Artemis II grabbed the headlines, but six other missions are quietly approaching milestones that could reshape what we know about Mercury, Mars, asteroids, exoplanets, and the Moon's south pole. Here is what is actually happening with each of them.
Artemis 2 splashdown marks first crewed lunar flyby since Apollo 17 in 1972. Four astronauts completed historic mission, validating systems for Artemis 3 landing attempt.
Six minutes and eighteen seconds of radio silence at 24,661 mph, and then the parachutes appeared. The heat shield question everyone had been asking for three years finally has a preliminary answer - though the full inspection report is still weeks away.
Artemis II crew surpassed Apollo 13's distance record during April 6 lunar flyby. Orion carried 4 astronauts—including Canadian Jeremy Hansen—farther from Earth than any humans.
Artemis 2's four astronauts entered lunar sphere of influence April 6, first crewed arrival since Apollo 17. NASA simultaneously proposed 25% budget cut for FY2027.
The White House wants to cut NASA's science budget nearly in half for the second year running. Administrator Jared Isaacman says it's enough. Congress already rejected this exact idea once.
