The bold mission to extend the lifetime of NASA’s Swift observatory is coming to an end in the next 24 hours. Almost exactly one year after NASA signed a contract with Katalyst Space to grapple Swift and boost its deteriorating orbit with the LINK spacecraft, LINK itself will reenter with Swift following in coming months. Though ultimately unsuccessful, NASA and Katalyst feel the mission broke through some barriers, leaving lessons for the future.

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Here is SpacePolicyOnline.com’s list of space policy events for the week of September 20-26, 2026 and any insight we can offer about them. The Senate is in session this week. The House is in recess until after the midterm elections, except for pro forma sessions.

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SpaceX will attempt to put Starship into orbit for the first time next week pending regulatory approval. If all goes according to plan, Integrated Flight Test-14 or IFT-14 will orbit Earth six times, dropping off 26 Starlink V3 satellites before splashing down in the ocean west of Chile. The company is targeting Tuesday for the launch. [Update, Sept 17: the date has slipped to September 28.]

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During Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s trip to Peru last week, the State Department announced a new Space Catalyst Partnership with Artemis Accords countries to expand commercial and civil space cooperation. A first step will be a $6.5 million rural connectivity project in southern Peru if Congress provides the funding. The initiative encompasses all Artemis Accords signatories, however. Djibouti became the 72nd earlier today.

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Air Force Secretary Troy Meink revealed today that the United States has orbiting space control weapons.

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Here is SpacePolicyOnline.com’s list of space policy events for the week of September 13-19, 2026 and any insight we can offer about them. The House and Senate are in session this week.

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NASA issued a Request for Information today inviting governors to indicate interest in hosting and sponsoring the new U.S. Space Academy proposed in President Trump’s recent Executive Order. Responses are due by October 26.

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Here is SpacePolicyOnline.com’s list of space policy events for the week of September 6-12, 2026 and any insight we can offer about them. The House and Senate are in recess this week except for pro forma sessions.

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Gen. Douglas Schiess took charge of the U.S. Space Force today at a Change of Responsibility ceremony outside Washington, D.C. Outgoing Chief of Space Operations Gen. Chance Saltzman praised his successor as the “ideal” person to take on the job because he is an outstanding leader, has the expertise to make wise decisions, and cares deeply for the people who do the work.

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A full month before FY2027 begins, the House today joined the Senate in passing a Continuing Resolution (CR) to avoid a government shutdown on October 1. Both parties are eager to avoid another disruption like last year and chose to avoid an eleventh-hour scramble. The bill now goes to the President for signature. [UPDATE: President Trump signed the bill into law on September 2.]

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