Latest / Space News Today / Artemis 2 Setback, SpaceX’s Trillion-Dollar Orbital Vision & X8.3 Solar Flare

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Artemis 2 Setback, SpaceX’s Trillion-Dollar Orbital Vision & X8.3 Solar Flare · Space News Today

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Welcome to Astronomy Daily, your source
0:02
for the latest space and astronomy news.
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I'm Anna.
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>> And I'm Avery. We're bringing you
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Tuesday, February 3rd's biggest stories
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from across the cosmos.
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>> Today, we're covering a setback in
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NASA's Aremis 2 preparations, a bold new
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vision from Elon Musk that's raising
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eyebrows across the space industry, and
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NASA's announcement of a fifth private
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astronaut mission to the International
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Space Station. We'll also explore some
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dramatic solar activity that's lighting
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up our sun, NASA's newest mission to map
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the boundaries of our solar system, and
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an exciting opportunity for aspiring
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space professionals in Europe.
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>> Let's dive right in with our top story
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today.
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>> NASA's Aremis 2 mission hit a snag
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during a critical pre-launch test over
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the weekend. The wet tress rehearsal
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countdown was terminated at the T5
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minute and 15 second mark due to a
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liquid hydrogen leak. For anyone not
0:57
familiar, a wet dress rehearsal is
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essentially a full launch simulation
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where they load the rocket with
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propellant and run through the entire
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countdown sequence, stopping just short
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of ignition. It's one of the final major
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tests before an actual launch.
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>> Exactly. And this particular leak
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occurred at the interface of the tail
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service mast umbilical, which had
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already experienced high concentrations
1:20
of liquid hydrogen earlier in the
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countdown. The launch control team had
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to work to ensure the space launch
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system rocket was in a safe
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configuration and begin draining its
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tanks. Now, it's worth putting this in
1:33
perspective. Hydrogen leaks are
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notoriously challenging to deal with in
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rocketry. Hydrogen is the smallest
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molecule, which means it can escape
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through incredibly tiny gaps. NASA
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actually dealt with similar issues
1:46
during the Artemis 1 countdown back in
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2022.
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>> That's a good point. And while this is
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definitely a setback, it's exactly why
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we do these rehearsals, to catch
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problems and fix them before astronauts
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are on board. The Aremis 2 crew of Reed
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Weisman, Victor Glover, Christina Ko,
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and Jeremy Hansen are scheduled to
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become the first humans to fly around
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the moon in over 50 years. The team at
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Kennedy Space Center will now need to
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analyze what went wrong, make repairs,
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and potentially schedule another wet
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dress rehearsal. This could impact the
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launch timeline, though NASA hasn't
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announced any official changes to the
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mission schedule yet.
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>> We'll definitely be keeping a close eye
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on this one. Moving on to our next
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story, which involves some pretty
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ambitious claims from SpaceX.
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>> Elon Musk has announced that SpaceX has
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acquired his artificial intelligence
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company, XAI. And with that acquisition
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comes a vision that sounds like
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something straight out of science
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fiction, orbital data centers. The
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numbers here are staggering, Anna. The
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information quoted unnamed sources
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saying XAI was valued at $250 billion
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while SpaceX was valued at a trillion.
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That would make SpaceX the most valuable
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private company in the world. Though, as
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one investment adviser quipped, Musk
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essentially had a short negotiation with
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himself since he held controlling
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interests in both companies. But the
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real story here is what Musk plans to do
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with this combined entity.
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>> Right? Musk is proposing to put up to a
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million satellites in low Earth orbit to
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create a constellation of orbital data
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centers. The idea is that these would
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address the major challenges facing
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groundbased data centers, the massive
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electricity requirements, and the water
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needed for cooling.
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>> His pitch is compelling from an
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engineering standpoint. In space, you
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have near constant solar power with no
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nighttime interruptions, no atmospheric
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interference, and no need for water
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cooling. As Musk wrote, "It's always
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sunny in space."
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>> He's framing this as a step towards
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becoming a Cardartesef type 2
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civilization, one that can harness the
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sun's full power. He even suggested that
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future AI satellites could be built on
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and launched from the moon using
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electromagnetic mass drivers. But here's
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where the skepticism comes in. Industry
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observers are raising serious questions.
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Jim Castel, author of The Greek
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Connecting, suggested the million
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satellite figure might be more about
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publicity and the potential SpaceX IPO
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than realistic planning. And Martin
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Piers from the information pointed out
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the head spinning array of technical and
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financial impediments. Those challenges
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include protecting computers from
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radiation, maintaining hardware in
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orbit, the enormous expanse of getting
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everything into space, and competing
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with tech giants like Google and Meta
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who have cash generating advertising
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businesses. Some analysts suggest this
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move is financially motivated, a way to
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throw a lifeline to XAI, which merged
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with X last year and has been facing
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financial troubles. The timing ahead of
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a possible Space X IPO is certainly
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interesting.
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>> It's definitely an ambitious vision.
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Whether it's brilliant foresight or
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science fiction remains to be seen.
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Either way, it sparked a fascinating
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debate about the future of space-based
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infrastructure.
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>> Speaking of space infrastructure, let's
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talk about something that's actually
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happening right now. NASA's commercial
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crew program. NASA has ordered a fifth
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private astronaut mission to the
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International Space Station from Axiom
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Space with a launch targeted for no
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earlier than January 2027 from Kennedy
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Space Center in Florida. This continues
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the series of commercially sponsored
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crude missions to the orbital laboratory
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under NASA's commercial space strategy.
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NASA administrator Jared Isaacman
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emphasized that commercial space
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activity has become a present reality
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rather than a distant prospect. This
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mission designated Axiom mission 5 is
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expected to spend up to 14 days aboard
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the station. The final launch date will
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depend on overall spacecraft traffic and
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other operational planning factors.
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Basically coordinating the busy schedule
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of visiting vehicles. Dana Weaggle,
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manager of NASA's International Space
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Station program, noted that these
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private astronaut missions allow the
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station to serve as a proving ground for
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new markets and technologies while
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supporting science, research, and
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outreach that contribute to a growing
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space economy. Under this mission order,
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Axiom Space will propose four crew
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members for review by NASA and its
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international partners. Once approved,
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they'll undergo joint training with
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NASA, partner agencies, and the launch
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provider. What's particularly
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interesting about this arrangement is
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the exchange of services. Axiom Space
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will purchase mission services from NASA
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like crew consumables, cargo delivery,
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and storage. In return, NASA will
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acquire from Axiom Space the capability
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to return scientific samples that must
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remain cold during transit. Jonathan
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Certin, president and CEO of Axiom
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Space, said the four earlier Axiom
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missions have expanded the global
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community of human space explorers and
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yielded insights supporting development
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of the planned Axiom station.
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>> That's the key here. Axiom station is
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intended to succeed the International
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Space Station as a next generation
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commercial platform once the current
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laboratory is retired. These missions
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are helping build towards that future.
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It's a great example of NASA's strategy
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to transition low Earth orbit services
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to private providers while the agency
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concentrates on deep space exploration
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like the Aremis missions to the moon.
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>> Absolutely. Now, let's turn our
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attention to some dramatic activity
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happening much closer to home on our own
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star.
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>> The sun has been putting on quite a show
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over the past 24 hours. A rapidly
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growing sunspot has fired off at least
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18 M-class flares and three X-class
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flares, including an intense X8.3
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eruption, the strongest solar flare of
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2026 so far.
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>> To put that in perspective for our
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listeners, solar flares are ranked from
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A, B, and C up to M and X with each
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letter representing a tfold increase in
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energy. So X-class flares are the most
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powerful explosions the sun can produce.
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And the number after the X tells you how
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intense it is within that class.
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>> The culprit is sunspot region 4366,
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which spaceweather.com described as a
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solar flare factory. This region has
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grown rapidly in just a few days and
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shows no signs of slowing down. The X8.3
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flare peaked at 6:57 p.m. Eastern time
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on February 1st, unleashing a blast of
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extreme ultraviolet and X-ray radiation
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that ionized Earth's upper atmosphere.
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This triggered strong R3 radio blackouts
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across parts of the South Pacific.
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>> Eastern Australia and New Zealand
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reported short-wave radio disruptions.
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These blackouts happen because the
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intense radiation from the flare alters
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the ionosphere, which radio signals
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bounce off of for long-distance
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communication.
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>> Now, what everyone wants to know is,
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will we see auroras from this?
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Scientists are watching for coronal mass
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ejections that could follow these
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flares. Early analysis of a CME linked
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to the X8.3 eruption suggests most of
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the solar material will pass north and
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east of Earth. There's a possibility of
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a glancing blow around February 5th,
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which could briefly elevate geomagnetic
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activity and increase the chances of
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auroras at high latitudes. But
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forecasters stress it's too early to
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know for certain. The bigger concern is
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that some spot AR4366
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remains highly active and continues to
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rotate into an Earth-facing position.
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That raises the chance that future
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eruptions could launch CMEs more
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directly toward our planet. Noah
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forecasters expect more exciting space
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weather activity from this region in the
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coming days. So, Aurora casers should
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definitely keep an eye on space weather
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forecasts over the next week.
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>> It's a great reminder that we're still
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in solar maximum, the period of greatest
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solar activity in the sun's 11-year
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cycle. We can expect more of these
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dramatic events over the next year or
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so.
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>> Absolutely. From watching the sun, let's
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zoom out to the boundaries of our entire
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solar system.
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>> NASA's IMAP mission, that's the
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Interstellar Mapping and Acceleration
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Probe, officially began its 2-year
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primary science mission on February 1st.
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>> IMAP's job is to explore and map the
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boundaries of our heliosphere, which is
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the protective bubble created by the
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solar wind that encapsulates our entire
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solar system. Think of it as our cosmic
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shield against interstellar radiation.
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>> The mission launched on September 24th,
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2025, and relies on 10 scientific
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instruments to chart what's happening in
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space. That includes high energy
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particles from the sun, magnetic fields
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in interplanetary space, and even dust
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from exploded stars in interstellar
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space.
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>> What makes this particularly exciting is
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that IMAP is investigating some of the
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most important questions in helopysics.
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how charged particles from the sun get
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energized and how the solar wind
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interacts at its boundary with
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interstellar space.
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>> And there's a practical benefit, too.
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Some of IMAP's data is being fed into
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the eyelink
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for real time. This broadcasts
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nearrealtime observations of space
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weather headed toward Earth. That data
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can inform forecasters who issue
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warnings about potential adverse space
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weather effects on spacecraft and
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astronauts. Though IMAP is both
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advancing our scientific understanding
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and providing practical benefits for
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space operations.
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>> The mission is led by David Mccomomas, a
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principal investigator and professor at
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Princeton University with an
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international team of 27 partner
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institutions. Dons's Hopkins Applied
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Physics Laboratory manage development
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and operates the mission. It's the fifth
12:08
mission in NASA's Solar Terrestrial
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Probes program, and it's going to give
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us unprecedented insights into the edge
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of our solar neighborhood over the next
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2 years.
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>> Speaking of opportunities to advance our
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understanding of space, let's wrap up
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with some news for aspiring space
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professionals. The European Space Agency
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has opened applications for its 2026
12:29
graduate trainee program, offering an
12:32
incredible opportunity for recent
12:33
graduates passionate about engineering,
12:36
science, IT, or business. This is a
12:39
unique professional experience where
12:41
trainees become part of teams of
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scientists, engineers, and business
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professionals from all over Europe
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working together on inspiring space
12:50
missions in an international
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multicultural environment.
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>> The positions are one-year contracts
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with possible extension to a second
12:58
year. Trainees get 2.5 days of paid
13:02
leave per month and receive a monthly
13:04
salary that's exempt from national
13:06
income tax and ISA member states. ESSA
13:09
also reimbures travel expenses at the
13:11
beginning and end of the contract,
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provides an expatriation or installation
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allowance for those moving from another
13:18
country and includes affiliation to
13:21
comprehensive social security and
13:23
pension schemes. To be eligible, you
13:26
need to be a student in the final year
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of a master's degree or a recent
13:29
graduate. You must have graduated by the
13:32
time you start your traineeship and be
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able to provide a copy of your diploma
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within 3 months of starting. Important
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note, you shouldn't have more than one
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year of professional experience after
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graduation. And you must be a citizen of
13:46
one of the member states, associate
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members, European cooperating states, or
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Canada as a cooperating state. ISSA is
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holding three information sessions in
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early February where prospective
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applicants can learn more about the
14:00
program and ask questions. The first one
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is February 5th. There is another on
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February 12th and a third on February
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17th. Each candidate can submit up to
14:10
three applications, so it's worthwhile
14:12
exploring multiple opportunities that
14:14
match your academic background and
14:16
aspirations. All the details in
14:18
application portal can be found at
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jobs.a.int.
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I'll be sure to add that link in the
14:24
show notes.
14:25
>> This is genuinely a fantastic
14:27
opportunity for anyone looking to start
14:29
a career in Europe's space sector. Has a
14:32
long history of groundbreaking missions
14:34
and continues to be at the forefront of
14:36
space exploration, Earth observation,
14:39
and space science.
14:40
>> It's programs like this that help
14:42
develop the next generation of space
14:44
professionals who will be working on
14:46
tomorrow's missions to explore our solar
14:48
system and beyond. And that wraps up
14:51
today's episode of Astronomy Daily.
14:54
We've covered everything from challenges
14:55
with Aremis 2 preparations to ambitious
14:58
visions for orbital data centers,
15:00
ongoing commercial space station
15:02
missions, dramatic solar activity, the
15:05
start of a new NASA mission mapping our
15:07
cosmic neighborhood, and opportunities
15:09
for the next generation of space
15:11
professionals.
15:12
>> As always, there's never a dull moment
15:14
in space exploration. If you want to
15:17
stay connected with us and get more
15:18
space news throughout the week, visit
15:20
our website at astronomydaily.io.
15:24
>> You can also find us on social media at
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Astro Daily Pod on X, Facebook,
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Instagram, Tik Tok, YouTube, and Tumblr.
15:31
>> Thanks for joining us today. Keep
15:34
looking up and we'll see you tomorrow
15:36
with more news from the cosmos.
15:38
>> Until then, clear skies everyone.
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The stories we told
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stories told
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stories