Turbulent times

Psyche’s fuel pressure has dropped. NASA engineers are analyzing a fuel pressure drop in the electric propulsion system of the Psyche spacecraft, which is on its way to the metallic asteroid of the same name. The spacecraft won’t engage its thrusters again until at least mid-June, but NASA says that overall mission timing won’t be affected. Pictured: An artist’s impression of Psyche at its destination. Image credit: NASA et al.

NASA has withdrawn a partnership invitation for VIPER. The agency recently announced that it is exploring new ways to get the VIPER rover to the Moon after canceling the program that called for partnerships from the space industry. NASA says it will announce a new plan for the water-seeking lunar mission in the future.

ESA and ISRO will cooperate on human space exploration. The European Space Agency (ESA) and the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) recently formalized their cooperation for human spaceflight in low Earth orbit and crewed lunar missions.

The Resilience lander has entered lunar orbit. The Japanese company ispace recently announced that its Resilience lunar lander has successfully entered orbit around the Moon, setting the stage for a landing attempt no earlier than June 5. Part of the HAKUTO-R M2 mission, the lander carries international payloads including a Swedish art installation and a European-built micro rover.

Laurie Leshin is stepping down as JPL Director. The first woman to lead NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Leshin will step down on June 1 after a tenure marked by historic successes like the Europa Clipper launch and major challenges like the Psyche mission delays. Dave Gallagher will succeed her, and Leshin will continue her work as a Caltech professor.

NASA is still trying to reconnect with Lunar Trailblazer. The spacecraft lost communication shortly after its Feb. 26 launch, but the mission team still has hope for it. Favorable sunlight conditions through mid-June mean that the orbiter’s solar panels could recharge its batteries enough to revive communications.

When NASA loses staff, their expertise and experience can’t be easily replaced. The latest episode of Planetary Radio: Space Policy Edition explores team dynamics at NASA with Janet Vertesi, PhD, a sociologist who has spent years embedded in NASA science teams. She discusses her alarm at the prospect of indiscriminate firings at the agency, and at the potential loss of institutional knowledge that won’t easily be rebuilt. Pictured: An artist’s impression of NASA engineers disappearing. Image credit: Casey Dreier/NASA.

Where are all the aliens? This is the central question of the Fermi Paradox. Our latest article unpacks why some scientists think that we should have made contact with intelligent extraterrestrials by now, and explores some theories about why we haven’t.

Sub-Neptunes may be the most common type of planet in our galaxy. This week’s Planetary Radio features an interview with planetary geochemist Chris Glein, PhD, about his team’s research on the sub-Neptune exoplanet TOI-270 d and the secrets it may be revealing about this class of world.

Attention all asteroid hunters! The Planetary Society is accepting proposals for the 2025 round of Shoemaker NEO grants, which fund experienced amateur observers and underfunded professional observers throughout the world who make vital contributions to research on near-Earth objects. The deadline for proposals is May 14, 2025. See our Request for Proposals for more details.

ICYMI: The Planetary Society book club with Hakeem Oluseyi. Astrophysicist, engineer, and science communicator Hakeem Oluseyi joined our latest virtual book club meeting to talk about his inspiring coming-of-age memoir about his rise from an impoverished childhood and crime-filled adolescence to the top ranks of research physics. You can watch a recording of the event here. Our next book club pick is “Mars: Photographs from the NASA Archives.” Planetary Society members can join the book club and attend live Q&As with authors. Not yet a member? Join today.

Join us at the Humans to the Moon and Mars Summit. Taking place May 28-29, 2025, in Washington, D.C., this summit explores the future of human space exploration from scientific, engineering, and policy perspectives, and more. This year’s event will feature Planetary Society board member and planetary scientist Britney Schmidt, PhD, as well as former Planetary Radio host Mat Kaplan. Planetary Society members can use the promo code PlanetarySocietyMARS2025 for a 10% discount on registration.