August 1, 2025

The Exploration Company Tests Key Component of Typhoon Rocket Engine (Source: European Spaceflight)
The Exploration Company has successfully completed a six-week test campaign of the oxygen-rich preburner for its Typhoon rocket engine. With co-financing from the French space agency CNES, The Exploration Company began work on its Typhoon rocket engine in January 2024. The reusable engine uses a full-flow staged combustion cycle and is designed to produce 250 tonnes of thrust, which is comparable to a SpaceX Raptor.” (7/31)

Starlink Faces Another Brief Outage (Source: PC Mag)
SpaceX’s Starlink system might be suffering another outage, a week after the satellite internet system experienced a disruption that knocked it offline for several hours. On Thursday, Starlink users on Reddit and Facebook reported connection problems across the US. “Out for me again too. Not great for a WFH [work from home],” wrote one user on Reddit. (7/31)

NASA Prepares To Gut Its Landsat Capabilities (Source: NASA Watch)
There is a meeting next week regarding Landsat: Sustainable Land Imaging Mission Alternatives Analysis Team Industry. The meeting is looking for the cheapest way to do the least with Landsat as a result of the President’s FY 2026 Budget Request. The PBR seeks to cancel Landsat missions and descope Earth science budgets at NASA. One small problem: NASA is acting as if the PBR is the actual budget contrary to what Congress is doing. Congress has already complained about this as it was described in last month’s NASA Town Hall Meeting. But NASA is going ahead with this anyway. (7/31)

Canada's EarthDaily Nets $60 Million Loan to Ramp Up Constellation Expansion (Source: Space News)
Canada’s EarthDaily Analytics has secured a $60 million loan to kickstart delayed plans to expand its imaging constellation from one to 10 satellites. Announcing the financing from Trinity Capital July 31, secured against satellite hardware, the Vancouver-based operator said it now has all the funding needed for a global constellation originally ordered from Loft Orbital for deployment in 2023. (7/31)

Space Company IPOs May Be Outliers, Not a Trend (Source: Space News)
While several space companies have or are planning to go public, some in the industry see these initial public offering (IPO) plans as more of an anomaly than a trend. “I think it’s an outlier. I think you stay private as long as you can,” said Adam Broecker, vice president at Lockheed Martin.

What often drives companies to go public, he said, is the need to raise money that they can’t on private markets. “That doesn’t feel like what’s going on now,” he said, because of the increase in private investment in space companies, particularly in larger, later rounds. (7/31)

SES Sees Growth in Government Business (Source: Space News)
Satellite operator SES is relying more on government business as its media revenue declines. The company reported Thursday 153 million euros ($175 million) in government sales in the quarter ending June 30, roughly one-third of total revenues for the quarter. SES said it is seeing an acceleration in government demand for its satellite services in both Europe and the United States. SES CEO Adel Al-Saleh said the company’s government business will soon approach $1 billion in revenue, but did not disclose when the company expected to hit that milestone. That government growth comes as revenue in its media business fell 13.6% quarter-over-quarter as satellite TV demand continues to decline. (8/1)

Senators Want Details on NASA Spending Plans (Source: Space News)
Several senators are seeking details from NASA on spending plans for this year and next. In a letter sent Friday to NASA Acting Administrator Sean Duffy, six senators, all Democrats, raised concerns that NASA is withholding $100 million in funds for unspecified science programs that were appropriated for fiscal year 2025. They also worried that NASA might try to implement proposed cuts in agency programs in fiscal year 2026 before Congress passes an appropriations bill. The letter requests answers from Duffy regarding those and related issues in a week. (8/1)

Albedo Wins NRO Contract for Imagery (Source: Space News)
Albedo has won a new contract from the National Reconnaissance Office. The Stage 2 contract, announced Friday, will allow the NRO to begin purchasing imagery from Albedo’s first very low Earth orbit satellite, Clarity-1, which can provide images at a resolution of 10 centimeters per pixel. The spacecraft can also produce thermal imagery at a resolution of two meters. The contract allows the NRO to conduct on-orbit assessments and demonstrations, and to begin tasking Clarity-1 and acquiring Earth-observation data. (8/1)

Sunny-Day Cloud Scrubs ISS Launch by SpaceX (Source: AP)
Weather scrubbed the launch of a new crew to the International Space Station Thursday. SpaceX called off the Crew-11 launch about a minute before its scheduled 12:09 p.m. Eastern liftoff from the Kennedy Space Center when a buildup of clouds over the pad violated launch rules. Forecasts earlier in the day had predicted a 90% chance of acceptable launch weather. (8/1)

Release of ISS NRA for Earth Mission Partnerships (Source: CASIS)
NASA is exploring partnerships with external organizations for missions that may not have funding for continued operations in the FY26 Budget Technical Supplement. NASA is planning on a series of releases to identify interest and, if warranted, facilitate partnership agreements for the operations and data collection of specific missions. The purpose of the contemplated partnerships is to make efficient use of unique national assets and establish public-private partnerships that enable the Earth observation economy.

NASA recently posted an announcement seeking interest in potential partnerships for three ISS missions: OCO-3, SAGE III, and CLARREO-Pathfinder (planned for launch to ISS). The notice is posted on NSPIRES as an ISS NASA Research Announcement (NRA), which is an established ISS process to solicit proposals for utilization of ISS-based assets. (8/1)

Rocket Lab Plans Japanese Payload Launch From New Zealand on Aug. 4 (Source: Rocket Lab)
Rocket Lab has scheduled an Electron launch for a Japanese customer next week. The company said Thursday that it is planning a launch at 11:45 p.m. Eastern Aug. 4 on the “The Harvest Goddess Thrives” mission from New Zealand. The rocket will place into orbit a radar imaging satellite for Japanese company iQPS. It will be the 11th orbital Electron launch this year. (8/1)

Investor Seeks Viasat Breakup (Source: Financial Times)
An activist investor is calling for the breakup of Viasat. In a letter Thursday, Carronade Capital Management argued that spinning off Viasat’s defense business could add up to $11 billion in value to both businesses. Carronade owns about 2.6% of Viasat. The letter comes days before Viasat is scheduled to release quarterly earnings. In the previous earnings call in May, Viasat was noncommittal about spinning off its defense business. (8/1)

Italian Lawmakers Seek to Bar SpaceX From Launching SICRAL 3 (Source: Reuters)
Opposition lawmakers in Italy don’t want the government to use SpaceX to launch a new satellite system. The main opposition party in Italy, the Democratic Party, said it wants only Italian or European companies involved in SICRAL 3, a new geostationary satellite program that provides secure communications for the Italian military. The Italian parliament is advancing plans to develop SICRAL 3 but did not disclose how the satellites would be launched. An Italian defense official says they were assessing options for launching the satellites but said SpaceX was the “most advanced” company in the market. (8/1)

NASA HQ Reinstates Random Searches (Source: NASA Watch)
To ensure the continued safety of our workforce and compliance with security measures, the NASA Headquarters Protective Services Office will be reinstating random searches and inspections of individuals, belongings, and vehicles entering or exiting the premises. The measure will begin July 30 and is a critical part of our shared responsibility to securing and protecting our personnel, property, and information. OPS conducts random inspections at all NASA Centers with minimal disruption. (7/31)

NASA Launches Starlink Mission at Vandenberg (Source: SciNews)
A SpaceX Falcon 9 launch vehicle launched 19 Starlink satellites to low-Earth orbit from Space Launch Complex 4E (SLC-4E) at Vandenberg Space Force Base on 31 June. Following stage separation, Falcon 9’s first stage landed on the “Of Course I Still Love You” droneship, stationed in the Pacific Ocean. Falcon 9’s first stage (B1071) previously supported 26 missions. (7/31)

Workforce Churn and Upheaval at Federal Agencies (Source: FNN)
One agency (USDA) is planning to move significantly more of its employees out of the D.C. metro area than it did under the first Trump administration. It will relocate more than half of its employees in the national capital region to five hubs across the country. Last time more than half of the employees at the Economic Research Service and National Institute of Food and Agriculture who received relocation notices left the agency rather than move.

This time around, the administration expects more will agree to move — in part because mass layoffs across the federal workforce are making the job search much more challenging in the D.C. metropolitan area. Meanwhile, at the EPA, Democratic senators are pushing political leadership at the Environmental Protection Agency to reinstate more than 140 EPA employees who are currently in limbo as they remain on administrative leave. (7/30)

Your Tumor’s Best Treatment? A Space-Based Test Could Tell You (Source: CASIS)
What if your cancer treatment could be tested in space—before it’s ever used on you? A biotech startup is leveraging the unique microgravity environment onboard the ISS to do just that, using real patient tumors to predict how they’ll respond to treatment before a single dose is given. Encapsulate’s tumor-on-a-chip system grows patient biopsy samples into miniature tumors that are tested with different drugs in space. “Technically, it’s not even a prediction now,” said CEO and Co-Founder Armin Rad. “It’s an observation of what would work the best on the tumor.” (7/31)

Why Thermal Vacuum Testing Matters for Small Satellites (Source: Orbital Transports)
Thermal vacuum (TVAC) testing is a core step in qualifying small satellites for the harsh environment of space. TVAC testing allows mission teams to identify thermal stress points, material deformation, outgassing risks, and power system vulnerabilities before launch. For CubeSats and other microsatellites, where volume and mass constraints limit redundancy, these tests can make or break a mission’s success.

A thermal vacuum chamber is designed to replicate the dual stressors of space: vacuum and thermal cycling. In orbit, spacecraft experience repeated transitions between sunlight and darkness, leading to extreme temperature differentials that can exceed ±100°C.

Inside a TVAC chamber, internal surfaces radiate heat to the test article while a vacuum pump reduces internal pressure to simulate orbital conditions. The chamber exposes the satellite to both heat and cold cycles, while monitoring structural and operational performance. (7/30)

New 5th Planet Found in System of Remarkably Diverse Worlds (Source: EarthSky)
L 98-59 is a fascinating planetary system only 35 light-years from Earth. Astronomers previously found four small exoplanets orbiting the red dwarf star. And now a research team led by the Trottier Institute for Research on Exoplanets (IREx) at the University of Montreal in Canada has confirmed a fifth planet. The researchers said on July 22, 2025, that the planet – L 98-59 f – is orbiting in the star’s habitable zone, where water could potentially exist. (7/31)

ITS to Expand in Colorado Springs (Source: Colorado.gov)
ITS has selected Colorado Springs for expansion. The expansion will include a capital investment of over $7 million, increasing space for personnel and advancing ITS’ IT engineering capabilities, research and development initiatives, hardware and software solutions, advanced network communications, and cybersecurity capabilities. ITS expects to create 500 net new jobs at an average annual wage of $130,482, which is 200% of the average annual wage in El Paso County.

The Colorado Economic Development Commission approved up to $4,901,635 in a performance-based Job Growth Incentive Tax Credit for the company over an eight-year period. These incentives are contingent upon ITS, referred to as Project Falcon II throughout the OEDIT review process, meeting net new job creation and salary requirements. The City of Colorado Springs Economic Development Department has extended ongoing support to the company through its Rapid Response Program, as well as talent and workforce development support and other services. (7/31)

NASA Deploys Crucial ‘Sunblock’ Shield on the Roman Space Telescope (Source: Science)
Technicians working on NASA’s Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope have reached a significant milestone by successfully installing the two sunshields that are crucial to the spacecraft’s performance. These sunshields are part of the Lower Instrument Sun Shield system, specifically engineered to protect the telescope’s sensitive instruments from the harsh effects of solar radiation. This installation is a critical step in the comprehensive assembly of Roman, a groundbreaking observatory that promises to revolutionize our understanding of the infrared universe. (7/31)

Seattle Is the New Hot Spot for Space Companies (Source: Bloomberg)
SpaceX is headquartered in Texas but has a factory in Redmond, Washington, on the edge of the Seattle metro area, that churns out a handful of Starlink satellites each day. Blue Origin is supporting NASA’s Artemis missions with lunar lander technology. Aerojet Rocketdyne is pushing the boundaries of propulsion technology, and BlackSky delivers real-time satellite imagery to commercial and government clients alike. And of course, Boeing put Seattle on the map as an aerospace/aviation hot spot. (7/31)

NASA Releases Opportunity to Boost Commercial Space Tech Development (Source: NASA)
NASA has released a new proposal opportunity for industry to tap into agency know-how, resources, and expertise. The Announcement of Collaboration Opportunity (ACO), managed by the Space Technology Mission Directorate, enables valuable collaboration without financial exchanges between NASA and industry partners. Instead, companies leverage NASA subject matter experts, facilities, software, and hardware to accelerate their technologies and prepare them for future commercial and government use. (7/30)

Could Texas Get a Shuttle Other Than Discovery? (Source: Axios)
Texas Republicans introduced two identical bills in the House and the Senate this year that proposed the transfer of the Discovery to Houston. Similar language made it into Trump's recently passed "big beautiful bill," and a congressional report explicitly singles out transferring the Discovery. But there are other space vehicles that could be eligible for transfer, according to the congressional report.

There are two other retired space shuttles that fit the criteria, as do several vehicles on display in public and private venues. The bill does not explicitly prohibit vehicles in private possession from being transferred. The "big, beautiful bill" requires acting NASA head and U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy to identify a space vehicle for transfer that has flown into space and carried astronauts. The bill directs Duffy to identify the vehicle within 30 days after the bill was enacted, a deadline that'll pass during the first week of August. The vehicle Duffy chooses must be transferred to its end location no later than 18 months after the bill became law on July 4. (7/31)