Short Takes – 6-26-25

NASA’s acting leadership planning new agency structure. SpaceNews.com article. Pull quote: “Officials also said they were not planning any layoffs at this time. The agency is conducting a second round of a deferred retirement program after 900 employees took part in the first round earlier this year. Casey Swails, NASA deputy associate administrator, said 1,500 employees have signed up for this second round ahead of a July 25 deadline.”

Chinese scientists push for cubesat swarm mission to fly by infamous asteroid Apophis. SpaceNews.com article. Pull quote: “The mission would seek to measure the asteroid’s mass, surface morphology, spin state and internal structure. It proposes using cubesats with similar or diverse payloads, and use multi-spectral imaging, conduct stereo surface mapping, and employ microwave ranging for high-precision gravitational field assessment.”

Despite Iran’s weaknesses U.S. must watch for radicalization at home, former CENTCOM chief warns. ThreatBeat.com article. Pull quote: ““I think self-radicalization is probably more of a threat … than a highly organized Iranian attack in the United States or through one of their proxies,” he said. “But you can’t rule it out.”’

‘Suspended animation’: US government upheaval has frayed partnerships with critical infrastructure. CyberSecurityDive.com article. Long form article. Pull quote: ““If there is a major sector incident, I worry about the response capability of the government,” Weiss [Health-ISAC] said. With the current level of support from the government, one water industry representative said, a widespread intrusion into water systems “could be disastrous.” Asked about the government’s ability to help contain a major hack in the natural gas sector, the second energy industry representative said, “I no longer know.””

Pentagon to consider SpaceX alternative for Space Force satellite program. SpaceNews.com article. Pull quote: ““No competition, no open architecture, no leveraging a dynamic space ecosystem. This is a massive and important contract,” [Sen (D,CT)] Coons said. “Doesn’t handing this to SpaceX make us dependent on their proprietary technology and avoid the very positive benefits of competition and open architecture?””

Axiom-4 astronauts on SpaceX Crew Dragon welcomed aboard International Space Station. Space.com article. Pull quote: “"With your arrival right now, there are 11 astronauts from six countries, and all of us are here in order to advance human space exploration and scientific research, symbolizing international cooperation. So from this moment, you are also a part of Expedition 73," said Exp. 73 commander JAXA astronaut Takuya Onishi during opening remarks. "Welcome aboard," he added, before handing off the microphone to his new crewmates as they received their astronaut wings.”