FROM THE INSTITUTE
For 50 years, Lockheed Martin and NASA have collaborated to advance understanding of the solar system, designing, building, and operating the spacecraft and instruments that transformed planetary science into precise, data‐driven exploration. During the “50 Years of Deep Space Exploration” session at the HUB during AIAA AVIATION Forum and ASCEND in July, Whitley Poyser, Lockheed Martin’s Director of Deep Space Exploration Mission Segment, traced this partnership from its origins in 1975 through today’s ambitious missions – and offered a glimpse of what lies ahead.
Full Story (Aerospace America)
Tag: aerospace engineering
Airbus Places Cold-Weather Takeoff Restrictions on A320neos Powered by PW1100G Engines
Aerotime reports, “Airbus has introduced new cold-weather takeoff restrictions for A320neo-family aircraft equipped with Pratt & Whitney geared turbofan engines, following operational issues reported in freezing fog conditions. The new restriction applies to aircraft powered by PW1100G engines and limits takeoffs during freezing fog when the visibility drops below 150 meters. Airbus said it has updated the ground-engine operating procedure for icing conditions, a change intended to reduce the risk of performance degradation during the most severe winter weather.”
Full Story (Aerotime)
Russian Launch Site Mishap Leaves Country’s Space Program in Limbo
The New York Times reports, “The launchpad Russia uses for sending astronauts and cargo to the International Space Station is out of commission after a mishap last week during the liftoff of a Soyuz rocket. The rocket itself headed to space without incident, taking three astronauts — Sergey Kud-Sverchkov and Sergei Mikaev of Russia and Chris Williams of NASA — to the space station. But the force of the rocket’s exhaust shoved a service platform used for prelaunch preparations out of its protective shelter. The platform fell into the flame trench below.”
Full Story (New York Times – subscription publication)
Supersonic Flight Has Potential to Reshape the NFL
Flying Magazine reports, “In December, Congress is expected to review legislation that would end the FAA’s 52-year restriction on commercial supersonic flight over land. A reversal of the ban could have big implications for America’s most watched professional sports league. This month, the Wall Street Journal reported that the supersonic test campaign of Boom Supersonic’s XB-1 demonstrator was “of particular interest” to the leadership of the NFL. The league has quietly kept a “close eye” on the progress of Boom and other supersonic developers for years, sources said.”
Full Story (Flying Magazine)
NASA’s Perseverance Rover Discovers Lightning on Mars
The New York Times reports, “It is shocking but not surprising. Lightning crackles on Mars, scientists reported on Wednesday. What they observed, however, were not jagged, high-voltage bolts like those on Earth, arcing thousands of feet from cloud to ground.”
Full Story (New York Times)
DARPA Announces 2026 X-plane Competition for New Uncrewed Cargo Drone
Flight Global reports, “The US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) plans to launch the Lift Challenge in 2026, seeking novel designs for uncrewed aircraft that can carry payloads more than four times their own weight.”
NASA’s Perseverance Rover May Have Discovered its First Meteorite on Mars
SPACE reports, “NASA’s Perseverance Mars rover has found a possible meteorite on the surface of the Red Planet. Perseverance spotted an unusual “sculpted, high-standing” rock nestled among “low-lying, flat and fragmented surrounding rocks”, which got the attention of scientists right away.”
Full Story (SPACE)
Navy and Marines Corps Set to Install Automatic Ground Collision Avoidance Systems in Boeing F/A-18s
Aviation Week reports, “The U.S. Navy and Marine Corps, along with two partner operators, are set to install automatic ground collision avoidance systems in Boeing F/A-18 fleets—admitting that the technology could have prevented several fatal crashes. Both the legacy F/A-18 Hornet fleet in the U.S. Marine Corps and Royal Canadian Air Force and the F/A-18E/Fs and EA-18G Growlers in the U.S. Navy and Royal Australian Air Force passed major milestones in the process in November.”
Full Story (Aviation Week)
AIAA Fellow Hauck Died in November 2025
FROM THE INSTITUTE
Former NASA astronaut Rick Hauck, who flew on three Space Shuttle missions, including the Return to Flight in 1988, died on 8 November. He was 84 years old.
Boeing Starliner’s Next Flight Allowed to Carry Cargo Only
Ars Technica reports, “The US space agency ended months of speculation about the next flight of Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft, confirming Monday that the vehicle will carry only cargo to the International Space Station. NASA and Boeing are now targeting no earlier than April 2026 to fly the uncrewed Starliner-1 mission, the space agency said. Launching by next April will require completion of rigorous test, certification, and mission readiness activities, NASA added in a statement.”
Full Story (Ars Technica)