July 9, 2026 Quick space links
Courtesy of BtB’s stringer Jay. 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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- University team proposes retractable, pressurized tunnels for missions to Mars
Very cool, but way too complicated. We first need to figure out how to get there, and then build habitats as simple as possible to begin with.
- Firefly: All components of its second Blue Ghost mission to the Moon have passed acceptance testing
They can now be assembled together. Launch is scheduled before the end of the year, and will target the far side of the Moon.
- The New Horizons’ science team wakes the spacecraft from hibernation
It was asleep for nearly a year, and awoke in good health. It will resume science operations for about a month.
- Video of ISRO’s fifth drop test of Gaganyaan’s parachute system
It took place on July 7, 2026, dropping a mass simulator from 2.5 kilometers altitude from an airplane.
- Maritime notice says China will attempt the first launch of its reusable Long March-10B on July 10, 2026
It will attempt to recover the first stage by catching in a net on an ocean vessel. The two hour launch window in the U.S. will be from 10 pm to midnight (Eastern) on July 9.
- On July 9 1979 Voyager 2 made its closest approach to Jupiter
It passed the gas giant at a distance of 350,000 miles.
- Video of the July 9 2024 first launch of Europe’s Ariane-6 rocket
It got its payload into orbit, but experienced a failure of the upper stage, preventing it from relighting for a controlled re-entry.
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