September 12, 2025

Pentagon Seeks Contractors for Golden Dome Project (Source: Reuters)
The Missile Defense Agency has solicited Golden Dome missile defense shield contracts. The 10-year, $151 billion Multiple Award Scalable Homeland Innovative Enterprise Layered Defense contract aims to develop and deploy new defense capabilities. Major defense contractors such as RTX, Northrop Grumman and Boeing are expected to participate. (9/11)

NASA Langley and Embry-Riddle Join Forces (Source: Innovate Hampton Roads)
ASA’s Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia, has just inked a groundbreaking Space Act Agreement with Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University. This isn’t just another partnership; it’s a launchpad for cutting-edge research, education, and workforce development that’s set to supercharge our local innovation ecosystem and create real opportunities for you—whether you’re a budding entrepreneur, a tech enthusiast, or part of our thriving aerospace community.

This collaboration merges NASA Langley’s world-class expertise in aeronautics and space tech with Embry-Riddle’s top-tier educational programs. The result? Accelerated innovation in areas like advanced air mobility, lunar landings, and even missions to Mars. But here’s where it gets exciting for us in Hampton Roads: This agreement isn’t confined to distant labs—it’s designed to build a skilled workforce right here, fueling job growth, startups, and tech transfers that benefit our local economy. (9/11)

Apex Raises $200 Million, Setting Valuation at Over $1 Billion (Source: Space News)
Satellite manufacturer Apex has raised $200 million, vaulting the company’s valuation to more than $1 billion. The company announced Friday a Series D round led by venture capital firm Interlagos. The funding will allow the company to scale up production of its lines of satellites and bring more component manufacturing in-house. That includes leasing a second facility adjacent to its existing Los Angeles factory to increase satellite production rates by 50%. Apex is also acquiring the Hall Effect thruster technology from satellite propulsion company Phase Four. (9/12)

France's Cailabs Raises $67 Million for Optical Ground Stations (Source: Space News)
Cailabs, a French company that builds optical ground stations to enable laser communications with satellites, has raised 57 million euros ($67 million). The new funding, announced Friday, comes from the European Investment Bank and several other government and private funds. Cailabs plans to use the funding to scale up production of its optical ground stations, with a goal of producing 50 such stations a year by 2027. The funds will also support international expansion and work on new capabilities, such as ground stations that can support laser communications with satellites in medium and geostationary Earth orbits. (9/12)

Firefly Seeks Role in Golden Dome (Source: Space News)
Firefly Aerospace is pitching its rockets and orbital platforms for the Pentagon’s Golden Dome missile defense initiative. Firefly CEO Jason Kim said at the Global Aerospace Summit Thursday that the company’s Alpha small launch vehicle could launch missile-defense test targets while its Elytra maneuverable spacecraft platform could serve as a host for space-based interceptors. Firefly’s pitch underscores how commercial space companies are maneuvering to secure a foothold in one of the in what could become one of the largest U.S. defense programs. (9/12)

Armada and Sophia Space Developing Space-Focused Computing Network (Source: Space News)
Mobile edge computing specialist Armada and Sophia Space are working together to establish integrated, scalable compute infrastructure extending from Earth to space. The companies announced Thursday a partnership to create “a seamless edge-computing network” connecting terrestrial and space nodes. Sophia Space announced a pre-seed funding round in May as part of plans to establish orbital data centers to support geospatial intelligence applications. Armada creates mobile terrestrial data centers that can be deployed in remote locations with satellite connectivity. (9/12)

Russia Launches ISS Cargo Mission (Source: NSF)
Russia launched a Progress cargo spacecraft Thursday. A Soyuz-2.1a rocket lifted off from the Baikonur Cosmodrome at 11:54 a.m. Eastern, putting the Progress MS-32 spacecraft into orbit. The spacecraft, known as Progress 93 by NASA, will dock with the International Space Station’s Russian segment Saturday at 1:27 p.m. Eastern, delivering about three tons of food, fuel and other supplies for the station. (9/12)

SpaceX Launches Indonesian Satellite From Florida (Source: Spaceflight Now)
It took four tries, but a Falcon 9 finally launched an Indonesian communications satellite Thursday night. The Falcon 9 lifted off from Cape Canaveral, Florida, at 9:56 p.m. Eastern. It placed the Nusantara Lima satellite into a geostationary transfer orbit about a half-hour later. The launch was originally scheduled for Monday but scrubbed because of weather, which also postponed a Tuesday launch attempt. SpaceX called off a Wednesday launch for undisclosed reasons. Nusantara Lima, a Boeing 702MP spacecraft, will be used by Indonesian operator PSN to provide broadband services from 113 degrees east in GEO. (9/12)

SES Rebrands (Source: SES)
SES is the latest satellite operator to roll out a rebranding. The company announced Friday a “bold new brand” that includes a new logo and color scheme as well as a corporate tagline of “Solve. Empower. Soar.” SES, which recently completed its acquisition of Intelsat, said the branding is part of efforts to show that the company can provide complete space solutions beyond satellite connectivity. SES said the rebranding is “a move rarely seen in the satellite industry,” but it comes just over a week after another major satellite operator, Eutelsat, unveiled a new branding that included changing its name from Eutelsat Group and a new color scheme. (9/12)

Researchers Have New Explanation for Little Red Dots (Source: The Debrief)
Harvard astronomers are proposing a new theory that the mysterious “little red dots” first spied by the James Webb Space Telescope two years ago represent new galaxies forming inside spinning dark matter halos, placing the puzzling objects as essential elements of galactic evolution. They have proposed various explanations for the small, faint objects from the edge of the universe whose light is so distant that it only reaches us now from billions of years in the ancient past. Some of those suggestions have included the possibilities of massive black holes and densely packed galaxies.

The researchers produced a new model, which indicated that the little red dots are not a unique type of galaxy, but the slowest spinning one percent of galaxies, existing inside of dark matter halos. This would suggest that our present means of observation are creating the anomaly, not that the little red dots are particularly unusual. (9/11)

Aerospace and Defense Companies Continue Growth in Colorado Springs Amid Space Command Relocation (Source: The Gazette)
Following the announcement last week that U.S. Space Command headquarters will move from Colorado Springs to Huntsville, state and local economic development officials said they're confident the relocation won't soften Colorado's or El Paso County's aerospace and defense industries. One company announced an expansion into Colorado Springs two days after the Space Command news. Mobius said it will open its newest location in town, bringing with it 75 net new jobs with an average annual wage of $137,000. (9/8)

Scotland Could Fall Behind in Europe's Space Race, MPs Warn (Source: BBC)
MPs have warned that Scotland is at risk of falling behind in the race to launch the first satellites from western Europe into Earth's orbit. Westminster's Scottish Affairs Committee has urged the UK government to put more investment into the development of Scottish spaceports, including Saxavord in Shetland.

Scotland is considered to be suitable for launches due to its position in the world's northern hemisphere, and access to the North Atlantic's "low-traffic" airspace. The UK government's Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) said it had invested £96m into the Scottish space sector, including money for Forres-based rockets manufacturer Orbex.

So far, a rocket has not been successfully launched into orbit from the UK - or western Europe. The group of MPs said Scotland had the potential to be a global leader in terms of small satellite launches, but it added that investment was lacking. They said a site in Norway was now likely to beat Scotland to the first launch. The committee has called for increased financial support from the UK government, and for it to become a customer of domestic launch services. (9/10)

HD Hyundai Taps SpaceX’s Starlink for Smarter, Safer Shipbuilding (Source: Korea Herald)
HD Hyundai will introduce US space firm SpaceX’s Starlink satellite internet service across its shipbuilding sites, aiming to strengthen connectivity, safety and digital transformation in collaboration with KT and KT Sat. (9/11)

Repeating History, at Playalinda, Just with a Different Rocket (Source: Central Florida Public Media)
The plan is to launch the massive vehicle dozens of times each year, in part to support NASA’s plans to return humans to the moon. However, those additional launches would come at a cost that some residents say is too high–the temporary closure of one of Titusville's historic beaches. Many residents are frustrated that the FAA could potentially shut down Playalinda Beach for up to 60 days a year to accommodate the launches.

Barbara Evans has lived in Titusville for over 60 years. She doesn’t want to see the beach she enjoys with her family shut down for SpaceX, even if it is only partially closed. “There are no cars, there's no buildings, there's no concession stand, there's no trash, there's not a lot of people and you don't have a lot of glaring radios,” Evans said. "It's been Titusville's historic beach forever, so I just don't think they should take it away.”

Evans has been here before. Today, she’s wearing a vintage T-Shirt that says “I helped save Playalinda Beach,” and hands out bumper stickers that read “Save Playalinda Beach.” Both the shirt and stickers are from the 80’s, from a fight she and her late husband Hank Evans were a part of to keep Playalinda beach open during the Space Shuttle Program. The solution back then was to create a new access road, allowing both launches and beach recreation to happen simultaneously. (9/10)

Enceladus's Plumes: Experiment Questions Ocean Origin of Organics (Source: Phys.org)
Organic molecules detected in the watery plumes that spew out from cracks in the surface of Enceladus could be formed through exposure to radiation on Saturn's icy moon, rather than originating from deep within its sub-surface ocean. The findings have repercussions for assessing the habitability of Enceladus's ocean. Related research is published in Planetary and Space Science. "The results demonstrate that radiation-driven chemistry on the surface and in the plumes could also create these molecules," said Dr. Grace Richards. (9/9)

Mixed Feelings for Musk Space Fans (Source: Space News)
Emily Carney put words to the difficult feelings that she and other space fans felt after the most recent and mostly successful Starship test flight. She describes how the usual excitement surrounding a launch was marred by SpaceX CEO Elon Musk’s behavior this year, from his Nazi salute at President Trump’s inauguration, the xenophobia that’s run rampant on his X platform, and the damage he’s done to U.S. space policy, including how his fallout with Trump may have left NASA without a permanent administrator.

Why do people defend someone who has done things that are frankly terrible? Is it because they’re fans of what the person has previously done? Is it a matter of identity and self-concept (“I’m a fan of this and it defines me”)? Is it cognitive dissonance? Is it social pressure from fellow SpaceX fans, or a bias? Or is it because they’ve already emotionally invested themselves in SpaceX, and simply are hopeful and optimistic?

Many of Musk’s earlier fans who now understandably deride him previously supported him because his ideas about off-world space settlement resembled influential futurist Gerard K. O’Neill’s, at least on a surface level, and somewhat mirrored O’Neill’s 1970s brand of optimism and better living through tech. All these things populated my mind as I tried to understand why so many of us are excusing the actual harm someone has directly done to our society, economy, and culture. (9/11)

Virginia Spaceport Making Moves (Source: SPACErePORT)
The Virginia Commercial Space Flight Authority (VCSFA) on Sep. 4 issued an RFP for firms to provide consulting services aimed at developing potential alternative future scenarios for the state's space, aerospace, and adjacent environments. Meanwhile, VCSFA in August purchased the 155,000 square foot Mappsville Industrial Facility, on ~27 acres of land situated about six miles from the Wallops Island spaceport. A contractor is now being sought to renovate the facility. (9/11)

Scottish Hillwalkers Urged to Seek Meteor Fragments (Source: University of Glasgow)
Researchers from the UK Fireball Alliance have combined data from public videos with images taken from their own dedicated meteor tracking cameras including the Global Meteor Network, UK Meteor Network and Global Fireball Observatory to reconstruct the meteor’s path and estimate where the meteorite fell.

They are appealing to hillwalkers to keep their eyes peeled for fragments of the meteorite when they are out and about across three Munros in the Scottish Highlands. If a hiker is lucky enough to find a piece, it would be the first time in more than a century that a meteorite has been successfully recovered in Scotland. (9/11)

ReOrbit Lands Record Funding to Take On Musk’s Starlink From Europe (Source: Tech Crunch)
ReOrbit, a Finnish startup focused on helping nations control their own sovereign satellites, has raised a record €45 million (about US $53 million) Series A round of funding for a European space tech company. The funding round signals that Europe’s new space market is heating up, fueled by a geopolitical environment in which countries increasingly worry about relying on foreign technology for critical infrastructure.

Founded in 2019 and based in Helsinki, ReOrbit provides both the hardware and software needed for independent satellite operations. According to its CEO, Sethu Saveda Suvanam, the company offers a solution to nations that can’t build their own satellites but want an affordable alternative to Elon Musk-owned Starlink. Unlike Starlink, which also targets private users and enterprises, ReOrbit wants its clients to have full ownership and sovereignty over their satellites and communications. This means sourcing hardware from trusted sources and controlling it with ReOrbit’s software layer. (9/8)

NASA Urges Public to Book Artems II "Boarding Pass" Soon (Source: UPI)
NASA invited the public on Tuesday to grab a boarding pass and be a part of the space agency's test flight of its Artemis II mission set to launch four astronauts into orbit next year. Officials at the U.S. space agency NASA said its public effort to involve civilians in the orbital venture around the moon and back in the Artemis test mission flight means individual spots for "Send Your Name with Artemis II" need to be claimed before January 21. (9/9)

Blue Origin's Advances Blue Alchemist for Regolith Transformation (Source: Blue Origin)
Blue Origin announced its pioneering in-space resource utilization system, Blue Alchemist, has successfully completed its Critical Design Review (CDR), marking a transformative milestone toward humanity's permanent expansion beyond Earth. The breakthrough technology aims to turn the Moon, and eventually Mars, into self-sustaining worlds where robots and humans can go beyond visiting and truly explore, grow, live, and thrive. The system transforms regolith into solar power systems, breathable oxygen, propellant-grade oxygen for refueling, metals, and construction materials - all critical elements and systems needed for near-term, low-cost, and sustainable bases, growing settlements, and eventual cities. (9/11)

Boeing's New Engineering Center at Embry-Riddle Brings 400 Jobs (Source: WKMG)
Boeing has opened a 65,000-square-foot engineering center at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in Daytona Beach, Florida, to support its defense and space programs. The center is expected to create 400 technical and engineering jobs, and Embry-Riddle President Barry Butler highlights the value of the partnership for students. (9/10)   

Northrop, L3Harris Satellites Support Golden Dome (Source: Ars Technica)
Twenty-one York Space Systems satellites have reached orbit, a milestone for the Space Development Agency and Golden Dome program. Northrop Grumman and L3Harris are also building satellites for SDA's Tranch 1, with 154 satellites planned. (9/10)   

Space Club Plans for 2026 'Destination Space' Program for Florida 6th Graders, Seeks Donations (Source: NSCFL)
Destination Space (Space Week) is the National Space Club Florida Committee's major educational initiative in which we partner with the Brevard Schools Foundation to provide a field trip experience to the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex for 5,500 Sixth Graders in Brevard County public schools. Destination Space typically takes place in November and/or December.

There are pre-launch activities for students to complete in the classroom, complete with hands-on space science activities and a student guide followed by a whole day study trip at the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Center. Destination Space has proven to motivate our school administrators and teachers to increase emphasis on teaching math and science, as well as stimulating student interest in those subjects. NSCFL is requesting our community’s financial help once again. All contributions to the NSCFL (a 501c3 entity) will go directly to Destination Space. Click here. (9/11)