June 2023

Thursday June 1

All Day
The private Polaris Dawn mission may launch to attempt a spacewalk

In 2021, Jared Isaacman, the billionaire founder of the payments processor Shift4, took three people to space with him for the mission called Inspiration4. In 2022, he announced there would be additional flights. In 2023, with a new crew in the SpaceX Dragon capsule, Mr. Isaacman wants to fly to a higher orbit and attempt a spacewalk. Mr. Isaacman said the mission could occur this summer and we will provide a more precise launch date when the Polaris Program announces it. Read more about the Polaris Program:https://nyti.ms/3GgZV6D

Wednesday June 21

All Day
Summer solstice

It’s the scientific start to summer in the Northern Hemisphere, when this half of the world tilts toward the sun. Read more about the importance of the solstice for life on Earth here:https://nyti.ms/2yvKbf6

Friday June 30

All Day
Intuitive Machines may launch a commercial lunar lander mission

NASA has relied on private companies to create new capabilities for the government agency, such as building spacecraft to carry astronauts and cargo to orbit. It is now trying a similar approach for transporting scientific instruments to the moon. A Houston company, Intuitive Machines, may launch its IM-1 mission, using its Nova-C spacecraft to carry payloads to the lunar South Pole region, potentially making it the first spacecraft to land there. Intuitive Machines, flying on a SpaceX rocket, says it will launch in late June. We will provide a more precise launch date for this mission when the company announces one.Read more about the NASA program:https://nyti.ms/3Wr1Tqv

July 2023

Thursday July 6

All Day
Earth is at its farthest point from the sun.

Even as the Northern Hemisphere experiences the heat of summer, our planet is at aphelion, the farthest it will get from the sun during its elliptical orbit. Read more about aphelion, and what it's like on other worlds in our solar system, here:https://nyti.ms/2lVMf71

Wednesday July 12

All Day
India could launch the Chandrayaan-3 mission to the moon.

While India successfully orbited a spacecraft around the moon in 2019, its attempt to land a rover to explore the lunar surface ended in a dramatic crash. The country’s space program is trying again. The Indian Space Research Organization has tentatively set July 12 as the launch date. Read about the crowdsourcing effort that helped locate the crash site of the Vikram lander in 2019 here: https://nyti.ms/3J92qaw

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