https://phys.org/space-news/space-exploration/ en-us Space exploration news and updates. Space missions and science news. Planet exploration and more. They took thousands of photographs and documented copious observations on their voyage around the moon, but as they sped closer to home the Artemis astronauts said Wednesday they have barely started processing the extraordinary experience they shared. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-chills-artemis-astronauts-lunar-flyby.html Space Exploration Thu, 09 Apr 2026 06:50:02 EDT news694927993 A week after astronaut Jeremy Hansen blasted off on the historic Artemis II mission to the moon, his wife Catherine recalled the anxiety and thrill of witnessing the journey from afar. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-artemis-crew-families-enthralled-messages.html Space Exploration Thu, 09 Apr 2026 06:10:01 EDT news694927953 Lunar love knows no bounds. Now hurtling home from the moon, the Artemis II astronauts took a poignant page from Apollo 8 earlier this week, proposing deeply personal names for a pair of lunar craters. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-artemis-ii-astronauts-apollo-tradition.html Space Exploration Thu, 09 Apr 2026 05:20:02 EDT news694927931 Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen told Prime Minister Mark Carney on Wednesday that "teamwork is willingness" during an Earth-to-space call celebrating the achievements of the historic lunar journey. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-maple-syrup-nutella-pm-carney.html Space Exploration Thu, 09 Apr 2026 04:29:34 EDT news694927745 After a successful trip around the moon, everything has been going smoothly on the Orion spacecraft's journey back to Earth—except for the $23 million toilet, which has gotten clogged. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-houston-problem-toilet.html Space Exploration Thu, 09 Apr 2026 04:28:32 EDT news694927657 During their historic lunar flyby, astronauts on NASA's Artemis II mission witnessed meteorites striking the rugged surface of the moon, a sight that has piqued scientists' curiosity. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-pinprick-artemis-crew-witnesses-meteorite.html Space Exploration Wed, 08 Apr 2026 10:00:10 EDT news694860041 The Artemis II astronauts were jetting toward Earth and sharing their lunar flyby souvenirs Tuesday, delighting colleagues both at home and in space with captivating tales of their historic journey. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-artemis-crew-flying-home-thrilled.html Space Exploration Wed, 08 Apr 2026 06:00:01 EDT news694840547 The Artemis II astronauts—three Americans and one Canadian—hurtled deeper into space than any other humans during a moon flyby Monday that marks NASA's lunar comeback. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-photos-stunning-views-moon-earth.html Space Exploration Wed, 08 Apr 2026 04:30:01 EDT news694840326 Still aglow from their triumphant lunar flyby, the Artemis II astronauts made more history Tuesday: calling their friends aboard the International Space Station hundreds of thousands of miles away as they headed home from the moon. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-artemis-ii-astronauts-distance-space.html Space Exploration Wed, 08 Apr 2026 04:12:49 EDT news694840292 Lasers could one day steer solar sails and adjust a satellite's position in outer space, thanks to graphene. An experiment on a gravity rollercoaster ride showed how this innovative material has the potential to revolutionize propulsion beyond Earth. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-parabolic-flight-lasers-propel-graphene.html Space Exploration Tue, 07 Apr 2026 15:40:04 EDT news694783083 The Artemis II astronauts snapped a stunning shot of Earthset—the moment when Earth dips below the moon's horizon—on their long journey back home Tuesday after wrapping up a historic lunar flyby. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-artemis-ii-earthset-shot-revisits.html Space Exploration Tue, 07 Apr 2026 10:01:59 EDT news694774882 The four astronauts carrying out NASA's first lunar flyby in more than half-a-century were sending back detailed observations of the moon after traveling farther from Earth than any human before. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-artemis-astronauts-survey-lunar-surface.html Space Exploration Tue, 07 Apr 2026 04:50:01 EDT news694753639 The Artemis II astronauts wrapped up their lunar flyby as they continue their journey back to Earth on Tuesday, bringing with them rich celestial observations including little-known lunar craters, a solar eclipse and meteor strikes that scientists hope will open doors. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-milestone-rich-lunar-flyby-astronauts.html Space Exploration Tue, 07 Apr 2026 04:40:01 EDT news694753741 Artemis astronauts at the outer edge of human space travel had an emotional moment Monday as they proposed to name a crater in honor of the deceased wife of mission commander Reid Wiseman. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-lunar-crater-artemis-deceased-wife.html Space Exploration Tue, 07 Apr 2026 04:20:01 EDT news694753502 The four Artemis astronauts on a lunar flyby are now unreachable by NASA scientists on Earth, an expected communications blackout anticipated to last some 40 minutes as their spacecraft passes behind the moon. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-artemis-astronauts-moon-communications.html Space Exploration Tue, 07 Apr 2026 04:07:50 EDT news694753613 Canadian astronaut Jenni Gibbons was at the heart of NASA's control room in Houston on Monday, supporting her Artemis II crewmates remotely during their flight around the moon. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-laughter-historic-day-astronaut-jenni.html Space Exploration Tue, 07 Apr 2026 04:03:16 EDT news694753317 The four astronauts embarking on NASA's lunar flyby became on Monday the humans to travel farthest from our planet, as they begin documenting areas of the moon never before seen by the naked eye. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-artemis-ii-crew-apollo-miles.html Space Exploration Mon, 06 Apr 2026 14:14:31 EDT news694703586 Four Artemis II astronauts are taking a giant step for humankind Monday when they shoot deeper into space than anyone before and glimpse parts of the moon never seen by the naked eye. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-giant-humankind-artemis-crew-space.html Space Exploration Mon, 06 Apr 2026 11:19:49 EDT news694693130 For the first time in more than half a century, astronauts will fly around the moon on Monday, marking the high point of the Artemis 2's lunar mission. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-artemis-mission-moon-flyby.html Space Exploration Mon, 06 Apr 2026 04:50:01 EDT news694668999 The Artemis astronauts entered the final phase of their run-up to a lunar loop on Monday, a tipping point of sorts that means the moon's gravity is now having a stronger pull on the spacecraft than Earth's. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-artemis-mission-approaches-lunar-loop.html Space Exploration Mon, 06 Apr 2026 04:35:34 EDT news694668882 The four astronauts on NASA's Artemis 2 mission began their fifth day journeying to the moon on Sunday, after already taking in sights of the lunar surface never before seen by human eyes. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-artemis-astronauts-day-historic-moon.html Space Exploration Sun, 05 Apr 2026 13:10:01 EDT news694612336 The Artemis II astronauts are already the champions of a fresh new era of lunar exploration. Now it's time to set a new distance record. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-artemis-ii-apollo-distance-moon.html Space Exploration Sun, 05 Apr 2026 12:52:33 EDT news694612298 More than 50 years after humans first flew around the moon, Artemis astronauts will repeat the feat on Monday and use the most basic instrument to study it: their eyes. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-artemis-astronauts-moon-surface-eyes.html Space Exploration Sun, 05 Apr 2026 08:40:01 EDT news694589697 The Artemis astronauts have taken in sights of the moon never before seen by human eyes, crew members reported on Sunday as their spacecraft crossed the two-thirds mark on their journey to a long-anticipated lunar flyby. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-artemis-astronauts-glimpse-moon-grand.html Space Exploration Sun, 05 Apr 2026 07:00:03 EDT news694589672 Now more than halfway to the moon, the Artemis II astronauts prepared for their historic lunar fly-around to push deeper into space than even the Apollo astronauts. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-artemis-ii-toilet-astronauts-moon.html Space Exploration Sun, 05 Apr 2026 06:29:45 EDT news694589315 As four astronauts whiz toward a flyby of the moon, looking out for them are mission control experts using cutting-edge technology and lessons learned from the Apollo program 50 years ago. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-artemis-mission-office-space-physics.html Space Exploration Sat, 04 Apr 2026 09:30:01 EDT news694505254 They're sipping smoothies, snapping phone pics, dealing with crashed email and fixing broken toilets: astronauts, they're just like us. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-tortillas-hot-sauces-toilet-life.html Space Exploration Sat, 04 Apr 2026 08:30:01 EDT news694505207 NASA is joining international partners to hunt for ice on the moon in support of future human exploration. The agency is providing a water-detecting instrument, the Neutron Spectrometer System (NSS), to the Lunar Polar Exploration (LUPEX) mission led by JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) and ISRO (Indian Space Research Organization). https://phys.org/news/2026-03-nasa-tool-scout-moon-south.html Space Exploration Sat, 04 Apr 2026 08:00:02 EDT news694089620 The Artemis 2 astronauts have passed the halfway point between Earth and the moon on Saturday as they sped toward a planned lunar flyby, with NASA releasing initial images of Earth taken from inside the Orion spacecraft. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-artemis-astronauts-halfway-moon-earth.html Space Exploration Sat, 04 Apr 2026 07:20:01 EDT news694505166 Artemis 2 astronaut Jeremy Hansen felt like he was "falling out of the sky" as his spacecraft followed its complex flight path to the moon, the Canadian said in a Saturday video call. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-canadian-astronaut-phenomenal-artemis-journey.html Space Exploration Sat, 04 Apr 2026 07:05:33 EDT news694505092