China advances Taiji space observatory plans with successful ground tests of next-generation gravitational wave instrument. #GravitationalWaves# #TaijiMission# #SpaceScience#

This week in space science we have been incredibly busy. ADSEP is just one example of the research that flew up on SpaceX-35. This one is pharmaceutical development in a box to take advantage of microgravity for drug production!

From planetary science to space security, @Livermore_Lab has a long history of advancing space science and technology. Recently, LLNL was excited to welcome @NASAAdmin Jared Isaacman for a closer look at the research driving discovery, innovation and mission impact.

After more than two months aboard China's Tiangong space station, the Shenzhou-23 crew members are all in good condition while making steady progress on a range of space science experiments, including a study on multigenerational rice cultivation in microgravity.

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More than 80 days in orbit — and the work continues. The #ShenzhouXXIII# crew is keeping a busy pace aboard the @CNSpaceStation, conducting space science experiments, in-orbit training and emergency drills as they advance their mission. [📹/CMS]

It was a pleasure visiting the DOE @ENERGY at Oak Ridge National Laboratory @ORNL and watching the team at work. Oak Ridge plays a central role in producing the Pu-238 that fuels the RTGs and RHUs NASA relies upon for deep-space science missions. Similar to NASA, you cannot walk through these facilities without developing an extreme appreciation for what engineers achieved decades ago, often with little more than a slide rule. There are reactors and facilities first brought online in the 1960s that still provide capabilities extraordinarily difficult and expensive to replicate today. It is another reminder that previous generations knew how to take on the hard problems, the big bold endeavors, and deliver lasting outcomes. With the support of POTUS and the National Space Policy, @NASA will inevitably pursue more fission-powered missions beyond SR-1 Freedom. We will keep pushing the limits of materials science, operating reactors at higher temperatures and with greater autonomy, improving power-conversion efficiency, and enabling missions throughout the outer solar system. SR-1 is just the beginning of the “Nuclear NASA”. We are grateful to @SecretaryWright, @NNSAWilliams, and congressional leadership for working alongside NASA to make this next 'giant leap' capability possible.

NASA selects SpaceX to launch the StarBurst gamma-ray detector aboard a Falcon 9. StarBurst is a SmallSat carrying 12 scintillation detectors to monitor the unocculted sky for short gamma-ray bursts linked to neutron star mergers. The mission will support multimessenger astronomy alongside gravitational-wave observatories, helping scientists study these powerful cosmic events. Launch is targeted for no earlier than 2028 aboard a Falcon 9 Bandwagon rideshare from Cape Canaveral. Selected through NASA’s Astrophysics Pioneers Program under the VADR contract, the low-cost mission highlights how rideshare launches can make space science more affordable. SpaceX continues to expand access to orbit for smaller scientific missions.