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NASA’s X-59 Aircraft Flies Supersonic for First Time

2026-06-05 20:44

4 min read

Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater)

NASA’s X 59 eXternal Vision System shows Mach 1.077 on Friday, June 5, 2026, marking the aircraft’s first time reaching supersonic speed in support of NASA’s Quesst mission. The moment represents a milestone for the aircraft as it transitions to include test flights faster than the speed of sound.

NASA

NASA’s experimental X-59 aircraft marked a major milestone Friday, June 5, when it flew faster than the speed of sound for the first time, setting the stage for demonstrating its quiet supersonic capabilities later this year.

NASA test pilot Jim “Clue” Less took off and landed at Edwards Air Force Base in California, reaching a top speed of approximately Mach 1.1 (713 mph) and altitude of 43,400 feet. The X-59’s flight began at 11:08 a.m. PDT and lasted 81 minutes, with the team focusing on flying qualities at both subsonic and then supersonic speeds.

In the coming days, we expect to take the next step and push to Mach 1.4

jared isaacman

NASA Administrator

”X-59 is getting ready for its quiet supersonic debut. Since the aircraft’s first flight on Oct. 28, 2025, the team has made tremendous progress, flying 16 times in the last 90 days and getting into a steady test rhythm. In the coming days, we expect to take the next step and push to Mach 1.4,” said NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman “I’m grateful to the NASA team and Lockheed Martin Skunk Works for their help getting us to this point, and I hope this is the first of many collaborations as we rebuild NASA’s X-plane portfolio.”

The X-59 is designed to fly at supersonic speeds while creating only a quiet thump instead of a loud sonic boom. For this flight, a NASA F‑15 chase plane flew nearby to monitor the X‑59. The loud sonic booms from the F-15 obscured any sound made by the X-59.

“The X-59’s first supersonic flight is a testament to America’s enduring leadership in science, engineering, and aerospace innovation,” said Michael Kratsios, Assistant to the President for Science and Technology and Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy. “This achievement comes as the Trump Administration continues work to unleash supersonic flight and enable American ingenuity.”

This first supersonic flight is a significant milestone, but an event even more critical to the mission is upcoming. In just days, the aircraft is expected to make its first “mission conditions” flight, reaching a cruising speed of Mach 1.4 (925 mph) and altitude of approximately 55,000 feet. The X-59 also will be accompanied by a chase plane for this flight.

NASA’s X-59 quiet supersonic research aircraft completed its first supersonic flight Friday, June 5, 2026, marking the first time the aircraft exceeded the speed of sound in support of NASA’s Quesst mission. The milestone represents a major step in flight testing as the aircraft expands into the supersonic portion of its flight envelope.

NASA / Lori Losey

This speed and altitude are the base conditions for the X-59 when it will eventually fly over several U.S. communities enabling NASA to gather data about how people may perceive its quiet thump. NASA will share this data with U.S. and international regulators to help establish new data-driven noise standards to enable a future viable market for supersonic commercial flight over land.

For the last several months, the X-59 has been participating in an ongoing series of flights where the plane has been flying at a wide range of speeds and altitudes – a process known as envelope expansion. These tests are the first phase of the X-59’s flight testing. They are focused on performance and involve chase plane monitoring. When the aircraft completes this phase it will enter another, focused on its sound profile in order to verify its quiet thump capability.

The X-59 is the centerpiece of NASA’s Quesst mission, which aims to demonstrate quiet supersonic flight and help enable commercial supersonic flight over land worldwide. These advancements will help travelers reach their preferred destinations faster, spending less time in the air.

Through Quesst’s development of the X-59, NASA also will deliver design tools and technology for quiet supersonic airliners that will achieve the high speeds desired by commercial operators without disturbing people on the ground. NASA will validate design tools through ground and flight testing, providing U.S. aircraft manufacturers the ability to explore new quiet supersonic concepts, and provide them with confidence that their resulting designs will meet quiet flight requirements.

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NASA Announces Winners of 2026 University Innovation Competition

2026-06-05 20:17

A group of 14 students wearing blue polo shirts smile at the camera while holding the first place certificate for winning the NASA RASC-AL challenge.

The Massachusetts Institute of Technology team that won the 2026 RASC-AL competition for their project, Exploration-Class Lunar Integrated Power SystEm.

Credit: National Institute of Aerospace

NASA announced the Massachusetts Institute of Technology project, Exploration-Class Lunar Integrated Power SystEm, as the first place winner for the 2026 Revolutionary Aerospace Systems Concepts – Academic Linkage (RASC-AL) competition, which challenges students to bridge gaps in aerospace technology by innovating new system concepts and prototypes.

Another team from the same university won second place overall for their project, Mars Exploration Layered Infrastructure for Operations, Research, and Advancement, while Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University took third place with the Mars Pylon Network.

Empowering the next generation, the competition also supports the agency’s workforce development priorities by offering university teams hands-on experience in mission architecture development, systems engineering, and technical communication.

“The winning teams demonstrated how academic innovation can support Artemis mission goals,” said Daniel Mazanek, program sponsor for RASC-AL and senior space systems engineer, NASA’s Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia. “Their work highlights the important role student research plays in shaping future space exploration, and the results showcase how disciplined analysis can elevate innovative ideas into viable exploration concepts.”

Fourteen finalists attended the multi-day RASC-AL Forum in Cocoa Beach, Florida, and gave formal presentations outlining their mission architectures, technology solutions, and supporting analysis. These discussions provided students with real-time engineering feedback, exposing them to the rigor and scrutiny applied to human spaceflight concepts under development within the agency.

Awards were presented to teams demonstrating the highest levels of technical rigor, innovation, and mission alignment. In addition to the top prizes, other awards included:

Best in Communications, Position, Navigation, and Time Architectures for Mars Surface Operations Theme: Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Mars Exploration Layered Infrastructure for Operations, Research, and Advancement MELIORA)

Best in Lunar Sample Return Concept Theme: South Dakota State University
Sample Extraction of Lunar Elements for Network Entry (SELENE)

Best in Lunar Surface Power and Power Management and Distribution Architectures Theme: Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Exploration-Class Lunar Integrated Power SystEm (ECLIPSE)

Best in Lunar Technology Demonstrations Leveraging Common Infrastructure Theme: Massachusetts Institute of Technology
CLPS-enabled Highly-autonomous End-to-End isruSystem Evaluations to Build Understanding and Resilient Growth by Experimenting with Regolith (CHEESEBURGER)

Best Prototype:

Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, Worldwide Campus
Advanced Utilization of Resources for Energy & Viability Off-Earth (Project AUREVO)
University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign with Leonardo de Vinci Engineering School
Mining and Advanced Transformation of Regolith for Infrastructure and eXpansion (MATRIX)

“The RASC-AL program allows students to demonstrate their ability to transform innovative concepts into technically sound studies, with emphasis on technical rigor, clear communication, and systems-level thinking,” said Christopher Jones, program sponsor for RASC-AL and chief technologist for the Systems Analysis and Concepts Directorate at NASA Langley. “These are the hallmarks of effective engineering that we’re looking for and reflect the standards required for real-world aerospace problem-solving,”

The NASA RASC-AL competition represents a cross-agency collaboration. The competition is administered by the National Institute of Aerospace and managed by the NASA Tournament Lab, part of the agency’s Prizes, Challenges, and Crowdsourcing Program.

For more information, visit:

https://go.nasa.gov/3GS1OGm

NASA’s Artemis II Moon Mission Research Continues on Earth

2026-06-05 19:16

5 min read

NASA’s Artemis II Moon Mission Research Continues on Earth

Dressed in a white space suit—with hands gloved, feet booted and head in a helmet with a clear visor—Artemis II astronaut Victor Glover walks on a wide green treadmill. His suit is harnessed to a black machine that is taking the weight off Glover such that, while in the suit, he experiences forces equivalent to lunar gravity. Two people wearing casual clothes and blue hard hats stand in the background, waiting to support Glover and the experiment, should the need arise. Behind Glover are crisscrossing blue iron beams that stretch to a high ceiling in this industrial building at NASA’s Johnson Space Center.

Artemis II astronaut Victor Glover walks on a treadmill while in a space suit harnessed to NASA’s Active Response Gravity Offload System at NASA’s Johnson Space Center. Glover is simulating a walk on a planetary surface while in a suit that has been offloaded to lunar gravity. Artemis II astronauts completed this and other suited tasks before their mission launched and within a few days of landing, giving researchers a chance to assess how quickly upon landing crews’ bodies adapt to a different gravity. Results will help scientists better understand how soon after landing crews can complete mission-critical tasks on the surface of the Moon or Mars.

NASA/Robert Markowitz

Since NASA’s Artemis II crew members safely splashed down in the Pacific Ocean on April 10 after their record-setting mission around the Moon, science teams have been busy collecting more data and combing through observations collected on the test flight. Results from these science investigations will help support safe human exploration of deep space and provide a blueprint for how future missions will conduct science on the lunar surface as NASA builds a Moon Base and develops an enduring human presence there.

Postflight crew health, performance data

In the hours, days, and weeks after landing, the Artemis II crew members, NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch, and CSA (Canadian Space Agency) astronaut Jeremy Hansen, contributed critical data to help the agency understand how the human body reacts to spaceflight. Collecting this data as soon as possible after landing was important to understand how the body adapts from microgravity to Earth’s gravity. The data will inform NASA’s understanding of how quickly crews can complete mission-critical tasks after landing on a planetary surface like the Moon or Mars, where there won’t be landing support personnel to assist.

Within a day of splashdown, researchers collected a suite of data for the Artemis II Spaceflight Standard Measures study, which is part of a larger effort across the astronaut corps to gather a baseline set of health measurements on blood pressure, heart rate, eye health, and motor control. Crew members also completed a mini obstacle course, which included lying down, standing up, unfurling a rope ladder, ladder climbing, and more, to assess how their bodies were adapting to Earth’s gravity.

Once the crew returned to NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston, researchers guided them through further medical check-ups and tests of motor control. Over the next several days, the crew completed obstacle courses wearing spacesuits offloaded to lunar gravity, which is roughly one-sixth the force of Earth’s gravity. Researchers are now analyzing this data to gain insight into how crews may perform as they adapt to the gravity of a planetary surface.

As part of the Immune Biomarkers study, researchers are comparing blood and saliva samples collected after the Artemis II splashdown with samples collected preflight and during the mission. Among other topics, the study investigates whether and how dormant viruses reawaken in astronauts’ bodies while in space.

Some crew members completed postflight cognition tests and a simulated manual spacecraft docking task to assess motor control for the ARCHeR (Artemis Research for Crew Health & Readiness) study. This, combined with data collected through a wrist-worn device while crew members were in space, is used to understand the effect of space hazards on well-being and performance.

Initial data collections for Artemis II health studies concluded 45 days after splashdown. However, medical teams will continually monitor astronaut health throughout the Artemis II crew members’ lifetimes.

Once this data is processed and anonymized, information will be available for scientists to study the effects of spaceflight via a request to NASA’s Life Sciences Data Archive. The results from this work could lead to new technologies and studies that help predict the adaptability of crews on future missions to the Moon and Mars.

Analyzing astronaut-derived organ chips flown around Moon

A person wearing blue gloves holds a small cylindrical organ chip.

A scientist handles AVATAR organ chips following their journey around the Moon aboard Orion. The chips contain cells from each astronaut and are being prepared for detailed analysis.

NASA

Organ chips from NASA’s AVATAR (A Virtual Astronaut Tissue Analog Response) investigation are being analyzed at chip developer Emulate’s laboratory in Boston. The organ chips included bone marrow cells from each Artemis II astronaut. They flew around the Moon with the astronauts, and now researchers are studying these organ chips to determine how deep space radiation and microgravity affect human health at the molecular level.

Scientists are comparing the chips flown aboard the spacecraft to ground controls and crew blood samples using advanced techniques, including single-cell RNA sequencing. The analysis will characterize how organ chips model individual responses to spaceflight, which is data that could allow NASA to send future astronauts’ AVATAR chips ahead on missions to develop personalized medical kits. The researchers plan to share early findings at scientific conferences while full analysis continues.

Lunar imagery, audio for data release

A large operations room filled with about two dozen staff members seated at computer workstations. Rows of desks with multiple monitors face a central area where a person sitting at a glass-topped desk appears to be speaking to the group. Large screens mounted on the walls display space-related imagery and data. Several people are looking towards a large screen hanging on a wall on the right of the image, while others work at their computers. The room is brightly lit, with blue accents along the walls, creating the atmosphere of a space operations or flight control center.

In this April 3, 2026, image, the Artemis II lunar science team is shown working in the Science Evaluation Room in the Mission Control Center at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston. The team is putting together a plan of science observations for the Artemis II crew, which was headed toward the Moon aboard Orion. As they passed the Moon at closest approach on April 6, the crew applied the geology skills they learned in the classroom and in Moon-like environments on Earth as they photographed and described nuances of geologic features such as impact craters, ancient lava flows, and surface cracks and ridges. The crew noted differences in color, brightness, and texture — details that provide clues to surface composition and history.

NASA/Bill Stafford

On April 6, the Artemis II crew members studied features on and around the Moon for nearly seven hours during Orion’s closest approach to the lunar surface. Their work was guided by a minute-by-minute observation plan developed by the Artemis II lunar science team.

Scientists are reviewing the data collected from the mission, which includes images, video, and audio files, to release a report of their initial data interpretations later this year. The report will cover observations of impact flashes, variations in color on the lunar surface, and the shape and texture of faults and ridges. The team also will publish a report on how Artemis II lunar science observations were planned, organized, and executed for the benefit of future Artemis missions.

NASA will publish more than 100 science-related audio recordings with transcripts, as well as approximately 11,500 Earth and Moon image and video files from the mission science campaign, with accompanying data. While many of these images already are public, these records will be available through NASA’s Planetary Data System, a public archive of data from all of NASA’s planetary missions. To get the data ready, the team is converting files into standard formats that anyone can easily open and add information to make the data searchable in NASA’s archive for generations to come.

For more information on NASA’s Artemis II science efforts, visit:

https://www.nasa.gov/humans-in-space/artemis-ii-science/

Karen Fox / Molly Wasser

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Jun 05, 2026

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NASA Concludes Antenna Mishap Investigation, Releases Report

2026-06-05 17:00

5 min read

Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater)

NASA’s Deep Space Station 14, a 230-foot wide radio antenna at the Goldstone Deep Space Communications Complex near Barstow, California is silhouetted against a glowing sunset sky of deep blues, purples, oranges, and yellows. Several support building can also be seen illuminated behind the antenna structure.

This sunset photo shows Deep Space Station 14, the 230-foot-wide (70-meter) antenna at the Goldstone Deep Space Communications Complex near Barstow, California, part of NASA’s Deep Space Network.

NASA/JPL

NASA has completed the investigation into the damage sustained last year at its 70-meter radio-frequency antenna, known as the Deep Space Station 14 (DSS-14), at the Goldstone Deep Space Communications Complex near Barstow, California. The agency has classified the event as a Type A mishap based on the total cost of damages. The antenna will remain offline to complete repairs and previously scheduled upgrades.

“NASA takes safety and any departure from established procedures seriously, and the investigation at Goldstone made clear that we must strengthen our processes. We are acting on the investigation’s findings,” said Joel Montalbano, acting associate administrator for NASA’s Space Operations Mission Directorate at the agency’s headquarters in Washington. “We will update and improve procedures, rebuild core in-house capabilities, and reinforce operational discipline across the Deep Space Network. NASA remains focused on learning from this and modernizing systems, so DSS-14 and the broader network are ready to support our ambitious future missions.”

On Sept. 16, 2025, the DSS‑14 antenna over‑rotated while actively tracking the Juno mission, placing excessive stress on cabling and associated structural supports. Water lines tied to the antenna’s fire‑suppression system also were damaged, causing significant flooding in the facility. There were no injuries.

NASA convened a Mishap Investigation Board, bringing together experts from across the agency to examine the technical, organizational, and cultural factors behind the incident. The board conducted on‑site inspections, interviews, and detailed reviews of technical documentation and operational logs from all three Deep Space Network sites. The board completed its final report in April and submitted it for agency concurrence.

The investigation issued findings and recommendations that emphasize training, technical rigor, operational procedures, system design, clear roles and responsibilities, and safety assurance. At the same time, teams already are applying lessons learned across all network sites to improve operational consistency. These steps will help bolster the network and reduce the risk of future mishaps.

In its final report, the board found the mishap primarily stemmed from software weaknesses, human error, and an undetected failure in the antenna’s hydraulic limit system. Investigators determined an electrical issue at the antenna the previous day caused the control system to misreport the antenna’s rotation state, an issue that went unnoticed and triggered multiple limit-stops during the Juno track on Sept. 16. While working to identify the limit-stop problem, operators performed several troubleshooting steps that inadvertently bypassed software and hardware safeguards, which ultimately led to the over-rotation incident. After flooding in the antenna base was observed, operators attempted to stow the antenna as a safety precaution, however, because the system had already passed the rotation limits, this action drove the antenna further into over‑rotation, causing additional damage.

Additionally, the investigation found the antenna’s hydraulic limit system, its final mechanical safeguard, was inoperable on Sept. 16 after being damaged in an undocumented prior incident. The system also had not been adequately tested for an undetermined period of time.

Investigators also concluded workplace culture pressured operators to work as expeditiously as possible, often stretching beyond their usual roles, expertise, and training, to keep the antenna operating. The board states the cultural conditions observed at Goldstone were not present at the network’s other sites, where roles and responsibilities are followed more consistently. Other contributing factors outlined in the report include inadequate procedures, reliance on undocumented practices and tacit knowledge, and gaps in the antenna’s control logic. NASA will accept this as the final report.

The agency estimates repairs will cost between $4.1 and $4.6 million, with a final figure to be determined after the antenna’s systems are fully assessed. The antenna will remain offline as it enters its previously scheduled extended maintenance and upgrade period, originally set to begin in August and expected to be completed by October 2028. These upgrades are part of broader network improvements essential to supporting future exploration and science missions, as well as enhancing the nation’s planetary defense capabilities.

“We are committed to learning everything we can from this incident, and we’ve already begun putting those lessons into practice,” said Kevin Coggins, deputy associate administrator for NASA’s SCaN (Space Communications and Navigation) Program at the agency’s headquarters. “Our teams are working to strengthen and standardize processes and training across all three network sites to ensure it remains resilient, consistent, and ready to support the next generation of missions. Every challenge is an opportunity to improve, and this is no exception.”

The Deep Space Network continues to provide full coverage for more than 40 missions despite the DSS‑14 incident. The network’s 13 other antennas, located at complexes in California, Australia, and Spain, are supporting all tracking needs without interruption. A dedicated scheduling team allocates antenna time across the network to meet each mission’s science and data‑return objectives. The team also maintains continuous coverage when an antenna goes offline for maintenance or an unexpected outage.

To view the report, which includes redactions to protect proprietary and privacy-sensitive material, visit:

https://www.nasa.gov/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/dss14-mishap-investigation-board-report-signed-final-redacted-hm-tagged-508.pdf?emrc=74c749

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First Steps: America’s Grueling Second Spacewalk

2026-06-05 15:47

Gemini IX-A astronaut Gene Cernan is backdropped by the blackness of space during America’s second spacewalk on June 5, 1966. His umbilical drifts across the foreground, partially obscuring the view of the astronaut.

A year after America’s first spacewalk, Gemini IX-A Eugene Cernan stepped outside his spacecraft for an ambitious extravehicular activity scheduled for 167 minutes. The challenges he faced led NASA to reevaluate plans, equipment, and training for future spacewalks.

NASA

One year after Gemini IV astronaut Edward H. White completed NASA’s first spacewalk the agency prepared for a demanding second excursion. Originally scheduled for Gemini VIII, the extravehicular activity (EVA) was reassigned to Gemini IX-A after that mission ended early, with Gene Cernan taking on the task.

On June 5, 1966—the mission’s third day—Cernan exited the spacecraft and quickly found himself fighting his own equipment. His spacesuit was so rigid that even simple movements required intense effort. He struggled to complete the simplest maneuvers.

Within minutes, Cernan was exhausted and sweating profusely. His spacesuit was cooled only through the circulation of oxygen and as he worked to complete the goals of the EVA, his helmet fogged over completely, obstructing his view and his heart rate rose to about 180 beats per minute. As concerns grew that he might lose consciousness, the EVA was called off and Cernan’s spacewalk ended after two hours and eight minutes.

When Gemini IX-A returned to Earth, doctors found that Cernan had lost 13 pounds during the three-day mission, most of it water lost during his EVA.

The challenges Cernan faced that day reshaped NASA’s approach to spacewalking. His experience directly influenced improved training methods, refined EVA procedures, and precipitated advances in spacesuit design—key steps in preparing astronauts for lunar surface missions just a few years later.

Credit: NASA