Artemis II Rollout Weekend: NASA Preps Moon Mission + ESA Hacked & Jupiter's Oxygen Surprise

Anna: Hello, space fans. Welcome to Astronomy

Daily, your source for the latest news from

across the cosmos. I'm Anna.

Avery: And I'm Avery. Great to have you with us

today. We've got a really exciting lineup of

storeys covering everything from upcoming

missions to mysterious discoveries.

Anna: That's right. We're starting with some big

news from NASA. Artemis 2 is entering

its final preparations for the first crewed

mission beyond low Earth orbit in over

50 years. The rollout to the launch pad

happens this weekend. Weekend.

Avery: Very exciting. We'll also be talking about a

serious cybersecurity breach at the European

Space Agency. China's ambitious satellite

launches to kick off 2026 and the

surprising discovery about Jupiter's

atmosphere.

Anna: Plus, we have an intriguing cosmic mystery.

Astronomers have found a massive bar of iron

hidden m inside the famous Ring Nebula. And

we'll wrap up with a fascinating look back at

the Apollo 14 moon trees and what

happened to them.

Avery: Lots to cover. So let's get started.

Anna: All right, Avery, let's dive into our top

storey.

NASA is entering the final stages of

preparation for Artemis ii and the excitement

is really building.

Avery: This is huge, Anna. We're talking about the

first crewed mission beyond low Earth orbit

in over 50 years. The launch window opens

as early as February 6, though it could

extend into April depending on final

preparations.

Anna: And this weekend is a major milestone. Right,

the rollout to the launch pad.

Avery: Exactly. Targeted for no earlier than this

Saturday, January 17th. The Space Launch

System rocket and Orion spacecraft will make

that slow journey from the Vehicle Assembly

Building to launch pad 39B at Ah,

Kennedy Space Centre. It's about 6.5

kilometres or 4 miles, and it'll take up

to 12 hours on the Crawler transporter.

Anna: That's the same launch pad used for Apollo,

isn't it?

Avery: It is. Launch pad 39B has quite

a history. Now, the Artemis 2 crew consists

of four astronauts. NASA's Reid Wiseman as

Commander, Victor Glover as pilot,

Christina Koch as mission specialist, and

Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen, also a

mission specialist.

Anna: This mission is essentially a dress rehearsal

for the actual lunar landing, correct?

Avery: Right. Artemis 2 will be a 10 day

circumlunar flight. They'll loop around the

moon without landing and return to Earth.

It's building on the success of Artemis I

uncrewed mission. And paving the way for

Artemis 3, currently scheduled for 2028,

which will put humans back on the lunar

surface for the first time since Apollo 17

in 1972.

Anna: I know they've been working around the clock

to get everything ready. Have there been any

challenges?

Avery: There have Been some. Back in December,

during a countdown demonstration, test

engineers detected a problem with a valve

associated with the Orion capsule's hatch

pressurisation system. They replaced that

valve on January 5th and successfully

completed a pressure test. They also resolved

a leak in the ground support hardware that

pressurises Orion with oxygen gas.

Anna: So what happens once it's at the launch pad?

Avery: Ground crews will connect all the electrical

lines, fuel control system ducts, cryogenic

propellant feeds and other ground support

equipment. Then they'll power up all the

rocket's integrated systems for the first

time to make sure everything works together.

The rocket, the mobile launcher and the

launch pad infrastructure.

Anna: And then comes the wet dress rehearsal.

Avery: Scheduled for the end of January. That's when

they'll load the rocket with about 2.65

million litres. That's 700,000 gallons

of cryogenic fuel, conduct a launch

countdown and then safely unload it. They'll

run through several countdown holds and

recycles, just like they would during an

actual launch.

Anna: Dazzle learned a lot from Artemis I's wet

dress rehearsal, didn't they?

Avery: They did. Particularly around loading liquid

hydrogen propellant. They experienced some

challenges with that, so they'll be

monitoring very careful. They're also

watching how much nitrogen gas accumulates

between the Orion crew module and the launch

abort system using recently updated

procedures.

Anna: And if all goes well with the.

Avery: Wet dress rehearsal, then NASA's mission

management team will hold a flight readiness

review to assess whether all systems are

truly ready. Only then will they commit to a

firm launch date. And of course, the Artemis

II astronauts will conduct a final walk down

at the pad, which will be quite a media

event.

Anna: The launch windows are interesting too,

aren't they? It's not every day in February

and April.

Avery: That's right. Due to the complex orbital

mechanics of Earth and the moon, there's a

pattern of about a, uh, week of launch

opportunities followed by three weeks without

any. NASA has published the specific dates

between February and April when launches are

possible.

Anna: This is such an exciting time.

50 years since we've sent humans beyond.

Avery: Low Earth orbit and it's setting the stage

for sustainable lunar exploration. Crew

safety remains NASA's top priority every step

of the way. As ah, Lori Glaze, Acting

associate administrator for NASA's

Exploration Systems Development Mission

Directorate, emphasised in their recent

statement.

Anna: Moving on to some concerning news. Avery.

The European Space Agency has suffered a

significant cyberattack.

Avery: Unfortunately, yes. This happened just after

Christmas on Boxing Day, actually. A hacker

operating under the codename 888 dumped

over 200 gigabytes of ESA data onto

dark web forums.

Anna: What kind of data are we talking about?

Avery: The leaked information included proprietary

software, authorization credentials, access

tokens and sensitive project documentation.

ESA initially downplayed the breach, saying

its impact was limited to servers with

unclassified documents.

Anna: But there was more to the storey.

Avery: There was. Just a week later, a cybercrime

group known as Scattered Lapsis Hunters

claimed they stole another 500 gigabytes of

data, saying the security hole was still

unpatched. This batch reportedly included

operational procedures, spacecraft and

mission details, subsystems documentation

and even proprietary data from esa

contractors like SpaceX, Airbus Group and

Thales Alenia Space.

Anna: That's pretty serious. How did ESA

respond?

Avery: They've launched a criminal investigation and

are fully cooperating with authorities. In a

press briefing on January 8, Eric Morel

de Westgaver, ESA's director of

European Legal and International Matters,

said the authorities will manage

communication about the case and handle the

criminal proceedings.

Anna: Is this kind of attack common against space

agencies?

Avery: More common than you think. Cybersecurity

researcher Clemence Poirier from the Centre

for security studies at ETH Zurich

told Space.com that during her research she

frequently encounters email credentials of

ESA employees and even other space

agencies being sold on dark web forums.

Anna: How are these credentials being obtained?

Avery: Poirier suggests it may be due to a lack of

cyber hygiene from ESA staff. Threat

actors may have used infostealer malware,

which harvests data stored in web browsers.

Things like credentials, session cookies,

multi factor authentication data and even

saved credit cards.

Anna: That's pretty insidious.

Avery: It is. These infostealers are particularly

dangerous because they can evade detection by

antivirus software. They often spread through

malicious ads on popular websites or infected

links in YouTube video descriptions.

Anna: And NASA faces similar threats.

Avery: According to sources familiar with space

cyber risk environment, NASA is actually a

frequent victim. Vulnerabilities are being

disclosed almost every day via the

crowdsourced cybersecurity platform bugcrowd.

Anna: Even though the recent ESA leaks didn't seem

highly critical, there are still concerns,

right?

Avery: Absolutely. Poyer warned that this data could

be combined with information from future

breaches to reveal strategic information that

could enable another cyberattack against the

space system. We're not there yet, but it's

an important consideration.

Anna: And vulnerabilities might exist with third

party providers, too.

Avery: Exactly. The security holes could be on the

side of Issa's software providers or other

third parties they purchase services from. Or

ESA's own networks might be hiding unpatched

vulnerabilities that hackers could exploit.

Anna: What's the bottom line here, as Poyer.

Avery: Put it, data leaks and breaches against space

agencies are common. It can happen to each

agency and will happen to each agency in the

future. Given the rise of cyber attacks

against the space sector, it's a reality that

all space organisations need to take very

seriously.

Anna: Let's shift gears to some space activity from

China. They've kicked off 2026 with a couple

of impressive satellite launches.

Avery: They really have, anna. Uh. On January

13th, China launched two Long March rockets

from the Wing Chan Space Launch Centre,

representing a strong start to what's

expected to be a very busy year for their

space programme.

Anna: What were they launching?

Avery: The first mission carried the Yaogon

5001 remote sensing satellite and the

second deployed a series of GU satellites

into low Earth orbit. Both launches were

successful and marked the beginning of what

China hopes will be a ah record breaking

year.

Anna: Tell us about the Yaogon 50 01. That sounds

interesting.

Avery: It is. This satellite was launched aboard a

Long March 6A AH Rocket and it's notable for

its unusual orbit. Unlike typical

satellites in standard low Earth orbits,

Yaogon 50 01's orbit is designed to

maximise its ability to observe Earth from

unique angles, providing broader and more

detailed views of the planet.

Anna: What will it be used for?

Avery: It's part of China's growing portfolio of

remote sensing technology, which has

applications ranging from agricultural

monitoring to, let's be honest, military

surveillance. As China develops and deploys

more of these satellites, they're positioning

themselves as a leader in Earth observation

capabilities.

Anna: And it'll also help with natural disaster

monitoring and resource management.

Avery: Absolutely. It'll contribute to monitoring

natural disasters, managing resources and

supporting scientific research efforts

globally. The satellite is quite advanced in

terms of what it can do now.

Anna: What about the Guawang satellites?

Avery: The Guawang constellation is designed to

improve China's capabilities in

telecommunications, Earth observation and

scientific research. By placing these

satellites in low Earth orbit, China will be

able to provide enhanced communication

services, including high speed data

transmission over large regions.

Anna: So it's not just for China domestically.

Avery: No. It'll improve their global connectivity,

particularly in areas with limited access to

terrestrial communication networks and beyond

just communications. The Guawuang

Constellation is expected to play a crucial

role in supporting China's future space

exploration goals.

Anna: How so?

Avery: By providing real time communication and data

transfer capabilities, these satellites will

be instrumental in supporting future missions

to the Moon and Mars. It's all part of

China's integrated approach to building space

infrastructure.

Anna: This seems like quite an ambitious start to

the year.

Avery: It really is. According to the China

Aerospace Corporation These missions

underscore China's growing capabilities and

commitment to expanding their space

exploration infrastructure. And this is just

the beginning. They have many more launches

planned throughout 2026.

Anna: It's fascinating to see how competitive the

space sector has become with multiple nations

ramping up their capabilities.

Avery: Indeed, we're in a new era of space activity.

And it's not just government agencies

anymore. The combination of national

programmes and commercial ventures is really

accelerating progress.

Anna: All right, Avery, let's head out to Jupiter

for our next storey. Scientists have made a

surprising discovery about the gas giant's

atmosphere.

Avery: This is really interesting, Anna.

Anna: Uh.

Avery: A new study published in the Planetary

Science Journal reveals that Jupiter holds

roughly 1.5 times more oxygen than

our sun.

Anna: That's way more than expected, isn't it?

Avery: It is. For decades, studies have disagreed

about how much oxygen Jupiter contains.

Some recent studies even suggested it was

much less than the sun. So this finding

significantly reshapes our understanding of

the planet's composition.

Anna: Why is oxygen content so important?

Avery: Oxygen is one of the most abundant elements

in the universe, and its presence on Jupiter

has big implications. As Jiheng Yang, a

postdoctoral researcher at the University of

Chicago and the study's lead author,

explained, the precise quantity of oxygen

offers important clues about how Jupiter

formed and how our solar system evolved.

Anna: Because oxygen is key to water formation.

Avery: Exactly. Understanding its presence and

distribution could help researchers learn

more about the conditions that allow for the

formation of habitable planets, both in our

solar system and beyond.

Anna: Jupiter's atmosphere is famously difficult to

study.

Avery: Though that's putting it mildly. The thick

clouds covering the planet the Great Red

Spot, which is a storm twice the size of

Earth, and other violent weather patterns

have kept scientists from getting a clear

view of what lies beneath the surface.

Anna: Previous missions couldn't measure deep into

the atmosphere.

Avery: The Galileo spacecraft couldn't. But more

recently, the Juno spacecraft has provided

valuable data on the upper layers, including

measurements of ammonia, methane and carbon

monoxide. Still, building an accurate model

has been challenging.

Anna: What made this new model different?

Avery: The researchers integrated both chemistry and

hydrodynamics, the study of how fluids move.

As Jihong Yang explained, you really need

both. Chemistry alone doesn't include water

droplets or cloud behaviour, while

hydrodynamics alone oversimplifies the

chemistry. Bringing them together allows for

much more accurate predictions.

Anna: And they discovered something else surprising

too, didn't they?

Avery: They did. The study revealed that the

movement of gases within Jupiter's atmosphere

is far slower than previously believed. The

diffusion of molecules is 35 to 40

times slower than the standard assumption.

Anna: What does that mean?

Avery: Practically, as Jihengyang put it, it would

take a single molecule several weeks to move

through one layer of the atmosphere, rather

than hours. This slower diffusion could have

significant implications for how heat and

chemical elements are transported within the

planet. And it may affect how clouds form and

dissipate.

Anna: This must challenge a lot of existing

assumptions about gas giant atmospheres.

Avery: It does. The discovery adds another layer of

complexity to our understanding and shows

that even well studied planets like Jupiter

still have prizes in store. This is the most

comprehensive atmospheric model of Jupiter to

date, but clearly there's still more to

learn.

Anna: We'll be sure to follow up this one with

interest.

Avery: Anna.

Uh, our next storey is about a cosmic mystery

hiding in plain sight, or rather hiding in

one of the night sky's most famous objects.

Anna: Oh, this is the Ring Nebula discovery. Right.

I was reading about this. It's fascinating,

it really is.

Avery: Astronomers have discovered a mysterious bar

shaped cloud of iron inside the iconic Ring

Nebula. And it went completely unnoticed for

decades, despite this being one of the most

studied objects in space.

Anna: How did they finally spot it?

Avery: A European team led by researchers at

University College London and Cardiff

University used a new instrument called

weave, the WHT

Enhanced Area Velocity Explorer,

installed on the William Herschel Telescope.

The key was that WEAVE allowed them to obtain

spectra across the entire face of the

nebula at all optical wavelengths

simultaneously.

Anna: So it wasn't about getting a sharper image,

but analysing the light differently.

Avery: Exactly. Dr. Roger Wesson, the

lead author, explained that by painting a

spectrum continuously across the whole

nebula, they could create images at any

wavelength and determine the chemical

composition at any position. And when

they processed the data, this iron bar just

popped out, clear as anything.

Anna: How big is this thing?

Avery: The bar's length is roughly 500

times that of Pluto's orbit around the Sun.

And get this. The mass of iron atoms

is comparable to the mass of Mars.

Anna: That's colossal. And it fits inside the

Ring Nebula's inner region.

Avery: It does. It's shaped like a narrow strip that

fits neatly within the nebula's elliptical

inner layer. The part that's familiar from

all those beautiful images we've seen from

telescopes including the James Webb Space

Telescope.

Anna: So what is the Ring Nebula exactly? For our

listeners who might not know.

Avery: The Ring Nebula, also known as Messier

57, was first identified in

1779 by French astronomer

Charles Messier. It's what's called a

planetary nebula, a shell of gas created

when a star reaches the end of its fuel

burning life and releases its outer layers

into space. In several billion years,

our own sun is expected to undergo a, ah,

similar transformation.

Anna: And this iron bar, do we know how it formed?

Avery: That's the mystery. The scientists honestly

don't know yet. Professor Albert Zylstra from

the University of Manchester noted that they

selected the Ring Nebula as an early target

because it's bright, well studied and ideal

for testing the instrument. But then they

found something entirely unexpected.

Anna: What are the theories?

Avery: There are two main scenarios. First, the

iron bar might reveal something new about how

the nebula was ejected by the parent star,

perhaps showing an uneven or directional

outflow in the process. Second, and

more intriguingly, the iron might be an arc

of plasma resulting from the vaporisation of

a destroyed planet.

Anna: A planet that got too close to.

Avery: The dying star, possibly as the

star expanded into a red giant late in its

life. Any rocky planet that wandered too

close could have been torn apart by extreme

heat and radiation. Living behind this metal

rich cloud, trapped inside the nebula,

that would be quite.

Anna: A dramatic end for a planet. Do they think

this iron bar is unique?

Avery: Dr. Wesson doesn't think so. He said it would

be very surprising if the Ring Nebula's iron

bar is unique. Weave is conducting surveys

of many more ionised nebulae across the

northern Milky Way and they hope to discover

more examples of this phenomenon which would

help them understand where the iron comes

from.

Anna: It's amazing that such a familiar object

still had this hidden.

Avery: Amen, um, to that. Professor Janet Drew

also at ucl cautioned that they need to know

more particularly if any other chemical

elements coexist with the iron as uh, that

would help determine the right model to

pursue. They're planning follow up studies

using WEAVE at higher spectral resolution.

Anna: Just goes to show that even the most studied

objects can surprise us when we look at them

in new ways.

Avery: Amen um, to that.

Anna: For our final storey. Today we're taking a

look back at a fascinating piece of Apollo

history. Avery, tell us about the Moon

trees.

Avery: This is such a cool storey. Anna. Um, when

Apollo 14 returned to Earth in 1971,

it brought back something unexpected.

Hundreds of tree seeds that had orbited the

Moon.

Anna: These were part of a scientific experiment.

Avery: It started as a small experiment led by

astronaut Stuart Roosa, who was a former

U.S. forest Service smokejumper. Before

becoming an astronaut, he carried several

hundred seeds in his personal

loblolly pine, sycamore, sweetgum,

redwood and Douglas fir.

Anna: And there was an accident with these seeds,

wasn't there?

Avery: There was. As NASA recounts, the seed

bags burst open during the decontamination

procedures after the spacecraft returned to

Earth. The seeds scattered around the chamber

and were exposed to vacuum. And everyone

thought they might not be.

Anna: Viable, but they decided to try planting them

anyway.

Avery: They did, to test whether the seeds had

survived. And the results were extraordinary.

Many sprouted and grew just like normal

trees, showing no visible damage from their

cosmic journey.

Anna: How many trees eventually grew?

Avery: Over 400 seedlings grew into mature

trees. Some were planted beside earth

grown control trees to compare their

development. And remarkably, after years of

observation, no differences were found

between the space flown seeds and their earth

bound counterparts.

Anna: When were these trees distributed?

Avery: M the distribution coincided with the U.S.

bicentennial celebrations of 1975

and 1976. Most were given

to state forest reorganisations to be planted

as part of the nation's bicentennial

celebration. The trees were only sent to

countries and states where they could

actually be grown and thrive.

Anna: And some went to pretty notable places,

right?

Avery: Oh, yes, A, uh, loblolly pine was planted

at the White House. Trees were sent to

Brazil, Switzerland and even presented to the

Emperor of Japan. Each tree served as

a living connection between space exploration

and Earth's natural environment.

Anna: There were telegrams that accompanied the

trees.

Avery: NASA sent telegrams highlighting their

symbolic importance. The message read that

the tree is a living symbol of our

spectacular human and scientific

achievements. And the fitting tribute to our

national space programme, which has brought

out the best of American patriotism,

dedication and determination to succeed.

Anna: That really captures the spirit of that era.

Avery: It does. It was this beautiful blend of

scientific curiosity and national pride

during the Apollo years. Each moon tree

represented not just a triumph of space

exploration, but a reminder that the pursuit

of knowledge can be rooted quite literally

in the natural world.

Anna: Many of these trees are still standing today.

Avery: They are. Their plaques may be faded, but

their symbolism remains intact. NASA

continues to track and document the locations

of surviving moon trees. And there's even a

modern continuation of this project.

Anna: The Moon Tree 2.0 project.

Avery: Exactly. It uses seeds taken aboard the

Orion spacecraft during the Artemis 1

mission. So this initiative bridges past and

future, connecting the pioneering Apollo

missions to the next generation of lunar

explorers.

Anna: I love that these trees serve as both

scientific curiosities and powerful

symbols.

Avery: They really do. From forests across the

United States to royal gardens overseas,

these trees stand as silent witnesses to one

of the most extraordinary chapters in human

history. Their storey rooted in science.

Resilience and wonder remains a testament

to what happens when curiosity literally

takes flight beyond Earth's atmosphere.

Anna: Well, that wraps up today's episode of

Astronomy Daily. We covered quite a journey

today from NASA's preparations to return

humans to lunar orbit to cybersecurity

security challenges in the space sector,

China's expanding satellite network,

surprising discoveries about Jupiter, a

mysterious iron bar hidden in a famous

nebula, and the enduring legacy of the

moon trees.

Avery: It's episodes like this that really show the

breadth of space science and exploration.

Whether it's cutting edge missions,

astronomical discoveries, or looking back at

historic achievements, there's always

something fascinating happening in space.

Anna: Thanks so much for joining us today. If you

enjoyed the show, please subscribe and leave

us a review. It really helps other space

enthusiasts find us.

Avery: And if you have questions or topics you'd

like us to cover, reach out to us on social

media. We love hearing from our listeners.

Anna: Until next time, keep looking up

Clear skies everyone.

In this episode