NASA Minute: Jul. 17, 2026

This week, NASA astronaut Anil Menon and two Roscosmos cosmonauts launched aboard Soyuz MS-29 from Kazakhstan. Meanwhile, Dragonfly, a nuclear-powered octocopter equipped with powerful scientific equipment, recently cleared key tests and is now moving into its next phase of assembly. Additionally, the Artemis Accords reached a major milestone.

What is said in the film

As summer rolls on, so does NASA's work across the skies, in orbit, and beyond. This week, a new crew arrived at the International Space Station, a flying science lab for Saturn's moon Titan moved closer to reality, and NASA continued shaping the future of flight here on Earth. Here's what's new this week, in your NASA Minute. On Tuesday, NASA astronaut Anil Menon and two Roscosmos cosmonauts launched aboard Soyuz MS-29 from Kazakhstan, on a mission bound for the International Space Station. NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman and Deputy Administrator Matt Anderson were on site for the launch, wishing Menon good luck and Godspeed as he began his first mission to space.

Three hours after launch, the trio reached the orbiting laboratory, joining the crew of Expedition 74. They'll be on station for around 8 months, where their work will include studies of astronaut health, in-space manufacturing, and technologies to support future missions into deep space. NASA's mission to search for precursors of life on Saturn's moon Titan is coming together. Dragonfly, a nuclear-powered octocopter equipped with powerful scientific equipment, recently cleared key tests and is now moving into its next phase of assembly at Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory in Maryland. Teams are now integrating Dragonfly’s systems, turning the spacecraft into the flying science lab that will explore Titan’s surface and study chemistry that could help reveal how life began on Earth.

At Ames Research Center in California, researchers have teamed up with Wisk Aero to simulate how autonomous air taxis could safely operate in today's national airspace. The study will help NASA develop the standards, procedures, and technologies needed to keep American skies safe as new aircraft take flight. And finally, the Artemis Accords reached a major milestone this week, as Serbia and Mauritius became the 69th and 70th nations to join the US-led coalition advancing peaceful, transparent, and responsible space exploration. The dog days of summer are here, but NASA is still moving full speed ahead. Stay cool out there, and we'll see you next time on the NASA Minute.

Where this page came from

This page was imported from [NASA](https://images.nasa.gov/details/NASA Minute Jul. 17, 2026). NASA material is generally not copyrighted and is in the public domain.

Nobody has written it yet — it is the source material at a new address, which is why search engines are asked to skip it and why no one earns from it. It is up for grabs: take it on, and it is yours to rewrite and to earn from.