Posted: Sat, May 24 7:42 AM ET (1142 GMT)
The FAA has given final approval for the next launch of SpaceX's Starship. The agency said Thursday that it completed a "comprehensive safety review" after the mishap on the previous flight in March and concluded SpaceX addressed the causes of that failure. The FAA did not disclose those specific causes or the steps SpaceX took to address them. SpaceX is preparing for the Starship launch, called Flight 9, as soon as May 27 from its Starbase facility in South Texas. The upcoming launch will have larger airspace closures because of the experience of the failures on the two previous flights as well as the use of a previously flown Super Heavy booster for the first time on Flight 9.

Related Links:

•  SpaceNews article
•  Ars Technica article
•  Spaceflight Now article
•  Orlando Sentinel article
•  SpacePolicyOnline.com article

Posted: Sat, May 24 7:38 AM ET (1138 GMT)
Two Chinese astronauts performed a spacewalk outside the Tiangong space station Thursday. Astronauts Chen Dong and Chen Zhongrui spent about eight hours outside the station, installing a debris protection device and inspecting equipment. The spacewalk was the first by the current Tiangong crew since the arrived at the station on the Shenzhou-20 spacecraft last month.

Related Links:

•  Space.com article
•  Xinhua article

Space Force and NGA sign agreement on space-based intelligence
Posted: Sat, May 24 7:35 AM ET (1135 GMT)
The US Space Force and the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA) signed an agreement Wednesday intended to end turf battles between the two in space-...

NASA studying ISS crew reductions because of budget shortfalls
Posted: Sat, May 24 7:33 AM ET (1133 GMT)
NASA says long-running budget shortfalls have led it to consider reducing the crew on the International Space Station. At a briefing Tuesday, NASA's...

China launches communications satellite
Posted: Sat, May 24 7:32 AM ET (1132 GMT)
China launched a communications satellite Tuesday. A Long March 7A rocket lifted off from the Wenchang Satellite Launch Center on Hainan Island at 7:50...