Japan successfully launched the 10th H3 rocket at the Tanegashima Space Center, placing the probe of the Mars moon exploration program into its planned orbit. The plan is to travel to the Martian moon Phobos to collect samples and return them to Earth in 2031.
On October 20, Japan successfully launched an H3 rocket carrying the MMX probe of the Mars moon exploration program, beginning a five-year mission to explore the moons of Mars.
NASA strengthens enforcement of the Wolf Amendment based on a House report, suspending 40 grant projects involving cooperation with China totaling $40 million.
On October 2, the U.S. House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party issued a statement saying that NASA has suspended 40 ongoing research grants, totaling more than $40 million, to review whether bilateral research cooperation on related projects with Chinese institutions violates the Wolf Amendment, and has initiated enforcement proceedings, establishing mechanisms for violation investigations and possible referral to the Department of Justice.
On September 4, astronomer Jonathan McDowell revealed that the Yaogan-50 02 satellite of China fragmented in orbit, and the US Space Force has cataloged 43 related fragments, with orbital altitudes of approximately 600 to 1100 kilometers. The satellite was launched on March 15 of this year, less than six months before this news disclosure. The National Space Administration at that time annou... #China
On August 23, 2026, Chinese officials announced that the Chang'e-7 lunar probe, originally planned to launch from Wenchang, Hainan, does not meet launch conditions and cannot be launched within the year's window. Days earlier, the space agency had reported that the rocket equipment was in good condition.
On August 13, 2026, the New Zealand Security Intelligence Service released its annual assessment, revealing that it had thwarted an attempt by the Purple Mountain Observatory of the Chinese Academy of Sciences to install a ground-based satellite tracking facility under the cover of a local company.
The second flight of Zhuque-3, originally scheduled to launch on August 11, has been announced as postponed to August 31, with no specific technical failure cause disclosed by officials.
A Long March 7 rocket at the Hainan Wenchang Satellite Launch Center exploded about 85 seconds after liftoff, causing major economic losses.
On the evening of August 10, 2026, a fireball appeared after a Long March 7A rocket launched from a viewing site on Hainan Island. Xinhua News Agency said the rocket experienced a flight anomaly and the launch mission failed.