News
Here, you can find all the news related to entry, descent, and landing. Do you happen to have a news tip? Let us know!
18-08-2026 - LandSpace lands Zhuque-3 on the second attempt.
After a crash in 2025, LandSpace has landed the first stage of the Zhuque-3 rocket on its second flight.
06-08-2026 - ESA completes ExoMars landing leg test
During the latest test of ExoMars systems the landing legs successfully deployed from stowed into deployed configuration. The legs will be deployed just after the front shield is released using non-explosive actuators. The tests were done at the facilities of Thales Alenia in Turin.
24-07-2026 - Starship ship 40 survives re-entry and landing
After being launched on a transatmospheric trajectory the Starship S40 has survived not only the re-entry but also the landing. Earlier flights often exploded after performing a soft landing in the ocean. It is currently unclear if and how S40 can and will be recovered to back to land.
11-07-2026 - China Lands Long March 10 rocket
The Long March 10 rocket successfully lands on the first orbital flight. The CZ-10B vehicle completed orbital launch of its payload and the first stage was captured using a unique floating net recovery system. The stage is expected to re-fly on the second launch of the CZ-10B
04-06-2026 - NYX completes drop tests
The NYX capsule of the Exploration Company has successfully demonstrated a drop test in the Mojave Desert. During the test the vehicle was lifted up to about 2.8 km after which it was dropped. The drogue parachutes deployed using a static line, and the vehicle transitioned to main parachute after some time.
07-05-2026- ESA launches ExoMars model with a canon
A small ExoMars capsule, just 8 cm diameter, was launched using a cannon to demonstrate the stability at supersonic speeds. During the launch the capsule experienced a 17000 g acceleration and after the test the capsule impacted a wall, destroying it. The tests proved the free-flying stability of the capsule
10-04-2026 - Artemis II lands safely after flying around the moon
After reaching the moon, the Artemis II crew has safely landed back on Earth, marking the first time the Orion recovery system has been used with humans on board.
11-02-2026 - China completes in-flight abort test of Mengzhou
China has completed the in-flight abort test of the new crewed capsule Mengzhou. This capsule ranges between Orion and Dragon in terms of mass and is intended to replace the current Shenzhou capsule for LEO and, in the future, lunar missions. This also marks the first launch of a (partial) Long March 10 rocket, which performed a successful water landing.
The CZ-10A test stage completed a successful 470-second flight, reaching a peak altitude of 105 km—the precise point where orbital missions will execute stage separation. Following the shutdown, the stage entered a glide phase in near-vacuum conditions to test attitude control and propellant settling.
The recovery sequence began 350 seconds into the flight with a powered deceleration burn, lasting one minute before transitioning to aerodynamic braking. For the final descent, the rocket narrowed its thrust to the centre engine, which maintained a controlled trajectory for the final 40 seconds until just before splashdown.
05-02-2026 - The Exploration company completed splashdown tests of Nyx
The Exploration company has successfully completed a series of water impact tests in support of their new Nyx capsule. The Nyx capsule is intended to bring cargo and, in the future, humans to space.
21-01-2026 - ESA completes drop tests for Mars landing legs
ESA Engineers have dropped landing legs designed for Mars on a simulated surface, validating their performance
15-01-2026 - Crew 11 returns safely after medical emergency
06-01-2026 - Mars Sample Return cancelled
The MSR mission tased with bringing back the samples gathered by Perseverance has officially been cancelled. Currently there is no plan to return the samples.
