. It is estimated that the company adds around 20,000 new customers daily.
Reusable boosters remain central to that success. Several Falcon 9 first stages flew 20 or more times, reinforcing the idea that rapid reuse is no longer experimental but routine. One of its boosters, B1067, has now flown 32 times and is currently at SpaceX’s facilities at the Kennedy Space Center, being refurbished for another flight. The company has publicly stated that it seeks to certify Falcon 9 boosters for up to 40 flights, and in 2025, several of the company’s boosters have fewer than ten missions remaining to meet that goal.
Starship test flights also continued launching from Texas, focusing on vehicle upgrades, heat-shield performance, and recovery techniques aimed at future missions beyond Earth orbit. The company is also continuing to build out its Boca Chica infrastructure, with a new launch pad nearing completion at the end of this year. Flights from the new facility should take place in the first part of 2026.
Starship Heavy lifts off from Boca Chica, Texas to start the IFT-6 mission. Photo: Richard Gallagher, FMN
SpaceX also received approval to begin converting Space Launch Complex 37 (SLC-37) at Cape Canaveral for Starship operations. The site, previously used by United Launch Alliance’s Delta IV, gives SpaceX a second major East Coast launch location and points to long-term plans for higher-energy missions beyond Falcon 9.
SpaceX has stated that its goal is to launch from the Cape in 2026.
SpaceX has also begun construction of a new “Gigabay” facility for Starship at its Roberts Road site at Kennedy Space Center. That facility is large — not quite the size of the venerable VAB, but large nonetheless — and should be completed in 2026.
Blue Origin: New Glenn Finally Flies
After years of development, Blue Origin reached orbit for the first time with the debut launch of its New Glenn rocket in 2025. Flying from LC-36 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, the successful flight validated the vehicle’s core systems and marked the company’s entry into the heavy-lift orbital launch market.
Blue Origin NG-1 launch. Photo: Charles Boyer / Talk of Titusville
NG-1, Blue’s mission designation for the debut flight, also had a tertiary goal of landing the New Glenn first stage, but that effort was unsuccessful. The payload reached its target orbit, however, making the flight a rousing success for a company long discounted by many in the space community.
Momentum continued on New Glenn’s second launch, when Blue Origin successfully landed its reusable first-stage booster on its recovery ship ‘Jacklyn’. The recovery showed that the company’s emphasis on reusability was now operational and not theoretical, and it positioned New Glenn as a serious competitor in the heavy-lift category.
Notably, Blue’s second New Glenn flight was much smoother than the debut. This was an expected improvement, but it clearly showed that Blue had taken the lessons learned from NG-1 to heart, made operational improvements, and applied them to the NG-2 flight.
Blue Origin New Glenn NG-2 launches on November 13. 2025 Photo: Charles Boyer
2025 also saw Blue Origin significantly advancing its Blue Origin Blue Moon lunar lander program, as it continued preparing its Blue Moon Mark 1 (MK1) lunar lander for its first demo mission to deliver payloads to the lunar South Pole, presumably on the New Glenn NG-3 flight in early 2026.
Plans to reuse ‘Never Tell Me the Odds’, the booster used for the NG-2 flight, on NG-3. If successful, Blue Origin will achieve landing and then reusing a booster in relatively quick succession.
New Glenn booster ‘Never Tell Me The Odds’ returning to Port Canaveral
Blue is continuing development of its second lunar lander, Blue Moon Mark 2 (MK2). While they have made few public statements on the status and progress of the project, it is believed that they are building a flight-capable cabin for testing and crew training for the larger MK2, one of two of NASA’s selected crewed landers. Additionally, Blue is said to be working on life support, thermal control, and docking systems for MK2. Undoubtedly, the results from the MK1 mission will greatly inform the future designs of MK2.
Finally, Blue Origin created a new internal group focusing on national security missions for the US Government, and to run it they hired ULA’s CEO, Tory Bruno.
Tory Bruno
United Launch Alliance: A Year Full Of Change
2026 was a transitional year for United Launch Alliance, and one that has many observers wondering about the company’s long-term prospects, especially now that their former leader, Tory Bruno, has left to work for the competition.
ULA Vulcan USSF-106 launches in August of 2025. Photo: Charles Boyer
One one hand, the company has an estimated 70 launches backlogged, with the majority being LEO satellites for Amazon’s Leo telecommunications constellation. On the other, Vulcan has been slow to build any cadence, with August 2025 being the last launch and NET March 2026 for its next flight. That’s not going to trim the backlog appreciably.
The reasons go back to last year: October of 2024, Vulcan’s second flight, CERT-2 saw one of its solid rocket boosters (SRB) nozzles detach due to a manufacturing defect in the nozzle’s internal insulator, causing an off-nominal burn. However, the main engines compensated, kept the rocket on course, and the mission still achieved its orbital goals. The company and Northrop Grumman conducted an investigation to identify the issue and prevent any recurrence.
That took several months and most of ULA’s inertia but the company continued to soldier on with other missions while it waited for the results and corrections to Vulcan.
The power of Vulcan at liftoff. USSF-106. Photo: Charles Boyer
In written testimony to Congress in May 2025, Major General Stephen G. Purdy stated the Vulcan program had performed “unsatisfactorily“ over the past year. He noted that “major issues with the Vulcan have overshadowed its successful certification,” directly resulting in the grounding of four national security missions.
Due to Vulcan’s delays, the original 60/40 mission split favoring ULA under the NSSL Phase 2 contract shifted closer to 54/46 (or nearly 50/50) in 2025, as more missions were awarded or reassigned to SpaceX. Now, Blue Origin is also in the competition future NSSL launches, with Blue expected to complete NSSL Certification next year. SpaceX isn’t going anywhere either, leaving ULA walking a tightwire in the coming year.
On August 13, 2025, ULA successfully launched its first national security mission for the U.S. Space Force using a Vulcan VC4S. The mission deployed NTS-3, an experimental navigation satellite designed to enhance GPS resilience and was a complete success.
With its Delta family retired, ULA successfully conducted four major launches for Amazon’s broadband constellation (Project Kuiper, now Amazon Leo) using Atlas V rockets. All of those missions were textbook perfect, as has been customary for the rocket.
ULA is planning to increase its launch cadence in 2026, and has all but completed a second launch tower and vertical integration facility for Vulcan.
Finally, close to the Christmas holiday, ULA announced that CEO Tory Bruno had resigned “to pursue another opportunity.” For Bruno, that opportunity turned out to be leading Blue Origin’s new National Security Group, where he will ostensibly be competing with his old company for lucrative USSL launches. At Blue Origin, Bruno will have a reusable rocket system in hand, while ULA will compete with its Vulcan rocket and the vast depth of experience the company has on its resume.
John Elbon. Credit: ULA
ULA COO John Elbon was named as the Interim CEO in a press release issued today. John Elbon is the chief operating officer for United Launch Alliance (ULA). Before his new role, Elbon was responsible for the operations of the Atlas, Delta, and Vulcan Centaur launch vehicle programs, including design, engineering, integration, production, quality assurance, and program management.
Previously, Elbon served as vice president and program manager for Boeing’s Commercial Programs. In that position, Elbon managed Boeing’s efforts on NASA’s Commercial Crew Space Act Agreements, including the first two phases of the Commercial Crew Development, which for Boeing was the Starliner CST program.
Rocket Lab
In 2025, Rocket Lab completed 21 Electron launches, maintaining one of the highest success rates in the small-satellite market and continuing to serve commercial, civil, and national security customers. Electron missions flew from both New Zealand and Virginia, reinforcing Rocket Lab’s value as a responsive, geographically flexible company.
At the same time, much of Rocket Lab’s strategic focus shifted toward the future with continued development of Neutron, its upcoming medium-lift, partially reusable rocket. Throughout 2025, the company advanced engine testing, structural manufacturing, and launch infrastructure work at Wallops Island, Virginia.
A Rocket Lab Electron launching from Wallops Island in Virginia.
While Neutron did not fly during the year as the company had expected, visible progress signaled Rocket Lab’s intent to move beyond small payloads and compete for larger commercial constellations and U.S. government missions later in the decade.
Beyond launch vehicles, Rocket Lab also expanded its space systems business, delivering spacecraft components, solar panels, and complete satellites to a growing customer base.
Rocket Lab’s share price rose sharply in 2025, with investors seeing significant gains in their positions.
Via Google
Taken together, 2025 was not a year of dramatic firsts for Rocket Lab, but one of consolidation and preparation — proving it could sustain a high launch tempo today while methodically building the capability to play a much bigger role in the launch market of the future.
NASA
The year was marked by layoffs, with uncertainty and dread a prevalent mood for many at the agency as the new presidential budget called for drastic cuts in NASA’s science programs.
The year also saw a great deal of preparation for a return to the Moon under Artemis, a major anniversary for the International Space Station, and visible progress in science, aviation, and artificial intelligence. It was also a year of leadership change, with private-space veteran Jared Isaacman nominated and later confirmed to a senior NASA leadership role, signaling closer alignment between the agency and the commercial space sector.
Workers preparing Artemis II in NASA’s VAB on February 25. 2025.
The year set the tone for a decade defined by sustained activity rather than isolated milestones.
Lunar exploration remained a central focus. NASA continued methodical preparations for Artemis II, the first crewed mission to orbit the Moon since Apollo, completing the stacking of the Space Launch System rocket and Orion spacecraft and running dozens of mission simulations to stress-test procedures and crew timelines. At the same time, the Commercial Lunar Payload Services program delivered tangible results.
Firefly Aerospace’s Blue Ghost Mission One achieved a successful lunar landing in early March, while Intuitive Machines’ second Nova-C lander reached the surface days later, gathering data despite landing on its side. Together, the missions reinforced NASA’s strategy of using commercial partners to deliver science and technology to the Moon more frequently and at lower cost.
Firefly’s Blue Ghost on the lunar surface, with Earth in the background. Credit: Firefly Aerospace
Beyond the Moon, NASA continued expanding its deep-space science portfolio. In November, the twin ESCAPADE spacecraft were launched toward Mars to investigate how the planet’s weak magnetic environment interacts with the solar wind, a key factor in understanding how Mars lost much of its atmosphere. Planning for future lunar surface science also advanced when Blue Origin was selected to deliver the VIPER rover to the Moon’s south pole later in the decade, keeping the agency’s search for water ice on track.
Space science and Earth observation saw several high-profile missions reach orbit in 2025. In March, NASA launched the SPHEREx space telescope to conduct an all-sky infrared survey while also deploying the PUNCH mission to study the Sun’s outer atmosphere and the origins of the solar wind.
Over the summer, the NISAR satellite, a joint mission with India’s ISRO, lifted off to provide unprecedented radar mapping of Earth’s ice sheets, forests, and changing landscapes. Astronomers also turned their attention outward as NASA coordinated global observations of 3I/ATLAS, only the third confirmed interstellar object ever detected passing through our solar system.
Closer to home, the Lucy spacecraft added another successful asteroid flyby to its mission, passing 52246 Donaldjohanson and returning detailed images that will help refine models of early solar system formation.
ISS. Credit: NASA
Human spaceflight milestones were just as prominent aboard the International Space Station. In November, the ISS marked 25 consecutive years of continuous human presence in orbit, a milestone that underscored its role as a testbed for long-duration missions beyond Earth.
Earlier in the year, astronaut Suni Williams set a new record for cumulative spacewalk time by a woman, reflecting both the station’s ongoing maintenance demands and the growing experience of its crews. Williams had the opportunity to mark that achievement because she and Butch Wilmore were part of the ill-fated Boeing CFT mission that launched in 2024 and led to an unexpected nine-month stay on station. The Boeing CFT astronauts joined Crew 9, which launched in September 2024 and landed in the Pacific Ocean on March 18, 2025.
Boeing Starliner CFT-1astronauts on May 29, 2024
Logistics capabilities also expanded with the arrival of Northrop Grumman’s first Cygnus XL cargo spacecraft, which delivered larger payloads and increased flexibility for station resupply. SpaceX provided the lift for Cygnus, as Northrop Grumman has yet to complete development of a new Antares 300-series replacement.
NASA also made visible progress in aviation and emerging technologies. The X-59 quiet supersonic aircraft completed its long-awaited first flight in October, validating a design meant to dramatically reduce sonic booms and potentially reopen the door to commercial supersonic travel over land.
X-59 quiet supersonic aircraft. Credit: NASA
In materials science, the agency’s heat-resistant superalloy GRX-810 earned recognition as NASA’s 2025 Commercial Invention of the Year, highlighting work aimed at improving engines and structures for extreme environments.
Taken together, 2025 was less about a single headline mission and more about steady progress across many fronts. NASA strengthened its lunar pipeline, celebrated a quarter-century of continuous human spaceflight, launched major new science missions, and laid the groundwork for how future exploration will be managed and analyzed. They also got a new administrator after a tumultuous nomination process. Jared Isaacman will bring many new ideas and changes to the agency, changes that will hopefully rejuvenate and reinvigorate the US space program.
As seen from the KSC Press Site: SpaceX B1090 descends towards a landing at Cape Canaveral after lofting Crew 10 to the edge of space on March 14, 2025. Photo: Charles Boyer
Others
Sierra Space
In 2025, Sierra Space moved its Dream Chaser program through a series of important ground milestones while also reworking its near-term flight plans. The spaceplane, named Tenacity, completed extensive pre-flight testing, including electromagnetic compatibility checks and runway tow trials, clearing several technical hurdles ahead of flight. That flight, planned for 2024, will now take place in 2026. Maybe.
Dream Chaser Tenacity at Kennedy Space Center Photo: Sierra Space
The program’s first mission was significantly reshaped. What was initially planned as a cargo run to the International Space Station was revised into a standalone orbital demonstration, now targeted for late 2026. NASA amended its contract with Sierra Space, removing guaranteed ISS delivery missions as the company redirected more attention toward defense and national security work.
As a result, Tenacity’s debut will focus on proving core flight and reentry capabilities rather than docking operations. The change reflects both development challenges and the additional certification steps required for ISS missions. While near-term station flights are no longer assured, Dream Chaser could still play a role in future logistics, including potential cargo deliveries to commercial space stations such as Orbital Reef, once the vehicle completes its initial orbital testing.
Relativity
Eric Schmidt
In 2025, Relativity Space entered a new phase after a major leadership shakeup. In March, Eric Schmidt stepped in as chief executive following a substantial investment in the company. Under his leadership, Relativity moved away from its earlier goal of fully 3D-printed rockets, adopting a more pragmatic hybrid manufacturing strategy while accelerating development of its larger, reusable Terran R launch vehicle.
Schmidt is a former Google
Stoke Space
Stoke Space, the Kent, Washington, company founded by former Blue Origin and SpaceX employees, had a good 2025, making major progress toward the first launch of its Nova rocket.
Rockets need launch pads, and Stoke has rebuilt SLC-14 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station to modern standards for Nova. This is no small accomplishment, and on top of that, Stoke was respectful of the history of 14: this is where John Glenn launched in Mercury-Atlas 6, becoming the first American to orbit the Earth.
Bird's eye view of SLC-14 looking sharp. Kudos to the team who refurbished this historic site. 🚀 pic.twitter.com/XOU02lDQNF
As for Nova itself, work is focused on final hardware qualification as the company simultaneously activates SLC-14. Stoke had previously planned for a 2025 debut of Nova, but mid-year, the company shifted to the right on the launch calendar in order to complete SLC-14 and to iron out any remaining issues with Nova.
The 40.2-meter (132-foot) tall rocket is expected to fly in the early part of next year. Stoke is also planning to slowly introduce reusability, so expect the first launch to be expendable.
Boeing
In 2025 Boeing welcomed a new CEO, Kelly Ortberg, previously the president and CEO of Rockwell Collins. Ortberg promised major changes throughout the company, including its spaceflight division.
In November 2025, NASA reduced Boeing’s Commercial Crew contract from six planned missions to the International Space Station (ISS) down to four. This followed technical issues during the 2024 crewed flight test that necessitated the astronauts’ return on a SpaceX vehicle in early 2025. The next mission for Starliner will be uncrewed and carrying cargo, but no date for that mission has been announced.
The news was not all bad for Boeing: their autonomous X-37B spaceplane continued its eighth mission, conducting long-duration orbital experiments as well as novel orbital maneuvers that can quickly place the spacecraft in a new orbit very quickly. In the quickly militarizing orbital environment, this is a tactical advantage yet to be demonstrated by any other nation.
The X-37B. Credit: Boeing
Boeing also continued working on the SLS core stage. It’s Artemis II hardware is in the VAB awaiting rollout and at the time of this writing, the core stage for Artemis III is in an advanced state of manufacturing. After that, it is difficult to tell if the SLS rocket will be canceled by NASA and the Trump administration or if Boeing and others will continue manufacturing the rocket.
Taken overall, the year was an incredibly exciting one, but also one that sets the stage for the future: in 2026 humans will return to cislunar space and further development for landing on the lunar surface will continue apace. Vast Space is planning to launch Vast-1, the first privately owned and operated space station in LEO. We’ll also see SpaceX passing 10,000 Starlink satellites on orbit at some point in 2026, along with Amazon’s nascent Leo constellation starting to take form. There will be new rockets making their debut, and in between, lot of launches, especially Falcon 9 launches.
Stay tuned.
Atlas V Amazon Leo 4 timelapse as seen from 528 West in Merritt Island. Photo: Charles Boyer
“Earthrise” by William Anders, on December 24, 1968
Today, in 1968 aboard Apollo 8, NASA astronaut Bill Anders captured “Earthrise” — one of the most iconic photographs of the Apollo era. For the first time, humans were able to the Earth from the perspective of the moon.
Later, Anders recalled seeing “…a very fragile looking Earth, a very delicate looking Earth, I was immediately almost overcome by the thought that here we came all this way to the Moon, and yet the most significant thing we’re seeing is our own home planet, the Earth.” Using a highly modified Hasselblad 500 EL camera outfitted with a 250mm telephoto lens, Anders, with a click of the button, had captured a moment of personal epiphany and perhaps one of the great works of art of our time.
In 2018, the International Astronomical Union named a 25-mile-diameter crater “Anders’ Earthrise” in honor of both the man and the photograph. A smaller crater was also renamed “Eight Homeward.” You can see both of the memorialized craters in the iconic Earthrise photograph.
Fast Forward To 2026
Soon, the Artemis II astronauts will travel further away from Earth than Apollo 8, about 250,000 miles (400,000 km) from home. Depending on the launch date, it may even eclipse Apollo 13, humanity’s current record holder, which was farther from Earth than any other mission. If so, on that spaceflight, they will have the opportunity to capture views of our home planet from places humanity has never been.
Artemis II Gear
Artemis II’s astronauts will have two Nikon D5 digital single-lens reflex cameras available inside the cabin. These are professional-grade still and video cameras, selected both for public affairs imagery and for the crew’s own photographic priorities. Equipped with wide-angle and long-range lenses, the cameras are expected to capture everything from close-quarters life inside Orion to distant views through the spacecraft’s windows during the lunar flyby.
A 50,000 foot overview of Artemis II’s image planning. From the NASA Orion Imagery Working Group (OIWG)
The choice of the Nikon D5 was not accidental. The camera is known for its low-noise performance and high dynamic range, qualities that allow it to handle the stark contrast between sunlit spacecraft surfaces and deep shadow in space. The same will be true for a brightly lit lunar environment, where the sunlight surfaces and craters in shadow are like night and day.
Just as critical for a deep-space mission, the D5 has shown strong resistance to radiation effects, helping ensure reliable operation beyond low Earth orbit where exposure levels are significantly higher. Still, it is an old camera by today’s standards, but just because something is old does not mean it is not useful.
Specification
Details
Production start
January 2016
Production ended
February 2020
Sensor type
CMOS
Sensor size
35.9 mm × 23.9 mm (FX)
Effective resolution
20.8 MP
Image dimensions
5568 × 3712
Size
160 × 158.5 × 92 mm
Weight
1405 g
Card types
CF / XQD
Ports
USB 3.0, HDMI, Ethernet
ISO
100–102,400
FX vs DX:
FX is Nikon’s full-frame sensor format, favored for spaceflight because it handles extreme contrast and low-light conditions more effectively than smaller DX sensors.
Video from the Nikon cameras can also be routed through Orion’s onboard ZCube encoder, allowing selected footage to be compressed and sent to the ground during the mission. Bandwidth limitations mean not everything can be transmitted live, but the system supports high-definition and ultra-high-definition recording, preserving higher-quality footage for return with the spacecraft after splashdown.
An astronaut on EVA with a Nikon D5. Photo: NASA.
Nikon’s History With NASA
Nikon and NASA have had a working relationship since Apollo 15.
For much of the past decade, Nikon DSLRs formed the backbone of ISS still photography. Cameras such as the Nikon D4, released in 2012, and later the Nikon D5, released in 2016, became familiar tools for astronauts documenting everything from spacewalk preparation to dramatic Earth imagery through the station’s windows. These cameras were favored for their ruggedness, low-light performance, and compatibility with a wide range of lenses already qualified for spaceflight.
Nikon NASA Timeline
Year
Milestone
1971
The Nikon Photomic FTN* (NASA specifications) and NIKKOR lens were used on Apollo 15.
1980
The “Small Camera”, based on the Nikon F3 film SLR camera and equipped with a motor drive, and the F3 “Big Camera”, which utilized long film, were delivered to NASA.
1981
The “Small Camera” was used aboard the Space Shuttle Columbia launched the following year.
1999
The Nikon F5 film SLR camera and AF NIKKOR lens were carried aboard the Space Shuttle Discovery to photograph extravehicular activities (EVA).
2008
The Nikon D2XS digital SLR cameras were delivered to NASA. Six D2XS cameras are used in space to document activities such as inspection and maintenance.
2013
A total of 38 Nikon D4 digital SLR cameras, 64 NIKKOR lenses, including the AF-S NIKKOR 800mm f/5.6E FL ED VR, and various other accessories were delivered to NASA.
2013
These products are used, among other things, to check solar panels and outer surfaces of the ISS.
2016
An additional 10 Nikon D4 digital SLR cameras were delivered to NASA, and are also used to check solar panels and outer surfaces of the ISS.
2017
10 unmodified Nikon D5 DSLR bodies were sent to the ISS on Orbital OA-8 (November 12) to replace older models, reusing existing lenses.
2024
Multiple Nikon Z9 bodies and lenses were delivered on Northrop Grumman’s NG-20 resupply mission (launched January 30), marking the first time Nikon’s mirrorless technology was used on the ISS and replacing the D5/D6 cameras as the primary imaging systems.
The most prominent Nikon camera currently in use on the ISS is the Nikon Z9, which was delivered to the station in 2022. The addition of the Z9 represented a major step forward for on-orbit imaging, offering a high-resolution stacked sensor, fast readout, and strong video capability without a mechanical shutter. Astronauts use it for Earth observation, operational documentation, and public-affairs photography, often paired with long telephoto lenses for detailed imagery of weather systems, cities, and natural features.
That said, using the D5 in lieu of the Z9 is an interesting choice.
Specification
Nikon D5
Nikon Z9
Camera type
DSLR
Mirrorless
Production start
2016
2021
Sensor type
CMOS
Stacked CMOS
Sensor size
35.9 mm × 23.9 mm (FX)
35.9 mm × 23.9 mm (FX)
Effective resolution
20.8 MP
45.7 MP
Image dimensions
5568 × 3712
8256 × 5504
ISO range
100–102,400
64–25,600
Viewfinder
Optical
Electronic
Video
4K 30p
8K 60p
Card types
CF / XQD
CFexpress B
Weight
≈ 1405 g
≈ 1340 g
ISS role
Legacy still camera
Primary ISS handheld
Storage space and unimpeachable reliability are possibly the basis of NASA’s decision to go with the older camera, or it could be that the selection was made before the agency had experience with the newer gear. The Z9 will be part of the Artemis III roster and will be used on the lunar surface.
In addition to the NASA-owned handheld cameras, Artemis II will also carry a set of National Geographic cameras. These handheld GoPro units are flying as a dedicated payload for a Disney and National Geographic documentary. The cameras will be operated by the crew throughout the mission, but their footage will not be downlinked during flight. Instead, the recorded material will return to Earth aboard Orion, offering a behind-the-scenes look at the mission once the capsule is recovered.
The Moon and Earth, as photographed from Artemis I. Photo: NASA
Other Cameras Aboard Artemis II
Supporting all of this handheld imagery is a dense network of fixed cameras mounted throughout the spacecraft. Inside the cabin, wireless cameras and human health monitoring cameras document crew activity and vehicle performance, particularly during dynamic phases such as launch, ascent, entry, and landing. One of these interior cameras will stream live video from crew ingress through ascent, giving mission controllers real-time insight into conditions inside Orion.
Outside the spacecraft, fixed exterior cameras track critical events such as solar array deployment, spacecraft separation, and vehicle inspections. These views are essential for engineers, but they also continue a tradition dating back to Apollo, showing the realities of spaceflight from the spacecraft itself. Altogether, 28 cameras will support Orion during Artemis II, making it one of the most extensively documented human spaceflight missions to date.
Artemis II will not land on the Moon, but will very possibly carry humans farther from Earth than ever before, and the imagery plan reflects a careful balance. Engineering needs come first, but with crew handheld cameras and a dedicated National Geographic payload onboard, Artemis II is also set to capture the human experience of deep space, one frame at a time.
Artist’s rendering of Starships on the lunar surface. Graphic via SpaceX
SpaceX issued an update today outlining their planned path forward for Starship, its lunar lander variant, and another affirmation that the Moon plays a critical role in its long-term plan to establish a sustained human presence beyond Earth.
At the heart of the effort is Starship, a fully reusable, two-stage launch vehicle that SpaceX says is designed “for Moon, Mars, and beyond.” But the Moon is up first. The vehicle is being adapted to support both cargo and crewed lunar missions with plans to use both.
SpaceX is a key player in NASA’s Artemis program. Its lunar Starship variant was selected as the Human Landing System (HLS) for Artemis III—the mission that will return astronauts to the Moon for the first time since 1972. That landing, targeting the lunar south pole, could happen as soon as the late 2020s, depending on development progress of the lander and other key equipment, such as the EVA suits the astronauts will use once they get there.
In parallel, SpaceX is preparing its own launch infrastructure both here on the Space Coast and at Starbase in south Texas, where flight tests are steadily ramping up. The goal: make rapid reusability and high payload capacity a routine part of deep space logistics.infrastructure like rovers, habitats, and power systems. The Eastern Range will serve as the operations launch site, with support from Texas. Meanwhile Texas will continue its role as the R&D center for Starship.
What’s The Rush?
The Moon’s south pole is a region believed to hold water ice within permanently shadowed craters. This resource is key for producing oxygen, fuel, and potentially even drinking water for future astronauts, making the South Pole one of the most strategically valuable spots on the Moon.
While the Outer Space Treaty of 1967, a multilateral treaty that forms the basis of international space law, forbids any entity claiming ownership of a celestial body, it is also simple common sense that if someone establishes a base or colony on a given spot on the Moon or Mars, it is “theirs” for all practical purposes. For the Moon’s resources, getting there and establishing a permanent presence is a strategic interest for both China and the US.
Planning For Long Stays
Unlike the Apollo missions’ Lunar Module, SpaceX is building Starship for permanence. Starship is anticipated to spend extended periods in space and on the lunar surface. Artemis III, the first mission, anticipates a seven-day stay on the Moon. Artemis X, should the program get that far, could be one to six months long. Starship will need to be able to fly and carry crew after that.
NASA is also tasking SpaceX to deliver cargo to the lunar surface prior to a crewed landing. The company’s overall plan includes an uncrewed Starship Cargo variant, which will deploy essential supplies and infrastructure before astronauts even arrive, meeting NASA’s requirements. These early robotic missions will test and qualify Starship’s systems and lay the groundwork for longer stays, science operations, and industrial activity.
The Moon will serve as a proving ground for systems that SpaceX eventually wants to use on Mars: in-situ resource utilization, deep-space life support, surface mobility, and long-duration habitation. Starship will play a major role in any of those efforts and the Starship Cargo variant promises to be quite a busy set of spacecraft.
Technical Hurdles
Major technical hurdles remain. Landing Starship on the Moon requires precise control in a low-gravity environment, along with in-space refueling—something no space agency or company has done yet. There’s also the complex choreography of launching cargo missions ahead of crewed flights and assembling a sustainable support chain between Earth and the Moon. There’s a long way to go.
Still, SpaceX appears quite committed to solving these problems quickly, with an eye on both NASA’s timelines and its own broader lunar strategy. They’ve also made tremendous progress, according to their update:
Full-scale cabin test with crew to validate oxygen/nitrogen injection, air, humidity, thermal, and sanitation controls.
Docking Adapter Qualification
Tests SpaceX’s docking system for Orion–Starship linkup, based on Dragon 2 hardware.
Landing Leg Drop Test
Dropped full-size leg article onto simulated lunar surface to study landing behavior.
Raptor Lunar Landing Throttle Test
Simulated lunar landing thrust profile with Raptor engine.
Micrometeoroid & Debris Testing
Analyzed shielding and material stackups to protect Starship from impacts and heat in space.
Landing Navigation Demos
Tested sensors, software, and radar for accurate lunar descent and landing.
Software Architecture Review
Defined control systems, fault detection, telemetry, and alert functions for lunar Starship.
Raptor Cold Start Demo
Simulated cold engine restarts after long exposure to space conditions.
Integrated Mission Ops Review
Outlined NASA–SpaceX mission plans, flight rules, and crew procedures.
Depot Power Module Test
Validated electrical systems for Starship propellant depot variant.
RF Communications Demo
Tested radio systems between Starship and ground station.
Elevator & Airlock Demo
Practiced crew and cargo transfer with EVA suits using the Starship elevator system.
Medical System Test
Validated on-board crew medical and telemedicine systems.
Propellant Transfer Testbed
Activated hardware-in-the-loop system to simulate in-space fuel transfer operations.
Clearly, SpaceX has not been sitting on its hands idly waiting for the initial Starship development to conclude before starting on other aspects of the Artemis III mission and what lies beyond that. Today’s update gives insight into those efforts and demonstrates clear progress on all fronts.
Timeline
One thing missing from the SpaceX update: any sort of timeline or projection of a timeline for completion of major milestones such as ship-to-ship propellant transfers. To be fair, the company has issued timelines for when those critical milestones will be met, but in this update there are no adjustments or restatements.
It’s possible that SpaceX may be waiting for NASA to update the public on the timeline statuses of the human landing systems (Blue Origin is working on their own) as well as the status at Axiom Space of its efforts to deliver EVA suits. NASA has not made major managers for Artemis available to the press for interviews in quite some time now, something the agency should rectify after the government shutdown ends.
The Big Picture
In their update, SpaceX makes clearly that HLS and their lunar effort isn’t just about returning to the Moon—it’s about staying there. SpaceX envisions a future where regular missions bring materials, tools, and people to build out a lunar foothold that could support science, exploration, and even commercial activity.
Clearly, SpaceX has a long way to go before it is ready, but at the same time, it is extremely rare for a company the size of SpaceX to be as agile and creative as it has been and continues to be.
The first SLS rocket, Artemis I, sits on the launch pad at KSCs LC39B in 2022
Business is picking up here on the Space Coast, and we’re heading into a very busy stretch on the Eastern Range with missions to Mars, the Moon, low Earth orbit and of course ISS all set to launch here. Best of all, they’ll ride aboard a wide array of rockets and we’ll see some rare birds taking flight from here in Florida.
Those flagship and keystone launches will be mixed in with the regular Starlink and Project Kuiper missions along with some commercial satellite missions. In short, if you like watching rocket launches, the next few months here at The Cape are going to be a treat. Get your bug spray and lawn chair ready.
New Glenn NG-1 lifts off in January from LC-36. Photo: Charles Boyer / Talk of Titusville
Regulars who watch pad activity or track transport moves out of Astrotech or the Blue Origin integration facility off Space Commerce Way are already seeing the signs: New Glenn’s first stage is at LC-36 being integrated to GS-2 (New Glenn’s second state) and preparing for an integrated static firing as part of its launch campaign. SpaceX’s Falcon Heavy is on the manifest again, albeit in lightly written pencil. And NASA’s Artemis II stack is inching toward flight, with some saying that the crew of that mission will be heading to moon as soon as February 2026. Best we can tell, here’s what’s real, what’s rumor, and what’s sitting on the pad right now:
New Glenn
Starting things off, Blue Origin rolled out its GS-1 booster — Never Tell Me The Odds — to Launch Complex 36 on October 8th. This is a sure sign of the impending second flight of Blue’s New Glenn, a 320-foot tall behemoth of a rocket that the company will use to power the multiple missions it is currently working on.
David Limp of Blue Origin posted this photo on X.com on October 10 with the caption: “Welcome to LC-36, “Never Tell Me The Odds.” Next up: GS1+GS2 stage mate and integrated launch vehicle hotfire.”
The rollout from Blue’s factory on Exploration Way kicked off final pad integration for the flight. Following completion of that and culminating in a static firing of GS-1, it’s fair to say that the launch campaign has kicked off for NG-2, carrying NASA’s EscaPADE dual spacecraft, bound for Mars orbit to study solar wind interactions, plus a secondary payload for Viasat.
The static fire is expected in the next 7–10 days according to unofficial sources, and that will be the final greenlight before range clearance. The company already has a launch license, so there will be no need to wait for any FAA approvals.
While Blue Origin hasn’t publicly confirmed a date, multiple launch tracking sites now list November 9, 2025, as the likely target. That may change, of course, so stay tuned.
Falcon Heavy In December?
Assuming a November New Glenn flight, eyes will turn from one end of The Cape to the other, for a rare SpaceX Falcon Heavy mission, this time flying Astrobotic’s Griffin Mission One under NASA’s CLPS program. The lander will ferry the VIPER lunar rover to the south pole of the Moon.
The mission is notable not just for its science payload and is a critical mission for Astrobotic, the mission’s operator. Their first attempt at a lunar landing was not successful, but after applying lessons learned from its Peregrine Mission One, which launched in January 2024 but experienced an anomaly that prevented it from reaching the Moon.
Liftoff of Falcon Heavy of June 25, 2024
Photo: Charles Boyer / Tot
The window opens in early December, though final pad dates haven’t been published.
Frankly, a delay into 2026 would not be terribly surprising. Nothing on Astrobotic’s or NASA’s websites indicates the lander is in Florida for final launch preparation and payload integration. Add in the current shutdown state of the federal government and you can see this mission shifting right on the calendar fair easily.
Artemis II
With the recent transportation of the Orion capsule stack to the VAB and the SLS rocket that awaits it there, things are literally coming together nicely for America’s first crewed mission beyond low-Earth orbit in over fifty years.
NASA is saying that Artemis II is now tracking toward a no-earlier-than February 2026 launch, with an official “no later than” window of April 2026. The mission will send four astronauts around the Moon aboard Orion and riding atop the SLS Block 1 rocket. This will be the first crewed flight of Orion and will raise the count of crewed American spacecraft systems to three, if one includes the Starliner program.
Photo: NASA
Artemis II will bring the excitement and the crowds that go along with it, so this is a launch to watch closely.
Starship – Mid 2026 If All Goes Well
While Starship continues testing from Boca Chica, SpaceX is working feverishly at LC-39A and is progressing to bring full-stack launches to the Cape.
Starship Flight 11 rising in Texas earlier in October. Photo: Chris Leymarie / Florida Media Now
No launch license yet for Florida flights, and no integration tower ready for Super Heavy booster ops. That said, groundwork is active.
Expect a first Florida-based Starship no earlier than mid-2026, contingent on pad completion and FAA approval. That launch would be key to fulfilling the Artemis HLS lander contract. After Artemis II, all eyes will turn to Artemis II, and there are going to be literally dozens of Starship launches from here and in Boca Chica to the support that mission.
First though, a lot has to happen here at The Cape: Starship must gain approval from the FAA, and secondly, the construction at LC-39A and at Hangar X must be completed. Flight hardware will be manufactured in Texas and transported to the Cape by water, and after all of that, all of the pieces need to be put together into an integrated flight system. Sounds daunting, with a lot of potential potholes, but it is foolish to ever bet against SpaceX and their capability to get things done.
So, mid-2026 optimistically. If there are delays, any time after that. Time will tell, but be sure of this: Starship is coming as NASA and the DoD both want it.
Mixed In With It All
Falcon 9, Atlas V and Vulcan will all stay busy with constellation-building, government missions and commercial missions.
They may be overshadowed for a time by the big missions set to fly from here in Florida, but the bread-and-butter rocket launches will continue apace and will be increasing: SpaceX is looking to raise its Falcon 9 pace from The Cape and launching more Starlink satellites thereby, Vulcan is now operational and with a notable backlog of flights, and New Glenn is not far behind. Let’s not forget the venerable Atlas V, it will be carrying Kuiper Project satellites to orbit at a fair steady pace as well.
So if you like rocket launches, this is going to be like Christmas for you. Good thing it’s almost Christmas!
Starship Rising: initial ascent from the Texas coast went exactly as planned.
Photo: Chris Leymarie, Florida Media Now
The rocket was clearly visible from The Cape as it passed to the south.
SpaceX launched its eleventh integrated flight of the Starship and Super Heavy booster system on Monday evening from Boca Chica in southeast Texas close to the Mexican border. Today’s mission tested core Starship systems including flight operations, launch, stage separation, engine relight, and controlled splashdowns among many other objectives. It was largely successful and marked a transition point for the company’s vehicle development program.
Starship light 11 lifts off from Boca Chica, Texas on October 13, 2025 Photo: Chris Leymarie, Florida Media Now
Liftoff occurred at 6:23 PM Central Time. Shortly after launch, the Super Heavy booster separated from the upper stage as planned and performed a controlled descent before splashing down in the Gulf of Mexico. There was no attempt to catch the booster using the tower’s mechanical arms. Before the launch SpaceX had reported that the descent data would inform future recovery efforts. In any event, the descent and landing of the booster appeared to be nominal in all respects until the rocket splashed down.
Ship 28, Starship’s upper stage, continued on a suborbital trajectory and deployed eight Starlink satellite simulators. It also successfully restarted its Raptor engines in space—an important test for missions that require multiple burns. The vehicle later reentered the atmosphere and splashed down in the Indian Ocean off of the northwest coast of Australia.
This flight is expected to be the final mission using the current version of the Starship hardware, as SpaceX prepares to introduce a more advanced variant, Version 3, with updated systems and structures. Engineers also gathered data on heat shielding and aerodynamic performance, which are critical for future operational flights.
Elon Musk watched the launch from outside mission control, describing the view as a different experience from past launches. No official statements were made during the live broadcast beyond brief technical updates.
Starship Flight 11. Photo: Chris Leymarie, Florida Media NowStarship Flight 11. Photo: Chris Leymarie, Florida Media NowStarship Flight 11. Photo: Chris Leymarie, Florida Media Now
NASA is monitoring the Starship program closely, as the vehicle is planned to serve as a lunar lander for future Artemis missions. While timelines remain uncertain, successful flights like this one move the system closer to the performance levels required for human-rated missions.
Another group watching closely were Space Coast residents. Starship is expected to heavily utilize the Eastern Range for many of its flights once it is operational, and tonight’s flight served as a preview of things to come in the area, probably sooner rather than later.
NASA astronaut and Expedition 63 Commander Chris Cassidy conducts a spacewalk in a Collins Aerospace EMU to set up the Tranquility module for the future installation of a NanoRacks airlock that will enable public and commercial research on the outside of the International Space Station. Cassidy has completed 10 spacewalks throughout his career for a total of 54 hours and 51 minutes spacewalking time. Photo: NASA
Collins Aerospace, a North Carolina-based major aerospace contractor with deep roots in Brevard County, is under scrutiny following a critical NASA Inspector General report that highlights serious performance issues with the company’s management of the spacesuits used on the International Space Station.
Collins is a unit of RTX (formerly Raytheon Technologies) and it employs thousands in Brevard County and plays a pivotal role in Florida’s aerospace ecosystem. The company supports not only the ISS program but also numerous spaceflight systems through partnerships with NASA’s Kennedy Space Center and commercial space providers operating along the Space Coast.
With over 110 missions and nearly 300 spacewalks to its credit, the Collins Extra Vehicular Mobility Unit (EMU) is an integral part of the ISS and a key component of the American space program. Spacecraft in their own right, these complex systems allow human extracurricular activities outside of ISS where the crew can perform repair, insulation, experiment retrieval and other vital activities for the ongoing functionality of the orbiting outpost. Simply put, they are critical items, even if the general public often takes them for granted.
The Report
You can read the report for yourself below, or download it to read in Acrobat Reader or a similar PDF viewer.
18 EMU suits were originally manufactured, and the last time a number was reported — in 2017 — the number of functioning EMUs had dropped to 11, and conventional wisdom in the space industry holds that there are fewer than the eight-year old 2017 count still working.
Overview of the EMU Graphic: NASA
While the EMU is a venerable piece of hardware that has served NASA for decades, it is close to its end of life. Now, a NASA audit, released this week by NASA’s Office of Inspector General (OIG), paints a troubling picture of Collins’ work under the $1.5 billion Extravehicular Activity Space Operations Contract (ESOC).
Collins was originally awarded in 2010 for $324 million, the contract has ballooned in size and scope as the ISS mission has been extended through 2030, presumably the same year ISS will be deorbited.
NASA Findings
The report cites repeated delays in delivering life support components, including the fan pump separator and carbon dioxide sensors, which are essential to astronaut safety. In some cases, components originally due in 2020 and 2022 have still not been delivered.
Extravehicular Mobility Unit (EMU) With Water in Helmet During Post-EVA 23 Screening Test. S–2013–199–00005 Photo: NASA
Summary of Deficiencies cited by NASA
Category
Deficiency
Danger
Water Intrusion in Helmets
NASA documented multiple incidents where water leaked into astronauts’ helmets during spacewalks, including a 2013 event and another in 2022.
These events pose severe risks of asphyxiation, vision impairment, and communication failure during extravehicular activities.
Thermal Regulation Failures
Malfunctions in cooling systems, especially the sublimator units, have caused problems regulating suit temperature.
Uncontrolled temperatures can lead to overheating or hypothermia, endangering astronaut health and limiting operational capability.
Injuries from Suit Fit and Design Limitations
The bulky and rigid design has led to physical injuries, particularly in the shoulders and hands, due to poor fit and restricted mobility.
These injuries can impair astronaut performance and require medical attention, possibly compromising mission objectives.
Delayed Delivery of Critical Components
Collins has experienced years-long delays in delivering essential life support components, such as fan pump separators and carbon dioxide sensors.
These delays reduce the number of available functioning suits, increasing the risk of suit failure and EVA cancellations.
Obsolescence of Replacement Parts
Many suit components are no longer manufactured, and suppliers have exited the market, making replacements difficult.
Continued use of obsolete or expired parts increases the likelihood of system failure during missions.
Quality Control Failures
Instances were reported where expired, incorrectly built, or inadequately tested components were installed or shipped, including a component that remained on the ISS two decades past expiration.
These failures compromise suit integrity and astronaut safety, raising the risk of malfunctions in space.
Inadequate Management of EVA Anomalies
Collins and NASA experienced delays in identifying and resolving anomalies, such as the 2024 umbilical unit water leak that led to a spacewalk cancellation.
Slow responses to real-time issues increase the risk of loss of life support functions and mission failure.
Cost Overruns and Schedule Failures
Over the past three fiscal years, Collins exceeded planned costs by an appreciable amount.
These financial and schedule inefficiencies strain NASA’s resources and delay the availability of safe, functioning suits.
Inflated Contractor Performance Ratings
Despite repeated failures, Collins received high performance scores and a majority of available award fees, which the Inspector General deemed inconsistent with actual results.
Overly generous evaluations reduce accountability and hinder meaningful performance improvement.
NASA’s own evaluations, according to the report, appear to inflate Collins’ performance scores, particularly in technical management and safety compliance, despite “persistent schedule, cost, and quality problems.” In 2023, NASA took the unusual step of sending a formal letter to Collins leadership expressing dissatisfaction across multiple contracts — including ESOC.
NASA management concurred with most of the report’s recommendations and committed to updating evaluation criteria and reassessing award fee practices by the end of 2025. However, they defended the current scores as fair within the broader context of the contract’s scope.
For its part, Collins says it has been troubled by supply chain issues, schedule delays, cost overruns. These problems have threatened NASA’s ability to conduct safe and timely spacewalks, a critical function for ISS maintenance and research.
As of the time of this writing, the company has not responded publicly to the NASA OIG report.
Collins Dropped Out Of Next-Gen Spacesuit Development
In 2019, NASA’s Aerospace Safety Advisory Panel strongly recommended a complete EMU replacement due to the aging technology in the long-running program. In 2022, NASA selected Collins and Axiom Space to develop the next-generation spacesuit systems needed for the Artemis Project and for ISS. Collins was tasked with building the ISS suit, Axiom with the lunar suit.
Things seemed to be going well for Collins in their efforts as they developed and tested their new systems.
A Collins Aerospace rendering of their lunar suit. Graphic: Collins Aerospace
In 2024, however, Collins dropped out of the program. It was said that NASA and Collins felt that the development timeline would not support the space station’s schedule and NASA’s mission objectives, and thus the contract with Collins was mutually descoped.
Industry chatter suggested at the time that Collins’s program was encountering cost overruns and technical challenges, and that under a fixed-price or tightly constrained contract environment, continuing the program would have risked further losses.
Whether or not that conjecture was true is immaterial: Collins was out, Axiom Space and the AxEMU were the only game in town. Until Axiom’s suit was ready to take over Artemis and ISS use, Collins would continue to support the current EMU. That work is under scrutiny from the NASA OIG Report.
The Next Generation Suit – On The Way And Apparently On Track
AxEMU Suit Photo: Axiom Space
As mentioned above, Axiom Space is the sole vendor preparing the next generation of spacesuits for NASA and presumably for other customers.
Axiom describes their ISS version of the suit: “Similar to the Artemis III spacesuit, the Axiom Space ISS suit will be built to accommodate a wide range of crew members … provide increased flexibility … life support systems, pressure garments, and power avionics and communication.”
SpaceX
While SpaceX and the Polaris Dawn flight made a lot of noise in 2024 with its EVA, it should be noted that the SpaceX suit tested was not even the old EMU’s equal in terms of environmental control, autonomy, duration, robustness, and task flexibility. The SpaceX suits were intermediate or developmental EVA-capable suits, not yet the full “go-anywhere, high-complexity” spacesuit used by NASA for ISS or lunar EVAs. Theirs is a program still in development.
Currently the AxEMU is undergoing testing and development, focusing on preparation for NASA’s Artemis missions. Recently, for the first time, two AxEMU suits were tested at the same time in the in the Neutral Buoyancy Laboratory at NASA Sonny Carter Training Facility in Houston. Last month astronaut Walter Villadei took part in an integral test of the AxEMU using lunar-task tools, to evaluate stowage, deployment, and usability of tools under realistic constraints.
Two AxEMU suits being tested underwater in the Neutral Buoyancy Laboratory in Houston. Photo: NASA
No specific date for testing the new AxEMU suit in space has been given, but multiple sources say that the company is shooting for a Critical Design Review late in 2025 or early 2026. Following the resolution of any action items, the AxEMU may be tested in orbit on ISS prior to being put to work on the lunar surface as part of the Artemis landings.
What’s better than one suit? TWO suits! 🧑🚀🧑🚀@NASA and @Axiom_Space teams held the first dual spacesuit run at the Neutral Buoyancy Laboratory with NASA astronauts wearing Axiom Space’s lunar spacesuit. This was the final integration test, proving both the spacesuit and… pic.twitter.com/8P04fyCXu3
Bumper 8 lifts off on July 24, 1950 Photo: US Army
Tempus fugit, a lot of clocks say: “time is fleeting.” For a facility as established and enduring as Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, it might seem like forever since the first rocket launched from here. Time has flown and so have thousands of rockets and missiles from America’s premier spaceport. Truth is, CCSFS has been open “only” 75 years, but it continues to have a bright future not only today but also for the long-term future.
On July 24, 1950, a spit of land without much more than scrub grass, sand dunes, and millions of mosquitoes erupted with thunder as a two-stage rocket named Bumper 8 became the first vehicle ever launched from Cape Canaveral. At 9:28 a.m., an ignition flash and roar marked not just a technical achievement, but the start of the Space Age in America.
The Bumper 8 mission was managed by the U.S. Army, specifically the Army Ordnance Corps in cooperation with the newly formed Long Range Proving Ground (LRPG), which would later evolve into the Army Ballistic Missile Agency, ABMA. It would be ABMA and not NASA that launch the United State’s entrance into orbital launches when Explorer I flew not far from where Bumper 8 launched. Eventually, ABMA was largely folded into the United States’ fledgling space agency, NASA.
The Bumper 8 launch was the product of collaboration between military engineers, scientists—many of them veterans of World War II rocketry—and support from the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, which developed the WAC Corporal upper stage.
Bumper 8 on its launch mount at Cape Canaveral. Photo: US Army
Technically, Bumper 8 was a Frankenstein’s monster of its era: a German V-2 missile (originally designed for wartime attacks on London and Antwerp), repurposed by American engineers, with a U.S.-built WAC Corporal sounding rocket bolted to the nose. The V-2 served as the first stage, firing for about 60 seconds and pushing the assembly to an altitude of roughly 10 miles and a speed of over 3,500 miles per hour before flaming out.
The afternoon edition of the Orlando Evening Star had coverage of the Bumper 8 launch.
Once at altitude, the WAC Corporal ignited, its smaller engine firing for another 40 seconds, pushing the second stage even higher and faster. Engineers tracking the flight from hastily assembled bunkers confirmed that the rocket reached more than 10 miles in altitude—far less than some later Bumper flights, but still a triumph for a first attempt at a brand-new site.
“I remember standing behind the blast shield, feeling the ground tremble and wondering if all our calculations would hold up,” recalled one young Army engineer present for the launch. “We had no idea what would happen—whether it would explode on the pad, veer out to sea, or fly as intended. When those engines lit, it was like watching the future arrive in a ball of fire.”
For the military brass, Bumper 8 was about more than scientific curiosity. In 1950, America’s nerves were raw. The Soviet Union had exploded its first atomic bomb less than a year before, and Cold War tensions colored every decision. The Korean War had erupted only a month prior, raising the stakes for missile and rocket research. The Pentagon needed to demonstrate that the U.S. could not only match but surpass its adversaries in missile technology.
The location for the launch—then just an isolated strip of sand and scrub known more for fishing and mosquitoes was chosen for its safety and isolation, allowing spent rocket stages to fall harmlessly into the Atlantic. The Long Range Proving Ground was as makeshift as its name suggested: a single concrete pad (Launch Complex 3), sandbag bunkers for the launch team, and primitive communications equipment. The workforce was a mixture of Army soldiers, civilian engineers, and, in the background, several German scientists brought over after World War II under Operation Paperclip.
That day, the Bumper 8’s upper stage did not set an altitude record—it was later flights in the Bumper series that would push into the edge of space. But the launch proved that Cape Canaveral could support rocketry of increasing sophistication. The Cape quickly became a focal point for military missile programs—Redstone, Atlas, and Titan, all tested here, laying the groundwork for the coming space race. Redstone would carry Alan Shepard on the first US crewed mission, Atlas would carry John Glenn to orbit and an iteration of Titan would be the booster of choice for the Gemini Program.
It wasn’t just about hardware and geopolitics. There was an undeniable thrill for those on the ground. “I had never seen anything like it—the way that thing leapt off the pad,” said Mary Pinson, the wife of an ABMA engineer. “We were sweating in the Florida heat, covered in mosquito bites, and when the rocket launched, we knew we were watching history.”
Missile Row, in 1964, as seen from the vicinity of LC-36, where Blue Orgin launches New Glenn. This is also a view of the shoreline of the old Titusville Beach after it was transformed into the tip of the spear of the US space effort. Playalinda is also visible here. Photo: NASA
Things Are Always Changing At The Cape
Within a decade, the stakes shifted from military defense to exploration. The Soviet launch of Sputnik in 1957 galvanized the United States, leading to the creation of NASA in 1958. ABMA was all but absorbed by NASA, which in turn put its technical development center in Huntsville, where most were already working: at Redstone Arsenal. The Army and Air Force test ranges merged into what became the Eastern Test Range, and Cape Canaveral was transformed almost overnight from a sleepy fishing village into the very center of the high-tech world.
In 1962, the area grew even larger when the Launch Operations Center (LOC) was established immediately to the north of Cape Canaveral as an independent NASA field center. In November 1963, President Lyndon Johnson designated the facilities of the Launch Operations Center and Station No. 1 of the Atlantic Missile Range as the John F. Kennedy Space Center to honor the fallen president.
The Space Coast was born.
Kennedy Space Center Is Born, But A Price
The Launch Operations Center (later renamed as KSC) was founded out of necessity and ambition. In 1961, after President John F. Kennedy set the national goal to land a man on the Moon by the end of the decade, NASA realized it needed much more space for larger rockets, new facilities, and increased activity. The original launch site at Cape Canaveral—where Bumper 8 and dozens of military and civilian rockets had flown—was crowded, fragmented, and mostly run by the military. There was no room for the Vehicle Assembly Building, the giant crawlerways, or the miles of safety buffer required for the Saturn V.
NASA, with support from Congress, quickly began acquiring land west and north of the Cape. The chosen site was Merritt Island: a mix of wetlands, scrub, orange groves, small farms, fishing villages, and a handful of beach communities like Allenhurst, Shiloh, and the lively Titusville Beach. The acquisition was the largest forced relocation in NASA’s history. Over 80,000 acres (about 125 square miles) were taken—mostly through federal purchase but also through eminent domain when owners resisted. This area included the future footprint of KSC and a vast buffer zone for safety.
Compared to Cape Canaveral Space Force Station (CCSFS), Kennedy Space Center is much larger. Today, KSC spans about 144,000 acres. CCSFS is roughly 15,800 acres. That means KSC covers nearly ten times the land of CCSFS, with much of it remaining undeveloped as a buffer.
The human cost for the construction of KSC was significant. More than 1,000 families were displaced in the 1960s. The thriving black community of Allenhurst, the farming hamlet of Orsino, and most of tiny Shiloh disappeared. In total, at least 5,000 people lost their homes.
Titusville Beach—a small but beloved oceanfront community where locals and visitors came to swim, picnic, and fish—was erased. All but one of its buildings were demolished, its dunes bulldozed, and public access to the beach was cut off as NASA established a controlled area. And the building that was preserved? You may have guessed it. The Astronaut Beach House, a two-story cottage, was built in 1962 as a part of the then Neptune Beach subdivision, between where pads 40 and 41 stand today. NASA preserved and maintained the house through the years, and now its provenance is almost forgotten. There were other homes too: the town itself stretched to the other side of LC-39A.
A 1952 road map showing the location of Titusville Beach. The “False Cape” is common landmark on maps of the area, even today. map via: North Brevard Historical Society & Museum
With so much of the land needed only as a safety buffer, NASA partnered with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to preserve public access to the area. In 1963, the Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge was officially established, covering almost the entire non-operational area of Kennedy Space Center. It is a low-security zone except for launches deemed by KSC safety or security to require temporary exclusion from MINWR.
The result is an unusual coexistence: high-tech launch pads surrounded by protected wetlands, lagoons, and forests. The Refuge is now home to over 1,500 species of plants and animals, including endangered species like the Florida scrub-jay, manatees, and bald eagles. Today, MINWR hosts 2.3 million visitors annually.
LC-39A lighting up the night in the distance, as seen from Biolab Road in Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge. The aptly named “Mosquito Lagoon” is to the left. Photo: Charles Boyer
The Shuttle era brought another transformation, with KSC serving as the base for over 130 shuttle flights from 1981 to 2011. The Cape weathered tragedy—like the AS-204 Apollo I fire, the loss of Challenger in 1986 and Columbia in 2003—but the NASA and its engineers adapted each time, building safer systems and deeper expertise for future space endeavours.
Today, KSC is largely the domain of SpaceX, and the company launches not only crewed missions, but also Falcon Heavy and soon, Starship Heavy from LC-39A. The company has built a large work center at Kennedy, with plans to expand greatly. NASA is staying busy too, as the VAB is still in use, this time to build the SLS rockets that are part of Project Artemis, which aims to return humans to the moon and perhaps even beyond. Instead of LC-39A, Artemis uses LC-39B, the lesser used of the two megapads.
MINWR. Photo: Charles Boyer
Seventy-five years after Bumper 8’s fiery ascent, Cape Canaveral stands as a testament to American resolve and the relentless drive to explore. From makeshift pads and scavenged missiles, to the front lines of interplanetary exploration and the only place on Earth that was the starting point for vehicles now in interstellar space, the legacy of Cape Canaveral is written in thunder—one launch at a time.
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