The Space Show

On The Space Show for Wednesday, 1 July 2026: Swift Boost Mission Plans to launch the  LINK  satellite to reboost the  Swift  astrophysics satellite into a higher orbit. Launch delayed until tomorrow. (Inserts courtesy GSFC) NASA has contracted Katalyst Space of Flagstaff, Arizona, to boost the altitude of its sinking Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory . Swift is NASA’s astrophysics multitool, capable...

On The Space Show for Wednesday, 24 June 2026: Conversations at the Australian Space Research Conference:  * Capturing the first signal from Waratah Seed 1, the ride-share payloads aboard, and funding by the New South Wales Government with Patrick Oppel at CUAVA, School of Physics, Sydney University.  * The CUAVA 1, CUAVA 2 and Waratah Seed 1 satellites; funding CUAVA; collision avoidance using mi...

On The Space Show for Wednesday, 17 June 2026: Australian Space Research Conference:  * Iron Making on Mars with Dr Deddy Nababan , Postdoctoral Fellow at CSIRO Mineral Resources and a Swinburne University alum.  * Studying the Sun with balloons launched by a student team with Joseph George, Monash High Altitude Balloon team, Monash University, Clayton.  Artemis Lunar Science: Artemis II — Looking...

On The Space Show for Wednesday, 10 June 2026: Artemis III mission profile and crew unveiled: NASA’s announcement at the Johnson Space Centre, Houston, of the Artemis III mission profile and crew During Artemis III, the agency’s SLS (Space Launch System) rocket will launch the Orion spacecraft and its crew from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida to low Earth orbit. After Orion's systems ar...

On The Space Show for Wednesday, 3 June 2026: The Andy Thomas Space Foundation with the Chair of the Foundation, Peter Nikoloff:  * What the Foundation is and what its aims and activities are .   * The 19th Australian Space Forum being organised for 21-22 July 2026, Adelaide, South Australia.   * The Kids In Space educational programme in primary schools.   * Nova Systems . Space Show News:   * Bl...

On The Space Show for Wednesday, 27 May 2026: Space Show News: Shenzhou 23   The launch of Shenzhou 23 and Hong Kong's involvement. China in Space: China's ten-year plan for space, and the growth of commercial launch services . (Inserts courtesy CGTN)   Turn Back Time: Surveyor 1 The Surveyor 1 soft landing on the Moon, and preparations for the Gemini 9 mission. (Inserts BBC, VOA, NZBC)

On The Space Show for Wednesday, 20 May 2026: Space Show News: Australian Space Industry 2026 — Part 1   * Spiral Blue's first international LiDAR sale to Lodestar in the United Kingdom  * QuantX Labs on TEMPO   * Neuman Space's ND-25 propulsion system on CarbSAR.  Also, a giant sunspot on the far side of the Sun was observed by the Solar Orbiter and the Perseverance Rover on Mars. SMILE and Psych...

On The Space Show for Wednesday, 13 May 2026: Space Show News:  The Australian Federal Budget — An analysis of the space and astronomy sections of the 2026 Federal Budget.  Extraterrestrial Life - Could We Cope?  The US government has released a first batch of 160 previously classified files on alleged UFO sightings and alien life. The files include a 1947 report of "flying discs" and a...

On The Space Show for Wednesday, 5 May 2026: YouGov polls about the Artemis 2 circumlunar mission and Apollo 11 lunar landing One in six Australian adults watched the Artemis II launch live, and many still believe in the value of space exploration. In the wake of the Artemis II launch, new research from YouGov reveals that space exploration continues to capture the imagination of Australians, offe...

On The Space Show for Wednesday, 22 April 2026: Turning Back Time 80 years since the first test launch of a V-2 rocket from American soil: At 2:47 on the afternoon of Tuesday, 16 April 1946, a captured Nazi V-2 missile ascended into the sky from the U.S. Army's new White Sands Proving Ground in south-central New Mexico. It didn't get very far. The guidance system failed, a fin came off, an...

On The Space Show for Wednesday, 15 April 2026: 2025 International Astronautical Congress (IAC), Sydney:  "If you want to go fast, go alone; if you want to go far, go together.” Part 2 of an astronaut panel discussion marking 25 years of continuous human presence on the International Space Station.  The astronauts are: Julie Payette (moderator) — Canadian engineer, scientist and former astron...

On The Space Show for Wednesday, 8 April 2026: Space Show News: Artemis II update 2025 International Astronautical Congress (IAC), Sydney: Lessons learned at Gilmour Space with Adam Gilmour, CEO and co-founder of Gilmour Space Technologies A conversation between the head of the Australian Space Agency (ASA), Enrico Palermo, and the President of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), Dr Hir...

On The Space Show for Wednesday, 1 April 2026: Space Show News:  * Artemis II mission poised to launch.  * The Australian National University is providing laser communications support for NASA’s Artemis II Moon mission .  * NASA selects Intuitive Machines to carry  Roo-ve r, Australia's first Moon rover, to the lunar South Pole region in 2030 . Lunar Astronomy Dr Martin Elvis, Senior Astrophysicis...

On The Space Show for Wednesday, 25 March 2026: The announcement of a major change in direction and focus for NASA with Jared Isaacman, NASA Administrator. (Courtesy NASA HQ) Policy as a compass for Australia's lunar future with Jeremy Kruckel, a member of the Space Association of Australia. The lunar discoveries of LRO  A summary of the achievements of the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter since i...

On The Space Show for Wednesday, 18 March 2026: Artemis II Mission Update: Read the latest update here . Post-Shuttle Changes to the Kennedy Space Center (KSC) As preparations are being made for the launch of  Artemis II  by the second Space Launch System (SLS) rocket from the Kennedy Space Center, we pop back to 2014 when Mike Bolger (Program Manager, Ground Systems Development and Operations, KS...

On The Space Show for Wednesday, 11 March 2026: Artemis II Crew Briefing — 24 September 2025  In anticipation of their forthcoming historic flight, the four members of the Artemis II crew discuss their planned mission around the Moon and answer questions from the media. (Inserts courtesy JSC)  Turn Back Time: 60th Anniversary of Gemini 8  The story of the near-disastrous flight of Gemini 8 is told...

On The Space Show for Wednesday, 21 December 2022: 50th Anniversary of Apollo 17 - Part III: On the Shoulders of Giants Gene Cernan, Harrison Schmitt and Jim Lovell in conversation with journalist Phil Rogers at Chicago’s Adler Planetarium on 13 November 2012.

On The Space Show for Wednesday, 4 March 2026: Dart AE hypersonic demonstrator by Hypersonix Launch Systems The launch of Queensland's Hypersonix Launch Systems Dart AE hypersonic aircraft on a modified Rocket Lab Electron (HASTE) rocket. (Inserts courtesy HLS, Rocket Lab) Space Show News:  * Update on Artemis II launch delay.  * Changes to the Artemis program: NASA revises plans for future Ar...

On The Space Show f or Wednesday, 25 February 2026: Space Show News: Artemis II's second launch delay After a successful wet-dress rehearsal, the Artemis II launch has been delayed at least until April by a helium flow problem in the Interim Cryogenic Upper Stage. The Space Launch System (SLS) has been moved back to the Vehicle Assembly Building in Florida for inspection and repairs. NASA Rele...

On The Space Show for Wednesday, 18 February 2026:  Space Show News: AtSpace conducts successful launch of Australian-made A01 rocket at the Southern Launch Koonibba Test Range.  On 27 November 2025, AtSpace, a Brisbane-based rocket manufacturer, entered the rocketry record books by successfully launching their Australian-made A01 rocket higher than any other Australian commercial rocket has gone...

On The Space Show for Wednesday, 11 February 2026:  Turn Back Time: Voyager 2 at Uranus  Ed Stone, Project Scientist, describes the findings of  Voyager 2  at Uranus, 40 years ago. (Insert courtesy JPL) Perseverance rover status update The status of the  Perseverance  rover, and future plans for exploration and rock sample collection with Steve Reid, Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, California...

On The Space Show for Wednesday, 4 February 2026:  The Space Show is in conversation with Angelo Di Grazia, a Committee member of the ⁠Space Association of Australia⁠ . ******* Space Show News — The Artemis II launch has been delayed by at least one month due to a hydrogen leak  during a wet dress rehearsal. ******* Ensuring American Space Superiority: A new U.S. space policy directive — On 18 Dec...

On The Space Show for Wednesday, 28 January 2026:   The 40th anniversary of the STS 51-L disaster that destroyed the Space Shuttle Challenger and killed seven astronauts on 28 January 1986. STS-51-L would have been the 25th mission of the NASA Space Shuttle program. Tragically, the Challenger and her crew were lost in an explosion 73 seconds after liftoff from Kennedy Space Center Launch Complex 3...

On The Space Show for Wednesday, 17 December 2025:   Bill Nelson, Administrator, NASA and Pam Melroy, Deputy Administrator, NASA, s peaking at the National Press Club in Canberra on 23 March 2023. The then Administrators answered questions from Press Club members. (Courtesy NPC)  Enrico Palermo, Head, Australian Space Agency, Adelaide Welcome speech to the 2025 International Astronautical Congress...

On The Space Show for Wednesday, 10 December 2025:  Conversations at the 24th Australian Space Research Conference 2025 - Part 3: HEO - Non-Earth Imagery The Space Show in conversation with Hiranya Jayakody, Chief Technical Officer & Co-founder, HEO, Sydney.  Hiranya talks about the formation of HEO, its aims, rented and hosted cameras for imaging satellites, reasons for photographing satellit...