TYBs
NASA Astronomy Picture of the Day
August 27, 2026
Colorful Aurora over Icelandic Waterfall
What a sight to behold, when a night sky became filled with colors that appeared to rain over the Skógafoss waterfall in Iceland. This image was taken in a single 5 second exposure by the photographer in April 2025. Seeing an aurora is on many people's bucket lists. But it is not easy. It requires high solar activity, dark and clear skies, and usually a viewing location at high latitude. That makes the northern lights more easily seen than the corresponding southern lights, simply because there is less landmass in the Southern Hemisphere, especially around the Antarctic Circle. Auroras are caused by charged particles from the solar wind that are captured by the Earth's magnetosphere and guided by the magnetic field to a region close to one of the poles, where they collide with gas particles in the atmosphere. Different colors indicate interactions with different gases at different altitudes, like oxygen (red and green) and nitrogen (blue and pink).
https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/astropix.html
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TbCokKQNydA
Tracking the Solar Storm, Forecasting the Next Big One | S0 News and frens
Aug.27.2026
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MY01ok3a_Co
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6gwKNPy2VwU (In2ThinAir: 🚨STRANGE Radar anomaly? OR something else?)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xSEgPtkkiVc (Max Velocity: El Niño Is About To Completely Reshape Our Weather…)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jpKOqb9antk (dutchsinse: Earthquake Live Stream – Past 48 hours of activity up to current)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0qwKH7VKMUY (On the Pulse with Silki: Mountain Collapse UNLEASHES CATASTROPHE in Nepal | Towns Buried, Many Missing)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9YVHYu46eLw (moar Silki: UPDATE: SECOND FLOOD THREATENS Nepal — River STILL BLOCKED After M5.2 Himalayan Glacier Collapse)
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solar
https://www.spaceweather.gov/news/public-notice-issue-space-weather-conditions-banner
https://starlust.org/aurora-alert-noaa-issues-geomagnetic-storm-watch-for-u-s-till-august-29-after-recent-solar-eruption/
https://www.livescience.com/space/the-moon/rare-red-northern-lights-may-be-visible-alongside-red-moon-during-tomorrow-nights-partial-lunar-eclipse
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41514-026-00498-z
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wildfires
https://www.yoursourceone.com/columbia_basin/firefighters-investigated-over-white-supremacist-associated-flag-at-chelan-county-wildfire/article_4ed67bb6-de1e-460e-9576-c0f1a65bad29.html
https://www.king5.com/article/tech/science/environment/fire-okanogan-wenatchee-national-forest-top-priority/281-a7d68459-1578-4555-89cf-0aaf5dc0debb
https://www.kptv.com/2026/08/26/wildfire-update-cooler-weather-helps-crews-fighting-still-uncontained-mccully-austin-fires/
https://www.kolotv.com/2026/08/26/dry-lightning-sparks-20-wildfires-northwest-nevada/
https://www.coastalbreezenews.com/news/community/17-000-acre-wildfires-close-shark-valley-over-weekend-as-firefighters-battle-blaze/article_a66a8987-cf88-46a6-bb6a-1d7416cfcb5f.html
https://www.aljazeera.com/video/newsfeed/2026/8/27/twelve-dead-as-over-150-wildfires-rage-across-northeastern-algeria
https://qazinform.com/news/colombia-battles-18-severe-wildfires-amid-el-nio-c5bfc9
https://www.thecooldown.com/green-tech/indonesia-cloud-seeding-borneo-wildfires/
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storms and floods
https://www.weatherbug.com/news/Winds-and-Hail-Fall-Across-Central-US
https://www.foxweather.com/weather-news/severe-weather-flash-flooding-northeast
https://www.foxweather.com/weather-news/multi-day-flash-flood-severe-storm-threat-south
https://www.turkiyetoday.com/world/panama-declares-nationwide-emergency-over-el-nino-floods-3226936
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hurricanes and frens
https://china.usembassy-china.org.cn/weather-alert-typhoon-saudel/
https://weather.com/2026/08/27/storms/hurricane/hurricane-season-maps-tracker-atlantic-pacific
https://www.foxweather.com/weather-news/bryan-norcross-exclusive-analysis-tropical-update-august-27-2026
https://weather.com/2026/08/27/storms/hurricane/tropical-storm-dolly-forecast-atlantic-el-nino
https://www.accuweather.com/en/hurricane/tropical-storm-dolly-forms-in-atlantic-tracking-toward-northeast-caribbean/1926996
https://minutemirror.com.pk/three-typhoons-raise-alarm-across-china-taiwan-and-japan-619220/
https://www.worldcargonews.com/news/2026/08/new-typhoon-deals-fresh-blow-to-shanghai-ningbo-recovery-as-congestion-mounts/
https://www.thestar.com.my/aseanplus/aseanplus-news/2026/08/27/typhoon-narra-kills-three-wreaks-havoc-across-vietnam
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tornadoes
https://www.wisn.com/article/gov-evers-asks-pres-trump-for-federal-disaster-help-after-menasha-tornado/73534987
https://www.theweathernetwork.com/en/news/weather/severe/rare-tornado-and-waterspout-confirmed-in-prince-edward-island
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earthquakes
https://www.dailymail.com/sciencetech/article-16081981/doomsday-fish-washes-ashore-indonesia.html
https://www.musictimes.com/articles/112702/20260827/beyonce-donates-1-million-colombia-earthquake-relief.htm
https://www.freepressjournal.in/world/nepal-flash-floods-earthquake-triggered-avalanche-likely-cause-of-tragedy-that-claimed-16-lives
https://www.indiatvnews.com/news/world/earthquake-or-glacial-collapse-what-triggered-the-catastrophic-nepal-flash-floods-that-left-nearly-160-dead-2026-08-27-1052504
https://euroweeklynews.com/2026/08/27/more-than-1700-earthquakes-and-counting-tenerifes-shaking-reaches-its-two-biggest-cities/
https://www.thestar.com.my/aseanplus/aseanplus-news/2026/08/27/magnitude-43-earthquake-recorded-in-laos-near-northern-thailand
https://freepresskashmir.news/2026/08/27/magnitude-4-9-earthquake-strikes-indian-ocean-triple-junction/
https://colombiaone.com/2026/08/27/colombia-reports-2158-more-tremors-since-august-10-earthquake/
https://colombiaone.com/2026/08/26/magnitude-5-4-earthquake-felt-strongly-bogota-colombia-records-several-tremors/
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dailys
https://schumannresonance.today/
https://www.weather.gov/
https://www.nhc.noaa.gov/
https://www.americanforests.org/wildfire-map/
https://www.nifc.gov/fire-information/nfn
https://www.tornadohq.com/
https://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/map/
https://www.volcanodiscovery.com/earthquakes-volcanoes/news/330395/Volcano-earthquake-report-for-Thursday-27-Aug-2026.html
https://www.spaceweather.gov/
https://spaceweather.com/archive.php?view=1&day=27&month=08&year=2026
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means something to someone out there
looks like a portal to me, and a lopsided Q if you turn it sideways
https://www.livescience.com/space/the-moon/rare-red-northern-lights-may-be-visible-alongside-red-moon-during-tomorrow-nights-partial-lunar-eclipse
https://www.space.com/news/live/partial-lunar-eclipse-tonight-august-27-28-2026-live-updates
https://www.space.com/stargazing/lunar-eclipses/how-to-watch-the-aug-27-28-2026-partial-lunar-eclipse-live-online
https://earthsky.org/astronomy-essentials/partial-lunar-eclipse-of-the-august-27-28-2026/
https://x.com/NASA/status/2092744659667673582
https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/5672/
https://x.com/NASAArtemis/status/2092978216973594728
https://www.nasa.gov/centers-and-facilities/johnson/nasa-johnson-pilots-chase-moons-shadow-for-eclipse-science/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yJVE0vJ3s9E (Dobsonian Power livestream)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qmJFcQysXFY (Ray's Astro)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3zIBswePr4I (Virtual Telescope Project)
Rare red northern lights may be visible alongside red moon during tonight's partial lunar eclipse
August 27, 2027
Moderate G1 and G2 geomagnetic storms are forecast during the Aug. 27-28 partial lunar eclipse, with the northern lights potentially visible across several northern U.S. states and parts of Canada alongside the reddened full moon.
A striking red aurora may be visible to some skywatchers alongside tonight's blood-red partial lunar eclipse, astronomers say.
The full moon is expected to slide into Earth's shadow tonight (Aug. 27-28), casting an eerie red glow over 96% of the lunar surface.
At the same time, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has issued a moderate (G2) geomagnetic storm warning for 9:03 p.m. EDT (1303 GMT) Thursday night (Aug. 27) — 20 minutes before the eclipse starts.
According to NOAA, the resulting auroras may be visible over several states, ranging from New York to Idaho.
However, skywatchers farther north have better odds of catching both spectacular sights together.
"Though it's unlikely the moon and aurora would occupy the same part of the sky, observers in Canada and Alaska have the best chance to see them together," Tom Kerss, an astronomer and co-author of the "Little Book of Eclipses: An essential companion to solar and lunar events" (Octopus Publishing Group, 2026), told Live Science.
"The further west you are, the lower the moon will be in the East during the deepest part of the eclipse, where it may overlap with the brightest region of the auroral oval."
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The aurora borealis, also known as the northern lights, is an atmospheric phenomenon caused by the solar wind — clouds of electrically charged particles spewed from the sun.
Most of these particles are deflected by the geomagnetic shield that surrounds our planet, but some get swept into Earth's magnetic field and channeled toward the planet's poles.
Once there, the particles collide with atoms and molecules in the atmosphere, causing them to heat up and glow and producing the mesmerizing light show we know as the northern lights.
The intensity of these lights depends on the strength of the solar wind that hits our planet. Yesterday (Aug. 25), a powerful M-class solar flare — the second-strongest class of solar flare — flashed from a restless sunspot called 4513, according to Live Science's sister website Space.com.
This was followed by a large ejection of solar plasma known as a coronal mass ejection.
This cloud of electrified, magnetic gas is expected to reach our planet between Aug. 27 and 28, with NOAA forecasting moderate (G1 and G2) geomagnetic storm conditions from 5 p.m. to 11 p.m. EDT on Aug. 27.
Meanwhile, the lunar eclipse will begin at 9:23 p.m. EDT, peak just after midnight, and end around 3 a.m. EDT Friday (Aug. 28).
The moon won't fall totally under Earth's shadow, so we can't officially call it a "blood moon," but it will be the deepest lunar eclipse anywhere in the world until the next total lunar eclipse on Dec. 31, 2028.
This could allow for particularly unusual viewing conditions. "Typically, a full moon competes with aurorae by brightening the sky, but when submerged in the Earth's shadow, it will be relatively dark, increasing the odds of spotting the northern lights," Kerss said.
The contrasting green of the auroral bands and coppery-red surface of the moon should make for striking views on their own. But with G2-class geomagnetic storms on the horizon, some viewers may catch a glimpse of an even rarer sight.
"If the northern lights are occurring over your horizon, you may even witness the high-altitude red auroras in concert with a reddened moon," Kerss said.
The colors of the northern lights are influenced by the different gases in Earth's atmosphere — primarily nitrogen and oxygen — and where these gases sit in the atmosphere, according to NASA.
At lower altitudes, for example, oxygen usually glows green. However, during more intense geomagnetic storms, an aurora may reach oxygen particles high in our planet's atmosphere. At these altitudes, above 120 miles (200 kilometers), oxygen glows red.
Meanwhile, the moon appears coppery red due to the way Earth's atmosphere bends and absorbs light. Sunlight comprises a spectrum of colors, and the blue and yellow parts of this spectrum are absorbed by the atmosphere.
However, red light gets bent, or refracted, by Earth's atmosphere, which directs it toward the moon and lights up our rocky satellite like a blood-red flashlight beam, according to the European Space Agency.
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Thermal Anomaly Discovered Below Mars's South Pole
August 26, 2026
Researchers have discovered a thermal asymmetry deep beneath the surface throughout Mars's southern hemisphere.
Based on gravitational measurements that give clues to the Red Planet's interior structure, Mars's interior southern hemisphere is around 200 to 400 degrees Celsius warmer than the northern half of the planet and partially molten.
The surprising finding adds additional context to Martian history and the periods of time in which it may have hosted conditions favorable for life.
The research was led by Caltech alumnus Alexander Berne (PhD '26), who is now a postdoctoral associate at the University of Arizona. The findings are reported in a paper appearing in the journal Nature on August 27.
During his graduate studies at Caltech, Berne developed a model that uses variations in gravitational data to infer the structure of a planetary body's interior. Berne and his collaborators then aimed to apply his model to understanding Mars's interior.
Using data collected over decades from three different Mars missions—Mars Global Surveyor, Mars Odyssey, and Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter—the team measured tiny variations in these spacecrafts' velocities and used them to reconstruct the gravitational field around Mars.
The gravitational forces exerted by the Sun on Mars vary over seasonal timescales as a result of Mars's slightly elliptical orbit and its tilted rotation axis.
A technique called tidal tomography measures how those gravitational signatures vary over time and results in a model of the planet's interior.
"Scientists usually assume that the interiors of planetary bodies are generally spherically symmetric, but this is not necessarily true," Berne says. "As we get more gravity data, we can determine the three-dimensional intricacies of a planet's interior structure.
These inferences in turn give us a blueprint for designing future missions and scientific exploration of these worlds. Understanding the interior structure of planetary bodies helps us unravel the processes that shaped their formation and evolution."
On the surface, Mars is a geologically asymmetrical planet: Its southern hemisphere contains towering mountains and deep craters, whereas the northern hemisphere is composed of low flat lands.
In the new study, the team was surprised to discover that Mars's interior is also thermally asymmetric—the southern hemisphere is hundreds of degrees hotter than the north.
The new observation also happens to suggest explanations for other phenomena observed on Mars, such as magnetic anomalies found in iron minerals in the south.
A thermal anomaly in the southern mantle could mean that a magnetic field existed strong enough to cause magnetic differences between the north and south.
Additionally, NASA's InSight mission had previously discovered that seismic waves dissipate more quickly in the south, which could be explained if the region were hotter.
"The dichotomy that we see between north and south is important to understand because it gives information about processes that may have influenced the hydrology of Mars, including the formation of basins that may have held water," says Amirhossein Bagheri, a postdoctoral scholar at Caltech and co-author on the paper. Bagheri is also a former member of the InSight team.
It is still unclear what created the thermal anomaly, and there are several hypotheses for its origins, including a giant impact releasing heat from the north, past spontaneous convection in the Martian southern mantle, and thick geological features trapping excess heat from escaping.
The paper is titled "Tidal Tomography Reveals a Thermal Anomaly Beneath Mars's Crustal Dichotomy."
https://www.caltech.edu/about/news/thermal-anomaly-discovered-below-marss-south-pole
moar space objects
https://www.uah.edu/news/items/uah-director-cspar-dr-gary-zank-receives-international-cospar-space-science-award-minor-planet-named-in-his-honor
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PXa6GgERFnk (Ray's Astro: Saturn Opposition 2026 | We’re Seeing the Rings From Underneath)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uvkj71H3cfg (Dobsonian Power: PHOBOS MONOLITH AND THE BIZARRE SHADOW)
https://www.nasa.gov/news-release/nasa-astronaut-jonny-kim-departs-agency-to-continue-military-service/
moar
https://science.nasa.gov/earth/earth-observatory/rare-widespread-snow-in-the-atacama-desert/
https://science.nasa.gov/earth-science/sli-commercial-transition-initiative/
https://science.nasa.gov/mars/curiosity-reaches-1-kilometer-elevation-gain/
Small Business Supplier Development Program
https://www.nasa.gov/osbp/10x-credit-pilot-program/
https://www.nasa.gov/osbp/how-to-apply-2/
NASA Astronaut Jonny Kim Departs Agency to Continue Military Service
Aug 27, 2026
After nearly a decade of service to NASA, including an eight-month science expedition aboard the International Space Station, astronaut Jonny Kim’s last day at the agency is Thursday. He will continue serving as lieutenant commander in the U.S. Navy.
Kim launched to the space station in April 2025 aboard the Soyuz MS‑27 spacecraft to conduct scientific research as a flight engineer during Expeditions 72/73.
During the mission, he orbited Earth 3,920 times, traveled nearly 104 million miles, and contributed to a broad range of scientific investigations spanning technology development, Earth science, biology, and human research critical for future exploration.
“Jonny Kim represents the very best of NASA, a person who continually pushed the boundaries of exploration while inspiring countless others,” said NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman.
“His contributions aboard the International Space Station advanced critical science that will shape NASA’s future missions for decades to come.
We are grateful for his dedication to our nation and to the pursuit of knowledge, and we wish him success as he continues his service in the U.S. Navy.”
Serving as the U.S. Operating Segment lead for the second half of Expedition 73, Kim oversaw operations across the station’s international modules.
During the expedition, the station achieved a historic milestone when every available docking port was occupied for the first time in 25 years.
He also commanded the Canadarm2 robotic arm during the first capture of Northrop Grumman’s new Cygnus XL spacecraft, securing 11,000 pounds of supplies for the station.
Kim and his Roscosmos crewmates landed safely in Kazakhstan in December 2025.
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“Jonny has been an integral part of the agency, and his immeasurable impact will be felt for generations to come,” said Vanessa Wyche, director of NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston.
“From advancing groundbreaking science to inspiring the next generation, Jonny has been an incredible source of inspiration to our nation. His exceptional talent, determination, and grit will leave a lasting legacy at NASA.”
Kim was selected as a NASA astronaut in 2017 and completed two years of astronaut candidate training, which included instruction in space station systems, Russian language, robotics, T‑38 flight operations, geology, survival training, and spacewalk preparation.
He later supported station operations as a capsule communicator, or capcom, in NASA’s Mission Control Center at Johnson. Kim also contributed to Artemis program development through his work in the astronaut exploration branch, leading the astronaut crew operations branch, and serving as increment lead for Expedition 65. His experiences as a Navy SEAL, physician, and naval aviator provided unique perspectives in mission operations and crew support.
“Jonny approached every assignment with humility, precision, and steadfast commitment to the mission,” said Scott Tingle, chief of the Astronaut Office at NASA Johnson.
“His combination of medical training, operational experience, and engineering insight strengthened our team and contributed to advancements in exploration and space station operations.”
Born in Los Angeles, Kim enlisted in the U.S. Navy after graduating high school in 2002. He trained as a hospital corpsman and completed Basic Underwater Demolition/SEAL training before joining SEAL Team Three.
Over the course of more than 100 combat operations, he served as a medic, sniper, navigator, and point man, earning the Silver Star, Bronze Star with Combat “V,” and numerous additional commendations.
He earned a bachelor’s degree in mathematics from the University of San Diego and a doctor of medicine from Harvard Medical School. He completed his internship at Massachusetts General Hospital and Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston.
Kim became a dual-designated naval aviator and flight surgeon, completing flight training at Naval Air Stations Corpus Christi in Texas and Whiting Field in Florida, and aerospace medical training at the Naval Aerospace Medical Institute at Naval Air Station Pensacola.
Kim is returning to active duty to finish out the remainder of his military career within naval aviation training.
“Contributing to space exploration and serving NASA has been the honor of a lifetime,” said Kim.
“Throughout my career, I’ve learned that beyond the missions, the training, and the hardware, success always comes down to the people. They are our greatest asset, and leading with love and empathy is how we achieve the impossible.
I look forward to carrying my commitment to service, my enduring love for space and technology, and the hard-earned lessons of this past decade into my next chapter to make a meaningful impact on humanity’s future.”
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NASA chief Jared Isaacman says agency blocked Chinese hackers amid moon race
Aug 27, 2026 / 04:49 AM CDT
NASA administrator Jared Isaacman said the agency successfully blocked a Chinese hacking attempt. The news comes as China delays its own lunar program and the U.S. presses forward with plans to land astronauts on the moon by 2028.
Isaacman credited the Department of Justice and the broader U.S. cybersecurity network for defending NASA’s systems. He said the hacking attempt dated back to 2019 and never got past a “very benign layer” of NASA’s network.
“If we’re doing our job right, executing on President Trump’s national space policy, we will be successful beating them in this second space race,” Isaacman said.
Recently, China postponed a robotic lunar mission that had been set to launch last weekend. Isaacman said China is planning a base at the same location NASA has targeted, the moon’s south pole, near sources of water and ice.
“They’re a very capable rival in this space race,” Isaacman said. “We are not taking the foot off the gas.”
NASA plans to fly Artemis III next year, testing its Orion spacecraft and lunar landers before landing astronauts on the moon in 2028. Isaacman said the mission cadence will speed up to about once a year, a change from the gaps of three and half years between past missions.
He also previewed President Donald Trump’s Friday visit to the Johnson Space Center in Houston, where Trump will award the Congressional Space Medal of Honor to the Artemis II crew.
Isaacman said the administration also aims to launch the first nuclear-powered space mission by 2028, a step toward eventual crewed missions to Mars.
https://www.newsnationnow.com/space/nasa-artemis-3-moon-mission-jared-isaacman/
https://thehill.com/policy/technology/6053940-nasa-administrator-ai-data-centers-space/
https://x.com/NASAAdmin/status/2093015918439694653
https://x.com/NASAAdmin/status/2092971584528978318
https://x.com/NASAAdmin/status/2092951475446067247
https://x.com/NASAAdmin/status/2092939430168309955
https://x.com/NASAAdmin/status/2092683767127167134
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C-tW1IXQhaU (NASA's big plan to return to the moon)
NASA
@NASA
NASA honors the memory of Dolly Parton, who passed away on Aug. 25, 2026.
In 1989, Dolly performed at @NASAJohnson's Rocket Park, alongside fellow musicians Willie Nelson and Kenny Rogers, to an audience of over 12,000 NASA employees and their families.
12:42 PM · Aug 26, 2026
https://x.com/NASA/status/2092699333887992265
moar
https://x.com/NASAMoonBase/status/2092979347162284316
https://x.com/NASAGoddard/status/2092684941293138299
https://www.nasa.gov/earth/earth-visualization-mapping/building-foresight-for-earth-science-featuring-lindsey-jacobson/
https://www.nasa.gov/centers-and-facilities/stennis/contractor-to-civil-servant-jeret-howard/
Space Force backs LeoLabs’ containerized Scout radar to expand beyond space
Updated Thu, August 27, 2026 at 5:09 AM PDT
A radar system small enough to fit inside a standard shipping container is about to take on a new job for the US Space Force. LeoLabs will deliver a modified version of its Scout radar system.
That gives the company a chance to demonstrate the technology for a mission set beyond the space-tracking work it was originally built for.
LeoLabs CEO Tony Frazier said the company has spent the past decade building and operating high-performance radar systems. It has also invested in transportable, proliferated sensing to meet emerging mission needs.
The new demonstration follows the deployment of LeoLabs' first operational Scout system earlier this year, which was optimized specifically for space domain awareness.
Built to travel light
Scout is a family of containerized, transportable 3D search radars designed to integrate directly into existing defense architectures. Each unit fits inside a standard 20-foot ISO shipping container.
That lets the system move by truck, plane, or ship, and deploy to locations that fixed radar installations simply can't reach.
The radar combines 3D scanning with direct radiating array technology and a modular S-band electronic design.
That combination lets Scout carry out uncued searches and discover new objects without prior tip-off. It can also maintain sustained tracks on high-interest targets, all from a system compact enough to relocate on short notice.
Search, track, repeat
Scout's search-to-track and track-while-scan modes let operators dynamically monitor activity, including detecting non-cooperative launches as they happen.
The first fielded Scout-S unit, known as Scout Hawaii, began observing objects within hours of being switched on after its deployment earlier this year.
That speed matters operationally. Traditional tracking systems typically observe a satellite only briefly before waiting for its next pass overhead.
Scout's design aims to extend those observation windows significantly. That gives operators a more continuous picture of what's moving through low Earth orbit and very low Earth orbit, rather than a series of brief snapshots.
A distributed answer
LeoLabs frames Scout as part of a broader shift in how defense sensing needs to work.
As potential threats become faster and more maneuverable, the company argues that maintaining persistent custody and reliable tracking increasingly demands a distributed sensing approach.
That approach moves away from relying solely on large, fixed installations. That approach pairs large, exquisite systems with rapidly deployable capacity that can extend coverage, add resiliency, and adapt as operational needs shift.
Under this latest award, LeoLabs will demonstrate a modified Scout variant for a mission set separate from the space-tracking role its earlier deployments have focused on.
The demonstration will test whether the same core radar architecture can extend usefully into new defense applications.
Frazier described the effort as proof that proven commercial radar technology can accelerate how quickly new capabilities reach US defense missions.
That approach skips waiting years for a purpose-built system to move through traditional acquisition timelines.
https://tech.yahoo.com/science/articles/space-force-backs-leolabs-containerized-120942281.html
moar Space Force
https://x.com/SpaceForceAssoc/status/2092331383217689057
https://x.com/USSpaceForce/status/2092285941566128413
https://www.vandenberg.spaceforce.mil/News/Article-Display/Article/4583909/vandenbergs-hawk-of-the-week-award-on-august-26/
Starship is coming home! SpaceX loads floating spacecraft onto huge ship in the Indian Ocean
August 27, 2026
More than a month after its epic spaceflight, Starship is finally headed home.
SpaceX announced today (Aug. 27) that it has loaded Starship's 171-foot-tall (52 meters) upper stage — known as Starship, or simply Ship — onto a huge "semi-submersible" ship in the Indian Ocean, off the coast of Christmas Island.
Ship had been in the water since July 24, when it splashed down to bring an end to the Starship program's 13th test flight.
The vehicle will now head back to SpaceX's Starbase site in South Texas, a journey expected to take several months, according to the company.
Starship Flight 13 lifted off from Starbase, sending Ship on an hour-long suborbital jaunt that went quite well.
The vehicle deployed its payloads — 20 of SpaceX's big, next-gen Starlink "Version 3" satellites — into space as planned and also managed to relight one of its six Raptor engines in the final frontier as well.
Ship then splashed down softly in the Indian Ocean off the coast of Western Australia — so softly, in fact, that it survived the ordeal intact.
This was unprecedented; on every previous Starship flight, the upper stage had either broken apart during reentry to Earth's atmosphere or exploded shortly after splashdown, when it toppled sideways into the waves.
(Starship's first-stage booster, known as Super Heavy, attempted a soft splashdown in the Gulf of Mexico during Flight 13 but suffered engine problems and hit the water hard.)
SpaceX determined to take advantage of this unexpected development.
Getting an up-close look at Ship, the company said, would shed light on how its heat shield held up during the flight — key information that could advance the development of Starship, which is designed to be fully and rapidly reusable.
"Unfortunately, ship recovery is not looking good right now," SpaceX founder and CEO Elon Musk said in an Aug. 7 post on X, the social media platform he bought in 2022.
He was responding to a SpaceX post that same day, which cited "challenging conditions and increasingly rough seas."
SpaceX persevered, however, and managed to tow Ship to Christmas Island, an Australian territory that lies about 1,200 miles (1,900 kilometers) northwest of the city of Broome.
Once there, company engineers inspected the vehicle for several days as it bobbed in the waves, gathering valuable data, according to SpaceX.
"They collected heatshield samples and gained vital insight into how the vehicle handled reentry with improvements now planned on future vehicles," SpaceX said today in an X post that shared several photos of the operation.
Further analysis doubtless awaits, after the semi-submersible hauler vessel — so called because its deck goes underwater beneath heavy floating payloads, then rises up with them on board — arrives in Texas.
"Congratulations to the entire SpaceX Recovery team for battling through challenging conditions to give our engineers access to a wealth of data to continue rapidly developing Starship," SpaceX wrote in another X post today.
https://www.space.com/space-exploration/launches-spacecraft/starship-is-coming-home-spacex-loads-floating-spacecraft-onto-huge-ship-in-the-indian-ocean-photos
https://x.com/SpaceX/status/2092988782622519728
Watch powerful Ariane 6 rocket launch European weather satellite to orbit today
August 27, 2026
Liftoff of the MTG-I2 mission is scheduled for 4:10 p.m. ET.
Europe's most powerful rocket will fly today (Aug. 27), and you can watch the action live.
An Ariane 6 is scheduled to launch the MTG-I2 weather satellite from Europe's Spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana today (Aug. 27), during a 2.5-hour window that opens at 4:10 p.m. EDT (2010 GMT; 5:10 p.m. local time in Kourou).
You can watch it live here at Space.com, courtesy of Arianespace, the French company that operates the Ariane 6. Coverage will begin about 25 minutes before liftoff. You can also follow live directly via Arianespace.
The 8,400-pound (3,800 kilograms) MTG-I2 is the second imaging satellite in the Meteosat Third Generation network (hence the name). It will complete the three-spacecraft network in geostationary orbit, which lies 22,236 miles (35,786 kilometers) above Earth.
Its companions, MTG-I1 and MTS-S1, launched in December 2022 and July 2025, respectively. MTG-I1 is an imaging craft and MTS-S1 is a "sounder," using an infrared instrument to probe different layers of Earth's atmosphere.
The MTG satellites are operated by the European Organisation for the Exploitation of Meteorological Satellites (EUMETSAT), an international group based in Germany. And they're very capable, according to Arianespace.
"The MTG system is part of a new generation of geostationary satellites providing imagery for the early detection of fast-developing severe storms, weather forecasting and climate monitoring," the company wrote in the mission's press kit, which you can find here.
Arianespace went on to describe MTG as "the most complex and innovative meteorological geostationary system ever built," citing its potential to improve the prediction and early detection of severe weather events.
"The data gathered will have a wide range of uses, from enabling aircraft to avoid storms and for earlier alerts of flooding, through to more precise monitoring of fires and fog," the company wrote.
If all goes according to plan today, the Ariane 6 will release MTG-I2 into geostationary transfer orbit (GTO) 36 minutes after liftoff.
https://www.space.com/space-exploration/launches-spacecraft/ariane-6-rocket-launch-mtg-i2-weather-satellite
https://www.esa.int/Applications/Observing_the_Earth/Meteorological_missions/meteosat_third_generation/MTG-I2_ready_for_launch_on_Ariane_6
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CLTbPdGfMJw
moar ESA
https://www.esa.int/Enabling_Support/Space_Transportation/First_contracts_kick_off_European_Launcher_Challenge
https://www.esa.int/Enabling_Support/Operations/Watch_live_BepiColombo_begins_its_arrival_at_Mercury
https://x.com/Soph_astro/status/2092702560805073340
Biotechnology Turns PET Waste Into Food For Space
August 27, 2026
The conversion of industrial waste is taking an unexpected step toward the human food chain.
A team of microbiologists at Southern Illinois University Carbondale has demonstrated the scientific feasibility of a process that can convert thermoplastic resins into edible biomass.
The experiment, presented at the American Chemical Society’s annual meeting in Chicago, uses biotechnology to break down polymer materials and turn them into nutrients that can then be shaped through 3D printing.
Breaking down PET and microbial synthesis
At the center of the process is polyethylene terephthalate, or PET, one of the world’s most widely used synthetic polymers. PET is commonly found in beverage bottles, food packaging and textiles.
To make the plastic usable by microorganisms, the material first undergoes depolymerization through oxidative hydrothermal dissolution.
The process uses water, heat and oxygen to break the long polymer chains into smaller compounds that microorganisms can metabolize.
Genetically modified yeast strains engineered using CRISPR gene editing then consume the carbon-rich products of the process, together with agricultural waste, and convert them into proteins, lipids, fatty acids and aromatic compounds.
One of the strains used in the study also demonstrated the ability to produce pure vanillin from plant biomass.
The resulting protein mixture is combined with starches, fiber and sweeteners to improve its texture before being fed into a 3D printer.
The researchers have dubbed the resulting custom-shaped cookies “μBites.”
A promising technology with a steep price tag
The idea addresses a problem created by the extraordinary growth of the plastics industry.
Global plastic production has risen from roughly 1.7 million U.S. tons in 1950 to more than 440 million tons a year today, creating enormous quantities of waste that conventional recycling methods have struggled to absorb.
“I think it has a pleasant, agreeable aroma,” microbiologist Lahiru Jayakody told New Scientist, describing the smell of the resulting biomass before any formal tasting could take place. Such testing remains subject to approval by the university’s ethics committee.
The technology, however, is nowhere near being economically competitive with conventional food production.
According to analysis published by The Guardian, current synthesis costs are around $27 per pound of edible material.
The limited quantities that can currently be produced also make the process unsuitable for addressing the global waste problem on a large scale.
For now, the technology is better viewed as a specialized application than a solution to plastic pollution.
From Earth to deep space
The equation changes when the process is considered for space exploration.
The project has received NASA funding through the Deep Space Food Challenge, a program aimed at developing autonomous food-production technologies for crews undertaking long-duration missions to the Moon and Mars.
On interplanetary missions, every pound of material sent into space comes with a significant launch cost. Waste management is also a major logistical challenge.
A system capable of transforming discarded packaging into food could therefore reduce both the amount of waste produced and the quantity of food that crews need to carry from Earth.
Further research will have to determine whether the resulting food is safe to consume and whether its nutritional properties remain stable over time.
Turning plastic waste into cookies may sound like science fiction. But in the context of long-duration spaceflight, where almost nothing can afford to go to waste, the idea starts to make considerably more sense.
https://lavocedinewyork.com/en/news/2026/08/26/biotechnology-turns-pet-waste-into-food-for-space/
Ukraine strikes Donetsk with Storm Shadow missiles – governor
26 Aug, 2026 21:21 | Updated 27 Aug, 2026 07:38
At least eight civilians, including two minors, were wounded in the strike, Denis Pushilin has said
Ukrainian forces launched a major missile strike on Donetsk, the capital of Russia’s Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR), on Wednesday, damaging residential buildings and civilian infrastructure, regional head Denis Pushilin has said.
The strikes targeted several locations in the east of Donetsk, with most of the casualties reported near the Donetsk-City mall. The Western-supplied munitions used included the Anglo-French Storm Shadow/SCALP-EG missiles, according to Pushilin.
At least eight civilians, including two minors, were injured in the strikes near the mall, while another man was wounded by the detonation of an unexploded ordnance piece at another location, Pushilin said.
Ukrainian forces launched a major missile strike on Donetsk, the capital of Russia’s Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR), on Wednesday, damaging residential buildings and civilian infrastructure, regional head Denis Pushilin has said.
The strikes targeted several locations in the east of Donetsk, with most of the casualties reported near the Donetsk-City mall. The Western-supplied munitions used included the Anglo-French Storm Shadow/SCALP-EG missiles, according to Pushilin.
At least eight civilians, including two minors, were injured in the strikes near the mall, while another man was wounded by the detonation of an unexploded ordnance piece at another location, Pushilin said.
Two other civilians were wounded in the Ukrainian attacks elsewhere in the DPR, the governor added. A total of eight residential buildings, 11 civilian infrastructure sites, and multiple cars were damaged in the attacks across the city and beyond, he said.
An RT crew filmed the aftermath at one of the strike sites near the Druzhba sports center in Donetsk.
The building, which belonged to a long-defunct research institute, partially collapsed after apparently being hit by multiple projectiles, while residential buildings nearby sustained minor damage, footage shows.
The Russian Investigative Committee has launched a probe into the attack, with operatives working at the affected locations to collect evidence and assess the damage.
“During the inspection of the scene, it was established that the massive attack resulted in extensive damage and destruction to apartment buildings, civilian infrastructure, and passenger vehicles.
The enemy targeted civilian areas of the city, where there was no weaponry or military equipment,” an operative with the committee has said.
Russian Ambassador-at-Large Rodion Miroshnik linked the attack to the recent pledge by British Prime Minister Andy Burnham’s government to share secret Storm Shadow technology with Ukraine.
“Ukrainian terrorists are like junkies,” the diplomat, who leads a Foreign Ministry mission for tracking war crimes in the Ukraine conflict, said on social media.
“If they get their hands on something, they want to use as soon as possible, usually in the worst possible way for others.”
Earlier in the day, the Ukrainian military conducted a deadly drone strike on an intercity passenger bus in the neighboring Lugansk People’s Republic (LPR).
The attack killed at least nine civilians and injured another five, according to local governor Leonid Pasechnik.
Kiev has stepped up long-range attacks against Russia in recent weeks, repeatedly targeting its energy and civilian infrastructure.
Moscow has condemned the strikes as indiscriminate terrorist attacks and has mounted a retaliatory campaign, which has already resulted in heavy damage to Ukrainian military-related industrial sites, as well as brought the country’s maritime traffic to a halt.
https://www.rt.com/russia/644687-ukraine-donetsk-storm-shadow/
extra RT
https://www.rt.com/news/644704-turkish-cargo-ship-drones/
https://www.rt.com/russia/644700-bloomberg-ukraine-escalation-kremlin/
https://www.rt.com/russia/644702-zakharova-uk-military-sites-targets/
https://www.rt.com/russia/644718-ukraine-hit-200-civilian-vessels/
we have a river too though it probably could use some making it great again
Ukrainian Drones Attack Ozon Warehouses in Overnight Barrage
August 27, 2026
Ukrainian drones targeted warehouses belonging to Russia’s second-largest online retailer Ozon, as well as industrial infrastructure in the republic of Bashkortostan, the company and Russian media reported Thursday.
Ozon said its logistics center in the regional capital of Ufa was “temporarily closed” for inspections after drones caused “minor damage” to the building. It said incoming seller shipments were being rerouted to other facilities.
Another Ozon location in the neighboring Orenburg region was evacuated due to emergency alerts, but later resumed operations after it appeared not to have been struck.
There were also unconfirmed reports of an explosion at the Bashkir Soda Company in the city of Sterlitamak following a suspected drone strike. Authorities have not commented on the reported attack.
Sterlitamak is located around 120 kilometers (75 miles) south of the regional capital Ufa and 1,200 kilometers east (750 miles) of the border with Ukraine.
Elsewhere, in the southwestern Belgorod region, authorities said one person was killed in a cross-border Ukrainian attack.
Russia’s Defense Ministry said it intercepted 267 Ukrainian drones across Russia and annexed Crimea between Wednesday night and Thursday morning.
The Defense Ministry also said it attacked Ukrainian steelworks in the cities of Zaporizhzhia and Kryvyi Rih, logistics centers in and around Kyiv, as well as three Ukrainian ports.
https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2026/08/27/ukrainian-drones-attack-ozon-warehouses-in-overnight-barrage-a93583
other Russia and Ukraine
https://mezha.net/eng/bukvy/fb9d7cce_ukrainian_drone_unit/
https://www.ukrinform.net/rubric-ato/4158175-smoke-rising-over-oil-refinery-in-ufa-after-drone-attack-media.html
https://kyivindependent.com/worlds-largest-container-shipping-company-suspends-novorossiysk-bookings-after-drone-attack/
https://united24media.com/world/five-drones-breach-moldovas-airspace-as-russia-launches-overnight-attack-on-ukraine-21999
https://kyivindependent.com/explosions-rock-kyiv-as-russia-launches-ballistic-missiles-at-the-capital-and-other-regions-across-ukraine/