Plus: A Starship booster test results in significant damage
Welcome to our roundup of top SpaceNews stories, delivered every Friday! This week, ESA secured its three-year budget, a Starship booster was damaged during a test, China prepares for an orbital launch with a commercial rocket and more.
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OUR TOP STORY
| | By Jeff Foust Member states of the European Space Agency are contributing more than 22 billion euros for the next three years, very close to its overall goal.
At a press conference Nov. 27 at the conclusion of the two-day ministerial conference, ESA Director General Josef Aschbacher announced that ESA member states had agreed to provide 22.067 billion euros ($25.58 billion) for the agency's programs. That was very close to the agency's proposal of 22.254 billion euros.
The funding was a 32% increase from the 16.9 billion euros ESA received at the previous ministerial in 2022.
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MORE NEWS FROM EUROPE
| The European Space Agency's Human and Robotic Exploration program fell short of its budget request at the ministerial, with member nations agreeing to contribute 2.98 billion euros ($3.08 billion), accounting for roughly 70% of the 3.77 billion euro ask.
The new Arctic Space Centre, announced on the sidelines of ESA's ministerial conference Nov. 27, is expected to focus on Earth observation, navigation and telecommunications, with a strong emphasis on using space-based data to support sustainable development in the Arctic region.
At the start of the ministerial, the European Space Agency's three major contributors – Germany, France and Italy –indicated they would heavily support the agency while hinting that their backing was driven by sharply different national priorities.
| COMMERCIAL
| | The first booster in the new generation of Starship vehicles suffered significant damage when the lower section of the booster appeared to burst during a Nov. 21 test, adding to doubts about the vehicle's development schedule.
Blue Origin said it has passed a key development milestone for its Blue Ring spacecraft, a maneuverable in-orbit transport vehicle designed for national security missions and backed by Pentagon funding.
Chinese commercial launch firm Landspace is preparing to attempt the country's first orbital launch and booster landing this weekend with its Zhuque-3 rocket. The launch of Zhuque-3 will mark China's first attempt to recover a first stage following an orbital launch. | | |
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LAUNCH
| | NASA has revised its commercial crew contract with Boeing, reducing the number of CST-100 Starliner missions to four, the first of which will carry only cargo. The original contract included six operational missions after NASA certified the vehicle to carry astronauts.
China's uncrewed Shenzhou-22 spacecraft has arrived at the Tiangong space station, reestablishing a lifeboat for the crew and ending the orbital outpost's first operational emergency.
A Soyuz spacecraft delivered two Russian cosmonauts and one American astronaut to the International Space Station Nov. 27 for an eight-month stay. On board the Soyuz were commander Sergey Kud-Sverchkov and fellow Roscosmos cosmonaut Sergey Mikaev, along with NASA astronaut Chris Williams. |
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| |  | Latest Press Releases
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