Science

WASHINGTON — The Department of Transportation is proposing to exempt commercial space launch licensing from many environmental regulations, a move praised by industry but criticized by environmental groups. The department announced July 28 its intent to file a proposed rule for public comment that would exempt Federal Aviation Administration licenses for commercial launches and reentries,

Can a 16-year-old really understand quantum teleportation? – Physics World Skip to main content Discover more from Physics World Copyright © 2026 by IOP Publishing Ltd and individual contributors Read the original article here

WASHINGTON — Boeing is still working with NASA to determine when to fly its CST-100 Starliner commercial crew vehicle on a cargo mission to the International Space Station. In an earnings call July 28 to discuss the company’s second-quarter financial results, Kelly Ortberg, president and chief executive of Boeing, described Starliner as the last of

TAMPA, Fla. — Satellite operators have welcomed the prospect of reaping more than $6 billion for quickly clearing upper C-band spectrum the FCC aims to auction next year, with billions more set to cover new geostationary spacecraft and other transition costs. Luxembourg-based SES, by far the largest spectrum incumbent, is in line for about $5.6

WASHINGTON — Key ground stations in Spain operated by NASA and the European Space Agency have avoided serious damage from major wildfires in the country. NASA announced July 24 it had evacuated the Madrid Deep Space Communications Complex, or MDSCC, one of three main ground stations for the Deep Space Network, located in Robledo de

WASHINGTON — United Launch Alliance’s corporate parents have guaranteed a loan to the company as it addresses “financial challenges” caused by the grounding of its Vulcan Centaur rocket. In a Securities and Exchange Commission filing about its second-quarter financial results July 23, Lockheed Martin revealed that it provided a bank guarantee for a loan taken

WASHINGTON — SpaceX launched Starship on its 13th suborbital test flight July 24, correcting some of the issues seen on the previous flight while deploying functioning satellites for the first time. Starship lifted off from SpaceX’s facility at Starbase, Texas, at 6:51 p.m. Eastern. The launch was delayed 24 hours because of cloudy conditions that

WASHINGTON — More than two dozen major NASA projects say they have been affected by the loss of a fifth of NASA’s civil servant workforce in the last year, raising concerns about delays and cost increases. The Government Accountability Office, in a July 23 report assessing NASA’s major projects in development, said that 25 of

HELSINKI — A classified satellite launched by China in June is operating in a creative orbit, giving it a unique vantage point over the geostationary belt. Shijian-31 launched on a Long March 3B June 16 from Xichang spaceport, with navigation warnings and the launch vehicle type suggesting an insertion into geostationary transfer orbit. The satellite

Letter from Argentina: ‘an empty desk and an idle electron microscope signal the erosion of the country’s science’ – Physics World Skip to main content Discover more from Physics World Copyright © 2026 by IOP Publishing Ltd and individual contributors Read the original article here

SAN FRANCISCO – Zenno Astronautics, a New Zealand startup focused on applying superconducting magnets for spacecraft attitude control and acceleration, plans to redomicile to the United States. “It is obvious that most of the global space industry, both commercial and defense, as well as global venture capitalists are here,” Max Arshavsky, Zenno CEO and co-founder,

Privacy risks from medical AI are greater than previously thought – Physics World Skip to main content Discover more from Physics World Copyright © 2026 by IOP Publishing Ltd and individual contributors Read the original article here

The energy sector has spent decades learning how to manage complex disputes that touch on sovereign power, geopolitics, regulation and private capital. Those same dynamics are at play in the rapidly expanding commercial space economy. Like energy investors, today’s private space financiers and operators are investing in complex, capital-intensive infrastructure that crosses national borders. It is

Structured light could deliver a new method for diagnosing eye disease – Physics World Skip to main content Discover more from Physics World Copyright © 2026 by IOP Publishing Ltd and individual contributors Read the original article here

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Space Force has more than tripled the ceiling of a major national security launch contract to $17 billion as the military prepares for a sharp increase in satellite missions. The Space Force raised the maximum value of the National Security Space Launch Phase 3 Lane 1 contract vehicle from $5.6 billion

Experiments provide new insights into the reverse sprinkler problem – Physics World Skip to main content Discover more from Physics World Copyright © 2026 by IOP Publishing Ltd and individual contributors Read the original article here

WASHINGTON — The island nation of Mauritius signed the Artemis Accords July 17, becoming the 70th nation to do so in less than six years. In a ceremony in the Mauritian city of Ébène, Navindsing Jugmohunsing of the country’s Ministry of Tertiary Education, Science and Research signed the accords. U.S. State Department officials attended the

Astronomers express outrage after regulators approve ‘space mirror’ permit – Physics World Skip to main content Discover more from Physics World Copyright © 2026 by IOP Publishing Ltd and individual contributors Read the original article here