Starfall is designed for future transport and delivery of cargo to low Earth orbit.

SpaceX landed the Falcon 9 first stage on the autonomous droneship A Shortfall of Gravitas in the Atlantic Ocean after stage separation.

SpaceX wants Starfall to enable commercial access to microgravity and vacuum conditions for scientific research and pharmaceutical applications.

The FAA said Starfall is intended to launch on a Falcon 9 or Starship.

Starfall has no main propulsion system and uses an inert-gas attitude control system for orientation.

Starfall consists of two main elements, a top plate and a heat shield, that separate after reentry.

Booster B1078 previously supported Crew-6, USSF-124, and 23 Starlink deployments.

SpaceX launched the first Starfall demonstration mission on a Falcon 9 from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida.

The FAA has authorized two Starfall reentry tests with splashdowns in the Pacific Ocean.

Hervé Derrey is President and CEO of Thales Alenia Space.

Thales Alenia Space has contributed to the Sicral 2 and Athena-Fidus defense telecommunications programs.

Thales Alenia Space has contributed to the Galileo navigation system and Celeste IoD.

Thales Alenia Space has developed space infrastructure, satellite systems, and advanced services for institutional and commercial markets.

Thales Alenia Space has contributed to the Copernicus Earth-observation missions.

The delegation included Italian ministers Anna Maria Bernini and Adolfo Urso and French ministers Catherine Vautrin, Roland Lescure, Philippe Baptiste, and Sébastien Martin.

IRIS2 is a future European satellite constellation intended to strengthen the resilience of Europe’s space communications.

France and Italy are developing large-scale constellations such as IRIS2.

Thales and Leonardo created the Space Alliance in 2005 through Thales Alenia Space and Telespazio.

Thales Alenia Space combines high-resolution optical capabilities in France with advanced radar satellites in Italy.

Giampiero Di Paolo is Deputy CEO of Thales Alenia Space and Managing Director of Thales Alenia Space Italia.

Thales and Leonardo are the shareholders of Thales Alenia Space.

Thales Alenia Space is working on small Earth-observation satellites that combine optical and radar sensors.

The water tower is part of the deluge system for Pad 3 and Pad 4 at Wenchang Commercial Launch Center.

Pad 3 and Pad 4 at Wenchang Commercial Launch Center are mainly intended to launch CZ-10B/C rockets.

Pad 3 and Pad 4 at Wenchang Commercial Launch Center are expected to be ready for launch at the end of 2026.

ULA rolled the fairing with 29 Amazon Leo satellites to Space Launch Complex 41 for stacking on Atlas V.

LA-08 is scheduled to launch no earlier than July 2 at 04:24 UTC.

ULA has stacked the final Single Engine Centaur on Atlas V after the five solid rocket boosters were attached.

LA-08 is the final planned Atlas V flight with a 5-meter payload fairing.

The remaining Starliner launches use the Dual Engine Centaur.

Centaur V also has two engines.

Axiom Space, Vast Space, and Blue Origin are managing forward production plans against NASA’s restructured Commercial Low Earth Orbit Destinations payment schedule.

Jared Isaacman took office as NASA administrator in April 2026.

NASA restructured the Commercial Low Earth Orbit Destinations payment schedule earlier in 2026.

NASA collapsed its organizational structure from seven mission directorates to three in 2026.

NASA’s Science Mission Directorate faces a proposed budget reduction of approximately 50 percent relative to the fiscal year 2025 enacted level.

NASA consolidated its mission directorates into the Exploration Systems Development Mission Directorate, a reconstituted Science Mission Directorate, and a Space Operations Mission Directorate.

The old NASA mission directorate structure included the Exploration Systems Development Mission Directorate, the Science Mission Directorate, the Space Operations Mission Directorate, the Space Technology Mission Directorate, the Aeronautics Research Mission Directorate, the Mission Support Directorate, and the Office of STEM Engagement.

The 86 projects added to Tiangong in the last year involved 1,179 kilograms of scientific material and 105 kilograms of recovered samples.

The Xuntian space telescope is expected to dock with Tiangong's new module for maintenance.

China plans to expand the Tiangong space station from a T-shaped configuration to a cross-shaped configuration in an initial expansion phase.

Tiangong can currently accommodate three astronauts at the same time.

The Xuntian space telescope is scheduled to launch in 2027.

Tiangong has hosted 267 projects since the station entered service.

The Tiangong station is planned to grow into a six-module structure.

China aims to reach the Moon by 2030.

The new Tiangong module will dock with the Tianhe core module.

Tiangong added 86 projects in the last year.

The Tiangong station is planned to reach a maximum mass of 180 tons.

The Tiangong expansion includes additional docking ports that will allow multiple spacecraft to connect to the station simultaneously.