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Winning the Red Planet race: Returning Mars samples before China should be a top US priority, experts say

January 8, 2026
Moon boots and Mars boots: anyway you look at it there are a lot of NASA shoes still to drop. Among the agency’s missions in perpetual déjà vu status is Mars Sample Return (MSR), an attempt to bring samples of the Red Planet back to Earth, an endeavor viewed as a U.S. high priority. However, there’s also been a recurrent whirlwind of fallout about Mars Sample Return in recent years…
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China's next moonshot: Chang'e 7 could search the lunar south pole for water this year

January 7, 2026
China’s next robotic moon mission is scheduled to launch later this year, helping set the stage for the nation’s planned multi-phased lunar outpost. The Chang’e 7 mission is on tap to reconnoiter the moon’s south pole, making use of an orbiter, lander, rover and a water-seeking, well-instrumented lunar hopper. This upcoming moon trek will also help advance the International…
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Moon rush: These private spacecraft will attempt lunar landings in 2026

January 6, 2026
2026 is shaping up to be a spectacular year for lunar exploration, with a growing fleet of commercial missions set to attempt to land on Earth’s celestial neighbor. It will be a huge year for the moon overall. NASA plans to send humans back to the vicinity of the moon with the Artemis 2 mission no earlier than February, while China, in the second half of the year, aims to land at the lunar…
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Will Comet C/2025 R3 (PanSTARRS) be the 'great comet' of 2026?

January 5, 2026
After the excitement of three visible comets in 2025, another may put on a show in late April 2026. However, although the comet, known as C/2025 R3 (PanSTARRS), could become bright enough to be seen with the naked eye, it could just as easily remain visible only through binoculars and telescopes. In the wake of Comets C/2025 A6 (Lemmon) and C/2025 R2 (SWAN) in October, Comet R3 (PanSTARRS) is due…
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