This fortnight: China talks to the United Nations, Blue Origin plays with parachutes and a quick trip to Mercury.

This episode of Liftoff is sponsored by:

• Luminos: A fantastic astronomy app, 10 years in the making! Now with an Apple Watch app for skygazing!
• CuriosityStream: The world’s first, ad-free non fiction streaming service. Use the code RELAYFM to get two months free.

Links and Show Notes

Stephen at Jason's desk

Liftoff #10: The Solstice - Relay FM

See the First Solstice Full Moon in More Than 50 Years

Strawberry moon coincides with Summer Solstice for first time since 1967

Fire in the Hole: Studying How Flames Grow in Space | NASA

NASA Ignites Fire Experiment Aboard Space Cargo Ship

BEAM passes initial inspection; interior photos released - SpaceFlight Insider

China opens space station to rest of the world with United Nations agreement | gbtimes.com

United Nations and China agree to increased space cooperation

Blue Origin safely launches and lands the New Shepard rocket for a fourth time | The Verge

Replay of Flight 4 Live Webcast - YouTube

Blue Origin test flight will purposefully deploy only two of three parachutes.

Rocket Man — Belligerent Mars

Elon Musk on Twitter: "Looks like early liquid oxygen depletion caused engine shutdown just above the deck https://t.co/Sa6uCkpknY"

Elon Musk on Twitter: "Turns out the landing was not as fast we thought, but still hard enough to destroy the primary airframe and accordion the engines"

Elon Musk on Twitter: "RUD = Rapid Unscheduled Disassembly :)"

Mercury - Overview | Planets - NASA Solar System Exploration

Mariner 10 - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

MESSENGER - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

ESA Science & Technology: BepiColombo