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NASA’s Starling Mission Opens New Frontiers in Space Navigation

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Published

August 18, 2026

NASA’s Starling Mission Opens New Frontiers in Space Navigation

NASA’s Starling mission has marked another milestone in spacecraft autonomy by using a The Starling swarm’s extended mission tested GPS-independent navigation, using onboard star tracking for self-orbit determination and space object catalog updates. NASA’s Starling mission has marked another milestone in spacecraft autonomy by using a new system that determines a satellite’s position in orbit by referencing other objects in space, instead of relying on a navigational network.

Source: nasa.gov