December 30, 2025

Air Force Abandons Sweeping Reoptimization as Army, Marines Push Forward with Transformation (Source: FNN)
The year 2025 has been transformational for the Defense Department. The Air Force scrapped most of its sweeping reoptimization initiative announced under previous leadership, while the Army undertook one of its most significant acquisition and organizational reform efforts in decades. Months after pausing its sweeping reoptimization initiative launched under former Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall, the service announced earlier this month that it would abandon more than half of its sweeping efforts. The proposed changes under the previous leadership were enormous in scope, spanning acquisition, recruiting, training and the management processes that deliver support services. (12/24)

China Launches Mapping Satellite on Long March 4B (Source: Xinhua)
China launched a mapping satellite Monday night. A Long March 4B lifted off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center. Eastern and successfully placed the Tianhui-7 spacecraft into orbit. The satellite will be used for mapping and land surveys, Chinese media reported. (12/30)

Chinese Launcher IPOs Eased on Shanghai Exchange (Source: Reuters)
Chinese launch startups will have an easier path to going public. The Shanghai Stock Exchange said Friday that it will exempt Chinese reusable launch companies seeking to perform IPOs on the tech-focused STAR market from some of its requirements. The exchange said it will focus on technological milestones rather than profitability and minimum revenue requirements for such companies. Companies that are involved in major national space projects will also get priority from the exchange for going public. (12/30)

India's Third Launch Pad at Satish Dhawan (Source: India TV)
India plans to complete a third launch pad at its major spaceport in the next four years. The director of the Satish Dhawan Space Centre said the third pad will be used for supporting launches of larger vehicles and payloads. The spaceport currently has two pads used by the PSLV and LVM3 rockets. The Indian space agency ISRO is seeking contractors to build the third pad. (12/30)

Italy's SpaceLand Developing Mars Habitat Tech (Source: SpaceLand)
Leveraging its expertise in Mars-gravity flight conditions, SpaceLand is advancing a breakthrough habitat technology that enables astronauts to build safe, insulated Martian shelters entirely from the inside, working comfortably in shirt‑sleeves, thanks to innovative inflatable airforms with bio‑cementation of local regolith: strong structural shells will be erected while drastically reducing EVA time, radiation exposure and material payloads. This ISRU‑driven, inside‑out construction method will be validated through prototypes in Italy and Mauritius using Mars‑analog soils and special bacterial species to produce bio-cement. (12/29)

ISS Spacewalks Planned in January (Source: NASA)
NASA is preparing for two spacewalks at the International Space Station in January. The first spacewalk, scheduled for Jan. 8, will be by NASA astronauts Zena Cardman and Mike Fincke, who will prepare the station’s power system for the installation of a new set of solar arrays. A second spacewalk on Jan. 15 involves other maintenance work, including replacing a camera and installing a new navigational aid. NASA said it will select the astronauts for the second spacewalk at a later date. (12/30)

France's HyPrSpace Raises $24.7 Million for Rocket Development and Defense Business (Source: Space News)
A French launch startup is looking into defense applications for its hybrid propulsion technologies. HyPrSpace raised 21 million euros ($24.7 million) last month, with plans to use the funding to complete a suborbital rocket, Baguette One, that is a precursor to its small orbital launch vehicle, OB-1. Those rockets use hybrid propulsion systems the company has developed with plastic fuel and liquid oxygen. The company says defense customers are showing interest in its hybrid motors for other, unspecified uses, replacing the liquid oxygen with storable oxidizers like nitrous oxide or hydrogen peroxide. HyPrSpace is planning to launch Baguette One in the first half of 2026 with the first OB-1 launch set for late 2027. (12/30)

Isaacman Considers Discovery Shuttle Move Alternatives (Source: Space News)
NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman appeared open to alternatives to moving the space shuttle Discovery from a Smithsonian museum to Houston. A provision of the budget reconciliation bill enacted in July directs NASA to perform a “space vehicle transfer” widely interpreted to mean moving Discovery from the Udvar-Hazy Center near Washington to Space Center Houston. In an interview on CNBC Friday, Isaacman said NASA was ensuring that such a move could be done within budget and safely, factors raised by critics of the move. If not, he said, “we have spacecraft going around the moon with Artemis 2, 3, 4 and 5,” suggesting the Orion spacecraft from one of those missions could go to Houston instead and still comply with the law. (12/30)

Vance Backed Isaacman's Second Chance at NASA (Source: Washington Post)
Isaacman reportedly got a second chance to become NASA administrator thanks to efforts by Vice President JD Vance. According to a report, Vance worked to smooth the relationship between President Trump and Elon Musk after a falling out between the two in May that led the White House to withdraw Isaacman’s original nomination. That included meeting with key members of the Senate Commerce Committee to ensure that, if Isaacman was renominated, he could be confirmed quickly. Susie Wiles, White House chief of staff, also worked to give Isaacman a second chance. The White House renominated Isaacman in early November and he was confirmed in mid-December. (12/30)

How NASA Changed in 2025 — Possibly Forever (Source: Space.com)
NASA in 2025 has been on a roller coaster ride of proposed budget cuts, personnel layoffs, and potential elimination of science missions. A key question: Have these various traumas changed NASA dramatically, and potentially permanently? Click here. (12/30)

ESA Says Data Breach Was Limited to Servers with Unclassified Documents (Source: European Spaceflight)
The European Space Agency (ESA) has released an initial statement regarding an alleged data breach, stating that it affected a “very limited number of science servers located outside the ESA corporate network.” On 26 December, reports began to emerge on X claiming that ESA had suffered a significant data breach, with a hacker using the alias “888” offering more than 200 gigabytes of data for sale. According to the hacker’s listing, the allegedly compromised data included source code for proprietary software, sensitive project documentation, API tokens, and hardcoded credentials. (12/30)

Montenegro Space Research (MSR) Launches the Country’s First Satellite (Source: Spacewatch Global)
Montenegro has entered the global space community. Montenegro Space Research (MSR) has successfully launched 'Luča', Montenegro’s inaugural satellite, into low Earth orbit two days ago, 28 December, from the Vostočni Cosmodrome. Following deployment aboard a Soyuz carrier rocket, Luča transmitted its first signal, confirming all systems are operating within nominal parameters. (12/30)

Hacking Space: Europe Ramps Up Security of Satellites (Source: Politico)
In the desolate Arctic desert of Kangerlussuaq, Greenland, Europeans are building defenses against a new, up-and-coming security threat: space hacks. Lithuania's Astrolight is constructing a ground station, with support from the European Space Agency, that will use laser beams to download voluminous data from satellites in a fast and secure manner, it announced last month. It's just one example of how Europe is moving to harden the security of its satellites, as rising geopolitical tensions and an expanding spectrum of hybrid threats are pushing space communications to the heart of the bloc’s security plans. (12/30)

Rocket Lab Prepares for Neutron’s Debut in 2026 (Source: NSF)
While Electron will continue to fly missions in 2026, Rocket Lab also plans to debut its next-generation vehicle, Neutron, no earlier than mid-2026. This medium-lift rocket will launch from a new launch site on Wallops Island, where an existing Electron launch site is already established. Neutron is designed to be larger and more powerful than Electron, standing 43 m tall and seven meters wide. Utilizing liquid methane (CH4) and liquid oxygen as propellants, Neutron will feature partial reusability, with its first stage intended to land on Rocket Lab’s droneship, Return on Investment. (12/29)

A Pioneering Study Assesses the Likelihood of Asteroid Mining (Source: Universe Today)
A few years ago, asteroid mining was all the rage. With the commercial space sector rapidly growing, the dream of commercializing space seemed almost imminent. Basically, the notion of having platforms and spacecraft that could rendezvous and mine Near Earth Asteroids (NEAs), then return them to space-based foundries, was right up there with sending commercial crews to Mars. After a great deal of speculation and ventures going under, these plans were placed on the back burner until the technology matured and other milestones could be accomplished first.

In addition to the need for more infrastructure and technical development, further research is needed to determine the chemical composition of small asteroids. In a recent study, a team led by researchers from the Institute of Space Sciences (ICE-CSIC) analyzed samples of C-type (carbon-rich) asteroids, which account for 75% of known asteroids. Their findings demonstrate that these asteroids could be a crucial source of raw materials, presenting opportunities for future resource exploitation.

According to the team's results, mining undifferentiated asteroids (believed to be the progenitor of chondritic meteorites) is far from viable. The study also identified a type of asteroid rich in olivine and spinel bands as a potential target for mining operations. The team also noted that water-rich asteroids with high concentrations of water-bearing minerals should be selected. In the meantime, they emphasize the need for additional sample-return missions to verify the identify of progenitor bodies before mining can be realized. (12/29)

HyPrSpace Looks for Applications Beyond Launch for its Hybrid Propulsion Technology (Source: Space News)
The French launch startup is HyPrSpace, which recently secured €21 million in Series A funding to develop its hybrid propulsion tech for small rockets, and is now actively exploring defense applications for this robust, cost-effective system, potentially for missile defense or rapid-response space capabilities, leveraging its upcoming suborbital test flights from French military sites. (12/29)

Celestis Books Stoke Space Rocket for 2nd-Ever Deep Space Memorial Flight (Source: Space.com)
Texas-based Celestis, the space burial remembrance company that has made a name for itself delivering cremated remains and DNA samples of friends, celebrities, and loved ones into near-space, Earth orbit, the moon and into deep space is expanding its horizons with the announcement of a new launch partner for a future Voyager flight. Celestis chose Stoke Space and its new Nova rocket as the launch provider for its next deep-space Voyager mission named "Infinite Flight," traveling beyond our Earth-moon system and into a permanent heliocentric orbit. This mission is slated to lift off from Space Launch Complex 14 at Cape Canaveral sometime in late 2026. (12/29)

NASA Seeks Drone Detection Capability For Kennedy Space Center (Source: Aviation Week)
NASA is looking to field a drone detection and analysis system to help spot activities over Kennedy Space Center (KSC). The system is supposed to deliver data “to make rapid and critical decisions to protect to protect personnel, the public, launch vehicles, flight hardware, high-value assets, and security interests. The system must provide rapid, timely information to multiple users for response and mitigation, and be fully compatible with Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI), U.S. Air Force, and U.S. Space Force counter-UAS systems and protocols. Key functionalities include real-time detection and alerting, technical and threat analyses, integration of analysis techniques and tools, and the ability to provide identification and operational information (type, serial number, location, speed, direction, operator location). (12/29)

Volta Space is Testing Tech for a Lunar Power Beaming Application (Source: SpaceQ)
With the successful landing of the Blue Ghost mission on March 2, 2025 along with growing rivalry between the United States and China on their future lunar presence, there’s been renewed interest in putting landers on the Moon. For most of them, though, there’s an enormous obstacle: surviving the long dark lunar nights. Until now, that’s limited the length and scope of these missions, and even created interest in more exotic fixes, like lunar fission reactors.

Volta's solution: a “lunar energy grid.” Their goal is to build a lunar satellite network called LightGrid: a network of satellites in low lunar orbit that will collect solar power, and then beam it down via lasers to equipment on the lunar surface. (12/29)

Proposal to Dismantle NCAR Would Have Space Science Impacts (Source: Space News)
The Trump administration recently announced plans to dismantle the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) in Boulder, Colorado, a move that would also affect space science research. The implications for space science stem from NCAR's involvement in research areas such as space weather, which studies the interactions between the Sun and Earth's atmosphere. NCAR's work in this area is a core component of its broad research portfolio, which includes everything from atmospheric chemistry to severe weather prediction. (12/29)

ESA Cancels Call to Procure Commercial Cargo Services to the ISS (Source: European Spaceflight)
The European Space Agency has cancelled a call for proposals to procure commercial cargo transportation services to the International Space Station (ISS). The services were intended to help the agency meet its obligations under the station’s Common System Operations Costs (CSOC) framework, which defines the shared responsibility of ISS partners to contribute to the station’s general upkeep, including crew and cargo transportation.

In the past, ESA met its CSOC obligations by transporting cargo to the ISS aboard the Automated Transfer Vehicle. More recently, the agency has agreed to supply European Service Modules for use aboard NASA’s Orion spacecraft to fulfil those commitments. To ensure a continued European presence aboard the station through to its planned decommissioning in 2030, the agency is once again preparing to commit some form of in-kind services. (12/29)

March 21 -- 3/21 -- Designated Space Coast Day to Honor Brevard’s Spaceflight Legacy (Source: Space Coast Daily)
In a celebration of the region’s unmatched legacy in human spaceflight and aerospace innovation, Brevard County leaders have officially designated March 21 as Space Coast Day — a new annual observance recognizing the Space Coast’s pivotal contributions to space exploration and science. Commissioners will unveil the official proclamation on Jan. 13. The symbolic event will include a special “countdown moment” that echoes the liftoff sequences that have been the heartbeat of the region for decades. (12/28)

Black Hole Found That Contains Enough Water to Fill 'Trillions of Earth-Size Oceans' (Source: Earth.com)
Astronomers enjoy it when the universe throws a curveball, and this object does exactly that. Working in two teams, they have found the largest, most distant stash of water ever seen in the cosmos. APM 08279+5255 is a quasar – an active galaxy whose central supermassive black hole feeds on gas and releases huge amounts of light. It contains about 140 trillion times the amount in all of Earth’s oceans – swaddling a ravenous, supermassive black hole (a quasar) more than 12 billion light-years away. (12/27)

Hubble Reveals Chaos in the Largest Planet Nursery Ever Seen (Source: Universe Today)
A thousand light years from Earth, something enormous is happening. The Hubble Space Telescope has captured images of the largest protoplanetary disk ever observed, a swirling mass of gas and dust that spans nearly 640 billion km. To put that in perspective, it’s 40 times wider than our entire Solar System, from the Sun to the outer edge of the Kuiper Belt where comets drift in the darkness. But size isn’t what has astronomers puzzled. This disk, playfully nicknamed “Dracula’s Chivito” by its researchers, is behaving in ways planetary nurseries aren’t supposed to.

Hubble’s observations reveal a chaotic environment with bright, finger like wisps of material shooting vertically above and below the disk’s central plane, stretching much farther than anything previously seen in similar systems. Even stranger, these dramatic features appear only on one side of the disk. The other side cuts off sharply with no visible filaments at all. (12/29)

Hanwha to Develop Propulsion System for S. Korean Lunar Lander (Source: Yonhap)
Under the contract with the state-run Korea Aerospace Research Institute, Hanwha Aerospace will be responsible for producing, assembling and testing key propulsion components, including the engine and attitude control thrusters, through 2032. The South Korean aerospace and defense giant has developed key spacecraft propulsion systems for the country's space projects since the launch of the Arirang-1 multipurpose satellite in 1994. The company said technologies and infrastructure developed through the lunar lander project could later be applied to future space exploration missions. (12/29)

Rethinking How We End A Satellite's Mission (Source: Universe Today)
At the end of their lives, most satellites fall to their death. Many of the smaller ones, including most of those going up as part of the “mega-constellations” currently under construction, are intended to burn up in the atmosphere. This Design for Demise (D4D) principle has unintended consequences, according to a paper by Antoinette Ott and Christophe Bonnal, both of whom work for MaiaSpace, a company designing reusable launch vehicles for the small satellite market.

Simply put, those unintended consequences could go so far as to create another hole in the ozone layer. There are two main chemicals that are concerning when it comes to that possibility: nitrogen oxides (NOx) and alumina. (12/28)

Behold the Manifold, the Concept that Changed How Mathematicians View Space (Source: WIRED)
Standing in the middle of a field, we can easily forget that we live on a round planet. We’re so small in comparison to the Earth that from our point of view, it looks flat. The world is full of such shapes—ones that look flat to an ant living on them, even though they might have a more complicated global structure. Mathematicians call these shapes manifolds. Introduced by Bernhard Riemann in the mid-19th century, manifolds transformed how mathematicians think about space.

It was no longer just a physical setting for other mathematical objects, but rather an abstract, well-defined object worth studying in its own right. This new perspective allowed mathematicians to rigorously explore higher-dimensional spaces—leading to the birth of modern topology, a field dedicated to the study of mathematical spaces like manifolds. Manifolds have also come to occupy a central role in fields such as geometry, dynamical systems, data analysis, and physics. (12/28)

Synspective Tapped to Provide Satellite Imagery for Japan’s New Military Constellation (Source: Space News)
Japanese radar-imaging company Synspective has been selected as a partner in a Japan Ministry of Defense project to build and operate a satellite constellation that would give Japan’s military priority access to imagery, enhancing Japan's national security with persistent, all-weather Earth observation through a Private Finance Initiative (PFI) project focused on better situational awareness and reconnaissance. (12/28)

China's LandSpace Gears Up to Take On Elon Musk and SpaceX (Source: Reuters)
China's rocket startup LandSpace has made no secret about drawing inspiration from Elon Musk's SpaceX. Earlier this month, the Beijing-based firm became the first Chinese entity to conduct a reusable rocket test. That put SpaceX on alert and LandSpace is now preparing to go public to fund its future projects, just as its bigger and far more successful U.S. rival considers an initial public offering of its own.

Even though LandSpace's Zhuque-3 rocket test ended in failure, its aspiration to become second only to SpaceX in reusable rockets is providing a fresh impetus to China's space industry, which has long been dominated by risk-averse, state-owned entities. LandSpace's focus on giving China its own low-cost launch option similar to SpaceX's flight-proven reusable rocket Falcon 9 will play a key role in Beijing's plans to build up 10,000 satellite constellations in the coming decades. (12/29)