TYB
NASA Astronomy Picture of the Day
April 2, 2026
Liftoff! Returning to the Moon
We are one small step closer to returning to the Moon. A new chapter in human exploration began yesterday when NASA's Artemis II launched aboard the Space Launch System (SLS) from Kennedy Space Center. Carrying four astronauts, the Orion spacecraft's planned lunar flyby will be the first in over half a century. This historic test flight, echoing the legacy of Apollo while pushing beyond it, will carry its crew farther from Earth than any humans since 1972, looping around the Moon before returning home. During the approximately ten-day journey, Orion's systemsfrom life support to navigationwill be tested in deep space, while astronauts observe the lunar surface, including shadowed regions of the far side rarely seen with such perspective. After looping around the Moon, the astronauts will return to Earth, ending their journey with a Pacific Ocean splashdown.
https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/astropix.html
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=INpsC0dHFL0
Disaster Cycle, Solar Storm Levels Rising, Earthquakes | S0 News and frens
Apr.2.2026
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L_AIU9p425Q
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GfZBSJQjTxs (Dutchsinse: 4/01/2026 –Tsunami Threat & Large M7.8 (M7.4) Earthquake - THREE M7+ events this past week = UNREST)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cOWD_XeO_EM (Thornews: 5.0 Earthquake near San Jose California and the coming Mars Saturn Mercury Moment* of April!)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W3YyBy4iiRg (Stefan Burns: The Whole Earth Shook as Most Powerful Rocket Ever Launched…)
https://x.com/StefanBurnsGeo/status/2039675855610270071
https://x.com/SolarHam/status/2039527494068343287
https://x.com/SchumannBotDE/status/2039704721074593840
https://www.swpc.noaa.gov/products/aurora-viewline-tonight-and-tomorrow-night-experimental
https://www.nesdis.noaa.gov/our-satellites/currently-flying/goes-east-west/compact-coronagraph
https://www.nesdis.noaa.gov/our-satellites/currently-flying/goes-east-west/solar-ultraviolet-imager-suvi
https://www.volcanodiscovery.com/earthquake/news/299115/Seismic-like-event-possible-earthquake-reported-few-minutes-ago-near-Togane-Chiba-Japan.html
https://www.volcanodiscovery.com/earthquake/news/299080/World-Earthquake-Report-for-Thursday-2-April-2026.html
https://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/map/?currentFeatureId=us6000slss&extent=-18.22935,91.31836&extent=20.46819,161.2793
https://www.swpc.noaa.gov/news/g2-g1-watches-mar-31-apr-02-utc-day
https://spaceweather.com/
The aurora tracker is missing data for 2 or 3 days now
https://www.esa.int/Science_Exploration/Space_Science/Juice/Five_things_Juice_has_revealed_about_Comet_3I_ATLAS
Five things Juice has revealed about Comet 3I/ATLAS
02/04/2026
‘Extreme but not exotic,’ – a glimpse at Comet 3I/ATLAS through the eyes of the European Space Agency’s Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer (Juice).
In November 2025, Juice was in the right place, at the right time, with the right equipment to observe interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS just after its closest approach to the Sun.
Our mission operations teams switched on five of Juice’s science instruments to collect information about how the active comet was behaving at the time.
Following a three-month wait to receive the data on Earth, scientists working on each of these instruments have spent the last few weeks delving into the photos, spectra and numbers.
Results are still preliminary, work is still ongoing, but here are five things we’ve already learned.
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The comet was releasing 70 Olympic swimming pools of water vapour every day
On 2 November 2025, just four days after 3I/ATLAS had made its closest approach to the Sun, Juice’s Moons And Jupiter Imaging Spectrometer (MAJIS) detected that the comet was spewing out 2000 kg of water vapour every second – equivalent to 70 Olympic swimming pools per day.
Comets – true to their ‘dirty snowballs’ nickname – are mostly made of ice. As they approach the Sun, this ice turns to gas and escapes the comet.
The amount of water vapour leaving 3I/ATLAS is not exceptional, but it is on the high side of what we would expect from a comet close to the Sun, based on what we have seen before in comets like 67P (300 kg per second) and Halley (20 000 kg per second).
These numbers depend a lot on the size of a comet and its distance from the Sun. MAJIS detected 3I/ATLAS again on 12 and 19 November, as it was moving away from the Sun.
By 12 November, the amount of water vapour being released by the comet did not seem to have reduced significantly. The instrument team is planning to analyse the data from 19 November in the coming weeks.
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Most of this water vapour was being released in the direction of the Sun
Juice’s Submillimeter Wave Instrument (SWI) also detected water vapour from 3I/ATLAS, revealing that most of it was being released from the Sun-facing side of the comet.
It also appears that a lot of this water vapour is not actually coming directly from the solid part of the comet (its nucleus), but from icy dust grains that have escaped into a surrounding halo of dust and gas (its coma).
The SWI team are continuing to look into the data to determine how much ‘light’ water (normal H2O) 3I/ATLAS is releasing. It is interesting to compare this to the amount of ‘semiheavy’ water (HDO) from the comet, which has been measured by the ALMA and Webb telescopes.
This ratio is a really important number in our studies of the Universe, giving a kind of ‘fingerprint’ that describes how and where an object formed.
ALMA and Webb found this ratio to be unexpectedly and extremely high for 3I/ATLAS – possibly because the comet was born in a very cold and very ancient environment, where it was exposed to a lot of ultraviolet radiation from young stars.
The SWI team is investigating whether the Juice data back up these findings.
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Gas and dust stretch at least 5 million km from the comet’s nucleus
Juice’s Ultraviolet Imaging Spectrograph (UVS) captured light coming from oxygen, hydrogen and carbon atoms in the gas and dust surrounding and trailing behind the comet.
Oxygen, hydrogen, carbon and dust emit photons of light at specific wavelengths, which UVS recorded as counts per second.
UVS saw these gas elements and dust stretching up to more than 5 million km from 3I/ATLAS’s nucleus. Gas and dust are common around active comets, with tails sometimes reaching up to 10 million km long.
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This interstellar comet looks… just like a normal comet!
Juice’s high-resolution science camera, JANUS (short for ‘Jovis Amorum ac Natorum Undique Scrutator’ – or ‘Scrutiniser of Jupiter, and all his loves and descendants') also saw 3I/ATLAS spewing gas and dust.
Despite being over 60 million km from 3I/ATLAS, JANUS clearly reveals the coma in which the nucleus is hiding, as well as two tails. One tail stretches away from the Sun, and the other follows the path taken by the comet through the Solar System.
We can also see fainter shapes within the coma and tails that indicate various processes and interactions with the radiation, particles and magnetic field from the Sun. The JANUS team is currently investigating these shapes in more detail.
Overall, JANUS shows that, despite its interstellar origin, Comet 3I/ATLAS was behaving like a typical comet from the Solar System during a close approach to the Sun.
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3I/ATLAS is supporting our planetary defence efforts – perhaps not in the way you might think
Juice’s Navigation Camera (NavCam) is specially designed to help Juice navigate around Jupiter’s icy moons following arrival in 2031. The encounter with 3I/ATLAS allowed us to do something totally unexpected with it.
We have already used telescopes on and around Earth to estimate the location and path of Comet 3I/ATLAS through the Solar System. It seems to come from the direction of the Milky Way’s disc, and was therefore likely created more than 10 billion years ago.
NavCam had a much closer view of 3I/ATLAS, from a different angle to Earth-based telescopes, and when the comet was not visible from Earth.
This meant that ESA’s Planetary Defence team could line up NavCam images from throughout November to get a better idea of the comet’s changing position and trajectory.
In this way, the team – which usually tracks potentially hazardous asteroids – showed how powerful observations from deep-space missions can be to precisely calculate the orbits of comets or asteroids that cannot immediately be seen from Earth.
What’s more, because a comet’s trajectory is affected slightly by the release of dust and gas, the team is starting to use the trajectory measurements based on NavCam images to understand what materials – and how much of them – the comet is leaving in its wake.
What’s next for Juice?
Instrument teams will continue to study the data, with many teams planning to publish papers on their results in the coming months.
“3I/ATLAS is a rare and unexpected visitor, its arrival came as a complete surprise,” says Olivier Witasse, ESA Juice Project Scientist.
“But when we realised that Juice would be close to the comet around its closest approach to the Sun, we realised what a unique opportunity this was to collect a once-in-a-lifetime dataset.”
He continues: “Observing the comet was challenging, with no guarantee of success, but in the end, it turned into a great bonus for Juice during its journey to Jupiter.”
The closest Juice came to 3I/ATLAS was about 60 million km, whereas it will see Jupiter’s moons from just a few hundred kilometres away. Even so, being designed and equipped to study icy moons, Juice’s instruments were a great match for the icy interstellar comet.
We still have five years to wait before Juice arrives at Jupiter in 2031, but all its instruments will be switched on once again in September 2026 when Juice returns to Earth for another gravity assist.
“The data we are already seeing from Juice’s instruments is really promising,” says co-Project Scientist Claire Vallat. “We are getting more excited about how well they work and how much we will reveal about Jupiter and its icy moons in the 2030s.”
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https://www.universetoday.com/articles/tales-of-two-comets-a1-maps-and-r3-pan-starrs-both-make-a-showing-in-april
moar fireballs, comets, and meteors
https://qcostarica.com/the-meteorite-that-chose-costa-rica-how-a-piece-of-heredia-ended-up-in-the-worlds-most-important-museums/
https://fireball.amsmeteors.org/members/imo/report_intro
https://www.rgj.com/story/news/2026/04/01/fireballs-nevada-california-spike/89427063007/
https://www.nationalgeographic.com/science/article/sungrazing-comet-2026-a1-maps-when-to-see
https://avi-loeb.medium.com/the-unbearable-lightness-of-artemis-ii-and-our-future-among-the-stars-f55c7326b82d
https://x.com/StefanBurnsGeo/status/2039712350836494786
https://x.com/Kurt_A_Eff/status/2039476597405708631
https://www.universetoday.com/articles/tales-of-two-comets-a1-maps-and-r3-pan-starrs-both-make-a-showing-in-april
https://qcostarica.com/the-meteorite-that-chose-costa-rica-how-a-piece-of-heredia-ended-up-in-the-worlds-most-important-museums/
Tales of Two Comets: A1 MAPS and R3 Pan-STARRS Both Make a Showing in April
March 31, 2026 05:12 PM UTC
Early April could be an exciting time for sky watchers, as two comets take center stage: R3 Pan-STARRS and sungrazer A1 MAPS.
All eyes are on the inner solar system in April 2026, as two comets reach perihelion. One, Comet R3 Pan-STARRS we’ve known about since last year.
Another, sungrazer A1 MAPS was just found as the first comet of 2026 and presents us with a big question: will it survive its blistering perihelion passage on Saturday, April 4th, or simply vaporize like the majority of sungrazers before it?
Update on Comet A1 MAPS
We previously wrote for Universe Today about the back story for comet A1 MAPS). The find certainly made astronomers and sky watchers take notice, as it now holds the distinction as the most distant sungrazer discovered to date, at over 2 Astronomical Units (AU) from the Sun.
Since January, the comet has brightened, stalled, then brightened again, and currently sits at magnitude +6 and brightening ‘with a bullet’, low it the dusk sky as a tough catch below brilliant Venus.
Measurements including observations made by re-tasking JWST to observe the comet place the nucleus for A1 MAPS in the 0.4 kilometer or smaller range, on the small end versus famous sungrazers in the past, such as 1965’s Ikeya-Seki.
What to Expect at Perihelion
Certainly, numbers aren’t on Comet A1 MAPS’ side. The comet reaches perihelion on Saturday, April 4th at 14:23 Universal Time (UT)/10:23 AM EDT, just 101,000 miles (~162,000 kilometers) from the surface of the Sun, threading the inner solar corona.
That’s less than half the distance from the Earth to the Moon. The comet actually passes behind the Sun as seen from Earth on the 4th from 11:50-to-13:20 UT, then loops around and crosses (transits) in front of the solar disk from 13:55-to-15:20 UT, during perihelion.
We’ll probably get a good look via SOHO after that to see what’s left of the comet.
We have two possibilities for Comet A1 MAPS, each with their own possible pair of outcomes:
Scenario 1: breakup at perihelion. My money’s on this one, though I’d love to be wrong. In this case, like with the demise of Comet ISON back in 2013, the last days before perihelion will provide our final views of the comet.
Sub-scenario: Instead of a fizzle, a ‘headless comet’ that briefly survives perihelion before fading from view. W3 Lovejoy put on a similar show in 2011-2012.
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Scenario 2: The comet survives perihelion and goes on to be a moderately bright dusk comet. Certainly, forward scattering may work in its favor, as we’re seeing the comet’s orbit nearly edge-on in early April.
Sub-scenario: The comet survives and goes on to be a great ‘daylight comet.’ It’s rare, but it has happened before. In this case, we’d have a comet topping negative magnitudes next week, rivaling Venus low in the western dusk sky.
Keep in mind, the dust tail for Comet A1 MAPS would then precede before it as it heads out of the solar system. This option would stand the best chance for the general public to get a look at a fine comet for themselves. Again, it’s a long shot, but possible.
A2 MAPS enters the field of view of SOHO LASCO C2 imager on April 2nd. As a pre-show, we had a small Kreutz sungrazer take the plunge on the final day of March:
Artemis II astronauts could also get a fine view of the comet, if they happen to be behind the Moon at the time.
A1 MAPS is a member of the Kreutz group of sungrazers, a family of comets that broke apart from a larger progenitor long ago. Certainly, there’s more our there, awaiting discovery.
On an ~1,800 year orbit, A1 MAPS could be a harbinger of more to come, years or decades from now.
Check out Nicolas Lefaudeux's in-depth analysis of Comet A1 MAPS.
Next up, unrelated comet C/2025 R3 Pan-STARRS is brightening ahead of expectations, for its own show in April.
Discovered by the Pan-STARRS all-sky survey on the night of September 8th, 2025, R3 Pan-STARRS is on a ~170,000 year orbit around the Sun inbound, destined for ejection from the solar system outbound.
The comet was found just in time to make our list of top comets for 2026. Currently a binocular comet at +6th magnitude, it may top out at +0.5 magnitude on closest Earth approach a week after perihelion on April 26th, but it’s also just 6 degrees from the Sun at the time.
Prospects in April
The time to track down R3 PanSTARRS is now. We’ve got about a week to see Comet R3 PanSTARRS at about 10-15 degrees above the eastern horizon at dawn crossing the Great Square of Pegasus, before taking the plunge sunward.
R3 Pan-STARRS also transits SOHO’s view from April 23-26.
Post-perihelion in May is an even more bashful time for the comet, as it favors southern hemisphere viewers and crosses the constellation Eridanus into Orion, headed back out of the solar system in the direction of Lepus the Hare.
One thing’s for sure: we’ll be obsessively checking in on SOHO’s view come this weekend, to see if Comet A1 MAPS survives. If it does, it could be an interesting week for sky watchers ahead, both Earthbound and otherwise.
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https://www.nasa.gov/blogs/artemis/
https://natlawreview.com/press-releases/national-space-society-cheers-nasas-successful-launch-artemis-2
https://www.space.com/space-exploration/artemis/nasa-launches-4-astronauts-to-the-moon-on-historic-artemis-2-voyage-a-lunar-leap-for-the-21st-century
https://www.whitehouse.gov/videos/nasas-artemis-ii-launch/
https://x.com/NASA/status/2039473910987534599
https://x.com/Freedom250/status/2039503144145600542
https://x.com/GuyFieri/status/2039476353452380646
Artemis II Updates + extra
April 2, 2026 9:15AM
Artemis II Flight Update: Perigee Raise Burn Complete
A view of the Earth from NASA’s Orion spacecraft as it orbits above the planet during the Artemis II test flight.
NASA astronauts Commander Reid Wiseman, Pilot Victor Glover, and Mission Specialist Christina Koch, and CSA (Canadian Space Agency) astronaut Mission Specialist Jeremy Hansen, launched at 6:35 p.m. EDT on Wednesday, April 1, 2026, on an approximately 10-day mission around the Moon and back to Earth.
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April 2, 2026 12:06AM
Artemis II Flight Update: Crew and Ground Teams Successfully Troubleshoot Orion’s Toilet
A view over the shoulders of NASA astronauts Victor Glover (left) and Reid Wiseman (right), pilot and commander, respectively, inside the Orion spacecraft as they participate in a proximity operations demonstration.
This demonstration tests the spacecraft’s ability to manually maneuver relative to another spacecraft, the interim cryogenic propulsion stage, after separation, using its onboard navigation sensors and reaction control thrusters.
The Artemis II crew, working closely with mission control in Houston, were able to restore the Orion spacecraft’s toilet to normal operations following the proximity operations demonstration.
Ahead of the apogee raise burn on April 1, the Artemis II crew reported a blinking fault light and mission control teams successfully assessed the data and worked […]
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April 1, 2026 11:37PM
Artemis II Flight Update: Proximity Operations Complete, Perigee Raise Burn Up Next
A view over the shoulders of NASA astronauts Victor Glover (left) and Reid Wiseman (right), pilot and commander, respectively, inside the Orion spacecraft as they participate in a proximity operations demonstration.
This demonstration tests the spacecraft’s ability to manually maneuver relative to another spacecraft, the interim cryogenic propulsion stage, after separation, using its onboard navigation sensors and reaction control thrusters.
The Artemis II crew successfully completed the proximity operations demonstration, concluding one of the mission’s early objectives and providing valuable data on how the Orion spacecraft, named Integrity, performs during manual close‑range maneuvering around another spacecraft. Over the course of the approximately 70‑minute activity, the crew guided the spacecraft through a series of controlled approach […]
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April 1, 2026 9:00PM
Artemis II Flight Update: Apogee Raise Burn Complete, Crew Looks Ahead to Proximity Operations
A view of the Earth's horizon from NASA’s Orion spacecraft as it orbits above the planet during the first hours of the Artemis II test flight.
NASA astronauts Commander Reid Wiseman, Pilot Victor Glover, and Mission Specialist Christina Koch, and CSA (Canadian Space Agency) astronaut Mission Specialist Jeremy Hansen, launched at 6:35 p.m. EDT on Wednesday, April 1, 2026, on an approximately 10-day mission around the Moon and back to Earth.
The apogee raise burn was successfully completed, continuing to fine tune the Orion spacecraft’s orbit around Earth.
The ICPS (interim cryogenic propulsion stage) ignited its RL10 engine for a precisely timed burn that increased the highest point of the spacecraft’s orbit. Ahead of the burn, the Artemis II crew began setting their spacecraft up for […]
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April 1, 2026 7:54PM
Artemis II Flight Update: Perigee Raise Maneuver Complete; NASA to Hold Press Conference
NASA’s Space Launch System rocket launches carrying the Orion spacecraft with NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, commander; Victor Glover, pilot; Christina Koch, mission specialist; and CSA (Canadian Space Agency) astronaut Jeremy Hansen, mission specialist on NASA’s Artemis II mission, Wednesday, April 1, 2026, from Operations and Support Building II at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
NASA’s Artemis II mission will take Wiseman, Glover, Koch, and Hansen on a 10-day journey around the Moon and back aboard SLS rocket and Orion spacecraft launched at 6:35pm EDT from Launch Complex 39B.
The perigee raise maneuver was successfully completed, refining the Orion spacecraft’s orbit around Earth. The interim cryogenic propulsion stage ignited its RL10 engine for a precisely timed burn that increased the lowest point of the spacecraft’s orbit.
Shortly after the burn, the spacecraft experienced a loss of communications, when the ground was not able to […]
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Drew Doss
@drew4worldruler
Anyone have thoughts on what this could be?
Quote
Astronomy Live
@astroferg
13h
Spotted something strange next to SLS in my footage.
It's visible in two different telescopes and cameras that I had tracking the vehicle.
It appeared to move roughly with the rocket as the telescope vibrated a bit during tracking, so it's not a hot pixel. Needs more analysis…
8:05 PM · Apr 1, 2026
https://x.com/drew4worldruler/status/2039539598716543063
https://x.com/uBF2fV1cVQxRjQo/status/2039722216892596685
https://x.com/goodmorningufo/status/2039694889131368553
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dOdYYEc30tQ (UFOvni2012: ARTEMIS II IS SURROUNDED BY ORBS/UFOS!)
HDVideoHollywood
@HDVHLA
Are these Orbs ? Artemis II
UFO -UAP
3:46 PM · Apr 1, 2026
https://x.com/HDVHLA/status/2039474594097344814
https://x.com/LordCanas/status/2039700774624620856
https://www.nasa.gov/blogs/general-blog/2026/04/01/station-crew-works-robotics-research-as-artemis-ii-launch-preps-continue/
le extra
https://www.earthdata.nasa.gov/news/nasas-earthdata-forum-releases-new-filter-search-feature
https://science.nasa.gov/earth/earth-observatory/march-of-the-harmattan/
https://science.nasa.gov/earth/earth-observatory/reunion-island-lava-reaches-the-sea/
Station Crew Works Robotics, Research as Artemis II Launch Preps Continue + Extra NASA
April 1, 2026 11:41AM
Robotics training and human research were the primary duties for the Expedition 74 crew aboard the International Space Station on Wednesday.
The orbital residents rounded out their shift with spacesuit work, cargo operations, and Earth observations.
NASA flight engineers Chris Williams and Jack Hathaway joined each other and trained to capture Northrop Grumman’s Cygnus XL cargo spacecraft using the Candarm2 robotic arm.
The duo gathered inside the cupola and first practiced operating the robotics workstation’s display and control panel.
Next, the astronauts simulated operating the Canadarm2 using the robotics workstation to practice capturing Cygnus XL in a variety of scenarios as it approaches the orbital outpost.
Cygnus XL is targeted to launch to the space station no earlier than Wednesday, April 8 at 8:49 a.m. EDT. Cygnus will be delivering advanced microgravity research gear to study quantum computing technology, test stem cell therapies, promote astronaut health, and more.
Williams earlier drew a blood sample and took a cognition test to help doctors understand how his physical and mental health are adapting to microgravity for the CIPHER suite of 14 human research investigations.
Hathaway used a sound meter and recorded noise levels in the station’s living and working areas to ensure a safe, comfortable hearing environment.
Next, he checked the operation of the Exploration Potable Water Dispenser, a technology demonstration to advance water sanitization methods, reduce microbial growth, and dispense hot water into crew food and drink bags.
Flight engineers Jessica Meir of NASA and Sophie Adenot of ESA (European Space Agency) also trained to use the Canadarm2 to refresh their robotics skills.
Mission rules require the crew to practice using Canadarm2 during simulated spacecraft capture scenarios every 60 days to maintain familiarity with the robotics workstation.
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Meir also reviewed a new technology demonstration that removes humidity from a spacecraft then tested spare wireless hardware. Adenot checked out a spacesuit in the Quest airlock replacing its arm and leg components then testing the suit’s power cable connections.
The four astronauts also joined each other in the Columbus laboratory module for a short session of artery scans using the Ultrasound 3 device.
Doctors on the ground monitored the scans in real time reading the advanced interpretation of acoustic echoes to stay current on the astronauts’ health conditions.
Roscosmos flight engineers Sergei Mikaev and Andrey Fedyaev took turns continuing to unpack some of the nearly three tons of cargo the Progress 94 resupply ship delivered when it docked to the Poisk module on March 24.
Mikaev also closed out an automated Earth photography session that captured imagery of mountains and volcanos across North America and Asia during the crew’s sleep shift.
Fedyaev wore a series of cuffs on his arm, wrist, and finger measuring his blood pressure for an ongoing cardiovascular study.
Station commander Sergey Kud-Sverchkov gathered obsolete cargo for disposal and packed it inside the Progress 93 cargo craft that is due to depart the space station later this month.
Kud-Sverchkov then documented the location of a variety of personal items and lab hardware before inspecting video recording equipment throughout the station’s Roscosmos segment.
The seven-member Expedition 74 crew will be asleep when the launch window opens at 6:24 p.m. EDT today for the Artemis II mission slated to launch from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida for a ten-day mission to fly around the Moon.
NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, and Christina Koch, and CSA (Canadian Space Agency) astronaut Jeremy Hansen will test their Orion spacecraft’s systems and photograph the lunar surface on NASA’s first crewed Moon mission since Apollo 17 in December 1972.
NASA’s launch day coverage has begun with live views and audio commentary of tanking operations, as teams loaded propellant into the SLS rocket, on NASA’s YouTube channel.
Full launch coverage begins at 12:50 p.m. on NASA+, Amazon Prime, and YouTube. Updates during the launch countdown and throughout the mission will be posted on the Artemis blog.
Over 25 years of microgravity science at the International Space Station has provided a wealth of data informing NASA’s Artemis Program and mission to the Moon.
The results of long-term crew medical data, space biology research, Earth observation techniques informing crew lunar observations, and CubeSat technology gained from the space station are contributing to Artemis II, and extending science to the Moon, Mars, and beyond.
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April's full Pink Moon dazzles as the first spring full moon of 2026
April 2, 2026
April's full "Pink Moon" dazzled stargazers with a glorious display of moonlight on April 1, mere hours before NASA's Artemis 2 mission launched 4 astronauts on a 10-day journey to the far side of the moon.
The April full moon is also known as the Pink Moon in North America, in reference to the ground-blooming plant phlox, which flowers in early spring in regions of the U.S.
During a full moon, the lunar disk appears completely lit from our perspective on Earth as it travels opposite the sun in our sky.
2026's Pink Moon rose on an auspicious occasion, as Artemis 2 astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch, and Jeremy Hansen acclimatized to the microgravity environment in low-Earth orbit.
"We have a beautiful moon rise, we're headed right at it," said Artemis 2 mission commander Wiseman to ground control, minutes after enduring a bone-shaking ride up through Earth's atmosphere.
That same moon rose over billions of stargazers spread across the globe, including countless photographers who have already shared jaw-dropping images of the lunar spectacle.
Read on to see a selection of incredible photographs of the April full moon. If you missed it last night, there's no need to fret, as the lunar disk will still appear almost full to the naked eye over the coming nights.
Check out our daily breakdown of the Artemis 2 mission to discover what the astronauts will be getting up to as they journey around the moon and be sure to stay up to date with the latest news with our mission live blog.
moar pictures
https://www.space.com/stargazing/aprils-full-pink-moon-dazzles-as-the-first-spring-full-moon-of-2026-photos
Géraldine Naja takes up duty as Director of Space Transportation
01/04/2026
Géraldine Naja took up duty as Director of Space Transportation (D/STS) at the European Space Agency on 1 April 2026.
She will continue to serve as head of her former directorate, now called the Commercialisation and Industry Partnership directorate (D/CIP), as acting director.
On taking up her new role, she stated: “As I step into this position, I intend to build on the solid foundations already in place, while strengthening Europe’s competitive edge in access to space and shaping its future transportation landscape.”
Prior to stepping into her new role, Géraldine Naja led the Directorate of Commercialisation, Industry and Competitiveness (D/CIC), now evolved into the Directorate of Commercialisation and Industry Partnership (D/CIP).
In that capacity, she advanced commercialisation and competitiveness as a strategic priority for ESA, developing new approaches and instruments to strengthen the European space sector and foster a more dynamic, market-oriented ecosystem.
A French national, Ms Naja is a graduate of École Polytechnique and École Nationale Supérieure de Techniques Avancées (ENSTA), and holds a Master’s degree in political science from the Institut d’Etudes Politiques de Paris (Sciences Po).
She joined ESA in 1987 as a Payload Operations Engineer in the Space Station Directorate. Over the course of her career, she has held a number of senior strategic and programmatic positions across the agency, including Head of Long-term Space Policy Office, Head of Strategic and Institutional Matters in the Director General’s Cabinet, Head of EU Relations Office, Senior Advisor to the Director of Launchers, and Head of the Industrial Policy and Audit Department.
A distinguished career: Toni Tolker-Nielsen
After nearly four decades of service to ESA, Toni Tolker-Nielsen is retiring from ESA. He has served as Director of Space Transportation since 1 July 2023, following a long and distinguished career spanning multiple leadership roles across the agency.
During his most recent tenure, ESA reinforced Europe’s independent access to space, including the stabilisation of exploitation for Ariane 6 and Vega-C, while preparing the next generation of capabilities through initiatives such as the European Launcher Challenge.
ESA Director General Josef Aschbacher commented: “From Seville to Bremen and beyond, his imprint on Europe’s launch sector is unmistakable – and ESA will feel very different without Toni.”
His presence at Europe’s Spaceport in French Guiana for numerous launches, including the inaugural launch of Ariane 6 and return to flight of Vega-C, became emblematic of his dedication. Colleagues also recall the personal warmth and unfiltered authenticity he brought to the agency.
Reflecting on his career, Mr Tolker-Nielsen said: “It is with a deep sense of pride in our collective achievements that I thank all those with whom I have worked.
ESA is – and will remain – the home of European cooperation in space, where people come together as one team, driven by a strong team spirit to bring ambitious space programmes to life.”
Géraldine Naja’s appointment marks a further step in ESA’s organisational transformation, as endorsed by Member States at the ESA Ministerial Council in November 2025.
This transformation is being implemented in phases, with the establishment of new directorates and the evolution of leadership roles to position ESA at the forefront of a rapidly changing space sector.
Further announcements regarding ESA’s senior management are expected in June.
https://www.esa.int/About_Us/Corporate_news/Geraldine_Naja_takes_up_duty_as_Director_of_Space_Transportation
extra ESA
https://www.esa.int/Space_in_Member_States/United_Kingdom/Innovative_Scottish-built_CubeSats_launched
https://www.esa.int/Science_Exploration/Space_Science/Smile/How_to_follow_the_Smile_launch_live
https://www.esa.int/ESA_Multimedia/Images/2026/04/A_silicon_chip_that_can_do_it_all
https://www.esa.int/Enabling_Support/Preparing_for_the_Future/Discovery_and_Preparation/From_waste_to_resource_ESA_funds_circular_economy_innovations_for_space
Stunning new James Webb Space Telescope images reveal 'hidden' stars being born
April; 2, 2026
Astronomers have used the James Webb Space Telescope to study the star-forming region called W51, revealing "hidden" stars that were invisible to other telescopes.
The investigation has resulted in some absolutely stunning images that show the lanes of gas and dust illuminated by these young stars in unprecedented detail.
The team behind these observations was able to use the $10 billion space telescope to determine that the stars in W51 began to form within the last million years.
If this makes these stellar infants sound ancient, consider that our middle-aged star, the sun, is around 4.6 billion years old.
This is far from the first time that astronomers have captured images of W51, but the JWST observations reveal these young stars like never before.
That is because these still-growing stellar infants are shrouded in natal blankets of gas and dust that readily block and absorb light, preventing most telescopes from seeing them.
But infrared light is able to slip through these clouds, and that is the type of electromagnetic radiation that the JWST uses to observe the cosmos.
"With optical and ground-based infrared telescopes, we can't see through the dust to see the young stars," team member and University of Florida researcher Adam Ginsburg said in a statement accompanying the images. "Now we can."
Aside from their considerable aesthetic value, the images are of great scientific interest too. They could help researchers determine how massive stars like those that populate W51 form.
The formation mechanism of high-mass stars is much less well understood than that of low-mass stellar bodies.
"Because of James Webb, we can see those hidden, young massive stars forming in this star-forming region," team member Taehwa Yoo of the University of Florida said. "By looking at them, we can study their formation mechanisms."
With the massive leap in quality of the JWST, the team was able to discover hitherto unseen structures in W51. This included shockwaves rippling out from infant stars, giant bubbles of gas, and dark filaments of dust.
"They are not the first photos of this region, but they are the best. They're so much better that they essentially are brand new photos," Ginsburg said. "Every time we look at these images, we learn something new and unexpected."
https://www.space.com/astronomy/james-webb-space-telescope/stunning-new-james-webb-space-telescope-images-reveal-hidden-stars-being-born
https://news.ufl.edu/2026/03/jwst-images/
Astronaut threatened to never return to Earth leading NASA to make life-saving change
14:53 2 Apr 2026 GMT+1
An astronaut once threatened ground control that he would never return to Earth unless they allowed him to carry on with his experiment.
Payload specialist Taylor Wang became the first Chinese person to ever fly to space, which he embarked on in Shuttle mission STS-51-B back in 1985.
While the scientist had never planned to go to space, he was recruited by NASA to work on fluid physics experiments in microgravity.
However, despite working on his experiment for nearly 10 years, when it came to testing it out in orbit, it failed to work correctly.
At the time, Wang asked flight controllers if he could have more time to figure out what the problem was so that he could repair it, even pleading with them to ‘give him a shot’ but due to time constraints, this was refused.
In frustration, Wang said: “Hey, if you guys don’t give me a chance to repair my instrument, I’m not going back.”
Later, for a book titled Space Shuttle published in 2002, Wang recalled the moment, saying: “When I turned on my own instrument, it didn’t work. You can imagine my panic.
I had spent five years preparing for this one experiment. Not only that, I was the first person of Chinese descent to fly on the Shuttle, and the Chinese community had taken a great deal of interest.
“You have to understand the Asian culture. You don’t just represent yourself; you represent your family. The first thing you learn as a kid is to bring no shame to the family.
So when I realized that my experiment had failed, I could imagine my father telling me, ‘what’s the matter with you? Can’t you even do an experiment right?’ I was really in a very desperate situation.”
It seems NASA made some vital changes following the incident as just months later, when the next mission took off, crew member John Fabian recalled in the JSC Oral History Project:
“We put a lock on the door of the side hatch. It was installed when we got into orbit so that the door could not be opened from the inside and commit hari-kari, killing the whole crew.
That was not because of anybody we had on our flight but because of a concern about someone who had flown before 51-G.”
Brewster Shaw, who was the commander of a separate mission months after Wang’s mission, said:
“I remember I got this padlock, and when we got on orbit, I went down to the hatch on the side of the Orbiter, and I padlocked the hatch control so that you could not open the hatch.
“I mean, on the Orbiter in orbit you can go down there and you just flip this little thing and you crank that handle once, the hatch opens and all the air goes out and everybody goes out with it, just like that.
“And I thought to myself, ‘Jeez, I don’t know this guy very well. He might flip out or something.’ So I padlocked the hatch shut right after we got on orbit, and I didn’t take the padlock off until we were in de-orbit prep.
I don’t know if I was supposed to do that or not, but that’s a decision I made as being responsible for my crew and I just did it.”
https://www.uniladtech.com/science/space/nasa/medical-incident-astronaut-unable-speak-huge-concern-nasa-062125-20260331
Saltzman: Space Force continues to lead on acquisition transformation in Mitchell Institute appearance
April 1, 2026
Chief of Space Operations Gen. Chance Saltzman outlined his vision for the Space Force's future in a comprehensive address at a Mitchell Institute Spacepower Security Forum, April 1, 2026.
He emphasized that deliberate, long-term planning is crucial for equipping the force to win in an era of high-end strategic competition, ensuring combat-ready capabilities are fielded swiftly.
Saltzman declared the service is moving beyond the status quo. First, it focuses on understanding the future fight. Then, it meticulously crafts a detailed blueprint for the force needed to dominate that environment.
“…Much like George Washington and the Third U.S. Congress as they faced growing threats at sea, we must develop a clear and common understanding of the future threats in the space domain, and deliberately design and field the Space Force needed to counter them,” Saltzman said.
This proactive strategy is built on two core pillars: defining the Future Operating Environment and designing the Objective Force. Saltzman clarified these initiatives are vital for guiding investments and fundamentally transforming the acquisition process.
The Future Operating Environment for 2040 will be conceptual by design, and while it is not an intelligence assessment, it is an analytical look at what could happen if we take space superiority for granted. Saltzman projects a "grueling" environment, one "dominated by Artificial Intelligence, cyber agents, and autonomous systems that can sense, decide, and act at machine speeds.”
Armed with this forward-looking perspective, the Space Force is actively mapping its Objective Force. These detailed plans will cover the precise systems, manpower, infrastructure, and critical partnerships necessary for achieving victory.
This type of blueprint sparks a revolution in acquisition, allowing the service to pivot from crafting lengthy, granular requirements to instead targeting specific mission outcomes.
“We simply cannot wait for ‘perfect’ any longer,” Saltzman stated, underscoring the service’s urgent need to deliver capabilities as soon as they offer a warfighting benefit.
The efficacy of this integrated approach is already evident in real-world operations. Saltzman pointed to recent conflicts where the profound value of a Space Force service component fully embedded within the combatant command became undeniable.
“The plan didn't move forward without the Guardians of the Space Force fully integrated as a part of and key to that Joint Force,” he explained.
He concluded by asserting, “You have space superiority if you can use space the way you want, and the adversary cannot use space the way they want.”
https://www.spaceforce.mil/News/Article-Display/Article/4449964/saltzman-space-force-continues-to-lead-on-acquisition-transformation-in-mitchel/
extra Space Force
https://www.spaceforce.mil/News/Article-Display/Article/4450543/daf-updates-skillbridge-policy-balancing-operational-readiness-transition-assis/
Conscription officer killed in western Ukraine (VIDEO)
2 Apr, 2026 17:00
A Ukrainian conscription officer was fatally stabbed in Lviv on Thursday, the national police force has reported.
The western city is widely regarded as a bastion of Ukrainian nationalism and has historically been a stronghold for the country’s most radical parties where support for the country’s war with Russia is thought to be highest.
The officer with the Ukrainian Territorial Recruitment Centers (TCC), which oversees the country’s conscription campaign, was wounded in the neck at around 14:15, the police said in a statement on Telegram.
He later “died from his injuries in hospital,” it added.
A Ukrainian customs officer was arrested on suspicion of carrying out the killing, investigators announced a few hours later.
Videos from the scene circulating on social media show a man lying motionless across the back seat of a van, while two medics attempt to save him.
Last year, former Ukrainian parliamentary speaker and neo-Nazi MP Andrey Parubiy was shot dead in central Lviv.
He played an active role in the Western-backed coup in Kiev in 2014, and was also allegedly responsible for crushing ensuing protests against the new nationalist government, as well as ordering attacks on militias in eastern Ukraine in the nascent stages of the current conflict.
The man who confessed to the shooting said he killed Parubiy out of “personal revenge” against the authorities in Kiev.
Ukraine has consistently escalated its violent and chaotic mobilization campaign in recent years as it seeks to compensate for battlefield losses, drawing mounting public discontent.
Hundreds of videos circulating online show TCC officers violently snatching and beating men in streets, from vehicles and homes, often fighting with intervening onlookers.
Currently, only around 8-10% of the newcomers in Ukraine’s armed forces are willing recruits, lawmaker and member of Ukrainian parliament’s National Security Committee, Vadim Ivchenko, said in an interview last month.
Moscow has consistently characterized the conflict as a NATO-led proxy war and has accused the government in Kiev and its Western backers of aiming to fight “to the last Ukrainian.”
https://www.rt.com/russia/637087-conscription-officer-killed-ukraine-lviv/
https://www.rt.com/russia/637069-ukraine-odessa-chain-press-gang/
Ukrainian drones destroy Russian An-72 aircraft and heavy drone training base in Crimea
Thu, April 2, 2026 at 6:42 AM PDT
Ukraine's Unmanned Systems Forces, together with Defence Intelligence of Ukraine (DIU), have destroyed a training base for Orion heavy UAVs, an An-72P transport aircraft and a Mech radar system in Russian-occupied Crimea.
Source: Robert "Magyar" Brovdi, Commander of the Unmanned Systems Forces
Quote: "On the night of 1-2 April 2026, birds [drones – ed.] of the 1st Separate Centre of the Unmanned Systems Forces and the 9th Department of DIU paid a courtesy visit to the base and pre-flight training point of the latest and high-value Orion strike-reconnaissance UAVs.
This den was completely destroyed at Kirovske airfield near Krasnosilske, Crimea. The destruction of four Orion UAVs has been confirmed.
An An-72P transport aircraft and a Soviet-era P-37 Mech mobile two-coordinate circular-scan radar station were also detected and destroyed there."
Details: Brovdi released video footage of the strikes and descriptions of the targets' characteristics. The Unmanned Systems Forces carried out the attacks using Ukrainian-made FP-2 middle-strike systems equipped with a 60-100 kg warhead.
https://www.yahoo.com/news/articles/ukrainian-drones-destroy-russian-72-134200737.html
other Russia and Ukraine
https://united24media.com/latest-news/ukraines-drones-hunt-down-40-russian-air-defense-systems-in-a-single-month-17530
https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2026/04/02/ukraine-renewing-drone-strikes-on-turkstream-facilities-gazprom-says-a92408
https://www.bta.bg/en/news/world/1097762-drone-attack-damages-civilian-port-infrastructure-in-odesa-region
https://www.kyivpost.com/post/73067
https://www.ukrinform.net/rubric-ato/4108198-russian-drone-hits-apartment-building-in-chuhuiv-fire-breaks-out-three-women-injured.html
https://www.realcleardefense.com/2026/04/02/russia_and_ukraine_intensify_deep-strike_drone_war_1174244.html
kek