Investigations and Politics:
This Week in Space

Starship Under Investigation

The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has ordered SpaceX to temporarily halt Starship launches following the spacecraft’s explosion just minutes after liftoff on January 16. The FAA, which investigates all aviation accidents regardless of casualties, is now assessing reports of property damage from debris that fell on the Turks and Caicos Islands in the Caribbean. Additionally, air traffic controllers had to reroute several planes to avoid potential collisions with falling debris.

The investigation comes amid concerns about the anticipated appointment of SpaceX founder and CEO Elon Musk to a senior position in the administration of newly elected U.S. President Donald Trump. Musk is expected to assume a cabinet-level role aimed at streamlining government agencies, potentially granting him influence over regulatory bodies. This could enable him to propose structural changes and even budget cuts to federal agencies, including the FAA—raising significant conflict-of-interest concerns. Musk has previously clashed with the FAA over Starship flight approval delays, but now he may find himself in a position of power that presents glaring conflicts of interest.

The exploded spacecraft was the first of the second-generation Starship, featuring a slightly larger design and increased fuel capacity compared to its predecessors. A preliminary SpaceX investigation suggested that the explosion resulted from a fuel or oxygen leak in the cavity above the ship engine, with the pressure buildup exceeding vent capacity. On the same day as the accident, Musk tweeted: “Apart from obviously double-checking for leaks, we will add fire suppression to that volume and probably increase vent area.” He also appeared to take a jab at the FAA, adding: “Nothing so far suggests pushing next launch past next month.”

FAA investigators will be busy in the coming weeks, as the agency has also launched an investigation into the explosion of the first stage of Blue Origin’s New Glenn rocket during its maiden launch on January 16. Unlike SpaceX, which successfully landed its booster but lost the spacecraft, Blue Origin managed to successfully place its second stage into orbit but failed to land the first stage as planned, on a floating platform in the Atlantic Ocean. Instead, the booster exploded at an altitude of 25 kilometers. 

In both cases, the FAA is overseeing rather than conducting the investigations themselves, reviewing the companies’ internal findings, approving corrective measures, and monitoring their implementation. FAA officials can recommend grounding future flights until safety benchmarks are met or, alternatively, allow continued operations before the investigation is concluded, if no public risk is found. 

“We’re working closely with the FAA and submitted our initial findings within 24,” Blue Origin stated. “Our goal is to fly New Glenn again this spring.”

The timing of the next launch depends not only on the investigation’s findings but also on the political power balance. Starship’s seventh test flight, which ended in the spacecraft’s explosion. | Photo: SpaceX

Where is NASA Headed?

In his inaugural address on January 20, returning U.S. President Donald Trump reaffirmed his campaign pledge to send humans to Mars. “American astronauts would plant the stars and stripes on the planet Mars," Trump declared, though he provided no further details or timeline. Given that this is his second term in office, he has only four years to fulfill this vision—a very short timeframe for such a complex and costly endeavor. Notably, Trump did not mention the plan to return humans to the Moon, a key promise from his previous campaign. While his administration initiated the Artemis program, its implementation has been delayed, with the first planned astronaut landing now set for 2027—if not later.

It is likely that while the president is the one making the announcement, the driving force behind the plan is SpaceX CEO Elon Musk, a close associate of Trump who is expected to assume a key role in his administration. Musk has repeatedly stated his intention to send humans to Mars aboard Starship, laying the groundwork for a future Martian city. In the weeks leading up to Trump’s inauguration, he openly criticized NASA and the Artemis program, dismissing the Moon as a mere detour on the path to Mars. In this new position, Musk would gain direct influence over NASA, raising glaring conflicts of interest - especially since SpaceX holds multibillion-dollar contracts with the agency, including providing the lunar lander for the first Artemis crewed missions.

Musk, known for his bold statements and highly optimistic timelines, recently claimed that SpaceX will launch uncrewed Starship missions to Mars as early as the next available launch window in late 2026. If all goes well, he added, the company could send humans on the following launch window in 2028. However, after seven test flights over nearly two years, Starship has yet to reach orbit, raising questions about the feasibility of these timelines.

In the meantime, NASA has already experienced an unexpected shake-up under the new administration in Washington. As per standard practice, at the end of the outgoing president’s term, NASA Administrator Bill Nelson and Deputy Administrator Pamela Melroy submitted their resignations. Under customary procedure, the deputy administrator would step in as acting administrator until the White House's nominee is confirmed—a process that typically takes several months.

James Free, NASA’s associate administrator, was briefly listed as acting administrator on the agency’s website this week.  However, in a surprising move, the White House announced that Janet Petro, director of the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, would instead assume the interim role.

While appointing the deputy administrator as acting head is a long-standing convention, it is not a formal requirement. Space industry insiders speculate that Free was bypassed due to his strong support for the Artemis program, which he played a key role in leading. This may be another sign that the administration intends to alter or even cancel the Moon program altogether.

In any case, Petro's tenure is expected to be brief. The White House has officially announced plans to appoint billionaire Jared Isaacman—who has led two space missions as a private astronaut—as the next NASA administrator. This appointment aligns closely with Musk’s vision, as Isaacman is a SpaceX customer who has reportedly invested hundreds of millions of dollars in two missions, Inspiration4 and Polaris Dawn, with two additional missions planned under the Polaris program—one of them aboard Starship.

The acting administrator, the bypassed official, and the NASA administrator nominee. From right: Janet Petro, James Free, and Jared Isaacman. | Photos: NASA/Kim Shiflett, NASA, Polaris Dawn

Photosynthesis in Space

Crew members aboard China’s space station have successfully demonstrated artificial photosynthesis technology in Earth orbit for the first time. In natural photosynthesis, plants, algae, and certain bacteria use solar energy to convert water and carbon dioxide into sugar and oxygen. A similar process in space could be a game-changer for long-duration missions, potentially generating not just oxygen but also simple carbon compounds that, when combined with oxygen, could serve as rocket fuel.

According to Chinese media reports, the Tiangong-3 station crew conducted 12 experiments using a small system about the size of a drawer. Using semiconductor catalysts, the system successfully produced oxygen and ethylene (H₂C=CH₂)—a simple hydrocarbon with potential fuel applications. The breakthrough lies in the process being carried out at room temperature and normal atmospheric pressure, eliminating the need for the extreme conditions previously required. Additionally, the system can recycle carbon dioxide exhaled by astronauts, addressing a critical challenge in closed space environments. Scaling up production would require additional sources of carbon dioxide and water, such as those found in planetary atmospheres.

On the International Space Station, oxygen is produced through electrolysis, which splits water into oxygen and hydrogen using electricity from solar panels. While effective, electrolysis consumes large amounts of energy. In contrast, the Chinese method, which operates at room temperature, reportedly requires much less energy, making it potentially more suitable for long-term space missions. According to the South China Morning Post, different catalysts can be used in the system to tailor the end product—whether for fuel components like ethylene or formic acid, a precursor for sugar production that could serve as a food source for astronauts on extended missions.. China is planning a series of long-duration crewed space missions, including a human landing on the Moon by the end of the decade and even future missions to Mars.

Breaking down carbon dioxide to produce oxygen and fuel at room temperature. Chinese space station Tiangong-3. | Photo: China Manned Space Agency

It's Raining Women—But Less so in Space

Israel considers itself a progressive nation and a leader in the space industry, but when it comes to gender equality in the field, the reality tells a different story. A study by SpaceIL and the Persol Foundation, published ahead of Space Week, reveals stark disparities in women's representation in Israel’s space sector.

The study’s authors, Inbal Orpaz and Avi Blasberger, former director of the Israel Space Agency, found that women make up less than a quarter of the workforce in Israel’s space sector and account for less than 12% of engineering roles. Their representation in non-technical positions is slightly better but still does not exceed one-third of the workforce.

The gender gap is even more pronounced at the leadership level. Women hold only 10% of executive positions in space companies, and among founders of space-related startups, the figure drops to just 8%. Out of 49 space startups in Israel, only two have a female CEO, making up a mere 4%.

The gender disparities begin as early as high school, with fewer girls choosing to study physics and computer science in high school. In higher education, women remain underrepresented in space-related fields, accounting for less than a third of students in these disciplines, despite a modest increase in recent years.

There is also room for improvement in space education initiatives. While women form a slight majority in the Horizon community of space educators, they make up only 29% of volunteers in SpaceIL’s educational outreach programs. In SpaceIL’s engineering team, which is developing Israel’s next lunar mission, women represent 27%. However, among the 12 engineers directly employed by the organization (excluding external consultants), half are women.

"Achieving gender equality in Israel’s space ecosystem starts with encouraging more girls to pursue science and technology fields," said Inbal Orpaz, lead researcher and founder of the "Women in Tech" initiative. "To make this happen, we must engage their support networks—teachers, parents, and mentors—who influence their choices. But we don't have to wait for the future. Right now, space companies can and should take action to recruit more women, ensure they advance into leadership positions, and create work environments that foster gender equality. The path to space begins in the classroom—but it doesn’t end there."

When there’s a will, there’s a way. Among the last ten astronauts selected by NASA, six were men and four were women (the photo also includes an astronaut and an astronaut-in-training from the UAE). | Photo: NASA

The Moon: An At-Risk Heritage Site?

The World Monuments Fund (WMF), an international nonprofit dedicated to raising awareness about cultural and heritage sites threatened by human activity, publishes an annual list of endangered locations. The 2025 list includes monasteries in Albania, coastal sites in East Africa, and water systems in India, as well as the city of Gaza, a Jewish heritage site in Morocco, and historic buildings in Kyiv. Yet, among these well-documented endangered sites, this year’s list features an unexpected addition: the Moon.

"The Moon seems so far outside our scope, but with humans venturing more and more into space, we think it is the right time to get ourselves organized." WMF President and Chief Executive Officer Bénédicte de Montlaur told The New York Times. The organization voiced concerns over potential damage to historic lunar sites, including the Apollo 11 landing site in the Sea of Tranquility and 90 other locations where both crewed and uncrewed spacecraft have landed. Preservation efforts for cultural sites typically fall under the jurisdiction of the country in which they are located, but as de Montlaur emphasized, "the Moon belongs to no one—it is a symbol of hope and the future."

WMF experts warn that in the not-so-distant future, tourists—not just professional astronauts—will set foot on the Moon, making it even more challenging to protect its historical sites. “We see putting the moon on the watch list as a wonderful opportunity to advocate for the need and value of preservation,” said Jonathan S. Bell, Vice President of Programs at the WMF.

One day, tourists may stand here. The Apollo 17 landing site in the Taurus-Littrow Valley—the last place (for now) where humans have walked on the Moon. | Photo: NASA