June 12, 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.
- South Korean rocket startup Innospace touts the start of the overseas shipment of its HANBIT-Nano rocket
It hopes to attempt a second launch before the end of the year out of Brazil’s Alcantera spaceport.
- Images of pad work by Blue Origin and SpaceX at Cape Canaveral
SpaceX is about to begin building its launchpad for Superheavy/Starship. Blue Origin has begun clean-up. Jay notes: “I saw someone posted that the pad is already clear of all the debris from the accident.”
- Russia extends its orbiting Spektr-RG X-ray observatory by five more years
Launched in 2019, it is Russia’s only orbiting telescope in operation.
- Vandenberg offers new launch site for small and medium rockets
Companies have until July 8, 2026 to submit a bid.
- On June 12, 1967 the Soviet Union launched Venera 4, the first probe to send data back from Venus’ atmosphere
It operated for 93 minutes as it descended 20 miles on parachutes.
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

Re: Elon Musk IPO – I do not usually use Google. I decided to do a quick search. Elon Musk employs 160,000 people DIRECTLY. Indirectly, 600,000 more people have jobs.
The Left seems to despise Musk so much, they would have all those hundreds of thousands on the government dole, instead of the gainfully employed