September 2017
Australia’s unique space history
...In addition to being the technological prototype for the 64 m dishes of NASA’s Deep Space Network, Parkes has played a vital role in various NASA and ESA deep space missions and also in the Apollo lunar programme. A view of the Parkes Radio Telescope...
02 December 2014
Orion service module contract for Airbus
...OMS engine and other thrusters, allowing the Orion to manoeuvre during its future deep space missions to asteroids, the Moon and eventually to Mars. As part of an... hopes of obtaining an ESA astronaut’s seat aboard a future Orion deep-space mission.
30 September 2016
Historic Rosetta mission ends
... Alvaro Giménez, ESA's Director of Science. "Rosetta was on the drawing board even before ESA's first deep-space mission, Giotto, had taken the first image of a comet nucleus as it flew past Halley in 1986. The...
April 2025
Racing to the Moon
... Mengzhou (‘Dream Vessel’) was flight tested as early as May 2020. Intended for deep space missions and to replace the current crew transport for China’s space station, it includes a reusable crew module and an expendable service module. A lander...
September 2025
AI cybersecurity - challenges in space
... stakes are undeniably high, encompassing the integrity of critical global infrastructure, the success of ambitious deep-space missions and the safety of future human endeavours beyond Earth. Addressing these AI-specific vulnerabilities is not merely...
May 2026
Mars exploration – the nuclear option
... at around 450 seconds. This means they consume enormous amounts of propellant in a very short time and, for deep-space missions, they are simply too inefficient. Hybrid strategy The design requires no revolutionary propulsion breakthroughs, only the...
