Thursday, September 17, 2026

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen proposed making Canada the EU's first "associate member" during her State of the Union address, with Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney in attendance, as both seek closer ties amid U.S. tariffs.^[1]

SpaceX announced it is targeting September 22 for Starship's first orbital flight, with the 14th test flight planned to deploy 26 Starlink V3 satellites and complete approximately six Earth orbits before splashing down in the Pacific Ocean.^[2]

NASA announced that its Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope, launched August 30, has enough fuel for at least 22 years of science operations—more than double the originally planned 10-year mission—thanks to an extremely precise launch and efficient trajectory corrections.^[3]

A new study from ETH Zurich suggests Earth formed almost entirely from material in the inner Solar System, challenging the long-held view that water-rich material from beyond Jupiter played a major role in our planet's formation.^[4]

Scientists at the University of Rochester developed a solar-powered desalination system that converts seawater into fresh water while recovering nearly all leftover salt as a solid instead of producing environmentally harmful brine, with the byproduct potentially yielding valuable lithium for batteries.^[5]

Research from the University of Sydney found that adults aged 65 to 75 who reduced dietary fat or animal-based protein showed signs of reduced biological age after just four weeks, suggesting diet changes later in life may quickly improve aging-related health markers.^[6]

The ESA-JAXA BepiColombo mission began its Mercury arrival phase on September 3 after an eight-year journey, successfully separating its transfer module from its two science orbiters, which are now on course to enter Mercury orbit on November 21, 2026.^[7]

New research from Colorado State University suggests U.S. irrigation may prevent 363 times more greenhouse gas emissions than it produces by enabling farmers to grow more food on less land, avoiding the conversion of natural ecosystems into farmland.^[8]

Scientists at Scripps Research discovered that a naturally occurring fatty acid molecule appears to be part of the retina's own protective system against injury, a finding that could eventually point toward new treatments to slow progressive vision loss.^[9]

Researchers identified a new dinosaur-related fossil species called Dinodontosaurus isiyavamanda in Tanzania, belonging to a group previously known only from South America, suggesting the connection may require revising the estimated age of some of Africa's oldest dinosaur fossils.^[10]