NASA’s SSPICY Mission to Demonstrate In-Space Inspection Technologies
The Small Spacecraft Propulsion and Inspection Capability mission launched on Oct. 1, 2026, from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California. Built by Starfish Space, the Otter spacecraft will approach up to four inoperable U.S. space objects in low Earth orbit to perform inspections using autonomous guidance and control software. Scheduled to begin in early 2027, the technology demonstration aims to gather critical data on inoperable satellites and rocket bodies without docking, paving the way for future autonomous orbital servicing and debris removal.
Solar Orbiter tracks origin of mysterious magnetic switchbacks
Using its Solar Wind Analyser instrument, the European Space Agency-led Solar Orbiter spacecraft flew through a large S-shaped magnetic switchback in the solar wind and traced its origin back to the Sun. By analyzing plasma particles, researchers detected a specific mix of charged oxygen and carbon particles formed within hot magnetic field loops on the solar surface. This discovery confirms that interchange reconnection acts as the primary formation mechanism for these magnetic kinks before waves and turbulence govern their movement through space.
Mars’s oddest cloud may be even odder than we thought
Scientists using the European Space Agency's Mars Express and a meteorological model determined that the Arsia Mons Elongated Cloud forms through homogeneous nucleation, a theoretical physics process never before observed in a planetary atmosphere. The phenomenon occurs when water vapour spontaneously freezes directly into ice crystals without dust or other particles acting as condensation nuclei. This exotic process requires extreme relative humidity levels driven by winds flowing past the towering 20-kilometer-high Arsia Mons volcano.
Written with AI from original reports. Source names and report dates are shown with each story.
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