July 29, 2026 Quick space links
Courtesy of BtB’s stringer Jay, plus the last from reader Nate P. This post is also an open thread. I welcome my readers to post any comments or additional links relating to any space issues, even if unrelated to the links below.
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- Clearest image ever of Betelgeuse’s companion
This short video reviews the 2024 discovery.
- Stratolaunch touts “10+ consecutive hypersonic flights” of its Talon-A reusable test vehicle
It seems Rocket Lab is not the only company getting Pentagon hypersonic test contracts.
- Startup Hop Aero touts its Rook autonomous hypersonic cargo rocket that delivers 550 lbs up to 450 miles in 15 minutes
Launches and lands vertically from a standard 40-foot shipping container. The company has a $1.25 million development contract from the Air Force, so don’t look for this to fly in the near future.
- Japanese lunar lander startup Ispace awards Mitsubishi and its H3 rocket the contract to launch its third lunar lander mission in 2028
It used Falcon 9 for its first two landers, but since this third mission is being financed by Japan’s government, the company was likely persuaded by that government to use a Japanese rocket this time.
- Two Chinese pseudo-companies team up to launch a 1,000 satellite data center constellation
ADA Space builds satellites, while SenseTime writes AI software.
- On July 29, 1971 the Saturn-5 upper stage impacted the Moon at a planned location
Scientists used the readings from the seismometers placed by the four Apollo missions so far to get information about the Moon’s interior.
- On July 29, 2003 Scaled Composites completed the first manned captive flight of SpaceShipOne
The suborbital air-launched spaceplane was piloted by Mike Melvill.
- Rocket engine company Impulse now adding electric engines to its product line
Up to now the company focused on chemical engines for attitude control and in-space transport.
On Christmas Eve 1968 three Americans became the first humans to visit another world. What they did to celebrate was unexpected and profound, and will be remembered throughout all human history. Genesis: the Story of Apollo 8, Robert Zimmerman's classic history of humanity's first journey to another world, tells that story, and it is now available as both an ebook and an audiobook, both with a foreword by Valerie Anders and a new introduction by Robert Zimmerman.
The print edition can be purchased at Amazon or from any other book seller. If you want an autographed copy the price is $60 for the hardback and $45 for the paperback, plus $8 shipping for each. Go here for purchasing details. The ebook is available everywhere for $5.99 (before discount) at amazon, or direct from my ebook publisher, ebookit. If you buy it from ebookit you don't support the big tech companies and the author gets a bigger cut much sooner.
The audiobook is also available at all these vendors, and is also free with a 30-day trial membership to Audible.
"Not simply about one mission, [Genesis] is also the history of America's quest for the moon... Zimmerman has done a masterful job of tying disparate events together into a solid account of one of America's greatest human triumphs."--San Antonio Express-News

Has anyone heard from Rocket Lab lately? They had a T-0 abort four weeks ago on 01 July on a launch for iQPS. They also had a launch for NASA scheduled for 17 July. Both dates have come and gone with seemingly no word from Rocket Lab.
Did I miss something?
Hi mkent,
Mum’s the word on both of those flights. So far there has been three aborts in the row for RocketLab. I did not notice this, but good observation.
The Space Force today just awarded SpaceX task orders for 18 national security launches, worth $1.8 billion.
https://www.ssc.spaceforce.mil/Newsroom/Article/4559276/space-force-awards-task-orders-to-launch-space-based-sensing-and-targeting-capa
Sad to say, 18 launches in the next 18 months looks pretty darned likely to be more orbital launches than ULA is gonna manage *in toto*.
The Hop Aero rocket reminds me of what the late Charles Pooley was working on through his company (Microlauncher, I think it was called). His objective was to develop a system that could launch small payloads from just about anywhere within a short period of time.
He hoped he could do for the launch business what the Altair did for computing.
New physics?
https://phys.org/news/2026-07-einstein-problem-reveals-unexpected-physics.html
Why some shapes crumple
https://phys.org/news/2026-07-wrinkles-suddenly-crumple.html
Of use to tankage guys
Both interesting articles.
A Veratasium on non-repeating patterns
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=48sCx-wBs34&t=418s
Stunning drawings
https://m.youtube.com/shorts/ReCOssE6R9U
Oxygen compound
https://phys.org/news/2026-08-cleaner-chemical-reactions-oxygen.html