April 12, 2026

Scotland 'On Track' to Become Key Center in European Spaceflight (Source: The Scotsman)
Scotland’s space industry is preparing for a “landmark” year with the country “on track” to become a key center for European spaceflight. Parallels have been drawn between the growth of the sector in Scotland - driven by collaboration between universities, companies and governments - and the successful Artemis II moon mission, which was underpinned by an international network of exceptional expertise.

Dr Natasha Nicholson, chief executive of Space Scotland, said: “Scotland may be small geographically, but its ambitions and partnerships are global. As Artemis brings the world together to return to the Moon, Scotland is showing how collaboration on Earth can drive growth, innovation and opportunity while helping shape the future of space.” (4/12)

Chandrayaan-4: Why India's Next Moon Mission is Changing Rockets (Source: India Today)
India's most complex upcoming Moon mission was already a challenge. Then the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) decided to change its rocket. Chandrayaan-4, India's first lunar sample return mission, is targeted for launch in October 2027. It will attempt to land on the Moon's south polar region, drill and collect up to three kilograms of lunar soil, seal it in a vacuum-tight container, launch back off the Moon's surface, dock with a waiting spacecraft in lunar orbit, and return the samples to Earth.

This is already an extraordinary undertaking. And yet, in the middle of development, ISRO made a significant decision: it decided to change the rocket. To understand the switch, you first need to understand why Chandrayaan-4 requires two rockets at all. The mission comprises five spacecraft modules: an Ascender Module, a Descender Module, a Re-entry Module, a Transfer Module and a Propulsion Module. Together, these weigh approximately 9,200 kg. India's most powerful operational rocket, the Launch Vehicle Mark-III (LVM3), can carry around 8,000 kg to low Earth orbit.

So ISRO's solution was to split the spacecraft across two separate LVM3 launches. The mission begins with the first LVM3 rocket carrying the landing stack, which includes the Descender and Ascender modules, into Earth orbit. Shortly after, the second LVM3 rocket launches with the remaining modules, the Propulsion, Transfer, and Re-entry units, to meet the first group in space. Once both are in Earth orbit, the two stacks perform a docking maneuver to lock together into a single integrated unit. (4/11)

Boeing’s Moon Rocket Faces Uncertain Future Under Trump’s NASA (Source: Bloomberg)
NASA’s Boeing Co. rocket just propelled astronauts farther into space than ever before. The Trump administration is already looking to competitors for a replacement. About a week before the $24 billion Space Launch System pushed the four crew members of the Artemis II mission around the moon, NASA asked rivals what options they could offer for its ambitious plan of future lunar trips. That call, echoed almost immediately in the White House’s budget request, put a big question mark on the future of Boeing’s beleaguered rocket after roughly a decade of development. (4/11)

Hermeus Secures Regulatory Approval for Supersonic Flights with Quarterhorse Mk 2.1 (Source: Flight Global)
Hypersonic aviation start-up Hermeus has received regulatory approval to carry out supersonic flights with the company’s experimental Quarterhorse Mk 2.1 vehicle. Regulators at the FAA on 9 April authorized Hermeus to conduct Quarterhorse Mk 2.1 flights at speeds exceeding Mach 1. The test sorties will take place at or higher than 30,000ft over White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico. Notice of the approval is set to be officially published in the US federal register on 13 April, though the decision was released on 10 April. (4/10)

Pentagon Upgrades its Hypersonic Weapon Test Range (Source: Defence Blog)
Huntsville-based Radiance Technologies has been awarded a minimum $149 million contract to upgrade infrastructure and instrumentation at the Reagan Test Range. The sole-source contract runs for five years. The Reagan Test Range is located at Kwajalein Atoll in the Marshall Islands in the central Pacific Ocean. The range provides a vast ocean expanse over which long-range ballistic missiles, reentry vehicles, and increasingly hypersonic systems can be tracked from launch to impact. (4/11)

SpaceX Posted Nearly $5 Billion Loss in 2025 (Source: Reuters)
Elon Musk's IPO-bound SpaceX reportedly posted a loss ​of nearly $5 billion in 2025 ‌on revenue of more than $18.5 billion. SpaceX did not immediately respond ⁠to a Reuters' request for comment. The loss includes ​Musk's artificial intelligence startup xAI, which SpaceX acquired in February, according to the report. (4/9)

Is China About to Launch a Rocket From South China Sea International Waters? (Source: SCMP)
China appears to be planning to launch its first rocket from open waters very soon. Allegedly, the launch will feature a 31-meter tall, solid-fueled Jielong-3 and will occur on Saturday, 18 April. The rocket will launch from a 532-foot long, 131-foot wide barge, the Dong Fang Hang Tian Gang, which has been specially converted for the purpose. This barge has also been modified to operate safely in international waters. (4/10)

FCC Set to Supercharge Starlink Performance, Potentially Lower Costs (Source: PC Mag)
The Federal Communications Commission is moving to overhaul decades-old rules to “supercharge” satellite internet speeds for SpaceX’s Starlink and Amazon’s Leo, which could potentially lower their costs and spur new competition. On April 30, the agency will vote on an order intended to modernize how older geostationary satellite systems share radio spectrum with newer, low-Earth orbit constellations like Starlink. FCC Chair Brendan Carr is already hailing the order as a way to lift “outdated power limits on satellite internet” for faster speeds. (4/9)

Student Team Finds One of the Oldest Stars in the Universe that Migrated to the Milky Way (Source: Universe Today)
Ten undergraduate students from the University of Chicago made an astounding discovery using data from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS). As part of their "Field Course in Astrophysics," they located one of the oldest stars in the Universe living in the Milky Way. The star, SDSS J0715-7334, is a red giant with 29 times as much mass as our Sun, located 79,256 light-years away. But here's where things truly get interesting: according to their findings, this star wasn't born in the Milky Way, but migrated here from another galaxy. (4/10)

Ripples in Spacetime May Have Revealed 1st Evidence of Tiny Black Holes Born in the Big Bang (Source: Space.com)
Ripples in the very fabric of space and time called "gravitational waves" may have provided the first tantalizing evidence of tiny black holes born during the Big Bang. These primordial black holes could, in turn, account for most if not all of the universe's most mysterious stuff, known as dark matter.

Unlike stellar mass black holes, primordial black holes weren't born when massive stars died, but instead from fluctuations in density that occurred immediately after the birth of the cosmos. That means they can be much smaller than stellar mass black holes, which have at least the same mass as several suns. These Big-Bang-born "non-astrophysical" black holes can have masses as small as that of an average asteroid or as large as a massive planet. (4/10)

If Venus Has Life It May Have Come From Earth, Scientists Say (Source: Science Alert)
The theory of panspermia holds that life is spread through the cosmos via asteroids, comets, and other objects. When the building blocks of life emerge on one planet, impacts can eject surface material into space, which then carries these seeds to other worlds. For decades, scientists have debated whether this could have occurred between Earth and Mars (in both directions). However, the recent controversy over the possible existence of microbial life in Venus' dense clouds has sparked discussions of interplanetary transfers between Venus, Earth, and Mars. (4/12)

Blue Origin Space Coast Test Site Suffers Damage; Unclear if New Glenn Launch Could be Delayed (Source: Orlando Sentinel)
As Blue Origin prepares for the next launch of its New Glenn rocket from Cape Canaveral, the company experienced unexpected damage at its Merritt Island rocket manufacturing facility. “During a routine test at our 2CAT facility in Florida, we experienced an anomaly during test execution,” according to a Blue Origin spokesperson. “There were no injuries, and safety protocols were in place at the time of the test. There is no impact to ongoing production operations.”

Photos posted to social media show a damaged roof to the 2CAT facility, a vertical building used for tank cleaning and testing on the rocket’s second stages. It’s a smaller building more toward the rear of the campus than the towering, 224-foot-tall building used to test the first stages, that can be seen for miles around the site. (4/10)

How Working Out Like an Astronaut Can Reduce Back Pain and Slow Ageing (Source: New Scientist)
The way astronauts fight to maintain fitness during their missions, and then work to fully regain it when they return from space, holds crucial clues to healthier lives – and less back pain – for the rest of us. It also highlights the importance of the anti-gravity activities we should do each day if we want to stand up to the force that constantly tugs us down – and it’s not all about conventional gym workouts.

To counteract these effects, astronauts on the ISS now spend around 2 hours a day on exercise regimes, using a special treadmill, cycling or using a resistance machine designed for workouts in low gravity. But, for many, this still isn’t enough to compensate, and studies conducted on astronauts over the years have revealed more details about the impacts of microgravity.

One of the key lessons from space medicine is the importance of our “forgotten” core: the stabilizer muscles, situated deep behind our “six pack” abs, which keep the lumbar spine steady and braced within the abdomen. These include the multifidus, which lines each side of the spinal column and supports the movement of the vertebrae, and the transversus abdominis, a layer of muscle that wraps horizontally around our trunk like a corset. (3/25)

More Than 10,000 Federal Scientists Left the U.S. Government in 2025, During Trump’s Second Term (Source: The Intellectualist)
In the first eleven months of 2025, 10,109 doctoral-trained scientists left the federal government. The losses were concentrated in agencies that fund medical research, regulate environmental standards and model climate risk. At 14 research agencies, hiring lagged departures nearly eleven to one, producing a net loss of more than 4,000 doctoral-level experts. Nearly 14 percent of the government’s STEM and health Ph.D. workforce exited in less than a year. The contraction has unfolded during President Donald Trump’s second term, reducing the federal government’s in-house capacity to review grants, evaluate scientific evidence and set national scientific standards. (2/28)

JAXA Study Shows Effects of Variable Gravity (Source: Douglas Messier)
JAXA has published results of an interesting study of mice aboard the ISS. The mice were subjected microgravity, 0.33 gravity, 0.67 gravity, and 1 gravity to determine how their bodies adjusted to those different conditions. Scientists specifically looked at the soleus muscle, which is a deep calf muscle located in the hindlimbs of mice. They found that the thickness of the muscle fibers did not decrease significantly when the mice were exposed to 0.33 gravity.

However, 0.33 gravity did not stop a shift from slow-twitch to fast-twitch fibers in the soleus muscle. This change causes muscles to atrophy, reduces endurance, and mimics accelerated aging. To counteract these effects, astronauts spent about two hours per day exercising. The study found that 0.67 gravity almost completely prevented the shift from slow-twitch to fast-twitch muscle fibers. (4/11)

April 11, 2026

From Moanalua to Mission Control: Meet the Hawaii Scientist Keeping Artemis II on Track (Source: Hawaii News Now)
While many watched the launch of NASA’s Artemis II mission in awe, Angela Garcia had a different vantage point as a NASA science officer supporting the agency’s return to deep-space exploration. “There (were) a few pinch, like, pinch myself in these real moments,” she said.

The 2013 Moanalua High School graduate is based at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston, where she works as a planetary exploration geologist. “It’s a new discipline that got integrated into the flight operations directorate,” Garcia said, noting that during the mission, she ensures “lunar science is getting advocated for in that room, and is getting accomplished during the mission.” (4/10)

NASA's Bid to Boost Space Enthusiasm (Source: Phys.org)
When NASA flight director Zebulon Scoville was working a shift during the uncrewed Artemis I test flight, he realized the US space agency wasn't consistently livestreaming the spacecraft's journey to Earth. "They said, well, we don't have bandwidth, we've got to get all this vehicle and engineering data down," Scoville recalled. "I was like—wrong... This program will be over if people don't buy it and they don't come with us."

NASA eventually got a low-bandwidth live stream up for that 2022 uncrewed mission. And once it was over, senior officials named the NASA veteran "imagery czar" to boost engagement. He told AFP he spent two years working across the agency to figure out how better to take the public on NASA's new moon missions. (4/11)

Space Travel Ultimately Promotes Cooperation (Source: Blue News)
For Swiss astronaut Claude Nicollier and space travel candidate Marco Sieber, the Artemis 2 mission has demonstrated the importance of international cooperation. "Space travel ultimately promotes cooperation," Nicollier said.

Sieber represents a younger generation of astronauts who did not witness the moon landing. "For us, this feels like the beginning of a new era," he said. That is why the Artemis mission is special. Canadian Jeremy Hansen, American Christina Koch and Americans Victor Glover and Reid Wiseman - the crew of Artemis 2 - were the first people to go near the moon for more than 50 years. (4/11)

The Gulf War Just Exposed India's Space Dependency Problem (Source: Swarajya)
It is noteworthy that the apparent ceasefire of the 2026 Persian Gulf War on 8 April, while it may not culminate in "lasting peace," has nonetheless introduced stark realities, prompting numerous regional and non-regional parties affected by this conflict to re-evaluate their global security strategies. For the Indian Space Commission, India's primary authority for space policy decisions, it is now extremely crucial to expedite two long-standing priorities: enhancing sovereign commercial space capabilities and developing a comprehensive national space strategy. (4/10)

Did These Historic NASA Spacecraft Find Life on Mars – and Accidentally Kill It? (Source: BBC)
Astrobiologists have proposed that NASA’s historic Viking missions may have detected signs of life on Mars in 1976, only for a key chemical signal to be mistakenly written off as terrestrial contamination. The provocative claim, published in the journal Astrobiology, hinges on a misreading of Martian soil chemistry and reignites debate as the search for life accelerates with new missions. Click here. (4/10)

Firehawk Aerospace Opens 636-Acre Rocket Integration Facility in Mississippi (Source: Expansion Solutions)
Firehawk Aerospace is expanding the nation’s defense manufacturing capacity with the opening of a 636-acre rocket system integration facility in Lowndes County, marking a significant investment in domestic propulsion production and advanced energetics.

The new campus will serve as the company’s primary rocket system integration hub, supporting assembly, validation, and delivery of next-generation rocket systems for U.S. and allied defense programs. The project will create more than 100 jobs and positions Mississippi as a growing player in the defense industrial base. (4/3)

SpaceX is Keeping the Space Station Alive with Saturday Cargo Launch (Source: Teslarati)
SpaceX launched Northrop Grumman’s Cygnus XL cargo spacecraft to the ISS from Florida, carrying over 11,000 pounds of supplies, science hardware, and equipment for the Expedition 73 crew. The mission, officially designated NG-24 under NASA’s Commercial Resupply Services program, names its spacecraft the S.S. Steven R. Nagel in honor of the NASA astronaut who flew four Space Shuttle missions and logged over 723 hours in space before his death in 2014.

Unlike SpaceX’s own Dragon capsule, which docks autonomously, Cygnus relies on NASA astronauts to capture it using a robotic arm before it is berthed to the space station’s module for unloading. When the mission wraps up around October, the Cygnus will depart loaded with station trash and burn up on reentry. (4/11)

Vandenberg’s Range Is Scaling to Meet Launch Demand (Source: Air and Space Forces)
In the last five years, the annual launch rate at the Space Force’s West Coast range has surged from a handful of missions to 66 in 2025. Now, Vandenberg Space Force Base in California expects to support 150 launches in the next five years and upwards of 200 by 2036. Navigating that kind of growth and planning for even more in the future has Col. James Horne, commander of Space Launch Delta 30 at Vandenberg, feeling a bit like he’s running a small business that’s on the rise.

The resources and strategic vision from the first phase of Spaceport of the Future have helped overhaul range operations, Horne said. But now, the service is planning for another phase of transformation to make sure Vandenberg and its East Coast range at Cape Canaveral, Fla., can handle the capacity to come. That campaign, Spaceport 2036, will lay out the service’s modernization needs over the next 10 years.

At Vandenberg, the initial infrastructure phase has focused on replacing and upgrading the base’s 1960s-era roads, bridges, and commodities to manage the growth happening now and the additional demand that it sees coming over the next decade. Horne said the base has a number of projects underway to address the wear and tear on its roads from the trucks used to carry commodities to launch pads. Today, it takes about 70 commercial trucks to supply the necessary propellants, liquid oxygen, and other resources needed for a single launch. (4/10)

SpaceX Accounted for 50% of Launches in 2025 (Source: Via Satellite)
BryceTech, one of the leading space research firms, has released its 2025 Year in Review tracking the launch market. It shows a market moving towards small satellites, and underlines the dominance of SpaceX in the launch market compared to all the other players. These were two of the highlights of its 2025 Year in Review research, which is now live. BryceTech reported in 2025 there were 325 orbital launches and 4,544 spacecraft deployed, representing approximately a 25% increase in launches and a 54% increase in spacecraft relative to 2024. (4/10)

HawkEye 360 Files to Go Public (Source: Space News)
HawkEye 360 filed for an IPO on April 10 with the SEC to list on the NYSE (ticker: HAWK). The defense-focused, space-based radio frequency (RF) data provider, based in Herndon, VA, reported 2025 revenue of $117.7 million. This move aims to tap into high demand for defense tech, with funds intended to support their 30-satellite constellation. (4/10)

Sateliot Launches $117-Million C-Round, Funding Will Build 16 Gen 2 Satellites (Source: Space Intel Report)
Startup satellite IoT constellation operator Sateliot of Spain launched what it intends to be a Series C round of 100 million euros ($117 million) that will close this summer and allow the company to launch 16 satellites and demonstrate its 5G New Radio service including voice and video. Sateliot launched its first demonstration satellite in 2021, In 2024 it launched four satellites to form the company’s first orbital plane to expand its store-and-forward service to over 1 million messages per day. (4/10)

China's Spacety Raises $190 Million to Scale Satellite Manufacturing, Plans IPO (Source: Space News)
Chinese satellite maker Spacety has completed multiple rounds of equity financing worth $190 million to scale its vertically integrated satellite manufacturing and data services model. (4/10)

U.S. Sanctions Didn’t Stop Spacety — They May Have Made It Stronger (Source: Space Daily)
Spacety, a Chinese satellite manufacturer sanctioned by the U.S. Treasury in 2023 for its alleged ties to Russia’s Wagner Group, has reportedly raised approximately $190 million in equity financing from state-linked funds and domestic venture capital. The funding round is one of the largest recent capital raises in China’s commercial space sector — and it reveals something specific that Washington should find uncomfortable: U.S. sanctions designed to isolate a Chinese space company may have accelerated exactly the outcome they were meant to prevent.

By cutting Spacety off from Western capital and partnerships, the Treasury Department created the conditions for Beijing to step in as sole patron, tightening the state’s grip on a nominally commercial firm and fast-tracking the construction of an independent Chinese Earth observation infrastructure that operates entirely beyond American oversight or leverage. (4/11)

NASA's Audacious Plan to Build a Nuclear-Powered Moon Base (Source: National Geographic)
If all of NASA’s audacious plans do come to pass, the moon might become a very unfamiliar place—a hub of industry and science, crisscrossed by a fleet of moon rovers, fueled by nuclear power, and the launching point for even farther cosmic adventures to come. The moon, then, won’t just become a collection of new flags in the dust. A base will turn it into a home for astronauts and a steppingstone to crewed missions to the red planet next door.

Step one, starting with Artemis V, will be gradual experimentation: using mostly uncrewed missions to test out basic technological elements—from power generation to communications relays—to make sure base building can be done effectively and safely. During this phase, the number of launches to the moon will begin to rise. Then, with the help of regular robotic and astronaut visitations, the foundations of the base will be set down during the second phase. At this stage, NASA describes it as “semi-habitable infrastructure.” (Early ideas include inflatable shelters, or covering a habitat with lunar soil to help insulate astronauts from radiation.)

Finally, there’s the third phase, when frequent, heavy cargo deliveries and significant contributions from NASA’s partner space agencies will turn a small, periodically homed fortress into a permanent base, one that is always stationed by a crew, like the International Space Station is today. The idea is that astronauts will spend “a few days to a couple of weeks on the surface, and then build up to something longer—maybe a month, maybe a couple of months,” says Glaze. (4/10)

Precision Nanomedicine to Target the Most Challenging Tumors (Source: Upward)
ISS National Lab-enabled research supports next generation chemotherapy and immunotherapy development. "Microgravity research has given us a clearer path toward optimizing this technology for real world cancer treatment,” said Mari Anne Snow, CEO and co-founder of Eascra Biotech. (410)

White House Budget Seeks to Scrap 54 Major NASA Science Missions (Source: Scientific American)
An analysis by the nonprofit science advocacy group The Planetary Society has identified 54 NASA missions that may be endangered as a result of the White House’s budget proposal for the coming fiscal year. These include a spacecraft currently studying Jupiter, a veteran X-ray observatory, planned missions to Venus and U.S. collaboration on a European rover meant to launch to Mars in 2028—and many more.

The new White House budget proposal for NASA—which totals only $18.8 billion—did not explicitly specify projects it intended to cancel. But Planetary Society experts analyzed this and previous documentation to identify which missions may be in danger. Of NASA’s major science departments, Earth science and heliophysics may face the most cuts, with 17 proposed mission cancellations in each, they found. Astrophysics and planetary science each face 10 cancellations, according to the analysis. (4/9)

Artemis 2 Mission Sends 'Kerbal Space Program' Player Numbers Soaring to the Mun (Source: Space.com)
Artemis II has launched, sending a crew of four astronauts on a mission to circle the moon and back to Earth, the first step toward planned lunar landings and eventual habitation on the lunar surface. The mission will take the crew of the Orion spacecraft farther from Earth than any manned mission in human history and will mark the first time humans have traveled beyond low-Earth orbit since the Apollo program.

Perhaps not surprisingly, the launch has had some digital echoes, not least of which is a massive spike in interest in "Kerbal Space Program". The game, which allows for highly realistic simulations of manned (or Kerballed) missions to space (including lunar landings), has seen its second-highest number of concurrent Steam players ever, only beaten by its full launch way back in 2015.

Numbers began to skyrocket around the time of the Artemis II launch on April 1st, peaking at around 12,434 at time of writing— a huge jump against the game's standard average player count, which hovers around 3,000 to 4,000. The significantly less popular sequel, Kerbal Space Program 2, also saw a modest bump, though only up to 370 concurrents from a prior high of about 118 players a month earlier. (4/8)

L3Harris Wins $150M Space Surveillance Update Contract (Source: Defense Post)
L3Harris Technologies has secured a $150 million contract from the US Space Force to sustain and upgrade the nation's ground-based space surveillance infrastructure. The contract aims to enhance early warning capabilities for space threats by improving the systems that detect and track objects in orbit. This latest award builds on previous collaborations between the Space Force and L3Harris under long-term modernization efforts. (4/10)

Orion Splashes Down to Successfully End Artemis 2 Mission (Source: Space News)
The first human mission beyond Earth orbit in more than 50 years successfully concluded as the Orion spacecraft Integrity splashed down in the Pacific southwest of San Diego at 8:07 p.m. Eastern April 10, ending the Artemis 2 mission. NASA reported the four astronauts on board were in good condition. (4/10)

Hermeus Raises $350M to Build the Fastest Aircraft in the World for the American Warfighter (Source: Hermeus)
Today, we’re announcing a $350M Series C financing. This is a mandate to build, fly, and deliver products for our customer – the American warfighter. This capital scales our fleet of aircraft, pushing the Quarterhorse program forward with our second supersonic aircraft, Mk 2.2, and our first Mach 3 aircraft, Mk 2.3. To achieve this, we’re expanding our prototyping footprint in Los Angeles with our new HQ in El Segundo, while Atlanta prepares for production and scale. (4/9)

Universities Space Research Association Awarded New Cooperative Agreement to Continue AFRL Scholars Program at Eglin AFB (Source: USRA)
The Universities Space Research Association (USRA) has been awarded a new cooperative agreement to continue managing the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) Scholars Program at Eglin Air Force Base (AFB). The award reaffirms USRA’s commitment to strengthening the science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) workforce in support of national defense priorities.

Since its launch in 2017, the AFRL Scholars Program at Eglin AFB has supported 668 participants through hands-on research experiences in mission-critical disciplines. The new agreement spans five years, with optional one-year extensions, and has an initial value of $2.5 million.

The program provides paid research internships for students from the high school to graduate level. Scholars work alongside AFRL scientists and engineers, gaining practical experience in real-world defense research environments. Through mentorship and continued engagement with returning Scholars and alumni, the program strengthens the STEM talent pipeline and supports long-term workforce development within the defense and research communities. (4/6)

Russian Lunar Station Segment Approved with China (Source: TASS)
The Russian Academy of Sciences (RAS) has approved the concept for the creation of the Russian segment of the International Lunar Research Station (ILRS) jointly with China, CEO of Russia’s State Space Corporation Roscosmos Dmitry Bakanov announced.

"The International Lunar Research Station project with China is developing. The Russian Academy of Sciences has approved the concept for the creation of its Russian segment," the Roscosmos head said at a meeting in the Federation Council upper house of parliament.

In May 2025, Roscosmos and the China National Space Administration (CNSA) signed a memorandum on the construction of a power plant for the International Lunar Research Station. Roscosmos announced that the station would conduct fundamental space research and test technologies for long-term unmanned operation with the prospect of human presence on the Moon. (4/1)

April 10, 2026

Simulated Organs to Sent to Space on Artemis II (Source: Mass Live)
As the Artemis II crew rockets back toward Earth after a record-setting journey around the moon, a small gray box aboard the capsule is quietly making history. Inside is technology built by a Boston startup that has just crossed milestones of its own.

Emulate Bio, a Boston company, worked with the Wyss Institute at Harvard and Space Tango of Kentucky to launch the experiment, dubbed AVATAR, aboard the mission. It’s the first time that “organ on a chip” technology, which aims to mimic the way human tissues and organs function, has flown into deep space.

The goal? To get insights into how microgravity, radiation, and other aspects of long-distance space flight will impact the human body. And what’s interesting about this experiment is that it uses living bone marrow cells from the four astronauts flying on Artemis II, obtained during a pre-launch blood draw. (4/9)

Oxygen Made From Moon Dust for First Time (Source: The Telegraph)
Breathable oxygen has been created from Moon dust in a world first that paves the way for a lunar base. Blue Origin, a company founded by Jeff Bezos, the American billionaire, announced this week that it had developed a reactor that could successfully release oxygen from lunar soil by using an electric current.

Almost half of Moon dust – the thin layer of rock that blankets the lunar surface – is oxygen, but it is bound to metals such as iron and titanium. Scientists and engineers want to extract the oxygen to repurpose it as breathable air or rocket fuel. Transporting oxygen to space from Earth would be too dangerous and expensive, so making it on the Moon is seen as a key step for long-term habitation. (4/9)

Artemis Astronauts to Shed Light on Space Health Risks (Source: AFP)
Earth's magnetosphere offers some protection against radioactive cosmic rays and solar particles to the orbiting ISS, but no such cover on the Moon. Studying the impacts of radiation is essential as NASA hopes to eventually build a Moon base and send astronauts on the long trip to Mars.

The US space agency installed radiation sensors on the Orion capsule and took blood samples of the astronauts before takeoff to compare with samples post-trip. The crew's saliva samples are gathered throughout the journey and their health is monitored via smartwatches. NASA has also placed state-of-the-art computer chips in the capsule that can replicate certain physiological functions, like that of an organ. Mission planners chose to mimic bone marrow. (4/10)

Shooting $100 Billion in Taxpayer Funds to the Moon is Not a Win (Source: Washington Post)
As Americans grapple with stubbornly high prices, stagnant real wages, geopolitical uncertainty and a housing market that has locked out a generation, Washington is throwing a party in orbit. The launch of Artemis II, NASA’s crewed lunar flyby, will cost about $4.1 billion. The entire program is expected to exceed $100 billion by the time astronauts are scheduled to step on the lunar surface once again in 2028. That is enough to send every American a check for roughly $300. Instead, that money is being aimed at the moon.

The mixed track record of government-run space programs makes one thing clear: There are better uses for taxpayer resources. SpaceX has already shown the way, cutting launch costs, capturing the majority of global payload mass and building a satellite network that has proved itself on battlefields. It is time for the market, not Washington, to lead humanity into space. (4/9)

Orion Helium Leak No Threat to Artemis II Reentry but Will Require Redesign (Source: Ars Technica)
Ground controllers revamped the timeline Wednesday as the Artemis II astronauts zoomed toward Earth after a close encounter with the Moon earlier this week. The four astronauts were supposed to take manual control of their Orion spacecraft for a piloting demonstration Wednesday night. Instead, mission managers canceled the demo to make time for an additional test of the ship’s propulsion system.

The goal was to gather data on a “small leak” of helium gas, which Orion uses to push propellant through a series of tanks and pipes to feed the spacecraft’s rocket engines, said Jeff Radigan, NASA’s lead flight director for the Artemis II mission. The spacecraft burns hydrazine fuel mixed with an oxidizer, nitrogen tetroxide, to power its main engine and thrusters for in-space maneuvers. The leak on Artemis II is in the helium pressure supply to the oxidizer side. (4/9)

Space Travel Is Futile, So Let’s Divert the Resources to Saving Earth (Source: Region)
For a confessed sci-fi, space opera nut who grew up watching the Apollo missions and devouring Asimov, Clarke and Bradbury, the realization that the space program is a futile and colossal waste of resources has not come easily. I still watched the launch of the Artemis mission to the Moon and its progress, and I can admire the technical genius of sending a human crew in a tin can around our only satellite.

But the notion of this being part of humanity’s destined march to the stars, the final frontier and all that, rings as hollow as an empty space capsule. It’s so seductive, raised as we are on the great (European) explorers ‘discovering’ new oceans and lands, but at least that was within our own bespoke biosphere.

The Artemis mission is pitched as a return to the Moon, where humans will establish a permanent base, from which to mount the really big voyage to Mars, and back, presumably. Not much is said of the obstacles to achieving this – these are put on the shelf as engineering problems that human ingenuity will eventually solve. For many, thanks to the boundaryless expanse of imagination, they have already been solved. (4/10)

A Different Moon From the One We’ve Known (Source: The Atlantic)
This week, we got a different moon—the Artemis moon. The moon captured by America’s first mission there in generations is not the moon I look for every time I step outside. It is not the moon I grew up with or the one my parents learned about during the Apollo missions.

On Monday—the moon’s day—we were introduced to a brown, battered world. Whole regions of its scarred far side did not appear a brilliant lunar white, but a much more familiar, homey hue. Mushroom, chestnut, hazel, cocoa, coffee, tea-stained, russet, brown: earth tones. Straight lines running over the moon’s surface; concentric rings that look like companion coffee-cup rings. (4/10)

ESA Launches 7 New Missions to Supercharge Space Data Transfer (Source: Universe Today)
On March 30, 2026, the European Space Agency (ESA) supported a series of eight CubeSats and one specialized payload on SpaceX’s Transporter-16 rideshare mission with the overarching goals of testing high-throughput laser communication, inter-satellite networking, and in-orbit artificial intelligence processing to make space data transfer faster, more secure, and vastly more efficient.

Five of the CubeSats aboard Transporter-16 were developed under ESA’s Greek Connectivity Programme and focused on building up the country’s space-based optical capabilities. OptiSat, operated by Planetek Hellas, is a cereal-box sized CubeSat flying a SCOT20 laser communication terminal built by German manufacturer TESAT. Its primary mission is to establish secure, high speed laser links with other small satellites in Low Earth Orbit (LEO).

Another satellite, PeakSat, was entirely developed by the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki. It features an ATLAS-1 laser terminal from the Lithuanian company Astrolight, and intends to demonstrate improved space-to-ground laser communications by beaming data down to newly upgraded optical ground stations in Greece. (4/10)

Kongsberg Targets LEO Constellation Market With SpinLaunch (Source: Aviation Week)
Norway’s Kongsberg is looking to enter the increasingly heated market for providing low Earth orbit satellite communications capabilities through a teaming agreement with SpinLaunch. Kongsberg would provide expertise from secure ground stations to spacecraft systems, while SpinLaunch would contribute its Meridian LEO constellation. The agreement follows Kongsberg taking a stake in SpinLaunch in a funding round a year ago.

Kongsberg NanoAvionics is working with SpinLaunch on 280 satellites for the initial Meridian constellation due for launch in October on a SpaceX Falcon 9. SpinLaunch has said it plans to deploy more than 1,000 satellites. SpinLaunch last month unveiled its Meridian Defense concept, adapting its commercially focused concept for the national security market. The company says space-based routing with intersatellite links will enable connectivity without the need for distributed ground stations. (4/8)

Xoople and L3Harris are Co-developing a Space-Borne Measurement System Designed for the AI Era (Source: Spacewatch Global)
Xoople and L3Harris Technologies announced the co-development of a first of its kind satellite constellation designed and optimized for the AI era. The milestone, the result of seven years of design and R&D work, advances the companies’ shared vision to deliver real-world context into every decision for a more sustainable, safer world. The Xoople constellation, with its unprecedented optical and sensor design which maximizes data quality, is a foundational layer of the company’s data infrastructure, designed to improve spatial intelligence by delivering orders-of-magnitude improvements in precision and speed compared to existing commercial Earth observation. (4/10)

Crew of Tiny Worms Readies for April 11 Launch to ISS (Source: Space.com)
British scientists have packed a container full of worms aboard Northrop Grumman's Cygnus XL cargo vehicle, to be launched by a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket on Saturday morning (April 11), to study the effects of long-duration spaceflight on biological organisms. The researchers hope the results will help mission planners keep human astronauts healthy on future space trips. (4/9)

Russia’s Lunar Program Suffers Delay Setbacks as Rival US’s Artemis II Mission Heads Home (Source: Spacewatch Global)
Russia has postponed its planned Luna-28, Luna-29, and Luna-30 missions to the Moon till between 2032 and 2036, marking another major delay in its lunar program as NASA's Artemis II astronauts becomes the first persons to orbit the moon in over 50 years. (4/9)

North Carolina Views Defense Industry as Key Growth Area (Source: Axios)
Much like batteries and semiconductors during the Biden administration, North Carolina economic development officials say they see increased momentum in the defense industry under the Trump administration. Federal policies can have a big impact on which jobs expansions occur throughout the country, and North Carolina landed several large expansions from clean energy and semiconductor firms due to provisions like the Inflation Reduction Act or the CHIPS Act during the Biden days.

One of Trump's policy changes — a move to shore up the production of rare-earth magnets away from China — has already brought jobs to North Carolina. The Trump administration's decision to take a stake in the rare-earth magnet maker Vulcan Elements as well as funding from the Department of War led to a pledge for 1,000 jobs in Johnston County. The state was also in contention for a 4,000-job expansion from Anduril, an autonomous defense tech company that has benefited greatly from defense contracts. (4/9)

Orbital Edge Accelerator 2026 Launches to Unlock Space and Capital for Ambitious Founders (Source: CASIS)
The ISS National Laboratory is launching the 2026 Orbital Edge Accelerator, now in its second year. This program is in partnership with returning global investment partners Cook Inlet Region, Inc., E2MC, and Stellar Ventures and welcomes new partners Context Ventures, Draper Associates, and Draper University, alongside leading industry participants and sponsors.

Orbital Edge is a one-of-a-kind accelerator that provides early-stage startups with access to low Earth orbit and $500,000 to $750,000 in private capital funding per startup. In addition to venture investment and access to orbital flight platforms, the program delivers targeted mentorship and programming focused on spaceflight technology development, business building, and product commercialization. (4/7)

China's Next Lunar Lander Arrives at Spaceport (Source: Space News)
China's next robotic lunar lander has arrived at its launch site. Chang'e-7 will be prepared for launch on a Long March 5 rocket from Wenchang spaceport, with earlier reports suggesting launch in August. The mission consists of an orbiter, lander, rover and a unique hopping probe to seek out evidence of water ice in permanently shadowed craters at the lunar south pole. The Chang'e-7 mission, together with Chang'e-8, scheduled for around 2029, will form a basic outline of the China-led International Lunar Research Base. (4/10)

Isar's Andoya Launch Scrubbed for Leak (Source: Space.com)
German launch startup Isar Aerospace scrubbed another attempt to launch its Spectrum rocket Thursday. The company called off the launch from Andøya Spaceport in northern Norway after detecting a leak in a composite overwrapped pressure vessel in the rocket. The company did not disclose a new launch date. This would be the second flight of Spectrum after the first crashed shortly after liftoff in March 2025. (4/10)

Proposed Budget Again Threatens TraCSS (Source: Space News)
A Commerce Department budget proposal has raised new questions about the future of the TraCSS space traffic coordination system. A high-level budget proposal last week included $11 million for the Office of Space Commerce for fiscal year 2027, but did not include any further details about those funds. The 2026 budget proposal included $10 million for the office but nothing for TraCSS, a cut that House and Senate appropriators sought to reverse. Industry sources said the 2027 budget proposal appears to be another attempt to either cancel TraCSS or severely curtail it. (4/10)

Commercial Capabilities Need "Battle Hardening" for DoD Use (Source: Space News)
Commercial space technologies are becoming central to the U.S. military's plans, a shift that brings with it new challenges. One concern raised by the military is the need for "battle hardening" of commercial technology, without stripping away the very attributes that made it valuable in the first place. One proposed solution has been the Commercial Augmentation Space Reserve, or CASR, which the Space Force has been studying for years, modeled on a similar air reserve program. However, for commercial firms, participation could mean diverting bandwidth from paying customers. It raises unresolved questions about liability, compensation and exposure, with implications for companies involving insurance, investment and international business relationships. (4/10)

India Tests Gaganyaan Parachute (Source: The Print)
India's space agency ISRO has performed another Gaganyaan spacecraft parachute test. In the second Integrated Air Drop Test on Friday, a simulated Gaganyaan crew module was dropped from a helicopter at an altitude 3,000 meters to test the deployment of its parachutes. The capsule splashed down safely in the sea and was recovered by a ship. ISRO conducted a similar test last August ahead of uncrewed flight tests of the spacecraft later this year. The first crewed Gaganyaan mission is now planned for no earlier than 2027. (4/10)

Amazon Readies Leo Service Kickoff (Source: PC Magazine)
Amazon plans to begin limited commercial services with the broadband constellation this summer. In a letter to shareholders, Amazon CEO Andy Jassy said Amazon Leo services will begin in mid-2026. He claimed the service would provide better uplink and downlink speeds than "what customers have access to now," an apparent reference to Starlink, and be at a lower cost. Amazon currently has less than 10% of its full constellation in orbit, which would limit the availability of those services. (4/10)

FCC Plans Vote on Constellation Signal Strength Rules (Source: FCC)
The FCC plans to vote at its next commission meeting on a rule to adjust limits on signals from broadband constellations like Starlink and Amazon Leo. FCC Chairman Brendan Carr said commissioners will take up a report and order to modify rules on equivalent power flux density that date back to the 1990s. Those rules limit the power at which low Earth orbit systems can operate to avoid interference with geostationary satellites. The FCC argues that new spectrum sharing technologies will allow LEO systems to operate at higher power levels, enabling better performance. (4/10)

Italy's Former Space Chief Joins Vast (Source: Vast)
A former president of the Italian space agency ASI is now leading commercial space station Vast's European office. Vast announced Friday it hired Giorgio Saccoccia as president for Europe. In his new role Saccoccia will work with European governments on future human spaceflight and science missions on Vast's commercial space stations. He will also support other international expansion activities by Vast outside Europe. (4/10)

Space: A New Frontier in Medicine (Source: Spectrum)
As the crew of Artemis II has ventured deeper into space than ever before, they’re also gathering data on how radiation affects individual astronauts. It’s part of a study known as “Avatar," which monitors astronauts’ tissue samples in space. The goal, Kris Lehnhardt explained, is to anticipate how an individual astronaut’s body will respond to radiation in space. Then, he said, “we might be then able to make countermeasures that are specific to that astronaut to help them deal with that radiation exposure.” 

But long-term space travel, Lehnhardt believes, will require technology that’s straight out of sci-fi. “We need to really start developing autonomous medical technologies,” he said. It may not be as far-fetched as it sounds. “Those technologies are all within reach with some of the new artificial intelligence work that's been going on,” said Lehnhardt. (4/9)

Space Travel is Futile, so Let's Divert the Resources to Saving Earth (Source: Region)
For a confessed sci-fi, space opera nut who grew up watching the Apollo missions and devouring Asimov, Clarke and Bradbury, the realization that the space program is a futile and colossal waste of resources has not come easily. I still watched the launch of the Artemis mission to the Moon and its progress, and I can admire the technical genius of sending a human crew in a tin can around our only satellite.

But the notion of this being part of humanity’s destined march to the stars, the final frontier and all that, rings as hollow as an empty space capsule. It’s so seductive, raised as we are on the great (European) explorers ‘discovering’ new oceans and lands, but at least that was within our own bespoke biosphere. (4/10)
 
Lockheed Martin Wins $105 Million Contract for GPS Ground Control System as OCX Winds Down (Source: Space News)
The U.S. Space Force awarded Lockheed Martin a $105 million contract to support ground control operations for the next generation of GPS satellites, as the Pentagon moves to wind down a long-delayed replacement program led by RTX. (4/10)

April 9, 2026

Vantor to Expand Earth Imaging Fleet with Two More Smallsats (Source: Space News)
Earth imaging company Vantor plans to use smallsats to expand its satellite fleet. The company, formerly known as Maxar, said Wednesday it is making the first major overhaul of its space architecture in nearly a decade by expanding its fleet of 10 imaging satellites. Vantor will add two Vantage high-resolution satellites capable of 20-centimeter imagery and as many as two dozen smaller Pulse satellites producing 40-centimeter imagery designed for more frequent coverage. Together, these assets are intended to provide persistent monitoring without sacrificing image quality, a tradeoff that has long defined the commercial remote-sensing market. The first Pulse satellites are expected to launch in 2027, with the Vantage spacecraft projected for deployment in 2029. (4/9)

Space Force Picks 14 Companies for $1.8 Billion In-Space Satellite Monitoring (Source: Space News)
The Space Force selected 14 companies Wednesday to participate in a $1.8 billion program to monitor activities in geosynchronous orbit. The program known as Andromeda is structured as a $1.8 billion, 10-year contracting vehicle managed by Space Systems Command. It establishes a pool of vendors that will compete for task orders to design and build spacecraft and supporting systems. The selected vendors span a mix of established defense contractors and newer space firms. The program is an effort by the Space Force to broaden its supplier base, pairing large incumbents with venture-backed entrants that have been pushing into national security missions. Andromeda will initially focus on satellites capable of observing activity in geosynchronous orbit, roughly 22,000 miles above Earth, where many of the military's most valuable communications and missile-warning systems operate. (4/9)

Portal Raises $50 Million for Maneuverable Spacecraft Development (Source: Space News)
Portal Space Systems has raised $50 million to accelerate development of its highly maneuverable spacecraft. The company announced the Series A round Thursday, led by Geodesic Capital and Mach33 with participation from several other investors. The funding will allow it to advance development of Starburst, a maneuverable spacecraft bus, and Supernova, a vehicle designed to rapidly move between orbits using a solar thermal propulsion system. The first Starburst spacecraft is scheduled to launch later this year with Supernova to follow in 2027. The company, initially focused on defense customers, is looking to expand into civil and commercial applications along with international customers, particularly in Japan. (4/9)

Apex to Build Larger Satellites (Source: Space News)
Apex is moving to build larger and more powerful spacecraft less than a year after introducing its biggest platform. The company said Thursday it is developing two larger variants of its Comet satellite bus, called Comet Mini and Comet XL. Comet Mini can accommodate payloads from 450 to 1,000 kilograms while the larger Comet XL is optimized for super-heavy lift vehicles such as Starship. The new buses are intended for what the company calls the "most demanding next-generation payloads" that require more power and mass than its existing buses. (4/9)

Albedo Plans Second Satellite, a VLEO Platform for SAR/EW/Comms Missions (Source: Space News)
Albedo, the former Earth-observation startup now focused on satellite manufacturing, plans to fly its second satellite next year. Vicinity, scheduled to launch in 2027, will deploy solar arrays to provide far more power than the solar panels mounted on Precision, the bus that housed Albedo's 2025 Clarity-1 mission. Vicinity is a VLEO spacecraft built for payloads that demand high power like synthetic aperture radar, electromagnetic warfare and communications. The spacecraft, weighing 300 kilograms, is similar in mass to Precision. (4/9)

Lockheed Martin Gets $105 Million From Space Force for GPS Ground Control (Source: Space News)
Lockheed Martin won a Space Force contract to support ground control operations for the next generation of GPS satellites. The $105 million contract announced Wednesday covers launch and on-orbit test support for GPS 3F satellites through March 2030, using the existing Architecture Evolution Plan, or AEP, ground control system. The move follows recent steps by the Pentagon to end development of the Next Generation Operational Control System, or OCX, a program awarded to Raytheon in 2010 that has faced years of delays and cost growth. (4/9)

China Launches Guowang Constellation Satellites on Long March 6 (Source: Xinhua)
China launched another set of satellites for the Guowang constellation Wednesday. A Long March 6 rocket lifted off from the Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center on the 21st flight of spacecraft for Guowang. Official reports did not disclose how many satellites were on the launch but previous Long March 6 launches for Guowang carried five satellites each. (4/9)

Chinese Launches Spacesail Constellation Satellites on Long March 8 (Source: Spacewatch Africa)
China has launched a group of 18 communications satellites from the Hainan spaceport on Tuesday night, deploying the seventh batch of space-based assets of the Spacesail Constellation in orbit. Built by Shanghai-based Innovation Academy for Microsatellites for satellite operator Spacesail, the plate-shaped satellites were carried by a Long March 8 rocket. With this launch, 126 satellites have been lifted into space by six rockets for the Spacesail Constellation. (4/8)

Better SSA Data Needed for Collision Avoidance (Source: Space News)
Improving the accuracy of space situational awareness data and using tighter thresholds can help retire most of the risk of satellite collisions in low Earth orbit. A study by COMSPOC presented at a conference this week found that satellite operators eliminate only 7% of the risk of collisions given the current accuracy of SSA data and use of a threshold of a 1-in-10,000 risk of collision to take action, such as maneuvering. The study found that improving the SSA data accuracy by a factor of 10 and using a 1-in-1,000,000 threshold could reduce more than 90% of the risk. That improved accuracy could come from fusing data from various sources and incorporating spacecraft maneuver plans. (4/9)

ESA Spent ~$96 Million for an Ariane 6 Launch (Source: European Spaceflight)
The European Space Agency has disclosed how much it spent on an Ariane 6 launch. Contracting data released by the agency showed it spent about 82 million euros ($96 million) on the Ariane 62 launch of the Sentinel-1D Earth observation mission last year. ESA used an Ariane 6 for the launch because of delays in the return to flight of the Vega C. (4/9)

SaxaVord Spaceport Lost Over $7 Million with Delayed Launches (Source: Times of London)
A UK spaceport lost more than $7 million last year. Filings by the Shetland Space Center, which operates SaxaVord Spaceport, show the company lost £5.4 million ($7.2 million) in 2025 as customers delayed their launch plans there. The spaceport lost £5.1 million in 2024. The spaceport expects to host several launches this year but lost one of its customers when Orbex went bankrupt earlier this year. (4/9)

What if Dark Matter Came in Two States? (Source: Sissa Medialab)
The absence of a signal could itself be a signal. This is the idea behind a new study which aims to redefine how we search for dark matter, showing that it may not be necessary to find the same “clues” everywhere in order to interpret it. In particular, the study suggests that even if we observe a certain type of signal at the center of our galaxy — an excess of gamma radiation that could result from the annihilation of dark matter particles — failing to detect the same signal in other systems, such as dwarf galaxies, is not enough to rule out this explanation. Dark matter, in fact, may not consist of a single particle, but of multiple slightly different components, whose behavior varies depending on the cosmic environment. (4/9)

Satellite Imagery Reveals Increasing Volatility in Human Night-Time Activity (Source: Nature)
Artificial light at night (ALAN) marks the global impact of humanity. Yet, our understanding of its true ebb and flow has been limited, often based on temporally aggregated satellite data that obscure finer dynamics. Here, using daily night-time satellite imagery and a continuous change detection approach, we created global maps of high-frequency ALAN dynamics. Our findings challenge the prevailing perspective that changes in light radiance are largely gradual and unidirectional. Instead, the nightlights of Earth are surprisingly dynamic, characterized by frequent and coexisting brightening and dimming. On average, each location experiencing change underwent 6.6 distinct shifts over the 9 years.

Driven by this volatility, the cumulative area of total ALAN change comprised 2.05 million km2 of abrupt changes and 19.04 million km2 of gradual changes. Brightening contributed a radiance increase equivalent to 34% of the 2014 global baseline, whereas dimming offset this by 18%. Notably, both brightening and dimming have markedly intensified over the past decade. This evidence of increasing volatility in human night-time activity provides an important dynamic dimension for understanding urban evolution, energy transitions, policy impacts and ecological consequences of rapidly changing illuminated nights. (4/8)

Portal Developing "Fighter Jet for Orbit" (Source: Tech Crunch)
Jeff Thornburg helped turn a government research project into SpaceX’s most powerful rocket engine. Now, he’s trying to do the same thing at his startup Portal Space Systems, which is taking an idea set aside by NASA and turning it into high-powered propulsion for the next generation of spacecraft. Portal, founded in 2021, announced a $50 million Series A funding round Thursday that values the company at $250 million. The round was led by Geodesic Capital and Mach33, alongside Booz Allen Ventures, ARK Invest, AlleyCorp, and FUSE.

The company is developing a technology called solar thermal propulsion. Today’s standard satellite engines either burn chemical fuel or convert the sun’s energy to electricity, using that to power efficient but low-powered thrusters. Portal’s engines would instead concentrate the heat of the sun, using that to heat propellant and move the spacecraft along at high speed. (4/9)

OneWeb Holdings UK Reports Increased Revenue, Reduced Operating Loss (Source: Space Intel Report)
The OneWeb broadband satellite network reported $186 million in revenue for the year ending June 30, 3025, a 44.5% increase following market traction in all its markets, the company said. As part of a broad reorganization following Eutelsat’s purchase of the company in September 2023, OneWeb reduced staff costs by 33%, to $82.8 million; and operating expenses by 17%, to $121.1 million. The Eutelsat purchase did not transfer OneWeb’s headquarters, which has remained in London. (4/9)

FAA Plans April 18 Changeover to New NOTAM System (Source: NBAA)
The FAA will soon take a significant step forward in modernizing the NOTAM service with the shutdown of the existing US NOTAM System (USNS) and cutover to a new and more robust system in the morning hours of Saturday, April 18. The transition will take place between midnight and 4 a.m. EDT. During that time, NOTAMs active prior to the maintenance window will be available via all normal distribution channels. The FAA also recommends using FNS NOTAM search to ensure operators receive the most timely and accurate information. (4/8)

7 NBAA Tips for Navigating Challenging Florida Airspace (Source: NBAA)
Two years ago, as part of its Collaborative Decision-Making initiative, the FAA formed the Florida Task Force to explore ways to mitigate ongoing issues. Members of the NBAA Air Traffic Services (ATS) – who have been working at the FAA Air Traffic Control System Command Center (ATCSCC) since 2001 – participated in the task force along with representatives from major airlines and regional carriers. Click here. (4/7)

California, for All its Flaws, Continues to Lead in Space (Source: New York Post)
The Artemis II mission is a triumph of the American spirit — and a testament to California’s enduring leadership in the US space program. Californians played a key role in every aspect of the voyage around the moon, which took four astronauts further away from Earth than any human being has ever been. There is Ontario’s own Victor Glover, the mission commander, who played football at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo before joining the space program.

The engineers at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena managed communications with the Orion capsule through the Deep Space Network (DSN). And local Caltech scientists helped design the scientific projects carried out by the mission. The USS John P. Murtha, based at Naval Base San Diego, is in charge of recovering the Orion once it splashes down in the Pacific Ocean.

Whether public or private — through NASA, or SpaceX, or one of many other emerging space start-up companies — California’s role in space exploration and innovation is not only prominent, but dominant. We still boast the world’s top institutions of higher education, as well as the leading centers of scientific research and technological innovation. California attracts talent from around the nation and across the globe, drawn by the opportunity to work with each other in an entrepreneurial environment that is second to none. (4/7)

Why Not Start a Rocket Company? (Source: Marketplace)
David Brancaccio spoke with Sascha Deri, founder and CEO of bluShift Aerospace, a rocket startup based in Maine. Sascha Deri: "So, we're making rocket propulsion systems to ultimately support research in space and to, frankly, take over solid rocket motors in the marketplace. Those motors are used for, you think of the space shuttle strap-on boosters, but also for developing new hypersonic capabilities in the United States, as well as ultimately reaching the stars." Click here. (4/7)

Musk Wants to Turn 700 Acres of Texas Wildlife Refuge Into SpaceX Property (Source: The Barbed Wire)
SpaceX is aiming to acquire 712 acres of land in the Lower Rio Grande Valley National Wildlife Refuge, amid the protests of environmentalists and activist groups. The proposal would exchange the wildlife refuge land for 692 acres of land in Starbase, SpaceX’s headquarters on the southern tip of Texas. Starbase was officially designated a city in May 2025, after workers living near SpaceX’s rocket launch facility there voted in favor of the measure, according to the Texas Tribune.

A draft of the proposed land exchange was published on March 2, and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, which manages the National Wildlife Refuge in question, asked the public to submit feedback on the proposal. SpaceX has not said how it intends to use the land, but the proposal acknowledged it is likely they will develop on that land after acquisition. (4/7)

War Has Reached Space, and Europe Isn’t Ready (Source: Parliament)
MEP Christophe Grudler (Renew/FR), the episode underscored a growing vulnerability: “It is absolutely strategic to be in space with strong assets.” However, most European capitals often lack not only the means to respond independently to space-related crises but in some cases even the tools to understand them in the first place.

“If you want to fight against something, you need to know what's happening,” said Grudler. “Today, in Europe, we do not have enough [sovereign] space data. We use American data for space [awareness].” With critical infrastructure — from smartphones and financial systems to energy grids and military communications — reliant on space, disruptions such as jamming, spoofing or direct satellites attacks could cascade across entire societies. (4/7)

ULA's Second Rocket Carrier Ship Launches (Source: Shippax)
Bollinger Shipyards has launched the specialized RoRo SPACESHIP, ordered by United Launch Alliance (ULA). SPACESHIP is the most recent rocket carrier designed and built by Bollinger Shipyards. The vessel follows in the footsteps of ROCKETSHIP, which has been transporting Atlas V components since 2011. SPACESHIP will be used to transport Atlas V and Vulcan rocket elements from the ULA factory in Decataur, Alabama. (4/8)

SDA Makes Second HALO Europa Award (Source: SDA)
The Space Development Agency (SDA) today announced it has awarded a prototype agreement under the Hybrid Acquisition for Proliferated Low Earth Orbit, or HALO, Europa Track 1 solicitation to Capella, an IonQ company, based in San Francisco, to demonstrate advanced tactical waveform performance, adaptive beamforming, and secure tactical communications in low Earth orbit (LEO). (4/7)

Student Experiments Launched on Suborbital Rockets From Sweden (Source: ESA)
After more than a year of design, testing and development, dozens of European university students gathered in March to enact the final stage of their experimental projects in the REXUS 35 and 36 campaign. For two weeks, these students utilised the Esrange Space Center in northern Sweden to prepare and launch their various experiments on sounding rockets. (4/7)

April 8, 2026

Space Security Moves to Forefront as Threats to Satellites Spread (Source: Space News)
A new report says space security is shifting from a niche arms-control concern to a central policy issue as reliance on satellites deepens and the tools to disrupt them proliferate. The annual Global Counterspace Capabilities report by the Secure World Foundation, released Wednesday, finds that interference with space systems now carries immediate military, economic and political consequences, while the capabilities to cause that interference grow. While past discussions on counterspace technologies focused largely on the United States, China and Russia, this report says more countries are developing such technologies. (4/8)

Hungary Picks Northrop Grumman to Build CommSat (Source: Space News)
Northrop Grumman won a contract to build Hungary's first national communications satellite. As part of Vice President JD Vance's visit to Budapest Tuesday, the Hungarian defense and space firm 4iG announced an agreement with Northrop to build a geostationary communications satellite under a program known as HUSAT. The spacecraft, a Ka-band system based on Northrop's GEOStar-3 platform, is scheduled for delivery in 2030 and would provide Hungary with its first domestically controlled satellite communications capability. The HUSAT program combines the geostationary satellite with a planned constellation of eight Earth observation spacecraft that 4iG will develop. Separately, 4iG signed an agreement with Apex to explore establishing a joint venture aimed at building small satellites in Europe and targeting demand for large constellations. (4/8)

Capella Wins $49 Million SDA Contract for SatComm (Source: Space News)
Capella Space won a $49 million contract from the Space Development Agency (SDA) for testing military satellite communications. The firm-fixed-price agreement was issued Tuesday under SDA's Hybrid Acquisition for Proliferated Low Earth Orbit, or HALO, an other transaction authority contracting mechanism used to fund rapid, on-orbit experiments. Capella, a California-based operator of a commercial radar imaging constellation and a subsidiary of IonQ, will design and develop two spacecraft equipped with specialized radio frequency payloads to test what SDA called "advanced tactical waveform performance, adaptive beamforming, and secure tactical communications" in LEO. The effort is aimed at showing that satellites in low Earth orbit can support military-grade communications links that remain reliable under interference or jamming. (4/8)

Astroscale's UK Formation Flying Hyperspectral Cubesats Complete Review (Source: Space News)
Astroscale has completed the critical design review for two cubesats for the British military. The U.K. subsidiary of the Japanese on-orbit servicing venture announced the milestone Wednesday for the Orpheus mission, which was fully funded last year under a 5.15 million British pound ($7 million) contract from the U.K.'s Defence Science and Technology Laboratory. The mission involves flying a pair of near-identical spacecraft from British small satellite specialist Open Cosmos in close formation for a year in LEO. The spacecraft carry hyperspectral imagers for detecting and characterizing objects of interest. The cubesats will also study space weather. (4/8)

Minotaur 4 Converted ICBM Launches DoD Research Payload From California (Source: Edhat)
A Minotaur 4 launched a mission for the Defense Department's Space Test Program Tuesday. The rocket lifted off from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California on the STP-S29A mission. The primary payload was STPSat-7, carrying several Space Test Program experiments. Also on board were a pair of U.S. Army cubesats called Rawhide and several other cubesats. (4/8)

China Launches Broadband Constellation Satellites on Long March 8 (Source: Xinhua)
China launched a set of broadband constellation satellites Tuesday. A Long March 8 lifted off from the Wenchang spaceport on the island of Hainan, placing 18 Qianfan satellites into orbit. The Qianfan, or Thousand Sails, satellites are part of a planned broadband constellation ultimately numbering 14,000 satellites. (4/8)

LeoLabs Offers Orbital Threat Notices (Source: Space News)
LeoLabs is expanding beyond tracking satellites and debris into identifying potential threats in orbit. The company announced Wednesday its new Delta system, a software platform designed to detect and characterize unusual satellite behavior. The tool is aimed at military and government operators managing spacecraft in low Earth orbit, where congestion and geopolitical competition are both increasing. Delta is designed to flag behavior such as when a satellite changes its orbit in ways that put it into the same orbital plane as another spacecraft, allowing for repeated approaches. Several allied governments in Europe and Asia are already using Delta. (4/8)

Bulgaria's EnduroSat and UK's Shield Space Team for Inspection Cubesat Development (Source: Space News)
Two European companies are teaming up to develop an inspection cubesat. Bulgarian satellite maker EnduroSat and British defense tech startup Shield Space announced Wednesday plans to deploy a cubesat next year capable of maneuvering near other satellites for inspection. The partnership combines EnduroSat's standardized satellite platform architecture with Shield Space's autonomous rendezvous and proximity operations software, originally developed for drones used in Ukraine.

The first mission under the partnership is slated for the second quarter of 2027 and is dubbed Broadsword, involving an 8U autonomous "chaser" cubesat that would conduct RPO operations with a smaller 3U target satellite launched alongside it. Broadsword is intended as a stepping stone toward a broader architecture centered on a mothership capable of deploying multiple maneuverable spacecraft. (4/8)

Italy Wants Leonardo CEO Replaced (Source: Reuters)
The Italian government is seeking to replace the CEO of space and defense company Leonardo. The government, which owns more than 30% of Leonardo, wants to replace Roberto Cingolani, but has not offered details about why. Leonardo's shares have soared since 2022 and as recently as February Cingolani appeared to be on track to secure a new three-year term as CEO. A potential replacement is Lorenzo Mariani, a former Leonardo executive who is now is now at European missile manufacturer MBDA. Leonardo is in the process of merging its space business with those from Airbus and Thales through a joint venture named Project Bromo. (4/8)

L3Harris Wins $150M Space Force MOSSAIC Contract (Source: GovConWire)
L3Harris Technologies has secured a $150 million contract from the US Space Force to update ground systems under the Maintenance of Space Situational Awareness Integrated Capabilities program. This contract extends L3Harris's ongoing role in supporting military, civil, and commercial applications with advanced space domain awareness solutions. (4/8)
 
Boeing Delivers Satellite for Viasat APAC Expansion (Source: Mobile World)
Boeing has delivered the ViaSat-3 F3 satellite to Viasat, which will enhance the latter's coverage across Asia-Pacific. The satellite, set to launch on a SpaceX Falcon Heavy, features larger solar arrays and advanced electronics, and will join the F1 and F2 satellites. (4/7)

Stellar Artemis II Photos Taken with Old-Model Nikon Worth About $1,000 (Source: New York Post)
Most of the out-of-this-world photos being beamed home from Artemis II were taken with an old-model Nikon camera that can be bought for about $1,000. NASA traded in the legendary Hasselblad model it used on Apollo missions years ago for the Nikon D5 DSLR — a classic digital single-lens-reflex camera first released in 2016. The Nikon was carefully selected for its proven track record as a workhorse space camera, as well as its extraordinary ability to pick up detail even in extreme darkness, a Nikon official said. (4/7)

ExLabs Pushes Private Sector Role in Planetary Defense as Apophis Asteroid Approaches Earth (Source: ExLabs)
ExLabs will highlight the growing role of private companies in planetary defense ahead of asteroid Apophis’ historic 2029 flyby of Earth, while showcasing its own Apophis EX mission at the upcoming Space Symposium. On April 13, 2029, Apophis will pass approximately 20,000 miles from Earth, closer than many geostationary satellites. The asteroid, which is nearly 1,000 feet wide, will be visible to billions of people around the world and will provide scientists with a rare opportunity to study how a potentially hazardous asteroid responds to Earth’s gravitational forces.

International missions are already being planned. NASA’s OSIRIS-APEX mission is expected to observe Apophis after the flyby, while the European Space Agency’s RAMSES mission aims to rendezvous with the asteroid before its close approach. ExLabs believes commercial missions can significantly expand the amount of data collected and the number of organizations able to participate. (4/7)

Investors Are Already Abuzz About a Tesla-SpaceX Merger (Source: Wall Street Journal)
Elon Musk surprised onlookers with the quick merger between SpaceX and xAI. Now analysts, investors and close Musk observers are debating the merits of what some see as the ultimate combination: SpaceX and Tesla. As SpaceX approaches an initial public offering, some investors are discussing the idea of a mega-Musk merger as a follow-up. Musk has said he thinks his companies are converging, but he hasn’t commented on speculation of a merger. (4/7)

Meet Orpheus - A Hopper Mission Built To Hunt For Life In Martian Volcanoes (Source: Universe Today)
We’ve spent decades scratching the surface of Mars trying to uncover life there. Unlike lava tubes, vents feature sustained heat and circulation that releases volatiles like water vapor and other gases as long as the volcano is active. In other words, they are the most likely spots for internal planetary heat to meet water - just like the vents in Earth’s ocean floor that might have given rise to the first life here.

Orpheus’ team is particularly interested in “Vent #5”, which is about 200 meters across and 50 meters deep. Most notably, it features a diffuse dark streak stretching 400 meters uphill from its rim. Researchers think this streak could be fresh, dark volcanic material that was put there by a recent eruption. Or it could be fresh subsurface material excavated by the wind. Either way, it’s most likely the site of the most recent activity on CT1, and therefore holds the most promise of finding something protected from the surface up until recently. (4/8)

Intel Partners With SpaceX, Tesla to Operate New Chip Plant (Source: Wall Street Journal)
Elon Musk is partnering with Intel INTC on his ambitious Terafab project, which aims to build specially designed chips for SpaceX and xAI as well as for Tesla. In an announcement Tuesday, Intel said it would work with the companies to “design, fabricate, and package ultra-high-performance chips at scale.” The company also shared a photo of Chief Executive Lip-Bu Tan shaking hands with Musk, CEO of SpaceX and Tesla. (4/7)

Planet Details AI-Driven Object Detection Onboard Pelican-4 Satellite (Source: Via Satellite)
Planet recently performed AI-driven object detection directly onboard a Pelican-4 satellite, using the satellite’s onboard Nvidia Jetson Orin module. Planet shared details on Tuesday of the recent tech milestone. On March 25, Planet’s Pelican-4 satellite captured an image of the airport in Alice Springs, Australia, and used the Nvidia Jetson Orin module to run an AI model onboard the satellite, which detected airplanes in the image. (4/7)

As More Nations Seek Counterspace Chops, GPS Jamming Also Rises (Source: Breaking Defense)
As global military interest in obtaining capabilities to neutralize adversary space systems continues to expand, jamming against GPS and other position, navigation and timing satellites as well as communications birds also is on the rise, according to a new report by the Secure World Foundation. The good news for space operators, including the US government, is that so far, “only non-destructive capabilities are actively being used against satellites in current military operations.” The bad news is that a growing number of militaries around the world are seeking counterspace weapons, both non-lethal and lethal, to target space systems. (4/8)

NASA’s Artemis Era May Finally Solve Three Major Moon Mysteries (Source: Scientific American)
Despite the moon being so nearby, we know surprisingly little about it with much certainty. The Apollo astronauts hauled back a bevy of moon rocks and left behind a few short-lived geological experiments, but most of our lunar knowledge today comes from moon-orbiting satellites, telescopic observations from Earth and the handful of sample-return missions undertaken recently by China. Starved of more in situ data, researchers can’t yet scratch a bigger scientific itch; they wish to study the moon as a Rosetta Stone for the origin and evolution of our world and the solar system at large. Click here. (4/7)

Has Artemis II Shown We Can Land on the Moon Again? (Source: BBC)
The mission's first six days have shown that the Orion capsule works as designed with people on board for the first time - something no simulator could prove. Perhaps its greatest achievement, though, is through the actions of the Artemis crew, which have generated hope, agency and optimism for a world appearing to be in desperate need of inspiration. But the bigger question remains - is a Moon landing by 2028, as NASA and President Trump want, now really an achievable goal?

If re-entry goes well, the picture that emerges from Artemis II will be genuinely encouraging. The rocket worked. The spacecraft worked. The crew handled the systems with competence and grace. And Nasa has at last articulated a credible plan to build on this moment rather than wait three years and start again. A Moon landing by 2028 remains a stretch. The question is no longer whether Orion can fly. The question is whether the landers, the cadence, and the political will can keep pace. The spacecraft, at least, has done its part. (4/7)

It’s Unanimous: Space Already Functions as Critical Infrastructure (Source: Via Satellite)
Space may not officially be the United States’ 17th critical infrastructure sector. But in practice, experts across government, academia, and industry say it already functions as one — deeply embedded in the systems that power modern life. From GPS-enabled financial transactions to airline navigation, precision agriculture, emergency response, electric grid synchronization, and military operations, space-based services quietly underpin nearly every other sector formally recognized as critical infrastructure.

"A formal critical infrastructure designation for space really does matter,” concludes Fernandez. “It would push us to look for blind spots in how we address space-based capabilities and the threats to them and force a more holistic view of all the assets that depend on space. Most importantly, it creates an official structure with clearly assigned roles and authorities, so the right organizations can actually act and get the results we need when something goes wrong.” (4/7)

Advocates Ready For NASA Science Funding Fight (Source: Payload)
NASA is facing dramatic cuts to its science program next fiscal year—but advocates say they’re ready to fight for NASA’s space science missions. Once again, the Trump administration has proposed a budget that would make large cuts to science and STEM missions. And—once again—advocates and lawmakers are saying they won’t stand idly by while programs are gutted. The Planetary Society—an advocacy group that organized others to lobby against the proposed science cuts for fiscal 2026—said it’s ready to rally the troops again. (4/7)

A Lunar Base or a Lunar Economy? (Source: Space News)
We applaud the lunar base vision laid out by NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman on March 24. Placing this stake in the lunar regolith is long overdue. What is missing from the mission architecture, however, is a vision for long-term economic development on the moon. It will be a profound missed opportunity if NASA does not equally commit its lunar base efforts to supporting commercial development of the moon. (4/8)

A Moon Base Is Being Planned Without Understanding the Ground (Source: Roberto Moraes)
For the Artemis lunar base, the primary concern is not architecture or hardware, but the absence of a construction-grade understanding of the ground. The program is advancing without quantified boundary conditions. From an engineering standpoint, that introduces first-order risk. There is no clear evidence of a phased geotechnical investigation program preceding infrastructure decisions. Without in situ characterization, timelines are effectively being defined independently of the controlling parameter, which is the ground.

On a Starship landing without a prepared pad, the question is not whether the vehicle can land, but how the ground will respond. The upper regolith layer is a low-confinement, highly disturbed zone. Under high plume loading, this can lead to rapid degradation of bearing conditions, material ejection, and surface instability. In that context, landing without ground preparation is feasible, but not predictable in performance or repeatability. In short, feasibility is currently being evaluated from the vehicle down. For sustained operations, it needs to be evaluated from the ground up. (4/7)

Our Off-World Bases Will Rely on Nuclear Power. Can We Deliver? (Source: SpaceCom Second Stage)
NASA’s growing focus on crewed missions to the Moon, and then Mars, highlights the daunting challenges of power generation. The Cassini probe contained ~33 kilograms of plutonium to generate 850 watts of continuous electricity, or ~8 megawatt-hours (MWh) per Earth year. Next-generation fission microreactors will need only 150 grams of uranium to produce 114 kilowatts of continuous electricity, or one gigawatt-hour (GWh) per year, enough to power a Mars or Moon base camp.

While designed to be transportable, significant engineering work is needed to support a safe lunar landing at a geotechnically suitable site, and for final reactor assembly and activation. The compressed schedule for Artemis necessitates a challenging learn-as-we-go approach to constructing nuclear-capable infrastructure on an airless world with fractional gravity, little-understood geotechnical properties, and a host of unique environmental risks such as micrometeoroids, lunar dust, solar radiation, thermal swings, and near-surface electrically charged plasma.

And back on Earth, years before a microreactor is tucked into a heavy-lift payload fairing, there is a critical shortage of nuclear-ready processing facilities, causing a uranium and plutonium bottleneck at the Cape Canaveral Spaceport. This is a problem that must be addressed to keep Artemis on-schedule while also supporting the growing number of non-Artemis RTG-powered payloads and nuclear propulsion systems moving toward launch. Click here. (4/6)

Experiments Refute Dark Matter Claim (Source: Phys.org)
In 1997, the DAMA/NaI experiment at the Gran Sasso National Laboratory in Italy observed a signal whose annual variability was suggestive of dark matter. Despite the follow-up DAMA/LIBRA experiment producing similar results, claims of direct dark matter detection drew skepticism from the physics community.

To test the claims independently, sister experiments ANAIS-112 and COSINE-100 were constructed using the same basic design as DAMA/NaI and DAMA/LIBRA. COSINE-100, located at the Yangyang Underground Laboratory in South Korea, began taking data in 2016. ANAIS-112, located at the Canfranc Underground Laboratory (LSC) in Spain, began taking data in 2017. Maruyama is the Principal Investigator (PI) and scientific co-spokesperson of COSINE-100.

The data sets from both ANAIS-112 and COSINE-100, each working independently, were found to contain no such variability, tentatively ruling out dark matter as the cause of the earlier observations. Hollick's 2025 thesis combined the data from both ANAIS-112 and COSINE-100, and statistical analysis of the combined dataset showed no significant evidence of annual modulation in the relevant energy regions. This result effectively rules out dark matter as the origin for the DAMA/LIBRA signal. (4/6)

Gravitational Waves May be Responsible for Dark Matter in the Universe (Source: Brighter Side)
Dark matter is thought to exist everywhere, wrapping around galaxies and helping to shape the largest things in the universe. But nobody knows what it is made of. Now, a new theoretical study presents a surprisingly unique situation that could provide some of the missing puzzle pieces. Some of the dark matter may have originated from ancient gravitational waves. These waves travelled through the early universe before stars or galaxies had formed. (4/4)

Plan to Control Sunlight by Launching 50,000 Mirrors Could Wreak Havoc on Earth, Experts Warn: ‘Major Adverse Health Consequences’ (Source: New York Post)
It’s keeping scientists up at night. Scientists around the world are sounding the alarm over an ambitious plan to install thousands of mirrors and myriad satellites in space, claiming that it will impact sleep and various ecosystems on a global level. “The proposed scale of orbital deployment would represent a significant alteration of the natural night-time light environment at a planetary scale,” leaders of the European Biological Rhythms Society (EBRS), the Society for Research on Biological Rhythms, the Japanese Society for Chronobiology and the Canadian Society for Chronobiology declared in letters to the US Federal Communications Commission. (4/6)

China’s Gravity-Detecting SQUID Gets Closer to Spotting US Nuclear Submarines (Source: SCMP)
Chinese researchers unveiled a gravity detector with world-leading precision last month, potentially expanding the military applications of the technology. It uses a superconducting quantum interference device (SQUID) to detect objects by measuring tiny changes in gravity. The team that developed the instrument says it can be used for scientific research and finding underground resources. It also brings the country one step closer to being able to spot patrolling nuclear submarines.

According to the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), the instrument reduces gravity gradient measurement noise – outside effects that can disrupt a gravity detector’s accuracy, such as vibrations from seismic activity – to a level that is second only to gravitational wave detectors built on the kilometer scale. The instrument built by the CAS team is about the size of an office cubicle. Existing submarine detection methods – sonar, magnetic anomaly detection, and radar – can be evaded. However, gravity cannot be masked. (4/3)

Spain’s Xoople Raises $130 Million to Map the Earth for AI (Source: Tech Crunch)
Space data companies have argued for years that the private sector needs their products, but the real uptake has been from government buyers. Now, with artificial intelligence top of mind for business, one Spanish startup is trying to become the go-to source of ground truth for enterprise. Xoople (said like “zoople’) is developing a satellite constellation to collect precise data aimed at deep learning models. The startup was founded in 2019 and has spent the last seven years developing its tech stack around data collected by government spacecraft, and integrating with cloud providers. (4/6)

Proposed $1.7 Trillion DoD Budget Adds $17.5 Billion to This Year's $25 Nillion for Inneffective Golden Dome (Source: Popular Information)
In September 2025, Todd Harrison of the American Enterprise Institute estimated that a system actually capable of neutralizing threats from all countries would cost $3.6 trillion. Among other limitations, a $185 billion system would not be effective against threats from China or Russia, which have thousands of missiles, Harrison argues. Bloomberg’s independent analysis found that an effective system would cost about $1.1 trillion. Senator Tim Sheehy (R-MT), a Trump supporter and the founder of the Golden Dome caucus, acknowledged that “[i]t will likely cost in the trillions if and when Golden Dome is completed.”

Some scientists believe that, no matter how much is spent, a space-based missile defense system will not be effective. A February 2025 paper by the American Physical Society (APS) found that to defend against just one North Korean missile would require “a constellation of at least 1600 interceptors.” To defend against 10 missiles fired simultaneously, the United States would need 40,000 space-based interceptors, about three times the number of active satellites currently in orbit.

Even if a multi-trillion-dollar system with tens of thousands of interceptors could be deployed, it could still be defeated with relatively inexpensive countermeasures, like decoys. The White House seems to acknowledge that the missile defense system it is building will not actually defend the country against a missile attack. “The goal is to not create a ‘perfect’ defense, but to provide an increasingly effective shield,” the White House budget document states. (4/7)