June 16, 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.
- State Dept. and SpaceX sign agreement to use Starlink for international disaster preparedness & U.S. humanitarian response efforts worldwide
Actually a no-brainer. I am sure it is not exclusive, and when Amazon’s Leo is operational it will get a similar deal.
- Asteoroid mining startup AstroForge touts the assembly of its second asteroid spacecraft
Dubbed Deep Space-2, it will attempt to rendezvous with an asteroid. The company’s first asteroid probe, Odin, failed shortly after launch in 2025.
- Upper stage of China’s Zhuque-2E rocket launched June 9th breaks apart
The pieces pose only a temporary problem as they are low enough they will all burn up in a few months. The break-up however highlights China’s irresponsibility in this matter, as this is not the only Chinese upper stage to do this. Its Long March 6 did so four times in 2024. Moreover, China makes relatively little effort to bring these upper stages down quickly in a controlled manner.
- Blue Origin touts the proposed ability of its Blue Ring orbital tug to deflect dangerous asteroids
Hasn’t launched yet, so this is just empty PR.
- Astrobotic (now owned by space station startup Voyager) touts the unveiling of its now complete Griffin-1 lunar lander
The spacecraft still awaits final thermal, vibration, and environmental ground testing. It is scheduled to launch late this year on a Falcon Heavy.
- On June 16, 2012 Boeing’s X-37B landed, completing its second mission
It spent 468 days and 14 hours in space.
- On June 16, 2012 China launched Shenzhou-9 on the second mission to itsTiangong-1 space station
It included China’s first female astronaut, Liu Yang.
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