India’s Chandrayaan-3 spacecraft is swooping toward the moon’s surface ahead of its historic landing attempt, and it’s capturing some stunning visuals on the way.

The Indian Space Research Organization confirmed Tuesday that Chandrayaan-3 is on schedule and “smooth sailing is continuing.” The spacecraft is set to begin its final descent toward the moon’s surface on Wednesday at 5:45 p.m. IST (8:15 a.m. ET).

If successful, this mission will mark the very first soft landing on the lunar surface by an Indian spacecraft and make India the fourth country ever to accomplish such a feat. Currently, the United States, China and the former Soviet Union are the only nations that have conducted controlled landings of spacecraft on the moon.

SpaceX’s Super Heavy Booster 9 prototype has rolled out to the launch site in preparation for a repeat of its pre-launch static fire test. This follows roughly two weeks after its first static fire attempt that ended prematurely at only half the expected duration. Work continues in parallel at Starbase to prepare Ship 25 for flight, which could occur in the next week or two, pending regulatory approval.

Future vehicles for Starship flights deep into next year are also in production. SpaceX is also in the midst of a major upgrade to its Starship production factory that will change the future look of the South Texas facility.

The International Space Station (ISS) is a large spacecraft in orbit around the Earth that serves as a research laboratory and spaceport for international collaboration in space exploration. It was launched in 1998 and has been continuously occupied by rotating crews of astronauts and cosmonauts from around the world since 2000. The ISS is a joint project of five space agencies: NASA (USA), Roscosmos (Russia), JAXA (Japan), ESA (Europe), and CSA (Canada). It orbits the Earth at an altitude of approximately 400 kilometers (250 miles), and provides a unique platform for scientific research, technological development, and human space exploration.

Following the Flight Readiness Review (FRR), NASA and SpaceX gave the go for Crew 7. The launch is scheduled for August 25th at 3:49 a.m. ET (07:49 UTC).

This mission will bring three astronauts and one cosmonaut to the International Space Station for a stay of around six months to perform experiments and conduct maintenance aboard the orbiting outpost.

After the FRR was complete, a full launch day rehearsal was carried out in which the crew was fully suited and driven to Launch Complex 39A, where they boarded Crew Dragon Endurance. The crew and mission control simulated a full countdown in order to familiarize themselves one last time before launch day.

After Russia’s Luna-25 spacecraft crashed, all eyes are on Chandrayaan-3 as India attempts to become the first nation to land on the moon’s south pole.

A US Coast Guard notice gives the first possible date window for the next SpaceX Starship orbital launch attempt.

Page 4 out of 88 pages has a coast guard notice to mariners that starting August 31, 2023 there could be dangerous rocket operations.