December 23, 2025

SATIM to Supply Rheinmetall with SAR Imagery Analysis (Source: SATIM)
The technology group Rheinmetall, based in Düsseldorf, and SATIM Monitoring Satelitarny, a Polish deep-tech company specializing in the AI-supported analysis of synthetic aperture radar (SAR) imagery, have signed a technology supply contract. The content is the support of the German customer’s satellite-based reconnaissance program. The agreement formalizes SATIM’s role as a technology supplier to Rheinmetall for the delivery of intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) capabilities for the Bundeswehr. (12/18)

Perseverance Rover Cleared for Long Distance Mars Exploration (Source: Space Daily)
After nearly five years operating inside Mars Jezero Crater, NASA's Perseverance rover has logged almost 25 miles of driving while engineers certify that its mobility hardware and other subsystems can keep working for many more years. Built and operated by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California, Perseverance is following up the long-running Curiosity rover and was designed from the outset for extended missions on the Martian surface. JPL teams have been running parallel tests of flight-spare hardware on Earth, recently confirming that the rotary actuators that steer and drive the rover's six wheels should perform optimally for at least another 37 miles, with comparable brake testing in progress. (12/18)

Origami Style Lunar Rover Wheel Expands to Climb Steep Caves (Source: Space Daily)
A joint team from the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology KAIST and the Unmanned Exploration Laboratory UEL has developed a transformable airless wheel designed to help small rovers access steep lunar pits and lava tubes. The wheel targets subsurface sites considered promising for future human habitats because they shield against cosmic radiation and extreme temperature swings. The study introduces an origami inspired deployable wheel that can change its diameter to overcome obstacles that would halt conventional fixed geometry rover wheels, and the research appears in the December issue of Science Robotics. The concept supports mission architectures that use multiple small rovers instead of a single large vehicle, providing redundancy so exploration can continue even if some units fail. (12/18)

Synspective Shares Rise as Company Plans Ramped Up Satellite Production (Source: Space Intel Report)
Radar satellite constellation operator Synspective Inc. of Japan reported a 4% increase in revenue for the three months ending Sept. 30 and a wider operating loss as the company focuses on expanding satellite production and growing its in-orbit fleet to 30 satellites by the end of the decade. Synspective currently has four operational satellites in orbit, with its three first spacecraft been retired. Its current business is focused on the substantial expansion in Japanese government spending on satellites for security and military use. (12/23)

ULA Chief Bruno Departs for Unnamed Opportunity, Replaced by Elbon (Source: Space News)
In an unexpected move, United Launch Alliance CEO Tory Bruno has resigned. The company, a Boeing-Lockheed Martin joint venture, announced Monday that Bruno had stepped down for another, unnamed opportunity. Neither the company nor Bruno commented further on his resignation, which took many in the industry by surprise. Bruno became chief executive of ULA in 2014 after serving as president of Lockheed Martin Strategic and Missile Defense Systems. He joined the company as it was losing its monopoly in national security launch to SpaceX and was facing the potential loss of access to the RD-180 engine used by the Atlas 5. Soon after joining the company, he selected Blue Origin’s BE-4 engine to power a new launch vehicle, later called Vulcan, to replace both the Atlas 5 and Delta 4.

Vulcan successfully made its debut nearly two years ago, but ULA has been slow to ramp up launches of the new vehicle. ULA named a longtime Boeing executive John Elbon as the company's new COO. (12/23)

CACI Acquiring ARKA (Source: Space News)
CACI International is acquiring space technology company ARKA Group from private equity firm Blackstone Tactical Opportunities for $2.4 billion. The companies announced Monday the all-cash deal, one that is expected to close in the third quarter of CACI’s 2026 fiscal year. ARKA develops software for processing and analyzing data from space-based sensors, including radar and remote sensing systems, as well as space-qualified optical systems and payloads. CACI said the deal aligns with its strategy to expand in the national security space sector. CACI’s space-related work spans across hardware, software and services, including production of optical terminals for inter-satellite links. (12/23)

China's Long March 12A Launches to Orbit But First Stage Landing Fails (Source: Space News)
The first flight of the Long March 12A successfully reached orbit, but the rocket’s booster was not able to land. The Long March 12A rocket lifted off from the Dongfeng Commercial Space Innovation Test Zone at the Jiuquan spaceport. Chinese officials said that the rocket’s upper stage reached orbit, but acknowledged the booster did not perform a landing as planned on a pad 250 kilometers downrange from the launch site. Imagery shared on social media suggested that the landing was unsuccessful, potentially attempting to land around two kilometers from the pad. The launch came nearly three weeks after Chinese company Landspace attempted a landing on the first flight of its Zhuque-3 rocket. The first stage crashed near its landing pad on that flight, but the upper stage did reach orbit. (12/23)

South Korean Innospace Rocket Fails After Brazil Launch Debut (Source: Korea Times)
The first launch of a small South Korean rocket failed shortly after liftoff Monday. Innospace’s first Hanbit-Nano rocket lifted off at 8:13 p.m. Eastern from the Alcântara launch center in Brazil. However, the rocket malfunctioned about 30 seconds after liftoff, crashing into a designated safety zone near the pad and exploding. Innospace released few details about the failure. The small rocket was carrying eight smallsats and hosted payloads from customers in Brazil, India and Korea. Shares in Innospace fell sharply on a Korean stock exchange Tuesday. (12/23)

Japan's H3 Launch Failure Investigation Focuses on Payload Fairing (Source: Asahi Shimbun)
The investigation into a failed H3 launch Sunday is focusing on the rocket’s payload fairing. Investigators with the Japanese space agency JAXA said there was a larger impact than usual on the rocket when its payload fairing separated. That coincided with a drop in pressure in the liquid hydrogen tank in the rocket’s upper stage, which caused lower thrust from the upper stage’s engine. The engine failed to restart on a planned second burn, leaving the stage and its navigation satellite payload in a low orbit that decayed hours after launch. (12/23)

Starship Failure in January More Hazardous Than Thought for Air Traffic (Source: Wall Street Journal)
A failed Starship launch in January caused more danger to air traffic than first thought. On that launch, the Starship upper stage broke up during ascent, with debris falling along a corridor in the Caribbean. FAA documents found that three aircraft, including two commercial jetliners, had to go through a no-fly zone established to avoid the falling debris because of fuel emergencies. Other aircraft rerouted around the zone, but that put strain on air traffic controllers, with two planes flying too close to each other as a result. The FAA documents also claimed that SpaceX didn’t immediately inform the FAA about the launch failure. SpaceX, in a social media post, said the article was filled with “misleading information from detractors with ulterior motives” and reiterated its commitment to public safety. (12/22)

Trump May Give 775 Acres of Federal Wildlife Refuge in Texas to SpaceX (Source: New York Times)
The federal government is in talks to swap land with SpaceX near the company’s Starbase site. Under the proposed deal, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service would transfer 775 acres of land currently part of the Lower Rio Grande Valley National Wildlife Refuge to SpaceX, while SpaceX would hand over 692 acres of land it owns in other locations in the region, including near the Laguna Atascosa National Wildlife Refuge well to the north of Starbase. The state of Texas agreed last year to a smaller land swap with SpaceX involving a state park near Starbase, but SpaceX backed out of the agreement for reasons it did not disclose. (12/23)

Sidus Space Looks to Raise $25M in Public Offering (Source: Via Satellite)
Space and defense technology company Sidus Space aims to raise $25 million in a public offering. Sidus Space announced Monday it plans to sell 19,230,800 shares at $1.30 per share in an offering expected to close on Dec. 24. According to the prospectus filed with the SEC, Sidus Space said it plans to use the proceeds for sales and marketing, operational costs, product development, manufacturing expansion and working capital and general corporate purposes. (12/23)

Uganda Restricts Imports of Starlink Equipment Weeks Before Election (Source: Reuters)
Uganda's government has restricted imports of Starlink satellite internet equipment weeks before a national election at which the opposition fears the government will again impose an internet blackout. President Yoweri Museveni, 81, will seek to extend his rule in the East African nation to nearly half a century in the January 15 vote, which pits him against pop star-turned-politician Bobi Wine, 43, for the second time. (12/23)

Why Everyone Is Talking About Data Centers In Space (Source: LinkedIn)
Several tech companies, including Starcloud, Google, and SpaceX, are planning to launch data centers into space to leverage constant solar power, bypass Earth's infrastructure challenges, and capitalize on growth opportunities, potentially revolutionizing the computing industry. Click here. (12/21)

The Artemis Accords at Five (Source: Space Review)
This fall marked five years since eight countries, including the United States, announced that they were signing the new Artemis Accords, outlining norms of behavior for safe space exploration. Jeff Foust reports on a recent event marking the fifth anniversary of the Accords to discuss the development of the document and how it gained traction. Click here. (12/23)

State-Owned Enterprises and Commercial Space in China (Source: Space Review)
The Chinese space ecosystem now includes many startups that emulate American entrepreneurial space companies. Owen Chbani examines the role larger state-owned enterprises play in that ecosystem, working with and sometimes clashing with them. Click here. (12/23)

Huntsville and the Final Frontier (Source: Space Review)
Dwayne Day and James Kruggel continue their photo essay about the US Space and Rocket Center in Huntsville, Alabama, cataloging the exhibits of a Saturn V and other vehicles. Click here. (12/23)

Mission Creep: Golden Dome Extending to Drone Detection (Source: Defense News)
The Joint Interagency Task Force 401 is prioritizing data exchange with the Golden Dome missile shield program to improve detection and defense against larger Group 3 drones. Army Brig. Gen. Matt Ross emphasized the need for both organizations to view each other's threat data, while maintaining flexibility at individual locations. The collaboration is designed to integrate counter-UAS postures across the homeland, enhancing the ability to respond to significant drone threats through shared situational awareness. (12/22)

Pentagon Monitors New ICBM Field Built By China (Source: Fox News)
China has reportedly loaded 100 intercontinental ballistic missiles in newly constructed silo fields near the Mongolian border, according to the Pentagon. The draft report marks the first public estimate of how many ICBMs have been deployed, and the move highlights China's rapid progress in expanding and modernizing its strategic missile capabilities, despite maintaining a public stance of nuclear restraint. (12/22)

Rocket Lab's Final 2025 Launch Brings Annual Total to 21 (Source: Space.com)
Rocket Lab has ended 2025 with a record 21 missions after launching a Japanese Earth-observing satellite from New Zealand. The QPS-SAR-15 satellite, part of iQPS' constellation, uses synthetic aperture radar to capture images through clouds and at night. Rocket Lab plans more launches for iQPS next year and aims to expand its global reach with more multi-launch constellation deployments and defense-related missions. (12/22)
 
Collaboration, Innovation Drive Space Superiority (Source: Via Satellite)
US Space Force leaders, defense contractors and commercial partners are working to maintain US space superiority by emphasizing speed and resilient hybrid architectures. This effort was highlighted at the Spacepower event, where officials discussed the need for rapid data access and integration in contested environments. Lt. Gen. Douglas Schiess and Rick Freeman of Amazon Leo for Government emphasized the importance of collaboration and modernization to address evolving threats such as hypersonics and anti-satellite weapons. (12/22)

The Policy Questions Facing a Lunar Economy (Source: Payload)
Once engineers solve the technical problems that stand in the way of a thriving lunar economy, it’s up to policymakers to set industry up for success on the Moon’s surface. We’re taking a more terrestrial look at the state of the lunar policy, and the open policy questions that could face industry when they arrive on the Moon’s surface. Whose land is it anyways: If you want to mine on Earth, you must first buy the land containing the mine. This first step, while simple on Earth, is much harder on the Moon because companies’ property rights on lunar turf are unclear. Some legal experts say you can’t just claim the area where you set up shop. Click here. (12/23)

SpaceX IPO Would Fund Space-Based Datacenter Plan (Source: The Hill)
When Elon Musk announced that he was taking SpaceX public with an initial public offering that would give the rocket company a $1.5 trillion valuation, shock waves erupted across the commercial space community. Why would Musk, who had previously resisted this step, reverse himself? Ars Technica suggested that the IPO has to do with Musk’s idea for space-based AI centers, using technology developed for the Starlink system. Musk later confirmed that the article was accurate.

Also, according to a story by Reuters, launch costs must fall even more sharply than they already have for space-based AI data centers to work, which means that SpaceX has to get Starship operational. Even so, Musk envisions eventually building his space-based AI data centers on the moon and then launching them with an electromagnetic rail gun called a mass driver. The idea meshes perfectly with NASA’s plans to return to the moon and build a lunar base. (12/21)

Starcloud Plans its Next Power Plays After Training First AI Model in Space (Source: Washington Post)
After taking one small but historic step for space-based AI, a Seattle-area startup called Starcloud is gearing up for a giant leap into what could be a multibillion-dollar business. The business model doesn’t require Starcloud to manage how the data for artificial intelligence applications is processed. Instead, Starcloud provides a data-center “box” — a solar-powered satellite equipped with the hardware for cooling and communication — while its partners provide and operate the data processing chips inside the box. (12/22)

Iran Schedules Triple Satellite Launch from Vostochny for December 28 (Source: Satnews)
Despite decades of multi-layered export controls and international sanctions, Iran’s space program continues to demonstrate a persistent capability to place satellites in orbit. While the country has iterated on launch vehicles and publicized progress toward indigenous manufacturing, the depth of its operational autonomy remains a subject of technical scrutiny. The strategic focus for international stakeholders has shifted toward identifying where the Iran Space Agency (ISA) maintains end-to-end control and where it remains dependent on foreign inputs.

In an analytical report released December 21, 2025, industry analyst Omkar Nikam examined the component-level architecture of Iran’s satellite stack. The analysis differentiates between symbolic domestic successes and repeatable industrial depth. Resilience in this context is defined by the ability to design, source, and integrate subsystems without cascading performance losses when specific suppliers are blocked. (12/22)

SpaceWorks Satellite Docking Device Completes Ground Test (Source: Aerospace America)
SpaceWorks, one of the companies aiming to create the standard docking mechanism for satellites and orbiting spacecraft, passed a development milestone earlier this month. The Atlanta company’s FuseBlox docking device was publicly ground tested by a commercial customer for the first time. Settling on a single docking standard would benefit the space industry because the alternative — having every spacecraft lug around an extra adapter to fit a variety of docking devices — would be too costly. (12/22)

NordSpace Gets Go Ahead to Proceed with Construction for Orbital Launch Complex (Source: SpaceQ)
The NordSpace Environmental Assessment (EA) review for its spaceport complex has been completed and released, meaning construction of their orbital space launch complex can proceed. The government of Newfoundland Labrador posted on their Environment, Conservation and Climate Change (ECCC) website that an EA review had been registered on Nov. 5 for the St. Lawrence Spaceport Complex, now known as the Atlantic Spaceport Complex, and that it had been approved and released by the minister on Dec. 19, 2025. (12/22)

Proposed Space Station Could Be Deployed in a Single Launch (Source: Gizmodo)
Florida startup Max Space announced its plans to launch a prototype of its commercial space station by 2027, testing its expandable habitat technology that aims to reduce the number of trips needed to build the orbital lab. Thunderbird is a single-module space station that is designed to expand to a volume of 12,360 cubic feet (350 cubic meters) once in orbit. Instead of launching multiple missions to assemble an assortment of modules, the entire Thunderbird space station could be packed inside SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket and launched on a single mission.

Thunderbird is designed to host four astronauts at all times, with a morphic interior structure that can be reconfigured by the crew to support different activities on board the space station. The commercial space station can be used for research, as well as orbital manufacturing of pharmaceuticals and other materials. Max Space is planning to launch its space station to orbit as early as 2029. The company also aims to configure Thunderbird for use as a habitat for astronauts around the Moon and Mars. (12/21)

Sidus Space Plans Another Share Sale (Source: Sidus Space)
Sidus Space intends to offer to sell shares of its Class A common stock in a best-efforts public offering.  All of the shares of Class A common stock (and/or Pre-funded Warrants) are to be sold by the Company. The Company intends to use the net proceeds from the offering for working capital and general corporate purposes. (12/22)

United Launch Alliance Chief Tory Bruno Resigns (Source: Space News)
Tory Bruno, the longtime chief executive of United Launch Alliance, is leaving the joint venture for another opportunity. In a Dec. 23 statement, executives from Boeing and Lockheed Martin, who own an equal stake in ULA, said that Bruno was stepping down after 12 years for another, unnamed opportunity. (12/22)

UCF to Play Key Role in NASA’s Artemis IV Mission (Source: UCF)
UCF will play a key role in a newly announced NASA Artemis IV mission partnership that aims to, for the first time, directly test and calibrate a groundbreaking new theory developed by UCF Director of the Stephen W. Hawking Center for Microgravity Research and Education and planetary scientist Phil Metzger on how rocket exhaust lifts and accelerates lunar dust.

UCF’s expertise will help drive the success of DUSTER, a payload designed specifically to capture and measure dust behavior during spacecraft and human operations on the moon. Lunar Outpost’s Mobile Autonomous Prospecting Platform (MAPP) rover will support NASA’s DUSTER (Dust and plaSma environmenT survEyoR) investigation, selected for development through the Artemis IV Deployed Instruments program. The instruments will be built at the Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics (LASP) at CU Boulder. (12/8)

Isaacman Sees Need for Speed (Source: Space News)
New NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman told employees he wants the agency to move faster, but said he still needs to get up to speed on all the agency’s activities. At an agency town hall Friday, Isaacman said NASA needs to work differently and find ways to “minimize the bureaucratic drag that can slow us down,” citing China’s rapidly advancing space capabilities. He deferred answers on questions about specific agency issues, saying there is “an awful lot to learn” about the agency. He promised to visit all NASA centers in the coming weeks and also tell commercial and international partners to move faster on their efforts. (12/22)

Hungary's 4iG to Invest $100 Million in Axiom Space (Source: Space News)
Hungarian communications provider 4iG has agreed to invest $100 million in commercial space station developer Axiom Space. The company said Friday it has committed to invest $30 million in Axiom by the end of 2025, followed by an additional $70 million by the end of March. 4iG said that the Axiom investment would provide Hungary with an opportunity to secure a long-term role in orbital data center programs and space-based data processing and storage. 4iG has far-reaching plans for sovereign satellites and domestic manufacturing capabilities and also owns a 20% stake in Israeli satellite operator Spacecom. (12/22)

NATO: Russia Developing Starlink-Killer Weapon (Source: AP)
Intelligence officials in NATO countries claim Russia is developing a weapon to take out SpaceX’s Starlink constellation, and many other satellites. The so-called “zone effect” weapon would place hundreds of thousands of high-density pellets into the orbits used by Starlink, causing collisions to disable spacecraft. The report did not indicate how far along Russia is in developing such a system. Some space security experts are skeptical about the claims, noting that such a weapon would also disable other satellites in similar orbits, including Russian and Chinese spacecraft. (12/22)