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The private space players who will drive NASA's plans for the coming decade are declaring themselves and defining the stakes.

Why it matters: NASA plans to focus on getting people to Mars and the Moon, and its deep space exploration ambitions hinge on the agency being able to successfully hand over major operations in low-Earth orbit to private companies.

The space agency hopes companies will build private space stations that its astronauts can use and to continue to buy space on private rockets for launching its satellites and other payloads to orbit and beyond.

NASA's "big experiment" right now is to test where these commercial partnerships work, the Planetary Society's Casey Dreier told Axios.

What's happening: Last week, NASA announced it would award multimillion-dollar contracts to three teams of commercial space companies to start designing and building privately operated space stations.

Those space stations — to be built by Blue Origin, Northrop Grumman and Nanoracks with partners — are expected to act as hubs where NASA astronauts will be able to live and work after the International Space Station ends.

"You see the emergence of the set of players that will be active in a commercialized [low-Earth orbit] future, and then beyond," the Secure World Foundation's Ian Christensen told Axios. 

NASA has also awarded a contract to SpaceX to build a lander designed to bring humans to the surface of the Moon using its still-in-development Starship as part of the agency's Artemis program, expected to land its first crew by 2025.

Details: The space agency already relies on SpaceX and Northrop Grumman to send cargo to the ISS, and SpaceX is successfully flying astronauts to the station today.

But now, the agency is getting more ambitious with these partnerships for its Moon program and space stations, in particular.

"Does it work to land science instruments on the Moon?" Dreier said. "Does it work to procure spacesuits? Will it work to make reliable space stations? We don't know the answers to those."

Yes, but: This model of public/private partnership can pose risks for NASA, particularly when it comes to extremely difficult pieces of technology. 

SpaceX founder Elon Musk raised concern last week that the company could go bankrupt if its gamble on building Starship doesn't play out.

For budget reasons, NASA is relying on SpaceX as its sole provider of a human lander to get people to the Moon, even though other companies like Blue Origin bid on the project. The space agency awarded SpaceX $2.9 billion.

If somehow that bet doesn't pay off, NASA's plans to get people to the Moon could be called into question or at least delayed, Dreier said.

NASA's future is in private space companies' hands

Companies like SpaceX are increasingly being tasked with building NASA's future in space.

Illustration of a briefcase opened to reveal stars and planets inside

NASA

Space

A look at the scientific breakthroughs changing the world, explorations in space and in worlds beyond our own and the threats posed to us by our own planet, both out of our control and of our own making.

Science

A SpaceX flight surgeon and an elite track cyclist are among the new class of 10 astronaut candidates, NASA announced on Monday.

Why it matters: "These NASA astronauts will plan, train and fly missions to the International Space Station and to the Moon under Artemis, and eventually onto Mars," Vanessa Wyche, the director of NASA's Johnson Space Center, said during an event announcing the new astronaut candidates.

How it works: The 10 candidates will move to Houston, Texas, the home of Johnson Space Center, to begin two years of training starting in January 2022. 

Once that training ends, the 10 rookies will become official astronauts.

What's happening: More than 12,000 applications were submitted for this round of astronaut selection. Here are the lucky 10, with bio information via NASA: 

Nichole Ayers is a major in the U.S. Air Force who is one of a handful of women flying the F-22.

Marcos Berríos is a major in the U.S. Air Force and a test pilot with 1,300 hours of flight time in about 21 aircraft. 

Christina Birch taught bioengineering at the University of California, Riverside, and is a U.S. National Team track cyclist.

Deniz Burnham is a lieutenant in the U.S. Navy and works in the energy industry managing drilling projects in Alaska, Canada and Texas, among other places.

Luke Delaney worked as a pilot at NASA's Langley Research center and has logged more than 3,700 hours of flight time on various aircraft.

Andre Douglas has worked with NASA during his time at the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Lab, focusing on various space exploration projects for the space agency.

Jack Hathaway is a commander in the U.S. Navy with 2,500 hours of flight time in about 30 aircraft and 39 combat missions.

Anil Menon was a SpaceX flight surgeon and is an emergency medicine physician.

Christopher Williams was a medical physicist in the radiation oncology department at Brigham and Women's Hospital and the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, with research focusing on aiding cancer treatments with imaging.

Jessica Wittner is a lieutenant commander in the U.S. Navy and serves as a test pilot and aviator.

1 fun thing: One of the astronaut hopefuls took the opportunity during the announcement to pitch a different kind of mission to Mars:

"I think it would be great if NASA could scale up the Ingenuity helicopter that's currently flying on Mars to maybe, you know, fit two people," Berríos said. "I would love to take it for a spin for science."

Meet NASA's newest class of astronauts

The astronauts will "plan, train and fly missions to the International Space Station and to the Moon under Artemis, and eventually onto Mars," the director of NASA's Johnson Space Center said.

10 astronaut candidates in blue flight suits stand outside on a blue day under green trees. They're smiling.

Scientists have found a pair of supermassive black holes that are the closest to Earth discovered so far.

Why it matters: The pair could help scientists learn more about how large black holes in the middle of galaxies like our Milky Way form and grow.

What's happening: The pair of supermassive black holes is located about 89 million light-years away in the galaxy NGC 7727, according to a new study in the journal Astronomy & Astrophysics. 

"The small separation and velocity of the two black holes indicate that they will merge into one monster black hole, probably within the next 250 million years,"  Holger Baumgardt, a professor at the University of Queensland, and an author of the new study said in a statement.

The mass of the larger black hole at the center of the galaxy is about 154 million times the mass of the Sun; the smaller one weighs in at 6.3 million times the Sun's mass.

The big picture: The researchers think the two supermassive black holes in NGC 7727 ended up on this collision course thanks to a galactic merger.

"Our finding implies that there might be many more of these relics of galaxy mergers out there and they may contain many hidden massive black holes that still wait to be found," Karina Voggel, of the Strasbourg Observatory in France and an author of the study said in the statement. 

"It could increase the total number of supermassive black holes known in the local universe by 30 percent."

Pair of supermassive black holes is closest yet found

Two supermassive black holes are heading for a collision in deep space.

Two black holes (bright, white dots) not far from one another, heading for a collision

The two supermassive black holes heading for a collision. Photo: ESO/Voggel et al.

Black holes

Russia's destructive test of an anti-satellite missile last month that created at least 1,500 pieces of space debris was "irresponsible"  Vice President Kamala Harris said at the annual National Space Council meeting Wednesday.

Why it matters: Harris stressed that the test and its aftermath showed why new international behavioral norms and regulations are needed to help maintain space as a relatively safe environment.

Russia's test and ensuing debris threatened the ISS and forced its crew to shelter, NASA administrator Bill Nelson said.

Russia's Defense Ministry later confirmed the missile test but denied having endangering the ISS.

What they're saying: "Over the past weeks and months, I've spoken with heads of state and governments about our priorities in space. In these conversations, the opportunity for space as been clear, as has the risk," Harris said during an opening speech for the meeting.

"Without clear norms for the responsible use of space, we stand the real risk of threats to our national and global security."

"Just last month, we saw what can happen. Russia launched an anti-satellite missile to destroy one of its satellites. By blasting debris across space, this irresponsible act endangered the satellites of other nations as well as astronauts  in the International Space Station."

The big picture: Harris said the U.S. should prioritize gaining more signatories on the Artemis Accords, which includes a commitment to mitigate the generation of space debris.

So far, Australia, Brazil, Canada, Isle of Man, Italy, Japan, South Korea, Luxembourg, New Zealand, Poland, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates and the United Kingdom have signed the accords.

Harris said France and Mexico have indicated that they will also sign the commitment.

Go deeper: Russian anti-satellite test reveals dangers of space junk

Harris says Russia's anti-satellite test was "irresponsible"

Harris stressed that the test showed the need for new behavioral norms and regulations in space.

Vice President Kamala Harris at the Eisenhower Executive Office Building in November.

Vice President Kamala Harris at the Eisenhower Executive Office Building in November. Photo: Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images

Kamala Harris

NASA delayed a spacewalk set for Tuesday to replace a faulty communications antenna on the International Space Station after the agency received a "debris notification" for the station.

Why it matters: NASA did not disclose the origin of the debris, but the delay comes roughly two weeks after Russia intercepted a defunct satellite with a missile as part of a test that generated thousands of pieces of debris and forced the seven astronauts and cosmonauts aboard the ISS to take shelter.

Debris in Earth's orbit is a major threat to satellites and people in space because both the junk and spacecraft are traveling at extremely high speeds.

The big picture: NASA astronauts Thomas Marshburn and Kayla Barron were set to exit the ISS at 7:10 a.m. EST on Tuesday to replace an antenna system that helps the station speak with flight controllers back on Earth.

NASA said in a blog post Tuesday morning that it delayed the walk after the debris threat notification "[d]ue to the lack of opportunity to properly assess the risk it could pose to the astronauts."

NASA said the station's communication operations can continue despite the delay.

Of note: The Air Force has attempted to simulate the impact of debris against spacecraft. In one test at Arnold Air Force Base, a 1-inch steel sphere traveling 19,1oo feet per second was able to tear a hole through a 4-inch aluminum plate.

The ISS has been hit by debris before. Earlier this year, a piece of junk punched a small hole through one of its robotic arms operated by the Canadian Space Agency, though the damage did not affect its performance.

NASA delays spacewalk on ISS after debris threat

NASA did not disclose the origin of the debris.

NASA astronaut Stephen K. Robinson anchored to the International Space Station's robotic arm during a spacewalk in August 2005.

A NASA spacecraft called DART has launched on a journey to change the orbit of an asteroid in deep space.

Why it matters: The mission is designed to test technology that could one day be used to change the course of a dangerous asteroid if one is ever found on a collision course with Earth. 

Driving the news: The SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket carrying DART — short for Double Asteroid Redirection Test — launched  at 1:21a.m. on Wednesday.

How it works: DART is now on its way to its target — a small asteroid "moonlet" called Dimorphos in orbit around a larger asteroid called Didymos. 

The two asteroids aren't in danger of impacting Earth, but this test will serve as a test to see if this technology can shift the orbit of an asteroid just slightly to throw it off course.

DART is expected to slam into Dimorphos in the fall of 2022.

"The right time to deflect an asteroid is as far away from the Earth as we can," Lindley Johnson, planetary defense officer for NASA, said during a news conference ahead of launch. "The farther away in space it is... the less force it takes to change the orbit enough that it will be a miss instead of a hit."

What's next: NASA and other space agencies are constantly keeping an eye out for potentially dangerous objects that could impact the Earth. 

Future missions, like the Near-Earth Object Surveyor space telescope will be best-equipped to track more asteroids that might threaten our planet.

Editor's note: This article has been updated to include NASA's Twitter post.

NASA probe launches on mission to redirect an asteroid

NASA's DART is on a mission to redirect an asteroid.

A screenshot of NASA's DART mission spacecraft launching into space.

Asteroids

A white dwarf star 1,300 light-years from Earth is blasting out radiation and ripping apart a companion in its orbit.

Why it matters: One day, scientists think the Sun will burn through its fuel and become a dense white dwarf. By learning more about this star, astronomers might be able to get a better sense of the future of our solar system.

What's happening: A study in The Astrophysical Journal suggests the white dwarf KPD 0005+5106 actually plays host to a companion — either a low-mass star or a planet.

Researchers think X-ray data from NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory and ESA's XMM-Newton suggests the white dwarf's companion could be a planet with half of the mass of Jupiter.

That planet's material is being pulled from the world into the atmosphere of the white dwarf and it would only survive for "a few hundred million years before eventually being destroyed," according to a press release.

"This is a slow demise for this object that's basically being ripped apart by constant gravitational forces," Martín A. Guerrero, of the Institute of Astrophysics of Andalusia in Spain, and an author of the study said in the statement. "It would be a very unpleasant place to be."

The big picture: The white dwarf is actually one of the hottest known white dwarf stars, with a surface temperature of 360,000°F. (The Sun's temperature is about 10,000°F, for comparison.)

"This companion object is about 500,000 miles away from the white dwarf, only about one-thirtieth of the distance from Mercury to the Sun," Jesús Toala of the National Autonomous University of Mexico, and a co-author of the study, said in the statement.

"Whatever this object is, it's getting blasted with heat."

Last blasts of a dying star

By studying this star, astronomers could get a better sense of the future of our solar system.

The white dwarf KPD 0005+5106 seen in X-ray. Photo: NASA/CXC/ASIAA/Y.-H. Chu, et al.

Coming back to Earth from orbit has been marked by a loss of anonymity, packed days and little time for reflection for the all-civilian Inspiration4 crew.

Why it matters: The astronauts' celebrity status is a sign amateur spacefaring hasn't arrived. The public still reveres those who take on the risks and rewards of space travel.

Many in the space industry dream that one day flying to space won't just be for the ultra-rich or extremely lucky. Instead, heading to orbit will be more akin to flying on an airplane. 

If space travel is truly going to be similar to air travel, becoming an astronaut shouldn't necessarily impart celebrity status on individuals, says Inspiration4 mission commander Jared Isaacman.

Catch up quick: The Inspiration4 crew — Isaacman, Sian Proctor, Hayley Arceneaux and Chris Sembroski — flew to orbit for their three-day mission in mid-September. 

The launch was SpaceX's first all-civilian mission to orbit and acted as a proof of concept for the company as it tries to launch more people in the future.

The crew performed experiments and flew sentimental items to orbit as they stared out the capsule's windows and worked together to monitor the health of the Dragon spacecraft throughout the flight. 

"You're seeing the Earth in a totally different way," Sembroski said. "And seeing sunrise and sunset, every 90 minutes, being able to see all parts of the world, in that period of time. People say the world's getting smaller, and when you go around it in an hour and a half, it feels really small."

Between the lines: Even though the four crew members are back on Earth, their days are still dominated by their time in space. 

This month, Isaacman, Sembroski, Proctor and Arceneaux — in their Inspiration4 jumpsuits — visited St. Jude Children's Research Hospital to dedicate a new building honoring their mission and the fundraising they did for the organization.

Before the crew flew to space, I spoke to them regularly, one-on-one, for the second season of the "How it Happened" podcast.

This interview was different. It took place in a studio at St. Jude with an audience of about 15 people, including their families and friends.

Details: For the first week or so after coming home, some of the crew members had dreams they were still in space, and all four of them still feel bonded as a team.

Proctor — an artist and poet — said her art has been heavily influenced by being in space since coming back to the ground. She also mentioned that it will be hard to go back to her day job as a professor after having this life-changing experience and she's doubling down on her work as an artist.

Arceneaux and Sembroski have been recognized when they've attended events or around their towns. 

"People say, 'What's it like to get back to normal?'" Sembroski told me. "Things aren't. They're going to be forever different."

The big picture: NASA astronauts and others have described being changed by their experiences flying to space for short and long missions. 

Astronauts talk about becoming environmentalists, for example, after returning to Earth because of what they experienced in space.

One of the major marketing points for private missions is that everyday people will have the chance to experience that "overview effect" for themselves, which the Inspiration4 crew did.

What's next: Future private space explorers "will be different and look at the world differently coming back, but I don't necessarily know what we've experienced will be common amongst" future private astronauts, Isaacman says of their celebrity status.

"If it's working right, it shouldn't be."

How space sticks in the minds of amateur astronauts

The Inspiration4 crew’s days are still dominated by space, even after coming home from orbi

Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin announced Tuesday it will send former NFL player and “Good Morning America” co-host Michael Strahan to space along with another honorary guest and four paying customers during an upcoming flight.

Why it matters: The mission, set for Dec. 9, will add the list of  celebrities Blue Origin has flown into suborbital space in high-profile launches, coming just weeks after the company carried actor William Shatner and three other astronauts during its second human mission.

The big picture: Laura Shepard Churchley, the eldest daughter of Alan Shepard — the first American and second human to fly to space — will the second honorary passenger aboard the December flight.

The four paying customers include space industry executive and philanthropist Dylan Taylor, investor Evan Dick, Bess Ventures founder Lane Bess and Cameron Bess, Blue Origin said.

What they're saying: Strahan, who played for the New York Giants for 15 years, announced that he would a passenger on "GMA" on Tuesday.

"I'm going to space!" Strahan said before introducing a segment on his preparations for the trip, which included taking measurements for his flight suit and testing out a flight seat.

"This mission furthers the company’s vision of millions of people living and working in space for the benefit of Earth," Blue Origin said in a statement.

The big picture: It will be the third human flight for Blue Origin's reusable suborbital rocket system, New Shepard, this year and will be the first time the craft has carried six astronauts in one flight.

The mission will occur toward the end of a historic year of commercial space launches, including SpaceX's all-civilian Inspiration 4 mission and billionaire Richard Branson's trip on Virgin Galactic's Unity space plane.

Go deeper: Blue Origin announces plan to develop commercial space station

Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin to send Michael Strahan to space

The flight will also include the eldest daughter of Alan Shepard — the first American to fly to space.

"Good Morning America" co-host Michael Strahan at the 90th Academy Awards in March 2018.

“Good Morning America” co-host Michael Strahan at the 90th Academy Awards in March 2018. Photo: Valerie Macon/AFP via Getty Images

Blue Origin

SpaceX is set to launch a NASA spacecraft on a mission to learn how to change the course of an asteroid in deep space.

Why it matters: The mission — called the Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) — will test the technology needed to redirect a dangerous asteroid if one is ever found on course with Earth.

Driving the news: The SpaceX Falcon 9 is expected to launch DART to space at 1:21 a.m. ET Wednesday.

NASA will air live coverage of the launch starting at 12:30 a.m. ET Tuesday, for all you night owls. 

How it works: Once in space, DART will make its way to a tiny asteroid called a "moonlet" named Dimorphos that orbits the larger asteroid Didymos. 

DART, which will weigh about 1,345 pounds at launch, will slam into Dimorphos in the fall of 2022 to see if it can shift the course of the moonlet.

The asteroid system isn't in danger of impacting Earth, making it a good target for this type of experiment. It's also positioned well for scientists on Earth to monitor the two asteroids in the system with observatories on the ground.

"The right time to deflect an asteroid is as far away from the Earth as we can," Lindley Johnson, planetary defense officer for NASA, said during a news conference. "The farther away in space it is... the less force it takes to change the orbit enough that it will be a miss instead of a hit."

The big picture: NASA and other space agencies track potentially dangerous asteroids as they make their way around the Sun.

NASA says its found 90% of all the near-Earth objects 3,280 feet long or larger, and the agency is now working on finding 90% of those types of objects that are 459 feet long or larger.

As of June 2021, the agency had found about 40% of the asteroids in that smaller size range.

What to watch: Eventually, new telescopes on the ground and in space, like the Near-Earth Object Surveyor space telescope currently in development at NASA, will allow scientists to find and track asteroids that are difficult to see today. 

NASA's 911 for asteroids

The launch is set for the early hours of Wednesday morning.

Billionaires are the new face of the final frontier

Richard Branson, Jeff Bezos and their ilk are changing the rhetoric around space and the public's relationship to it.

Illustration of planets hanging on a retail shopping rack with sale stickers placed haphazardly

Axios Generate

The White House is providing fresh details of a major satellite program that administration officials call poised to reveal vital information about climate change and extreme weather events. 

Why it matters: Known as the "Earth System Observatory," the program consists of at least five satellites to be launched through 2029 that will enhance, or in some cases revolutionize, the capabilities of the space agency's existing fleet of Earth-observing satellites.

Details: In an interview with Axios on Monday, NASA Administrator Bill Nelson said the upcoming satellite constellation will look at everything from aerosols — tiny particles in the atmosphere that are a major source of uncertainty in climate models — to sea level rise. 

He said these missions will observe the changes in the planet's forests and ice sheets, as well as shifts in water resources and geological phenomena. 

“All of these will create a 3D view of our Earth from the atmosphere to the bedrock," Nelson said. 

Yes, but: Some of these satellites, including a radar imaging mission known as NISAR, which can measure shifts in Earth’s surface down to a resolution of a half-inch, have been in the works for some time. 

That joint U.S.-India mission is set to launch next year. 

Others, however, are still on the drawing board, and NASA is taking inspiration from a 2017 report from the National Academies of Sciences. 

State of play: Nelson said the program's prominent inclusion in a White House's hurricane preparedness fact sheet on Monday, along with added funding for FEMA, indicates the administration’s support for it. 

"They are the ones that announced the Earth System Observatory," Nelson said when asked about White House buy-in for what would be an expensive, multi-year program. 

"Now it didn't start today, because you can't build a sophisticated spacecraft that you're gonna launch in a year and a half... that’s already underway and is being funded," he said of the NISAR spacecraft. 

The big picture: Nelson comes to the NASA job having served in both houses of Congress and, while a lawmaker, flying aboard the Space Shuttle Columbia in 1986. While orbiting the globe, he said he felt what astronauts call the "overview effect," a newly deepened appreciation for the uniqueness of Earth and its fragility. 

"For example, coming across Brazil I could see with the naked eye, the color differential in the upper Amazon region, which is where they were destroying the rainforest — and then I could look in the same window to the east, and see all of the additional silt that was coming out of the Amazon into the Atlantic," Nelson said. 

"I became more of an environmentalist when I flew in space."

What to watch: As NASA administrator, Nelson is in a science communication, rather than policy-making role. But he shares President Biden's sense of urgency on climate change. 

NASA chief touts new Earth-observing satellites for climate

"I became more of an environmentalist when I went into space," NASA's Bill Nelson said.

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