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The latest news, analysis and opinion on Space. In-depth analysis, industry insights and expert opinion.
LATEST China Science NEWS

Did a bowl of millet help end a migrant crisis in China 1,500 years ago?

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Artefacts from the Sixteen Kingdoms period in Xian, Shaanxi province. Photo: China Cultural Relics News

China to define lunar time with world’s first timekeeping software for the moon

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Chinese scientists have developed a world-first tool to accurately synchronise time on the moon with clocks on Earth, to help with space missions and precision location landing. Photo: Getty Images / iStockphoto

China applies to put up 200,000 satellites after calling Starlink a crash risk

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Several Chinese firms have applied to the International Telecommunication Union to put internet satellites in space as China and the US in a race to build megaconstellations. Illustration: Shutterstock

China offers full-time job to top European immunologist Andrew Macpherson

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On January 1, 2026, Andrew Macpherson (left), a professor at Switzerland’s University of Bern and its university hospital, joined the University of Science and Technology of China (USTC) on a full-time basis. Photo: handout

China turns mega-project failure into defining moment in modern engineering

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The 6.4km (4-mile) Jiangyin-Jingjiang Yangtze River Tunnel is a major infrastructure project in China’s eastern Jiangsu province. Photo: Handout
MORE China Science NEWS
Several Chinese firms have applied to the International Telecommunication Union to put internet satellites in space as China and the US in a race to build megaconstellations. Illustration: Shutterstock
Science

China applies to put up 200,000 satellites after calling Starlink a crash risk

US Federal Communications Commission says it approved SpaceX to launch 7,500 second-generation Starlink satellites.

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Science

Why Chinese space station is studying how gravity affects battery performance

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International Space Station (ISS)

Nasa to carry out first-ever space medical evacuation for astronaut

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Science

SpaceX will move 4,400 satellites to a lower orbit after China cited safety risk

Starlink’s Michael Nicolls declares ‘significant reconfiguration’ to be coordinated with regulators, other operators and US Space Command.

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Starlink says taking its satellites to a lower orbit this year will allow a more than 80 per cent cut to ballistic decay time. Photo: TNS
Science

2026 is a stellar year for supermoons and eclipses: what to look out for

The coming year is packed with cosmic events, from a ‘ring of fire’ eclipse to two six-planet line-ups to several supermoons.

Iran

Iran launches 3 satellites into space from Russia

Iran’s space programme and related entities have been targeted by US sanctions, but Iran insists the satellites are intended for ‘observation’.

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Japan

Can Japan’s space industry regain thrust after H3 rocket failure?

Failure is inevitable, aerospace experts say, so Japan needs to be less afraid of making mistakes and move on.

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Japan’s H3 rocket carrying the Michibiki No 5 satellite lifts off from the Tanegashima Space Centre on Monday. Photo: Kyodo/Reuters
Japan

Video | Japanese rocket fails to launch satellite into orbit

The Michibiki satellite is the sixth in a seven-orbiter geolocation system aimed at giving Japan highly accurate positioning services.

Science

Second reusable rocket recovery failure in a month puts China 10 years behind US

Chinese state-owned and commercial developers are racing to catch up on a decade of the technology’s deployment.

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Japan

Japan’s H3 rocket fails to deploy geolocation satellite after engine cuts out

The Michibiki satellite is the sixth in a seven-orbiter geolocation system aimed at giving Japan highly accurate positioning services.

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Japan’s H3 rocket carrying the Michibiki No 5 satellite lifts off from the Tanegashima Space Centre on Monday. Photo: Kyodo
United States

German engineer becomes first wheelchair user to blast into space

Michaela Benthaus had thought her dreams of being an astronaut were over after she was badly injured in a mountain bike accident.

Michaela Benthaus is seen on Blue Origin New Shepard NS-37 in Van Horn, Texas, on Saturday. Photo: Blue Origin via AFP
Donald Trump

Trump’s space plan envisages US moon base amid race with China

Trump calls for moon landing in 2028, lunar base thereafter, as China targets the end of the decade for its first crewed landing.

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United States

Musk ally Isaacman confirmed as Nasa chief amid moon race with China

The US billionaire with a passion for space, was nominated by Trump for a second time after a previous bid fell through.

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Science

Open Questions | Sci-fi writer Liu Cixin on why he’ll be happy if AI surpasses humans

Acclaimed author of the Three-Body trilogy also discusses his ‘dark forest’ theory, and the struggle to come up with original ideas.

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Illustration: Davies Christian
Open Questions series

Open Questions | Why sci-fi’s Liu Cixin hopes AI surpasses humanity

The Three-Body Problem author on technology’s remorseless progress, why superintelligence isn’t a given and the decline of science fiction literature.

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Illustration: Davies Christian
US-China relations

Trump’s Nasa pick vows US will beat China back to the moon

Isaacman says Washington must move quickly to stay ahead of Beijing amid intensifying rivalry in space exploration.

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Science

China’s first reusable rocket Zhuque-3 fails recovery, leaving US in the lead

Designer LandSpace says it is investigating after lower stage of the rocket appeared to catch fire before crashing near the recovery site.

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Aerospace: Science

China’s Xingyan ‘Star Eye’ network to track satellites and space debris

The web of 156 orbiting sensors will form the country’s second space situational awareness constellation designed to bring down the risk of collisions.

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The Kaiyun-1 was launched in September as he first satellite in China’s Guangshi space situational-awareness constellation. Photo: Handout
Taiwan

Hong Kong fire, Trump calls in Japan-China row, Macron visit

This week: Hong Kong fire kills at least 128, Trump speaks to Xi and Takaichi amid Japan-China row, Bessent says Xi and Trump may meet four times in 2026. Next week: France’s Macron visits China, EU economic security doctrine, November factory activity, and more.

Open Questions series

Open Questions | Ex-PLA colonel on Taiwan, the Ukraine war, China-US ties

Zhou Bo ponders Japanese PM Takaichi’s recent remarks, lessons from the Ukraine conflict and why China won’t be world’s policeman.

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Science

Lightning on Mars? Scientists believe they have captured its sound on tape

Nasa’s Perseverance rover has picked up the crackling of electrical discharges on its microphone.

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The US rover Perseverance has recorded data showing that there is also lightening on Mars. Photo: Nasa/JPL-Caltech/MSSS/dpa
South Korea

‘Turning point’: South Korea’s largest satellite launched on Nuri rocket

This is the country’s first primarily home-grown space launch vehicle – previous launches had relied heavily on technology from other nations.

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The Nuri space rocket, carrying 13 satellites, takes off from Naro Space Centrer in Goheung, South Korea, on Thursday. Photo: EPA/Yonhap
Technology

Opinion | How AI, quantum and space technologies will define the Asian century

Together, they form an engine that will determine which nations shape the century ahead and which struggle to keep pace.

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China's space programme

Explainer | Why China’s space sector is grabbing attention – including from Elon Musk

Chinese start-up LandSpace is set to launch its first reusable rocket on Saturday. If it succeeds, it will give China’s space sector a major boost.

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Obituaries

Joan Branson, wife of British billionaire Richard Branson, dies at 80

The Virgin Atlantic founder called his spouse his best friend, rock, and his guiding light in a social media post about her death.

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Richard Branson and his wife, Joan, attend an event in Beverly Hills in February 2016. Photo: TNS
Science

China’s first emergency space launch: vessel with repair kit reaches Tiangong

Shenzhou-22’s arrival at the Tiangong station will come as a relief for the crew after another return ship was damaged by space debris.

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A Long March-2F rocket carrying the uncrewed Shenzhou-22 spacecraft takes off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Centre in China’s northwestern Gansu province on November 25. Photo: via Reuters
Nasa

Nasa shares new images of 3I/ATLAS and rejects alien spacecraft ‘rumours’

US space agency officials say that 3I/ATLAS, the third interstellar object ever observed, is a comet.

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China's space programme

Editorial | US and China should cooperate to make space safe for all

Space safety is one area where Chinese, Americans and everyone else can benefit from coordination and the sharing of information and costs.

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