Space Jam: NASA’s MADCAP Team Directs
Traffic at the Moon (Source: New York Times)
For the past 15 years, a small team at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory
has been keeping track of spacecraft orbiting the moon and Mars and
raising alerts when it seems that two of them might cross paths. That
effort is known as MADCAP: Multimission Automated Deepspace Conjunction
Assessment Process. Think of them as space traffic controllers. (3/13)
Orbital Energy Firm Mantis Space
Leaves Stealth With $10M Seed Round (Source: Via Satellite)
Orbital energy startup Mantis Space emerged from stealth this morning
with a $10 million seed round of funding, the company said on Thursday.
Rule 1 Ventures and Montauk Capital led the round. Mantis Spsvr said it
aims to build a constellation that almost continuously generates and
transmits solar power to satellites in the Earth’s shadow, allowing
them to receive power around the clock. With orbital power
infrastructure in place, satellites can remain in revenue-generating
mission areas instead of chasing sunlight, it said. (3/13)
Astranis Taps Retired Gen. John Hyten
to Lead Advisory Board (Source: SpaceNews)
Astranis, a San Francisco–based operator of small geostationary
communications satellites, announced March 12 that retired U.S. Air
Force Gen. John Hyten has joined the company as chairman of a newly
formed advisory board. Hyten is a former vice chairman of the Joint
Chiefs of Staff and spent much of his career overseeing military space
programs, including as commander of Air Force Space Command. He has
been a prominent critic of the Pentagon’s traditional approach to
satellite architecture, which relies on a limited number of large,
highly capable spacecraft. (3/13)
How to Build a Moon Base
(Source: Scientific American)
China eventually plans to establish the International Lunar Research
Station (ILRS), a two-phased moon base built in partnership with
Russia. The initial, uncrewed phase of the ILRS will be led by two
autonomous lunar landers, developed and operated by the China National
Space Administration (CNSA).
First, the planned Chang’e 7 mission, launching later this year, will
likely land at the Shackleton Crater on the south pole to survey it for
water ice and other resources that might be used to support the ILRS.
Then, in 2029, Chang’e 8 will visit the region to perform
demonstrations of key base-building capabilities, such as making bricks
from lunar soil. Ultimately, such “in situ resource utilization” could
include processing lunar polar ice into potable water or even rocket
fuel. The second ILRS phase could support human occupants for extended
surface stays.
NASA’s planned outpost, provisionally called Artemis Base Camp, would
be U.S.-led but also include contributions from several other nations
and a host of commercial partners. It, too, would be constructed in
phases using a mix of robots and human astronauts. And it will, at
least to start, be a mess: speaking to the New York Times in February,
NASA administrator Jared Isaacman noted that, for perhaps a decade
after its foundation, Artemis Base Camp will resemble a “futuristic
junkyard with lots of landers and rovers around” before it will
eventually gain more “pretty cool infrastructure.” Click here.
(3/12)
Leonardo Sees Michelangelo Dome Trials
In Ukraine (Source: Aviation Week)
Leonardo plans to demonstrate elements of its new Michelangelo Dome
project in Ukraine as early as this year, as it sets its sights on
networking air and missile defenses Europe-wide. “The first component
of the Michelangelo Dome … is now under construction for our friends in
Ukraine,” CEO Roberto Cingolani said.
The effort will focus on the point-defense layer of the architecture to
engage low-flying and hard-to-detect threats, such as drone swarms, he
noted. NATO trials are due next year, he said. Cingolani said the
company’s new Earth-observation constellation it calls Space Guardian
will be a key feature of the dome project to spot threats as they are
readied to be launched. (3/12)
March 14, 2026
Starliner and Artemis: Commercial
Label vs. Commercial Discipline (Source: Space News)
Where is the actual line between a government program and a commercial company? CounterFlow Solutions founder Dan Garretson says many of the products, services and missions that are broadly considered to be "commercial" today may not fit the bill, given the trend of companies offering highly customized components or spacecraft for anchor customers in the government.
"Commercial structure is what shows up on paper: a services contract, fixed-price mechanisms, private ownership, multiple providers," Garretson wrote. "Commercial discipline shows up in behavior: the buyer constrains itself to a standard offering; anomalies get driven to root cause; architectures are built for repeatability before demand is proven; and learning compounds because the core system holds. We've spent years celebrating structure while quietly ignoring the need for discipline."
In his view, real commercial success and progress in space developments are tied to discipline on both sides of the contract: with government customers and commercial firms emphasizing the need for standardized, repeatable products. "Commercial markets aren't declared from the top down," he wrote. "They're enforced by competition, repeatability and restraint on both sides of the contract. Without those, expansion stalls. With them, it compounds." (3/10)
SpaceX Launches Pi Day Starlink Mission at Cape Canaveral (Source: Florida Today)
SpaceX rang in Pi Day with a rocket launch from the Cape Canaveral Spaceport. March 14 is observed by many for representing the mathematical constant Pi − or 3.14. The liftoff occurred at Launch Complex 40. For many watching, the Falcon 9 quickly disappeared into the breaking clouds, only its rumble audible to spectators as it traveled upward. (3/14)
Artemis II Mission: A Day-by-Day Look (Source: Douglas's Substack)
NASA is moving forward with the Artemis II launch as early as April 1. It will be the first crewed flight test of the Orion spacecraft. And the first crewed flight to the vicinity of the Moon since the Apollo 17 mission in December 1972. Here is a day by day description of the upcoming mission. (3/14)
Blue Origin Unveils NEO Hunter: A Hybrid Planetary Defense Concept (Source: NSF)
Blue Origin has unveiled a new mission concept called NEO Hunter, designed to protect Earth from potentially hazardous near-Earth objects (NEOs) by employing advanced deflection techniques. Developed in collaboration with NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) and Caltech, the concept leverages the company’s versatile Blue Ring platform as its foundation.
NEO Hunter adopts a hybrid approach to asteroid deflection. It would first deploy CubeSats to characterize the target asteroid’s properties, then position itself nearby to direct a continuous ion beam at the object. This contactless method gradually imparts momentum, subtly altering the asteroid’s trajectory over time to steer it away from a potential collision course with Earth. (3/14)
iMetalX Emerges From Stealth with Technology to Model Resident Space Objects (Source: Space News)
Northern California startup iMetalX Inc. emerged from stealth to announce a collaboration with Psionic, a Hampton, Virginia, company focused on autonomous navigation in GPS-denied environments. Pairing Psionic’s Space Navigation Dopper Lidar with iMetalX’s Asgard data and simulation platform offers customers the ability to create accurate 3D models of resident space objects (RSOs). (3/13)
PSIONIC and iMETALX Announce Strategic Collaboration Supporting RPOD, Space Control, and Space Battle Management (Source: iMetalx)
Psionic, a provider of advanced precision navigation and autonomy technologies for national security missions, and iMetalx, a Space Battle Management software company specializing in autonomous space control, announced a strategic collaboration to support Rendezvous Proximity Operations (RPO), Resident Space Object (RSO) Characterization, Obstacle Avoidance, Docking (RPOD), Capture (RPOC), Space Control, and Space Battle Management missions for the U.S. Space Force (USSF) and the Space Development Agency (SDA). (2/11)
Canada Takes Its Sovereignty Push to Space (Source: New York Times)
Canada plans to launch hundreds of satellites as part of a national defense agenda that, since President Trump’s trade war began last year, has focused on lessening the country’s reliance on the United States. Telesat, a satellite communications company whose headquarters are in Ottawa, plans to launch about 200 satellites next year and recently signed a deal with the government and another Canadian company, MDA Space, for systems to support the military.
Starlink is the dominant internet provider in Canada’s remote areas and has roughly 500,000 users in Canada, according to the company. Launching domestic satellites would benefit the thousands of Canadians for whom Starlink access has been critical and even life-changing, Dr. Boley said — though he acknowledged that as an astronomer he had mixed feelings about firing more things into space. (3/14)
Firefly Aerospace: Successful Launch Validates Alpha, But The Real Test Is Cadence (Source: Seeking Alpha)
Firefly Aerospace remains a speculative buy after a successful Mission 7 launch, despite a 42% YTD share price drop. FLY's launch success rate is only 43%, with recent mission failures weighing on investor sentiment and share price performance. My price target is $34.77, implying 50% upside, but this is reduced from prior estimates due to higher expected cash burn in 2026. Improved launch cadence and consistent mission success are critical for FLY to enhance financial performance and reduce risk. (3/13)
From Knitting Girdles, to Outfitting Astronauts for Space Travel (Source: WCVB)
It all started with a young David Clark, who left school at 15, learned accounting and took up knitting. In 1935, he founded a company making girdles and undergarments. But by the 1940s, as aviation speeds soared, Clark used his textile expertise to tackle a critical problem: pilots passing out due to G-LOC. His solution? A pressurized, air-bladder G-suit, which became the basis of what pilots still wear today.
David Clark suits have been a constant in American aerospace. The company built Gemini spacesuits, Apollo gear, U-2 spy plane suits, and now, the Orion Crew Survival System suits for NASA’s Artemis missions to the Moon. Still based in Worcester, David Clark Co. designs, builds, and pressure-tests all its suits on site. (3/13)
In Space, Regulators Seek To Boldly Go Where No Bureaucrat Has Gone Before (Source: Reason)
Unfortunately, opening new commercial opportunities—even in the depths of outer space—is like ringing the dinner bell for bureaucrats and would-be regulators. "Despite evolving technical capabilities, the international legal framework governing exploitation of the Moon is both very limited and frozen in the Cold War era," the RAND Corporation's Adam Urwick and Jessie Osborne said.
"The pursuit of profit raises paramount scientific and environmental concerns. Astronomers caution that large-scale mining activities could disrupt ongoing research and preservation of the lunar environment, leading to calls for development of comprehensive lunar laws and regulations to manage these activities responsibly."
Earth's moon is a dead place where nobody currently does anything. There is nothing to disrupt, let alone an environment to worry about unless you want to elevate the occasional boot print or tire tread in lunar dust to the status of a problem. The pursuit of profit there should raise no concerns beyond those of investors seeking returns—and investors and space ventures are looking for opportunity, assuming it's not strangled by red tape. (3/13)
Isaacman Reveals Why Pluto Should Be a Planet in Plan To Make It ‘Great Again’ (Source: Daily Mail)
NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman endorsed the idea of Trump making Pluto a planet again in an exclusive interview with the Daily Mail at the John F Kennedy Space Center in Florida. ‘I 100% support President Trump making Pluto great again,’ Isaacman said. (3/13)
A look back at 2025 for Europe’s Spaceport (Source: ESA)
2025 was a particularly memorable year for Europe's Spaceport in French Guiana, with a return to a full autonomous launch capability driven by the ramp-up of Ariane 6 launches and the confirmation of a robust return to flight of Vega-C. Click here. (3/13)
German Chancellor Visits Norway Spaceport (Source: DW)
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz visited a spaceport in Norway set to be a launchpad for Bavarian rockets. Chancellor Friedrich Merz has been at the Andoya spaceport for talks with his Norwegian counterpart. Bavarian startup Isar plans to use the base to launch rockets carrying satellites. (3/13)
How US Military Space Operators Are Likely Aiding the Fight in Iran (Source: Breaking Defense)
Two top military commanders have praised what they said was the critical role of space operations in the early days of Operation Epic Fury, but they were loathe to say what, exactly, the US military was doing in the highest, at times most secretive domain.
“A note about the Space Force. Our space superiority has been a critical enabler to this fight. Unseen by the world, the Space Force is doing two things. First, they’re degrading Iranian capability and second, they’re helping to protect American forces, and I’ll have to leave it right there,” Adm. Brad Cooper, commander of US Central Command (CENTCOM), said. (3/13)
Where is the actual line between a government program and a commercial company? CounterFlow Solutions founder Dan Garretson says many of the products, services and missions that are broadly considered to be "commercial" today may not fit the bill, given the trend of companies offering highly customized components or spacecraft for anchor customers in the government.
"Commercial structure is what shows up on paper: a services contract, fixed-price mechanisms, private ownership, multiple providers," Garretson wrote. "Commercial discipline shows up in behavior: the buyer constrains itself to a standard offering; anomalies get driven to root cause; architectures are built for repeatability before demand is proven; and learning compounds because the core system holds. We've spent years celebrating structure while quietly ignoring the need for discipline."
In his view, real commercial success and progress in space developments are tied to discipline on both sides of the contract: with government customers and commercial firms emphasizing the need for standardized, repeatable products. "Commercial markets aren't declared from the top down," he wrote. "They're enforced by competition, repeatability and restraint on both sides of the contract. Without those, expansion stalls. With them, it compounds." (3/10)
SpaceX Launches Pi Day Starlink Mission at Cape Canaveral (Source: Florida Today)
SpaceX rang in Pi Day with a rocket launch from the Cape Canaveral Spaceport. March 14 is observed by many for representing the mathematical constant Pi − or 3.14. The liftoff occurred at Launch Complex 40. For many watching, the Falcon 9 quickly disappeared into the breaking clouds, only its rumble audible to spectators as it traveled upward. (3/14)
Artemis II Mission: A Day-by-Day Look (Source: Douglas's Substack)
NASA is moving forward with the Artemis II launch as early as April 1. It will be the first crewed flight test of the Orion spacecraft. And the first crewed flight to the vicinity of the Moon since the Apollo 17 mission in December 1972. Here is a day by day description of the upcoming mission. (3/14)
Blue Origin Unveils NEO Hunter: A Hybrid Planetary Defense Concept (Source: NSF)
Blue Origin has unveiled a new mission concept called NEO Hunter, designed to protect Earth from potentially hazardous near-Earth objects (NEOs) by employing advanced deflection techniques. Developed in collaboration with NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) and Caltech, the concept leverages the company’s versatile Blue Ring platform as its foundation.
NEO Hunter adopts a hybrid approach to asteroid deflection. It would first deploy CubeSats to characterize the target asteroid’s properties, then position itself nearby to direct a continuous ion beam at the object. This contactless method gradually imparts momentum, subtly altering the asteroid’s trajectory over time to steer it away from a potential collision course with Earth. (3/14)
iMetalX Emerges From Stealth with Technology to Model Resident Space Objects (Source: Space News)
Northern California startup iMetalX Inc. emerged from stealth to announce a collaboration with Psionic, a Hampton, Virginia, company focused on autonomous navigation in GPS-denied environments. Pairing Psionic’s Space Navigation Dopper Lidar with iMetalX’s Asgard data and simulation platform offers customers the ability to create accurate 3D models of resident space objects (RSOs). (3/13)
PSIONIC and iMETALX Announce Strategic Collaboration Supporting RPOD, Space Control, and Space Battle Management (Source: iMetalx)
Psionic, a provider of advanced precision navigation and autonomy technologies for national security missions, and iMetalx, a Space Battle Management software company specializing in autonomous space control, announced a strategic collaboration to support Rendezvous Proximity Operations (RPO), Resident Space Object (RSO) Characterization, Obstacle Avoidance, Docking (RPOD), Capture (RPOC), Space Control, and Space Battle Management missions for the U.S. Space Force (USSF) and the Space Development Agency (SDA). (2/11)
Canada Takes Its Sovereignty Push to Space (Source: New York Times)
Canada plans to launch hundreds of satellites as part of a national defense agenda that, since President Trump’s trade war began last year, has focused on lessening the country’s reliance on the United States. Telesat, a satellite communications company whose headquarters are in Ottawa, plans to launch about 200 satellites next year and recently signed a deal with the government and another Canadian company, MDA Space, for systems to support the military.
Starlink is the dominant internet provider in Canada’s remote areas and has roughly 500,000 users in Canada, according to the company. Launching domestic satellites would benefit the thousands of Canadians for whom Starlink access has been critical and even life-changing, Dr. Boley said — though he acknowledged that as an astronomer he had mixed feelings about firing more things into space. (3/14)
Firefly Aerospace: Successful Launch Validates Alpha, But The Real Test Is Cadence (Source: Seeking Alpha)
Firefly Aerospace remains a speculative buy after a successful Mission 7 launch, despite a 42% YTD share price drop. FLY's launch success rate is only 43%, with recent mission failures weighing on investor sentiment and share price performance. My price target is $34.77, implying 50% upside, but this is reduced from prior estimates due to higher expected cash burn in 2026. Improved launch cadence and consistent mission success are critical for FLY to enhance financial performance and reduce risk. (3/13)
From Knitting Girdles, to Outfitting Astronauts for Space Travel (Source: WCVB)
It all started with a young David Clark, who left school at 15, learned accounting and took up knitting. In 1935, he founded a company making girdles and undergarments. But by the 1940s, as aviation speeds soared, Clark used his textile expertise to tackle a critical problem: pilots passing out due to G-LOC. His solution? A pressurized, air-bladder G-suit, which became the basis of what pilots still wear today.
David Clark suits have been a constant in American aerospace. The company built Gemini spacesuits, Apollo gear, U-2 spy plane suits, and now, the Orion Crew Survival System suits for NASA’s Artemis missions to the Moon. Still based in Worcester, David Clark Co. designs, builds, and pressure-tests all its suits on site. (3/13)
In Space, Regulators Seek To Boldly Go Where No Bureaucrat Has Gone Before (Source: Reason)
Unfortunately, opening new commercial opportunities—even in the depths of outer space—is like ringing the dinner bell for bureaucrats and would-be regulators. "Despite evolving technical capabilities, the international legal framework governing exploitation of the Moon is both very limited and frozen in the Cold War era," the RAND Corporation's Adam Urwick and Jessie Osborne said.
"The pursuit of profit raises paramount scientific and environmental concerns. Astronomers caution that large-scale mining activities could disrupt ongoing research and preservation of the lunar environment, leading to calls for development of comprehensive lunar laws and regulations to manage these activities responsibly."
Earth's moon is a dead place where nobody currently does anything. There is nothing to disrupt, let alone an environment to worry about unless you want to elevate the occasional boot print or tire tread in lunar dust to the status of a problem. The pursuit of profit there should raise no concerns beyond those of investors seeking returns—and investors and space ventures are looking for opportunity, assuming it's not strangled by red tape. (3/13)
Isaacman Reveals Why Pluto Should Be a Planet in Plan To Make It ‘Great Again’ (Source: Daily Mail)
NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman endorsed the idea of Trump making Pluto a planet again in an exclusive interview with the Daily Mail at the John F Kennedy Space Center in Florida. ‘I 100% support President Trump making Pluto great again,’ Isaacman said. (3/13)
A look back at 2025 for Europe’s Spaceport (Source: ESA)
2025 was a particularly memorable year for Europe's Spaceport in French Guiana, with a return to a full autonomous launch capability driven by the ramp-up of Ariane 6 launches and the confirmation of a robust return to flight of Vega-C. Click here. (3/13)
German Chancellor Visits Norway Spaceport (Source: DW)
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz visited a spaceport in Norway set to be a launchpad for Bavarian rockets. Chancellor Friedrich Merz has been at the Andoya spaceport for talks with his Norwegian counterpart. Bavarian startup Isar plans to use the base to launch rockets carrying satellites. (3/13)
How US Military Space Operators Are Likely Aiding the Fight in Iran (Source: Breaking Defense)
Two top military commanders have praised what they said was the critical role of space operations in the early days of Operation Epic Fury, but they were loathe to say what, exactly, the US military was doing in the highest, at times most secretive domain.
“A note about the Space Force. Our space superiority has been a critical enabler to this fight. Unseen by the world, the Space Force is doing two things. First, they’re degrading Iranian capability and second, they’re helping to protect American forces, and I’ll have to leave it right there,” Adm. Brad Cooper, commander of US Central Command (CENTCOM), said. (3/13)
March 13, 2026
Amid Crowded Skies, FAA Kills Rule
Aimed at Regulating Space Junk (Source: ProPublica)
The Trump administration is backing off a rule aimed at stopping commercial space companies from leaving rocket bodies in Earth’s orbit, a practice that experts say could threaten public safety and telecommunications.
The Federal Aviation Administration first proposed the measure in 2023, under the Biden administration, in hopes of curbing the growing junkyard of debris circling the planet. It would have required companies like Elon Musk’s SpaceX to safely remove such spacecraft within 25 years of launch, saying they “pose a significant risk to people on the ground due to their mass and the uncertainty of where they will land.” (3/12)
Vandenberg Space Force Base Eyes Record Launch Year (Source: KBSY)
Vandenberg Space Force Base could soon surpass its single-year launch record of 123, set in 1967, with Col. James Horne predicting launch rates could double or triple within 10 years. The base conducts three to four intercontinental ballistic missile tests annually. (3/12)
Northrop Grumman Advances Solid Rocket Motor Development (Source: Interesting Engineering)
Northrop Grumman is advancing next-generation rocket motors with an emphasis on compact, high-powered solid propulsion. The company has doubled tactical motor production at its Allegany Ballistics Laboratory since 2021 and aims to triple output by 2027. These innovations are designed to support faster, more maneuverable missiles without increasing their size, addressing the evolving requirements of modern defense. (3/11)
AIAA Picks Priorities for 2026, Including Golden Dome (Source: AIAA)
AIAA CEO Clay Mowry announced the 2026 Priority Issues confronting the aerospace industry spanning aviation, national security, research and development, and space domains. The list is designed to inform policymakers and industry leaders on the most pressing issues affecting U.S. aerospace competitiveness, leadership and safety. Space-related priorities include Golden Dome; NASA budget growth, and preserving science leadership; The race to the Moon and Mars, including norms of behavior in cislunar space; and Space traffic management and space situational awareness for orbital safety. (3/9)
From Steel Rolls to Starship at the Starfactory (Source: NSF)
In early 2022, SpaceX broke ground on a massive new facility known as the Starfactory at its Starbase site in South Texas. This permanent, high-volume manufacturing building replaced the temporary tents once used for assembling Starship barrel sections, representing a pivotal upgrade that enabled far greater production efficiency and scale. Today, as SpaceX ramps up production of Block 3 (V3) Starship hardware—the upgraded design set to debut with Flight 12 in the coming weeks—the Starfactory stands as the beating heart of the program.
Central to the Starfactory’s operations are advanced automated systems that handle critical fabrication tasks. These include robotic cutters for shaping stainless steel, high-accuracy robotic welders—now standard for Block 3 vehicles to achieve lighter, stronger, and more consistent seams—and specialized installers for the Thermal Protection System (TPS) tiles, which protect the vehicle during reentry. Click here. (3/13)
Russia Aims To Reclaim Soviet Space Glory With 2036 Launch of Ambitious Venus Mission (Source: Space.com)
Russia is apparently getting ready to return to the searing surface of Venus. The nation wants to launch Venera-D — a multi-vehicle mission involving a lander, balloon and orbiter — to Venus in 2036, Russian state media said. Venera-D has been in the works since 2003. Once upon a time, before Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine, Venera-D was even considered as a possible joint mission with NASA. (3/13)
NASA Begins Building Nuclear-Powered Dragonfly Drone for 2028 Launch to Saturn Moon Titan (Source: Space.com)
NASA is one step closer to sending a drone mission to another world. Technicians at the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory (APL) in Maryland have begun building and testing the nuclear-powered Dragonfly rotorcraft, which will launch toward the huge Saturn moon Titan in 2028. "This milestone essentially marks the birth of our flight system," Elizabeth Turtle, Dragonfly principal investigator at APL, said in a NASA statement. (3/13)
Isar Aerospace to Launch Astroscale ELSA-M Orbital Debris Removal Mission (Source: European Spaceflight)
Tokyo-headquartered Astroscale Holdings has selected Isar Aerospace to launch its ELSA-M orbital debris removal demonstration mission no earlier than 2028. Isar Aerospace is preparing for the second flight of its two-stage rocket, Spectrum, after the first flight failed shortly after liftoff in early 2025. The launch is currently scheduled for no earlier than 19 March from the Andøya Spaceport in Norway. (3/13)
‘The Race is On’: will Elon Musk Be the First to Put a Data Center in Space? (Source: Financial Times)
Elon Musk’s SpaceX is aggressively pursuing a first-mover advantage in space-based AI data centers, aiming to launch solar-powered, orbital compute hubs within 2–3 years to bypass terrestrial energy and regulatory constraints. While competing with firms like Blue Origin and StarCloud, Musk’s vertical integration with Starship launch capacity positions him as the likely leader, though experts suggest massive-scale, fully operational orbital data centers may take longer than his proposed 2026–2028 timeline.
SpaceX plans to use an upgraded Starlink (version 3) to create AI-focused, solar-powered satellites operating in low Earth orbit (LEO), exploiting 5x higher solar energy efficiency compared to Earth. Blue Origin is also developing technology for orbital AI hubs. Meanwhile, startups like StarCloud are already testing prototypes. Experts warn that although pilot projects are possible within three to five years, massive-scale orbital computing faces significant challenges with maintenance, heat rejection, and communication latency. (3/13)
Who’s Working With China on Space? (Source: Payload)
There is a wide spread of nations, across three continents, especially engaged in China’s burgeoning international space network, according to a January report from the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS). Pakistan, Egypt, and Venezuela led the pack when the study was published, with 61 other countries claiming at least some space-based relationship with China.
China is using those relationships to prep markets for its emerging commercial space sector, study authors say. Still, all three of the leading countries have openings for US or European competition with Chinese firms. The pros of China: Chinese companies could gain a unique competitive edge in cost, speed, and training services. Chinese products are often cheaper and come with more perks than Western ones. (3/13)
Kazakhstan Must Choose: Be Eurasia’s Tech Broker or Become a Pawn in the New Global Space Race (Source: Space News)
Kazakhstan is approaching a moment of strategic truth. It can either become Eurasia’s indispensable broker of space, AI and advanced technology solutions or risk being used as a pawn in a geopolitical power competition it does not control. To be sure, Kazakhstan’s position has complex dependencies: Its historical ties with Russia’s cultural, education and science communities must be respected.
Its proximity to China with its fast and frugal scaling strength and position in global supply chains is important for Kazakhstan’s trade balance and its position as a transit hub. Europe is another indispensable science, education and trade partner, as well as governance anchor for Kazakhstan’s young democracy. And the United States has the greatest legacy asset base as a frontier innovator and space explorer, as well as the most transparent and sizable capital markets. (3/13)
Better Signal: 1,600 Starlink Satellites Move Into Lower Orbits (Source: PC Mag)
Starlink subscribers can expect lower latency and improved signal quality as the company moves 1,600 satellites into lower orbits. Jonathan McDowell reported that a large collection of Starlink satellites has been descending, cutting the distance for the satellite beams to reach Earth. The satellites were previously orbiting the Earth at 550 kilometers (341 miles). But now McDowell says 652 of the satellites have been lowered to 480-kilometer orbits, while another 972 satellites “are currently on the way down,” he wrote. In response, SpaceX CEO Elon Musk tweeted back: “Tighter beams and better signal quality.” (3/12)
A Battle Over Texas Beaches Could Ground Elon Musk’s Rockets (Source: Texas Monthly)
The nine justices of the Supreme Court of Texas sat on stage behind four long tables that had been pushed together and draped with black cloth to make the theatrical setting appropriately somber. In their ebony robes, they looked like crows perched along a power line as they heard oral arguments over a lawsuit that pits environmental activists against the richest man in the world. “I think David and Goliath kind of understates it,” said Jim Chapman, a founding board member of Save RGV, the local nonprofit that is the lead plaintiff in the case. “I don’t think we’re even David.”
Hundreds of undergrads and schoolkids, dozens of collegiate officials, and a score of local politicians were on hand for the event last week. Nearly all the hall’s one thousand seats were filled. University VIPs and busloads of students sat downstairs, while members of the general public were corralled in the balcony.
Those seated upstairs seemed only interested in the first case on the docket, a consolidated set of appeals brought by Attorney General Ken Paxton, Cameron County, and the Texas General Land Office against Save RGV, the Sierra Club, and the Indigenous Carrizo/Comecrudo Nation of Texas. At stake—depending on whom you ask—is either the right of all Texans to visit public Gulf beaches without interference or the state’s burgeoning role in the future of spaceflight. The Court is expected to issue a ruling sometime around June, before its summer recess. (3/12)
ISRO Conducts Sea-Level Test of CE20 Cryogenic Engine at 22-Tonne Thrust (Source: Deccan Chronicle)
ISRO successfully conducted a sea-level hot test of India's CE20 cryogenic engine at a thrust level of 22 tonnes on March 10 at the ISRO Propulsion Complex. The test was carried out using a Nozzle Protection System (NPS) and a multi-element igniter. Earlier sea-level tests using the nozzle protection system had been conducted at a thrust level of 19 tonnes.
The CE20 cryogenic engine powers the upper cryogenic stage of the LVM3 launch vehicle. To enhance the payload capability of LVM3, future missions are planned to operate with an upgraded C32 stage capable of producing 22 tonnes of thrust. In line with this objective, the latest test was conducted for a duration of 165 seconds at the enhanced thrust level. ISRO said the engine and the test facility performed as expected throughout the test. (3/13)
China Launches Twice in Three Hours (Source: Space News)
China conducted a pair of launches hours apart Thursday. A Long March 8A lifted off at 3:48 p.m. Eastern from the commercial spaceport on Hainan carrying the 20th set of Guowang broadband constellation satellites. Officials did not disclose the number of satellites on the launch, but previous Long March 8A launches for Guowang carried nine satellites each. A Long March 2D rocket lifted off from the Xichang Satellite Launch Center at 6:33 p.m. Eastern and placed into orbit the Shiyan-30 03 and 04 spacecraft. Official media said the satellites will be used to test Earth observation technologies. The launches were the first in a month from China after a break for the Chinese New Year holiday. (3/13)
Cygnus Cargo Craft Departs ISS (Source: Space.com)
A Cygnus cargo spacecraft departed from the ISS Thursday. The NG-23 Cygnus was unberthed from the station by the Canadarm2 robotic arm. The spacecraft had been at the station for nearly six months and will perform a destructive reentry on Saturday. A new Cygnus spacecraft is scheduled to launch to the station next month. (3/13)
UK Space Chief Prioritizes National Security (Source: Space News)
The new head of the U.K. Space Agency is prioritizing growth of the country's space sector and national security. In an interview, Rebecca Evernden said the focus on growth and national security is because the government believes those areas will have the most impact, particularly in topics such as satellite communications and in-space servicing. Launch also remains a priority despite the bankruptcy of Orbex. The agency is in the process of being absorbed into the U.K. government's Department of Science, Innovation and Technology, but Evernden said the agency will maintain its technical expertise and collaborate with other nations' space agencies. (3/13)
Freeman Departs Amazon Leo (Source: Breaking Defense)
The head of Amazon Leo's government services business has left the company. Rick Freeman, who had been vice president at Amazon overseeing Amazon Leo for Government, left the company in late February, the company confirmed. Amazon Leo for Government is the unit charged with sales of Amazon Leo broadband services to government customers. Amazon has not announced a replacement for Freeman. [Breaking Defense]
SPARCS Cubesat Begins Exoplanet Search (Source: NASA JPL)
A cubesat designed to help look for habitable exoplanets has returned its first images. The Star-Planet Activity Research CubeSat, or SPARCS, cubesat launched in January on a SpaceX rideshare mission. The 6U cubesat carries an ultraviolet camera that astronomers will use to monitor low-mass stars to measure the amount of stellar activity they have. That will help them determine how suitable any planets that orbit them are for hosting life. (3/13)
Artemis 2 Aims Officially for April 1 Launch (Source: Space News)
NASA announced Thursday it now plans to launch the Artemis 2 mission as soon as April 1. The agency concluded a flight readiness review and officials said they were ready to proceed with a launch in a window between April 1 and 6. The decision comes after completing repairs to a helium line for the Space Launch System upper stage that suffered a blockage, requiring rolling the vehicle from the pad for repairs. The vehicle is scheduled to roll back out to the pad March 19. (3/13)
Voyager Joins Long Beach CA Aerospace Cluster (Source: Space News)
Voyager Technologies is opening a new manufacturing facility in Southern California. The company announced Thursday it set up the 140,000-square-foot site in Long Beach, California, to support development and production of electronics, software and propulsion technologies used in spacecraft and defense systems. The move places Voyager alongside a growing cluster of aerospace firms in Long Beach and the broader Los Angeles region. The company is expanding in California and elsewhere as it seeks roles in the Golden Dome missile defense initiative. (3/13)
China Developing Mars Sample Return Hardware (Source: Space News)
A Chinese Mars sample return mission is entering the construction phase. Work on the Tianwen-3 mission is on track for a launch in late 2028 after engineers achieved breakthroughs in key technologies, officials said Thursday. The multi-spacecraft mission will use two Long March 5 launches from Earth in late 2028, one carrying a lander and ascent vehicle and the other a Mars orbiter and Earth return spacecraft. Tianwen-3 is designed to return at least 500 grams of Martian samples to Earth in 2031. (3/13)
Austria's Another Earth Raises $4 Million to Train AI Models with Synthetic Satellite Imagery (Source: Space News)
A startup that generates synthetic satellite imagery to train AI models has raised a seed round. Vienna-based Another Earth raised $4 million this week to accelerate the deployment of software it is already providing commercially to geospatial analysis firms. That software creates large amounts of synthetic satellite imagery to train AI models that are then used to analyze actual imagery. The company seeks to assist the broader Earth observation industry that it believes is bottlenecked by a lack of high-quality training data. (3/13)
Senate Advances Anderson Nomination as NASA Deputy Administrator (Source: Space News)
The Senate Commerce Committee voted to advance the nomination of Matt Anderson as NASA deputy administrator. The committee voted 23-5 to send Anderson's nomination to the full Senate for a final confirmation vote. The five no votes all came from Democratic members of the committee. The vote came a week after Anderson faced little opposition from committee members at a confirmation hearing. (3/13)
KSC and Space Force's SLD45 Step-Up Collaboration to Meet Critical Spaceport Needs (Source: NASA KSC)
"Through ongoing engagements with the Space Force and our commercial partners, teams from Kennedy and Space Launch Delta (SLD) 45 have identified five areas where our unified efforts will drive targeted improvements to address the spaceport’s most critical needs: infrastructure and utilities, commodity supply, transportation and access, process alignment, and facility demand," according to a March 13 status report from KSC Director Janet Petro.
"This week, Kennedy and SLD 45 met for another collaborative working discussion focused on these support areas, aligning priorities, reviewing policy, and identifying actions to truly unite two installations under one combined spaceport. This ongoing initiative will truly put us in lock step as we work together to amplify the spaceport’s needs, advocate for strategic investment, and maximize operational ability at the busiest spaceport on the planet." (3/13)
The Trump administration is backing off a rule aimed at stopping commercial space companies from leaving rocket bodies in Earth’s orbit, a practice that experts say could threaten public safety and telecommunications.
The Federal Aviation Administration first proposed the measure in 2023, under the Biden administration, in hopes of curbing the growing junkyard of debris circling the planet. It would have required companies like Elon Musk’s SpaceX to safely remove such spacecraft within 25 years of launch, saying they “pose a significant risk to people on the ground due to their mass and the uncertainty of where they will land.” (3/12)
Vandenberg Space Force Base Eyes Record Launch Year (Source: KBSY)
Vandenberg Space Force Base could soon surpass its single-year launch record of 123, set in 1967, with Col. James Horne predicting launch rates could double or triple within 10 years. The base conducts three to four intercontinental ballistic missile tests annually. (3/12)
Northrop Grumman Advances Solid Rocket Motor Development (Source: Interesting Engineering)
Northrop Grumman is advancing next-generation rocket motors with an emphasis on compact, high-powered solid propulsion. The company has doubled tactical motor production at its Allegany Ballistics Laboratory since 2021 and aims to triple output by 2027. These innovations are designed to support faster, more maneuverable missiles without increasing their size, addressing the evolving requirements of modern defense. (3/11)
AIAA Picks Priorities for 2026, Including Golden Dome (Source: AIAA)
AIAA CEO Clay Mowry announced the 2026 Priority Issues confronting the aerospace industry spanning aviation, national security, research and development, and space domains. The list is designed to inform policymakers and industry leaders on the most pressing issues affecting U.S. aerospace competitiveness, leadership and safety. Space-related priorities include Golden Dome; NASA budget growth, and preserving science leadership; The race to the Moon and Mars, including norms of behavior in cislunar space; and Space traffic management and space situational awareness for orbital safety. (3/9)
From Steel Rolls to Starship at the Starfactory (Source: NSF)
In early 2022, SpaceX broke ground on a massive new facility known as the Starfactory at its Starbase site in South Texas. This permanent, high-volume manufacturing building replaced the temporary tents once used for assembling Starship barrel sections, representing a pivotal upgrade that enabled far greater production efficiency and scale. Today, as SpaceX ramps up production of Block 3 (V3) Starship hardware—the upgraded design set to debut with Flight 12 in the coming weeks—the Starfactory stands as the beating heart of the program.
Central to the Starfactory’s operations are advanced automated systems that handle critical fabrication tasks. These include robotic cutters for shaping stainless steel, high-accuracy robotic welders—now standard for Block 3 vehicles to achieve lighter, stronger, and more consistent seams—and specialized installers for the Thermal Protection System (TPS) tiles, which protect the vehicle during reentry. Click here. (3/13)
Russia Aims To Reclaim Soviet Space Glory With 2036 Launch of Ambitious Venus Mission (Source: Space.com)
Russia is apparently getting ready to return to the searing surface of Venus. The nation wants to launch Venera-D — a multi-vehicle mission involving a lander, balloon and orbiter — to Venus in 2036, Russian state media said. Venera-D has been in the works since 2003. Once upon a time, before Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine, Venera-D was even considered as a possible joint mission with NASA. (3/13)
NASA Begins Building Nuclear-Powered Dragonfly Drone for 2028 Launch to Saturn Moon Titan (Source: Space.com)
NASA is one step closer to sending a drone mission to another world. Technicians at the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory (APL) in Maryland have begun building and testing the nuclear-powered Dragonfly rotorcraft, which will launch toward the huge Saturn moon Titan in 2028. "This milestone essentially marks the birth of our flight system," Elizabeth Turtle, Dragonfly principal investigator at APL, said in a NASA statement. (3/13)
Isar Aerospace to Launch Astroscale ELSA-M Orbital Debris Removal Mission (Source: European Spaceflight)
Tokyo-headquartered Astroscale Holdings has selected Isar Aerospace to launch its ELSA-M orbital debris removal demonstration mission no earlier than 2028. Isar Aerospace is preparing for the second flight of its two-stage rocket, Spectrum, after the first flight failed shortly after liftoff in early 2025. The launch is currently scheduled for no earlier than 19 March from the Andøya Spaceport in Norway. (3/13)
‘The Race is On’: will Elon Musk Be the First to Put a Data Center in Space? (Source: Financial Times)
Elon Musk’s SpaceX is aggressively pursuing a first-mover advantage in space-based AI data centers, aiming to launch solar-powered, orbital compute hubs within 2–3 years to bypass terrestrial energy and regulatory constraints. While competing with firms like Blue Origin and StarCloud, Musk’s vertical integration with Starship launch capacity positions him as the likely leader, though experts suggest massive-scale, fully operational orbital data centers may take longer than his proposed 2026–2028 timeline.
SpaceX plans to use an upgraded Starlink (version 3) to create AI-focused, solar-powered satellites operating in low Earth orbit (LEO), exploiting 5x higher solar energy efficiency compared to Earth. Blue Origin is also developing technology for orbital AI hubs. Meanwhile, startups like StarCloud are already testing prototypes. Experts warn that although pilot projects are possible within three to five years, massive-scale orbital computing faces significant challenges with maintenance, heat rejection, and communication latency. (3/13)
Who’s Working With China on Space? (Source: Payload)
There is a wide spread of nations, across three continents, especially engaged in China’s burgeoning international space network, according to a January report from the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS). Pakistan, Egypt, and Venezuela led the pack when the study was published, with 61 other countries claiming at least some space-based relationship with China.
China is using those relationships to prep markets for its emerging commercial space sector, study authors say. Still, all three of the leading countries have openings for US or European competition with Chinese firms. The pros of China: Chinese companies could gain a unique competitive edge in cost, speed, and training services. Chinese products are often cheaper and come with more perks than Western ones. (3/13)
Kazakhstan Must Choose: Be Eurasia’s Tech Broker or Become a Pawn in the New Global Space Race (Source: Space News)
Kazakhstan is approaching a moment of strategic truth. It can either become Eurasia’s indispensable broker of space, AI and advanced technology solutions or risk being used as a pawn in a geopolitical power competition it does not control. To be sure, Kazakhstan’s position has complex dependencies: Its historical ties with Russia’s cultural, education and science communities must be respected.
Its proximity to China with its fast and frugal scaling strength and position in global supply chains is important for Kazakhstan’s trade balance and its position as a transit hub. Europe is another indispensable science, education and trade partner, as well as governance anchor for Kazakhstan’s young democracy. And the United States has the greatest legacy asset base as a frontier innovator and space explorer, as well as the most transparent and sizable capital markets. (3/13)
Better Signal: 1,600 Starlink Satellites Move Into Lower Orbits (Source: PC Mag)
Starlink subscribers can expect lower latency and improved signal quality as the company moves 1,600 satellites into lower orbits. Jonathan McDowell reported that a large collection of Starlink satellites has been descending, cutting the distance for the satellite beams to reach Earth. The satellites were previously orbiting the Earth at 550 kilometers (341 miles). But now McDowell says 652 of the satellites have been lowered to 480-kilometer orbits, while another 972 satellites “are currently on the way down,” he wrote. In response, SpaceX CEO Elon Musk tweeted back: “Tighter beams and better signal quality.” (3/12)
A Battle Over Texas Beaches Could Ground Elon Musk’s Rockets (Source: Texas Monthly)
The nine justices of the Supreme Court of Texas sat on stage behind four long tables that had been pushed together and draped with black cloth to make the theatrical setting appropriately somber. In their ebony robes, they looked like crows perched along a power line as they heard oral arguments over a lawsuit that pits environmental activists against the richest man in the world. “I think David and Goliath kind of understates it,” said Jim Chapman, a founding board member of Save RGV, the local nonprofit that is the lead plaintiff in the case. “I don’t think we’re even David.”
Hundreds of undergrads and schoolkids, dozens of collegiate officials, and a score of local politicians were on hand for the event last week. Nearly all the hall’s one thousand seats were filled. University VIPs and busloads of students sat downstairs, while members of the general public were corralled in the balcony.
Those seated upstairs seemed only interested in the first case on the docket, a consolidated set of appeals brought by Attorney General Ken Paxton, Cameron County, and the Texas General Land Office against Save RGV, the Sierra Club, and the Indigenous Carrizo/Comecrudo Nation of Texas. At stake—depending on whom you ask—is either the right of all Texans to visit public Gulf beaches without interference or the state’s burgeoning role in the future of spaceflight. The Court is expected to issue a ruling sometime around June, before its summer recess. (3/12)
ISRO Conducts Sea-Level Test of CE20 Cryogenic Engine at 22-Tonne Thrust (Source: Deccan Chronicle)
ISRO successfully conducted a sea-level hot test of India's CE20 cryogenic engine at a thrust level of 22 tonnes on March 10 at the ISRO Propulsion Complex. The test was carried out using a Nozzle Protection System (NPS) and a multi-element igniter. Earlier sea-level tests using the nozzle protection system had been conducted at a thrust level of 19 tonnes.
The CE20 cryogenic engine powers the upper cryogenic stage of the LVM3 launch vehicle. To enhance the payload capability of LVM3, future missions are planned to operate with an upgraded C32 stage capable of producing 22 tonnes of thrust. In line with this objective, the latest test was conducted for a duration of 165 seconds at the enhanced thrust level. ISRO said the engine and the test facility performed as expected throughout the test. (3/13)
China Launches Twice in Three Hours (Source: Space News)
China conducted a pair of launches hours apart Thursday. A Long March 8A lifted off at 3:48 p.m. Eastern from the commercial spaceport on Hainan carrying the 20th set of Guowang broadband constellation satellites. Officials did not disclose the number of satellites on the launch, but previous Long March 8A launches for Guowang carried nine satellites each. A Long March 2D rocket lifted off from the Xichang Satellite Launch Center at 6:33 p.m. Eastern and placed into orbit the Shiyan-30 03 and 04 spacecraft. Official media said the satellites will be used to test Earth observation technologies. The launches were the first in a month from China after a break for the Chinese New Year holiday. (3/13)
Cygnus Cargo Craft Departs ISS (Source: Space.com)
A Cygnus cargo spacecraft departed from the ISS Thursday. The NG-23 Cygnus was unberthed from the station by the Canadarm2 robotic arm. The spacecraft had been at the station for nearly six months and will perform a destructive reentry on Saturday. A new Cygnus spacecraft is scheduled to launch to the station next month. (3/13)
UK Space Chief Prioritizes National Security (Source: Space News)
The new head of the U.K. Space Agency is prioritizing growth of the country's space sector and national security. In an interview, Rebecca Evernden said the focus on growth and national security is because the government believes those areas will have the most impact, particularly in topics such as satellite communications and in-space servicing. Launch also remains a priority despite the bankruptcy of Orbex. The agency is in the process of being absorbed into the U.K. government's Department of Science, Innovation and Technology, but Evernden said the agency will maintain its technical expertise and collaborate with other nations' space agencies. (3/13)
Freeman Departs Amazon Leo (Source: Breaking Defense)
The head of Amazon Leo's government services business has left the company. Rick Freeman, who had been vice president at Amazon overseeing Amazon Leo for Government, left the company in late February, the company confirmed. Amazon Leo for Government is the unit charged with sales of Amazon Leo broadband services to government customers. Amazon has not announced a replacement for Freeman. [Breaking Defense]
SPARCS Cubesat Begins Exoplanet Search (Source: NASA JPL)
A cubesat designed to help look for habitable exoplanets has returned its first images. The Star-Planet Activity Research CubeSat, or SPARCS, cubesat launched in January on a SpaceX rideshare mission. The 6U cubesat carries an ultraviolet camera that astronomers will use to monitor low-mass stars to measure the amount of stellar activity they have. That will help them determine how suitable any planets that orbit them are for hosting life. (3/13)
Artemis 2 Aims Officially for April 1 Launch (Source: Space News)
NASA announced Thursday it now plans to launch the Artemis 2 mission as soon as April 1. The agency concluded a flight readiness review and officials said they were ready to proceed with a launch in a window between April 1 and 6. The decision comes after completing repairs to a helium line for the Space Launch System upper stage that suffered a blockage, requiring rolling the vehicle from the pad for repairs. The vehicle is scheduled to roll back out to the pad March 19. (3/13)
Voyager Joins Long Beach CA Aerospace Cluster (Source: Space News)
Voyager Technologies is opening a new manufacturing facility in Southern California. The company announced Thursday it set up the 140,000-square-foot site in Long Beach, California, to support development and production of electronics, software and propulsion technologies used in spacecraft and defense systems. The move places Voyager alongside a growing cluster of aerospace firms in Long Beach and the broader Los Angeles region. The company is expanding in California and elsewhere as it seeks roles in the Golden Dome missile defense initiative. (3/13)
China Developing Mars Sample Return Hardware (Source: Space News)
A Chinese Mars sample return mission is entering the construction phase. Work on the Tianwen-3 mission is on track for a launch in late 2028 after engineers achieved breakthroughs in key technologies, officials said Thursday. The multi-spacecraft mission will use two Long March 5 launches from Earth in late 2028, one carrying a lander and ascent vehicle and the other a Mars orbiter and Earth return spacecraft. Tianwen-3 is designed to return at least 500 grams of Martian samples to Earth in 2031. (3/13)
Austria's Another Earth Raises $4 Million to Train AI Models with Synthetic Satellite Imagery (Source: Space News)
A startup that generates synthetic satellite imagery to train AI models has raised a seed round. Vienna-based Another Earth raised $4 million this week to accelerate the deployment of software it is already providing commercially to geospatial analysis firms. That software creates large amounts of synthetic satellite imagery to train AI models that are then used to analyze actual imagery. The company seeks to assist the broader Earth observation industry that it believes is bottlenecked by a lack of high-quality training data. (3/13)
Senate Advances Anderson Nomination as NASA Deputy Administrator (Source: Space News)
The Senate Commerce Committee voted to advance the nomination of Matt Anderson as NASA deputy administrator. The committee voted 23-5 to send Anderson's nomination to the full Senate for a final confirmation vote. The five no votes all came from Democratic members of the committee. The vote came a week after Anderson faced little opposition from committee members at a confirmation hearing. (3/13)
KSC and Space Force's SLD45 Step-Up Collaboration to Meet Critical Spaceport Needs (Source: NASA KSC)
"Through ongoing engagements with the Space Force and our commercial partners, teams from Kennedy and Space Launch Delta (SLD) 45 have identified five areas where our unified efforts will drive targeted improvements to address the spaceport’s most critical needs: infrastructure and utilities, commodity supply, transportation and access, process alignment, and facility demand," according to a March 13 status report from KSC Director Janet Petro.
"This week, Kennedy and SLD 45 met for another collaborative working discussion focused on these support areas, aligning priorities, reviewing policy, and identifying actions to truly unite two installations under one combined spaceport. This ongoing initiative will truly put us in lock step as we work together to amplify the spaceport’s needs, advocate for strategic investment, and maximize operational ability at the busiest spaceport on the planet." (3/13)
March 12, 2026
Space Force Officially Terminates
AeroVironment Contract for Satellite Control Antennas (Source:
Space News)
The U.S. Space Force has formally terminated an estimated $1.7 billion contract with defense technology firm AeroVironment to build a new generation of antennas used to command and control military satellites. Company executives confirmed the decision during a March 10 earnings call, saying the government ended the agreement after unsuccessful renegotiations. (3/12)
Old NASA Science Satellite Plunges Back to Earth (Source: AP)
An old NASA science satellite plunged uncontrolled from orbit and reentered over the Pacific on Wednesday. The U.S. Space Force said the Van Allen Probe A came in west of the Galapagos Islands. (3/12)
Northrop Grumman's 1st 'Cygnus XL' Departs ISS (Source: Space.com)
The first mission of Northrop Grumman's big new cargo spacecraft is over. That freighter, known as Cygnus XL, left the International Space Station (ISS) on Thursday morning (March 12), ending a nearly six-month orbital stay for the 23rd Northrop Grumman (NG-23) resupply mission to the orbital laboratory. (3/12)
Pentagon Eyes Cislunar Space As Next Strategic Frontier (Source: Aviation Week)
As the U.S. prepares to return astronauts to the Moon, the Pentagon is turning its focus to the vast region between traditional Earth orbits and its natural satellite as an emerging front for military operations. The Trump administration released an executive order in December focused on space superiority, calling for the U.S. to be capable of detecting, characterizing and countering threats from very low Earth orbit and through cislunar space and to become the standard-bearer for terrestrial and cislunar position, navigation and timing. (3/12)
York to Acquire Orbion (Source: Space News)
York Space Systems is acquiring satellite propulsion company Orbion Space Technology. York announced the acquisition Thursday but did not disclose terms of the deal. Orbion develops Hall-effect electric propulsion systems for small satellites. With the acquisition, York is bringing that capability in-house as part of a broader effort to control more of its satellite supply chain. Orbion had been a supplier to York, delivering 33 propulsion units in January for a military satellite program. Orbion will operate as a wholly owned subsidiary of York. (3/12)
Firefly Aces Alpha Launch at Vandenberg (Source: Space News)
Firefly Aerospace's Alpha rocket returned to flight Wednesday evening, more than 10 months after a launch failure. The Alpha lifted off from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California, successfully reaching low Earth orbit. The rocket carried a demonstration payload for Lockheed Martin, but neither Lockheed nor Firefly disclosed additional details about it. The launch was the first for Alpha since an April 2025 failure. The launch was also the last for the current version of Alpha as Firefly plans to introduce an upgraded Block 2 version of the rocket later this year. (3/12)
NASA's IG Warns of Artemis Schedule Delays (Source: Space News)
NASA's inspector general said that the agency's approach to Artemis lunar lander development has controlled costs but not schedule. A report this week by the inspector general said there has been only minor cost growth on its Human Landing System (HLS) contracts with Blue Origin and SpaceX, and that growth has been linked in large part to changes to other elements of Artemis.
However, the report found significant schedule delays by both companies, particularly as they struggle with key technologies such as management of the cryogenic propellants their landers will use. The report did not incorporate recent changes to Artemis announced in the last few weeks, but the study raises questions about the ability of NASA and the companies to accelerate development of their landers. (3/12)
Australia's Enpulsion Raises $26 Million for Electric Propulsion (Source: Space News)
Austrian satellite propulsion company Enpulsion has raised its first major funding round. The company recently announced raising $26 million in a round led by German fund Nordwind Growth. Enpulsion said the funding will allow it to expand, including moving from sales of electric propulsion systems for smallsats to more complete mobility solutions for spacecraft. The company also is looking to expand its presence in the United States. (3/12)
Could NASA Use Expandable Habitats for Its Artemis Moon Bases? These Two Companies Are Betting Millions (Source: Space.com)
Commercial space infrastructure firm Voyager Technologies is backing lunar habitat developer Max Space with a new multi-million-dollar investment aimed at accelerating development of expandable modules for future missions to the moon. The companies say the partnership will help move expandable habitat technology toward operational missions by scaling up production, bolstering engineering efforts and integrating Voyager's technology systems with Max's habitat infrastructure. (3/11)
March 2026: The Goddard Centennial (Source: AIAA)
This March 16th will mark the 100th anniversary of Dr. Robert Goddard’s historic first flight of a liquid propulsion rocket, back in 1926. That flight is rocketry’s closest equivalent of the Wright Brothers’ first flight of an airplane at Kitty Hawk in 1903. And just like the similarly historic Kitty Hawk flight, Goddard’s pioneering first liquid propulsion flight opened the way to a world-changing future that all of humankind benefits from today. (3/12)
SkyDefender: Thales Unveils Europe’s Answer to Golden Dome (Source: AeroTime)
France’s Thales Group has unveiled details behind a new air and missile defense system in what many will see as Europe’s answer to US President Donald Trump’s Golden Dome announced last year. On March 11, 2025, Thales introduced SkyDefender to the world, describing the innovation as “a multi-layer, multi-domain integrated air and missile defense system”, designed to offer “full protection against all types of air threats, on land, at sea and in space”. (3/12)
FCC Proposes New Spectrum for Emergent Space Operations (Source: Mach 33)
The FCC has issued a proposal to open new spectrum access for telemetry, tracking, and command (TT&C) to support "emergent spacecraft". The proposal seeks comment on new access for orbital labs, in-space servicing, and commercial stations, including a proposed Earth-to-space allocation in the 2320–2345 MHz band and other mechanisms meant to support non-traditional space operations.
This is the kind of quiet infrastructure story investors should care about. Orbital labs, in-space servicing, commercial stations, and other new vehicle classes do not scale cleanly if spectrum rules only fit legacy satellite archetypes. This reduces the long-term licensing risk for companies building complex orbital infrastructure that requires constant, high-reliability command links. (3/6)
After Falling Far Behind the Rest of Industry, Blue Origin Creates New Stock Option Plan (Source: Ars Technica)
Blue Origin has a lot to offer prospective employees: a compelling mission, high salaries, a demanding but not suffocating work environment, and more. But when it comes to one key aspect of retaining talent, Blue Origin rates far behind the rest of the industry. From the beginning, for example, SpaceX offered employee stock options.
Top aerospace engineers and technicians do not come cheap, and Blue Origin competes in a heated market for the best talent. On Monday afternoon, Blue Origin chief executive Dave Limp sent employees an email announcing a “new stock option” plan that would allow all employees to participate in and eventually convert vested options. (3/9)
Astronomers Collect Rare Evidence of Two Planets Colliding (Source: Phys.org)
Anastasios Tzanidakis was combing through old telescope data from 2020 when he found an otherwise boring star acting very strangely. The star, named Gaia20ehk, was about 11,000 light-years from Earth near the constellation Puppis. It was a stable "main sequence" star, much like our sun, which meant that it should emit steady, predictable light. Yet this star began to flicker wildly.
The cause of the flickering had nothing to do with the star itself: Huge quantities of rocks and dust—seemingly from out of nowhere—were passing in front of the distant star as the material orbited the system, patchily dimming the light that reached Earth. The likely source of all that debris was even more remarkable: a catastrophic collision between two planets. (3/11)
Musk and Bezos Moon Landers Could Leave Artemis Astronauts Stranded, NASA Watchdog Warns (Source: Gizmodo)
The findings, published by NASA’s Office of the Inspector General on Tuesday, reveal critical gaps in testing and crew survival analyses for both prospective landers: SpaceX’s Starship Human Landing System (HLS) and Blue Origin’s Blue Moon Lander. That’s a serious problem because if either lander encounters a catastrophic event, NASA will not be able to rescue the stranded crew from space or the lunar surface. (3/11)
Plan to Launch Spacecraft From Paso Robles Airport Takes a Key Step Forward (Source: The Tribune)
The city of Paso Robles is one step closer to getting a license to allow spacecraft to take off and land from its municipal airport. On March 4, the Paso Robles City Council unanimously voted to direct staff to make preparations to complete the FAA Commercial Spaceport License application process.
Staff were directed to prepare a request for proposals for the project. The move is the latest update in the city’s years-long goal to advance its Spaceport and Technology Corridor initiative — a project aimed at creating an economic hub for aerospace engineering in Paso Robles, in partnership with educational institutions like Cal Poly, Cuesta College and even K-12 career technical education programs. (3/9)
Meteorite Crashes Through Roof in Germany After Fiery Light Show (Source: New York Times)
This past weekend, people in Koblenz, Germany, might have found themselves asking an unusual question: Is my house insured against meteorite damage? Around 6:55 p.m. local time on Sunday, an extremely bright fireball burned through the twilight skies of northwestern Europe. Thousands of people in Belgium, France, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and Germany had no difficulty spotting the incandescent object as it moved rapidly toward the northeast.
News organizations reported that several buildings in the western German state of Rhineland-Palatinate had been damaged by mysterious debris that fell from the heavens. The roof of one house, in the town of Koblenz, appears to have been punctured by at least one larger meteorite — a shard that fell into the (fortunately unoccupied) bedroom below. (3/10)
Gravitational Waves Reveal Hidden Structure of Galactic Centers (Source: Phys.org)
A new study indicates that the dense, star- and dark-matter–rich environments around supermassive black hole binaries pack on the order of a million solar masses into each cubic parsec. The team used gravitational-wave data from pulsar timing arrays to probe galactic centers that are otherwise impossible to observe directly. (3/10)
Orbital Compute Supply Chain: Thermodynamics is Redrawing the Rules (Source: Mach 33)
This analysis maps the rapidly emerging orbital compute supply chain, showing how thermodynamics is now the dominant constraint driving new suppliers, capital flows, and talent demand. While consolidation and vertical integration (in particular SpaceX) will squeeze many early-stage component players, major breakthroughs in solar arrays and radiator technologies remain essential to reach viable 100 kW/ton power densities, creating a narrow set of high-risk, high-upside frontier investment opportunities. (3/11)
SpaceX Prepares for Starship Flight 12 and Raptor 3 Debut (Source: Mach 33)
SpaceX has moved through an important stretch of preflight work on Ship 39 ahead of Flight 12, including cryogenic proof testing, while Booster 19 advances in what would be the first integrated flight campaign for Starship V3 hardware. Elon Musk said the first V3 launch is about four weeks away, which points more to early April than mid-March.
By simplifying the engine design and increasing thrust-to-weight ratios, SpaceX is moving beyond the "experimental" phase of Starship into a production-ready architecture. This process is a live measure of iteration speed, engine maturity, and factory throughput. If SpaceX can bring materially upgraded hardware to flight on this cadence, it reinforces the company’s core edge, which is not just rocket performance but fast industrial learning at scale. (3/10)
Voyager’s 10-K Puts a Real Dollar Figure on Starship Heavy-lift Pricing (Source: Mach 33)
Voyager disclosed that Starlab has a $90.0 million commitment for one future launch service on board Starship. The filing does not disclose Starlab’s mass. Using SpaceX’s published Starship payload benchmark of up to 150 metric tons to LEO in fully reusable mode, implying a theoretical floor of roughly $600/kg. At a more conservative 100-ton utilization level, the implied figure is about $900/kg. The broader takeaway is more important than the exact math. This is early commercial price discovery for Starship-class lift. (3/8)
The U.S. Space Force has formally terminated an estimated $1.7 billion contract with defense technology firm AeroVironment to build a new generation of antennas used to command and control military satellites. Company executives confirmed the decision during a March 10 earnings call, saying the government ended the agreement after unsuccessful renegotiations. (3/12)
Old NASA Science Satellite Plunges Back to Earth (Source: AP)
An old NASA science satellite plunged uncontrolled from orbit and reentered over the Pacific on Wednesday. The U.S. Space Force said the Van Allen Probe A came in west of the Galapagos Islands. (3/12)
Northrop Grumman's 1st 'Cygnus XL' Departs ISS (Source: Space.com)
The first mission of Northrop Grumman's big new cargo spacecraft is over. That freighter, known as Cygnus XL, left the International Space Station (ISS) on Thursday morning (March 12), ending a nearly six-month orbital stay for the 23rd Northrop Grumman (NG-23) resupply mission to the orbital laboratory. (3/12)
Pentagon Eyes Cislunar Space As Next Strategic Frontier (Source: Aviation Week)
As the U.S. prepares to return astronauts to the Moon, the Pentagon is turning its focus to the vast region between traditional Earth orbits and its natural satellite as an emerging front for military operations. The Trump administration released an executive order in December focused on space superiority, calling for the U.S. to be capable of detecting, characterizing and countering threats from very low Earth orbit and through cislunar space and to become the standard-bearer for terrestrial and cislunar position, navigation and timing. (3/12)
York to Acquire Orbion (Source: Space News)
York Space Systems is acquiring satellite propulsion company Orbion Space Technology. York announced the acquisition Thursday but did not disclose terms of the deal. Orbion develops Hall-effect electric propulsion systems for small satellites. With the acquisition, York is bringing that capability in-house as part of a broader effort to control more of its satellite supply chain. Orbion had been a supplier to York, delivering 33 propulsion units in January for a military satellite program. Orbion will operate as a wholly owned subsidiary of York. (3/12)
Firefly Aces Alpha Launch at Vandenberg (Source: Space News)
Firefly Aerospace's Alpha rocket returned to flight Wednesday evening, more than 10 months after a launch failure. The Alpha lifted off from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California, successfully reaching low Earth orbit. The rocket carried a demonstration payload for Lockheed Martin, but neither Lockheed nor Firefly disclosed additional details about it. The launch was the first for Alpha since an April 2025 failure. The launch was also the last for the current version of Alpha as Firefly plans to introduce an upgraded Block 2 version of the rocket later this year. (3/12)
NASA's IG Warns of Artemis Schedule Delays (Source: Space News)
NASA's inspector general said that the agency's approach to Artemis lunar lander development has controlled costs but not schedule. A report this week by the inspector general said there has been only minor cost growth on its Human Landing System (HLS) contracts with Blue Origin and SpaceX, and that growth has been linked in large part to changes to other elements of Artemis.
However, the report found significant schedule delays by both companies, particularly as they struggle with key technologies such as management of the cryogenic propellants their landers will use. The report did not incorporate recent changes to Artemis announced in the last few weeks, but the study raises questions about the ability of NASA and the companies to accelerate development of their landers. (3/12)
Australia's Enpulsion Raises $26 Million for Electric Propulsion (Source: Space News)
Austrian satellite propulsion company Enpulsion has raised its first major funding round. The company recently announced raising $26 million in a round led by German fund Nordwind Growth. Enpulsion said the funding will allow it to expand, including moving from sales of electric propulsion systems for smallsats to more complete mobility solutions for spacecraft. The company also is looking to expand its presence in the United States. (3/12)
Could NASA Use Expandable Habitats for Its Artemis Moon Bases? These Two Companies Are Betting Millions (Source: Space.com)
Commercial space infrastructure firm Voyager Technologies is backing lunar habitat developer Max Space with a new multi-million-dollar investment aimed at accelerating development of expandable modules for future missions to the moon. The companies say the partnership will help move expandable habitat technology toward operational missions by scaling up production, bolstering engineering efforts and integrating Voyager's technology systems with Max's habitat infrastructure. (3/11)
March 2026: The Goddard Centennial (Source: AIAA)
This March 16th will mark the 100th anniversary of Dr. Robert Goddard’s historic first flight of a liquid propulsion rocket, back in 1926. That flight is rocketry’s closest equivalent of the Wright Brothers’ first flight of an airplane at Kitty Hawk in 1903. And just like the similarly historic Kitty Hawk flight, Goddard’s pioneering first liquid propulsion flight opened the way to a world-changing future that all of humankind benefits from today. (3/12)
SkyDefender: Thales Unveils Europe’s Answer to Golden Dome (Source: AeroTime)
France’s Thales Group has unveiled details behind a new air and missile defense system in what many will see as Europe’s answer to US President Donald Trump’s Golden Dome announced last year. On March 11, 2025, Thales introduced SkyDefender to the world, describing the innovation as “a multi-layer, multi-domain integrated air and missile defense system”, designed to offer “full protection against all types of air threats, on land, at sea and in space”. (3/12)
FCC Proposes New Spectrum for Emergent Space Operations (Source: Mach 33)
The FCC has issued a proposal to open new spectrum access for telemetry, tracking, and command (TT&C) to support "emergent spacecraft". The proposal seeks comment on new access for orbital labs, in-space servicing, and commercial stations, including a proposed Earth-to-space allocation in the 2320–2345 MHz band and other mechanisms meant to support non-traditional space operations.
This is the kind of quiet infrastructure story investors should care about. Orbital labs, in-space servicing, commercial stations, and other new vehicle classes do not scale cleanly if spectrum rules only fit legacy satellite archetypes. This reduces the long-term licensing risk for companies building complex orbital infrastructure that requires constant, high-reliability command links. (3/6)
After Falling Far Behind the Rest of Industry, Blue Origin Creates New Stock Option Plan (Source: Ars Technica)
Blue Origin has a lot to offer prospective employees: a compelling mission, high salaries, a demanding but not suffocating work environment, and more. But when it comes to one key aspect of retaining talent, Blue Origin rates far behind the rest of the industry. From the beginning, for example, SpaceX offered employee stock options.
Top aerospace engineers and technicians do not come cheap, and Blue Origin competes in a heated market for the best talent. On Monday afternoon, Blue Origin chief executive Dave Limp sent employees an email announcing a “new stock option” plan that would allow all employees to participate in and eventually convert vested options. (3/9)
Astronomers Collect Rare Evidence of Two Planets Colliding (Source: Phys.org)
Anastasios Tzanidakis was combing through old telescope data from 2020 when he found an otherwise boring star acting very strangely. The star, named Gaia20ehk, was about 11,000 light-years from Earth near the constellation Puppis. It was a stable "main sequence" star, much like our sun, which meant that it should emit steady, predictable light. Yet this star began to flicker wildly.
The cause of the flickering had nothing to do with the star itself: Huge quantities of rocks and dust—seemingly from out of nowhere—were passing in front of the distant star as the material orbited the system, patchily dimming the light that reached Earth. The likely source of all that debris was even more remarkable: a catastrophic collision between two planets. (3/11)
Musk and Bezos Moon Landers Could Leave Artemis Astronauts Stranded, NASA Watchdog Warns (Source: Gizmodo)
The findings, published by NASA’s Office of the Inspector General on Tuesday, reveal critical gaps in testing and crew survival analyses for both prospective landers: SpaceX’s Starship Human Landing System (HLS) and Blue Origin’s Blue Moon Lander. That’s a serious problem because if either lander encounters a catastrophic event, NASA will not be able to rescue the stranded crew from space or the lunar surface. (3/11)
Plan to Launch Spacecraft From Paso Robles Airport Takes a Key Step Forward (Source: The Tribune)
The city of Paso Robles is one step closer to getting a license to allow spacecraft to take off and land from its municipal airport. On March 4, the Paso Robles City Council unanimously voted to direct staff to make preparations to complete the FAA Commercial Spaceport License application process.
Staff were directed to prepare a request for proposals for the project. The move is the latest update in the city’s years-long goal to advance its Spaceport and Technology Corridor initiative — a project aimed at creating an economic hub for aerospace engineering in Paso Robles, in partnership with educational institutions like Cal Poly, Cuesta College and even K-12 career technical education programs. (3/9)
Meteorite Crashes Through Roof in Germany After Fiery Light Show (Source: New York Times)
This past weekend, people in Koblenz, Germany, might have found themselves asking an unusual question: Is my house insured against meteorite damage? Around 6:55 p.m. local time on Sunday, an extremely bright fireball burned through the twilight skies of northwestern Europe. Thousands of people in Belgium, France, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and Germany had no difficulty spotting the incandescent object as it moved rapidly toward the northeast.
News organizations reported that several buildings in the western German state of Rhineland-Palatinate had been damaged by mysterious debris that fell from the heavens. The roof of one house, in the town of Koblenz, appears to have been punctured by at least one larger meteorite — a shard that fell into the (fortunately unoccupied) bedroom below. (3/10)
Gravitational Waves Reveal Hidden Structure of Galactic Centers (Source: Phys.org)
A new study indicates that the dense, star- and dark-matter–rich environments around supermassive black hole binaries pack on the order of a million solar masses into each cubic parsec. The team used gravitational-wave data from pulsar timing arrays to probe galactic centers that are otherwise impossible to observe directly. (3/10)
Orbital Compute Supply Chain: Thermodynamics is Redrawing the Rules (Source: Mach 33)
This analysis maps the rapidly emerging orbital compute supply chain, showing how thermodynamics is now the dominant constraint driving new suppliers, capital flows, and talent demand. While consolidation and vertical integration (in particular SpaceX) will squeeze many early-stage component players, major breakthroughs in solar arrays and radiator technologies remain essential to reach viable 100 kW/ton power densities, creating a narrow set of high-risk, high-upside frontier investment opportunities. (3/11)
SpaceX Prepares for Starship Flight 12 and Raptor 3 Debut (Source: Mach 33)
SpaceX has moved through an important stretch of preflight work on Ship 39 ahead of Flight 12, including cryogenic proof testing, while Booster 19 advances in what would be the first integrated flight campaign for Starship V3 hardware. Elon Musk said the first V3 launch is about four weeks away, which points more to early April than mid-March.
By simplifying the engine design and increasing thrust-to-weight ratios, SpaceX is moving beyond the "experimental" phase of Starship into a production-ready architecture. This process is a live measure of iteration speed, engine maturity, and factory throughput. If SpaceX can bring materially upgraded hardware to flight on this cadence, it reinforces the company’s core edge, which is not just rocket performance but fast industrial learning at scale. (3/10)
Voyager’s 10-K Puts a Real Dollar Figure on Starship Heavy-lift Pricing (Source: Mach 33)
Voyager disclosed that Starlab has a $90.0 million commitment for one future launch service on board Starship. The filing does not disclose Starlab’s mass. Using SpaceX’s published Starship payload benchmark of up to 150 metric tons to LEO in fully reusable mode, implying a theoretical floor of roughly $600/kg. At a more conservative 100-ton utilization level, the implied figure is about $900/kg. The broader takeaway is more important than the exact math. This is early commercial price discovery for Starship-class lift. (3/8)
March 11, 2026
Scientists May Have Discovered a
Brand-New Mineral on Mars (Source: Science Daily)
Scientists studying Mars may have uncovered a brand-new mineral hidden in the planet’s ancient sulfate deposits. By combining laboratory experiments with orbital data, researchers identified an unusual iron sulfate—ferric hydroxysulfate—forming in layered deposits near the massive Valles Marineris canyon system. The mineral likely formed when sulfate-rich deposits left behind by ancient water were later heated by volcanic or geothermal activity, transforming their chemistry. (3/10)
NASA Valkyrie Humanoid Robot Built for Mars Research Returns to US After 10 Years (Source: Interesting Engineering)
A humanoid robot developed by NASA for future Mars missions is set to return to the US after spending a decade at the University of Edinburgh in Scotland. Named Valkyrie, the 1.8-meter-tall machine weighs about 275 pounds and is one of only three prototypes in the world. Inspired by Norse mythology, the robot supported humanoid robotics research before returning to Johnson Space Center in Texas for further development and future planetary missions. (3/9)
SpaceX Can't Convince Married Engineers to Move to Starbase (Source: EcoNews)
During a recent interview, Elon Musk described SpaceX’s Starbase launch site complex in South Texas as a kind of “technology monastery,” remote and largely male. He also talked about a “significant other problem” since many engineers with families are reluctant to relocate to a site with few other jobs or amenities nearby.
On a map, that isolation looks like open space waiting for rockets. In reality, Starbase sits across from the Las Palomas Wildlife Management Area and the broader Lower Rio Grande Valley wildlife corridor, a patchwork of wetlands, Tamaulipan thorn forest, and grasslands that support migratory birds such as white winged doves and rarer species like chachalacas.
For engineers that Musk hopes to recruit, the choice is complicated. Life near Boca Chica can mean long drives to nearby Brownsville, fewer job options for partners, and schools that do not yet resemble big coastal tech hubs. At the same time, the quiet beaches and bird filled wetlands that draw nature lovers are the same spaces feeling the pressure of repeated launch tests. (3/10)
Rapid Space Launches Shifting the Chemistry of Earth’s Atmosphere (Source: Futurism)
We’re rapidly filling up the orbit around our planet with active spacecraft — and plenty of dangerous detritus as well. And beyond the chance of collisions, all of that activity could have potentially grave environmental consequences as well. The Earth’s atmosphere is being littered with new metal aerosols from burning spacecraft and rockets.
Aluminum oxides from reentering satellites can catalyze the chemistry that destroys the ozone layer. Meanwhile, rocket exhaust — especially black carbon (soot) from rocket engines powered by hydrocarbon propellants — warms the stratosphere and alters winds. Researchers have also found that rocket launches could effectively negate a global, decades-long effort to reduce our reliance on chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), which are synthetic organic compounds used in refrigerants and aerosols that have long been known to deplete the ozone layer. (3/9)
FAA Launches Air Taxi Test Program in 26 States (Source: AccuWeather)
The FAA is launching a pilot program for use of air taxis across 26 states to allow for real-world testing of what it calls "an exciting window into the future of aviation." The Advanced Air Mobility and Electrical Vertical Takeoff and Landing Integration Pilot Program has accepted eight proposals the department said will help it develop regulations to safely enable the technology to scale up.
The range of concepts the program will review include urban taxi services, regional passenger transportation, emergency medical operations, drone technologies, and other potential industrial uses. (3/10)
Toward Practical Laser-Driven Light Sails Using Photonic Crystals (Source: Phys.org)
Conventional light sails typically use metal-coated polymer films. While these films reflect light efficiently, they also absorb part of the incoming energy and convert it into heat. Improving reflectivity often requires adding material, which increases weight and reduces propulsion efficiency. This tradeoff has slowed the development of practical light sail systems.
In the Journal of Nanophotonics, researchers reported that they developed a photonic crystal light sail designed to address these limitations. The proposed structure consists of a nanoscale pattern formed from three dielectric components: germanium pillars, air holes, and a polymer matrix. (3/5)
Rocket Lab's Real Growth Story Isn't Neutron (Source: Seeking Alpha)
Rocket Lab reported $180M Q4 revenue (+36% YoY) with record 38% GAAP gross margins, while full-year revenue reached $602M, continuing accelerating growth. Backlog reached $1.85B, with 37% expected to convert within 12 months, implying about $685M revenue visibility before new contracts. Space Systems and defense programs are driving growth, including over $1.3B in SDA contracts for missile-tracking satellite constellations. (3/10)
After Deep Staffing Cuts, Agencies Seek Mix of Hiring and AI Tools To Rebuild Capacity (Source: FNN)
After deep cuts to the federal workforce under the Trump administration last year, agencies are seeking artificial intelligence tools to make their remaining employees more productive, and continue to hire in a limited capacity to replenish their ranks. According to data from the Office of Personnel Management, more than 386,000 federal employees have left government under the Trump administration — through a combination of firings, layoffs, retirements and early separation incentives.
Factoring in new hires, the federal workforce saw a net decrease of more than 264,000 positions under this administration. Amid this downsizing, the Trump administration has rolled out several initiatives to recruit new hires. It rolled out its plans to recruit talent in last year’s Merit Hiring Plan. More recently, OPM has been looking to bring about 1,000 technologists into the federal workforce through its Tech Force Program, and recruit legal experts through its newly launched Attorney Talent Network. (3/9)
Missile Strike Hits SES Teleport in Israel (Source: Space News)
Satellite operator SES said a missile "targeted and struck" its teleport facility in Israel March 9 as tensions spill across the region amid ongoing Israeli and U.S. military operations against Iran. The Luxembourg-based company said a small portion of the geostationary antenna field was damaged, adding that no injuries were reported and the impact did not affect the main facility at Emek Ha'ela. (3/11)
Viasat to Provide Telecoms for Navy Aircraft (Source: Space News)
Viasat won a contract to provide communications services for some U.S. Navy aircraft. The two-year, $14 million contract announced Tuesday covers connectivity for Navy C-37 aircraft, versions of Gulfstream business jets used for flying senior Navy officials. The sole-source award was made by the U.S. Space Force's Space Systems Command Commercial Space Office, which acts as the Pentagon's central buyer for commercial satellite communications services. (3/11)
Former NOAA Official Speaks Out on Science Workforce and Funding Cuts (Source: Space News)
The head of NOAA's satellite division, placed on administrative leave more than six months ago, is speaking out about cuts to federal science programs. At the "Stand Up for Science" rally on the National Mall over the weekend, Stephen Volz warned that cuts and workforce reductions had "lobotomized the federal government." Volz is the associate administrator for satellite and information services at NOAA, but was placed on administrative leave last July for reasons NOAA has not disclosed, including to Volz.
At the rally, he criticized moves to cancel planned instruments to measure air and water quality as well as restructuring of the agency. Other speakers at the event, including several members of Congress, said that while proposed major cuts to science programs at NOAA, NASA and elsewhere were largely rejected in final 2026 spending bills, the administration may seek to make similar proposals for fiscal year 2027. (3/11)
Anduril to Acquire ExoAnalytic Solutions (Source: Space News)
Defense technology company Anduril Industries said it is buying space surveillance company ExoAnalytic Solutions. Terms of the acquisition, announced Wednesday, were not disclosed. ExoAnalytic operates about 400 ground-based optical telescopes that monitor objects in orbit and provide data to the U.S. government for space domain awareness and missile defense missions. Anduril says the acquisition is intended to strengthen its ability to integrate space-based data into defense systems. It will also significantly expand its space business, which had about 120 employees before the ExoAnalytic purchase. ExoAnalytic will be folded into Anduril's space and engineering division rather than operate as a standalone subsidiary. (3/11)
NASA Drops AXIS Telescope Concept (Source: Space News)
NASA is no longer considering an X-ray telescope in a competition for a large astrophysics mission. The team working on the Advanced X-Ray Imaging Satellite (AXIS) mission concept was notified by NASA they are not eligible for selection as part of the Astrophysics Probe Explorer program because its proposal did not meet cost and schedule requirements. The leader of AXIS said those cost and schedule problems were caused by "seismic shifts" last year within NASA and the Goddard Space Flight Center, which was managing the proposal, including the loss of key personnel and proposed budget cuts.
The AXIS team said it identified ways to bring the proposed mission within cost and schedule, but NASA elected instead to drop it from consideration. "I am, quite frankly, livid that AXIS ultimately fell victim to the programmatic chaos of 2025," principal investigator Christopher Reynolds wrote in a message to the project team. The decision leaves PRIMA, a far-infrared telescope, as the only remaining proposal for the Probe mission competition. (3/11)
China's BlueStar Optical Domain Raises $72 Million for Optical Satcom (Source: Space News)
A Chinese startup has raised funding for optical intersatellite communications. BlueStar Optical Domain, also known as Laser Link, announced Monday a Series C round of $72 million that will be used for expanding manufacturing capacity and production facilities, as well as continued product research and development. The company plans to reach a production rate of 1,000 terminals annually in the first half of this year. Demand may largely be driven by China's planned low Earth orbit internet constellations, notably the national Guowang and Shanghai-backed Thousand Sails projects, each planning to place more than 10,000 satellites in orbit that will likely rely on intersatellite links. (3/11)
Telesat Expanding Ground Stations in Canada (Source: Space News)
Telesat is planning more ground stations in Canada for its Lightspeed constellation. The Canadian operator said Tuesday it acquired sites in Saskatchewan and Quebec and leased land elsewhere in Saskatchewan for stations that would route data between the satellites and major fiber and internet exchange points. Additional sites are set to be contracted in the coming months as the company targets the start of initial global services in 2027. (3/11)
Impulse Space Expanding in Colorado (Source: Space News)
Impulse Space is expanding its presence in Colorado. The space mobility company, headquartered in southern California, announced Tuesday it opened a 20,000-square-foot facility near Boulder, Colorado. That facility will be used to develop the guidance, navigation and control systems for its Mira and Helios vehicle as well as produce some spacecraft components, like pumps and valves. The new facility expands Impulse's presence in Colorado established three years ago. (3/11)
BlackSky Satellite Performing as Expected After Launch (Source: BlackSky)
BlackSky said its latest imaging satellite is working well in orbit. The company said Tuesday its fourth Gen-3 produced its first images within hours of launch. BlackSky did not disclose when the satellite was launched but it is believed to be the confidential commercial payload launched on an Electron rocket last week. (3/11)
Planet Extends Imagery Delay in Middle East (Source: Reuters)
Planet is extending delays in providing imagery of parts of the Middle East during the ongoing conflict there. The company, which said last week it would delay the public release of imagery of some countries in the region by four days, said that delay is now extended to 14 days. Images of Iran, previously exempt from that restriction, are now included, the company announced. Planet said the restriction is intended to limit any use of those images "as tactical leverage by adversarial actors." (3/11)
Isaacman Interested in Additional Mars Mission in 2028 (Source: Science)
NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman has suggested NASA might pursue a Mars mission in 2028. In an interview, he noted that NASA's plans to launch a Mars communications orbiter mission in 2028, as well as ESA's Rosalind Franklin rover. "But I suspect there will be a third as well," he said, declining to provide additional details. NASA's 2026 budget proposal did not explicitly include an additional Mars mission launching in 2028 but did support Mars technology development and potential Mars missions done under commercial services agreements. (3/11)
NASA Authorizes Use of Smartphones on Artemis II (Source: EcoNews)
For the first time in NASA history, astronauts heading for the Moon will carry something most of us toss into a pocket every morning, a smartphone. The agency has approved personal phones, including iPhones, for the upcoming Artemis II lunar flyby and for the SpaceX Crew-12 mission to the International Space Station, breaking a long tradition of banning such devices on government flights. (3/8)
Ex-Google Boss May Launch a Bigger-Than-Hubble Space Telescope Within Three Years (Source: BBC)
A new space telescope has been announced, Lazuli, with a three-meter (10ft) mirror capable of observing in the optical and infrared. This makes it larger than Hubble, and it will fly a sophisticated spectrograph and camera, plus a coronagraph for spotting planets around nearby stars. What’s really notable is that the entire cost of Lazuli is being covered by Eric and Wendy Schmidt. (3/8)
Stars With Low Magnetic Activity Are Likely To Support Exoplanetary Systems, Making the Hunt for These Celestial Objects Less Random (Source: Live Science)
Scientists have found a potential shortcut for identifying stars that host planets. The technique, based on specific signals in starlight, could make it easier to search for exoplanets, according to a new study. The team has already used their new method to turn up half a dozen previously undiscovered planets — but because most of the alien worlds are very close to their stars, they are unlikely to be habitable, the study authors say. (3/7)
ISRO and ESA Sign Agreement for Earth Observation Missions (Source: The Hindu)
The Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) and the European Space Agency (ESA) have jointly signed an agreement on ‘ESA-ISRO Arrangement concerning Joint Calibration and Validation Activities and Scientific Studies for Earth Observation Missions’. The agreement was signed on March 4 by M. Ganesh Pillai, scientific secretary, ISRO, and Simonetta Cheli, director, Earth Observation Program, ESA, in a virtual meeting mode. (3/9)
Lower-Cost Space Missions Like NASA’s ESCAPADE Are Starting To Deliver Exciting Science – But at a Price in Risk and Trade-Offs (Source: The Conversation)
After a yearslong series of setbacks, NASA’s Escape and Plasma Acceleration and Dynamics Explorers, or ESCAPADE, mission has finally begun its roundabout journey to Mars. This low-cost mission is only getting started, and it’s taking bigger risks than typical big-ticket NASA missions.
NASA classifies payloads on a four‑tier risk scale, from A to D. Class A missions are the most expensive and highest priority, like the James Webb Space Telescope, Europa Clipper and the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope. They use thoroughly proven hardware and undergo exhaustive testing. ESCAPADE is at the other end. It’s a class D mission, defined as having “high risk tolerance” and “medium to low complexity.”
A concept put forward by Jared Isaacman is that 10 $100 million missions would be better than one $1 billion flagship – or top-tier – mission. This approach could encourage faster mission development and would diversify the types of missions heading out into the solar system. But that reorganization comes with trade-offs. For example, low‑cost missions rarely match flagship missions in scope, and they typically do less to advance the technology necessary for doing innovative science. (3/7)
Reentry of NASA Satellite Will Exceed the Agency’s Own Risk Guidelines (Source: Ars Technica)
A NASA satellite that spent more than a decade coursing through the Van Allen radiation belts encircling Earth is about to fall back into the atmosphere. This reentry is notable because it poses a higher risk to the public than the US government typically allows. The risk of harm coming to anyone on Earth is still low, approximately 1 in 4,200, but it exceeds the government standard of a 1 in 10,000 chance of an uncontrolled reentry causing a casualty. (3/10)
The Risks of Concentrating National Space Power in Private Hands (Source: Space.com)
Private companies are no longer peripheral participants in U.S. space activities. They provide key services, including launching and deploying satellites, transporting cargo and astronauts to the ISS, and even sending landers to the Moon. Commercial integration is now embedded in US space policy and shapes national space strategy. While the US has begun developing alternatives, in operational reality the concentration of commercial control gives companies disproportionate leverage. If private power and public strategy were to diverge, would Washington have a credible Plan B? (3/7)
New Study Addresses Clotting Risks for Female Astronauts (Source: Universe Today)
It's no secret that prolonged periods spent in microgravity takes a toll on the human body. This includes muscle atrophy, bone density loss, and changes to the cardiovascular, endocrine, and nervous systems. But for female astronauts, there is also the greater risk of developing blood clots, according to recent findings. This highlights the fact that, to date, most studies of human health in space have involved male astronauts. But as the number of female astronauts continues to grow, more research is required to address potentially gender-related health risks. (3/10)
Starlab Space Fully Books Commercial Payload Space on Planned Space Station (Source: Space News)
The Starlab commercial space station has fully booked its commercial payload space as the joint venture developing it awaits the next phase of a NASA program. Starlab and other commercial stations are awaiting the next phase of the CLD program. (3/10)
SSC Space Brings New Optical Ground Station into Service (Source: Via Satellite)
SSC Space is bringing a new optical ground station (OGS) into service at its site in Santiago, Chile. It will enable free-space laser communication between satellites and the ground. The new station is part of the SSC Space optical service development project NODES within ESA's Optical and Quantum Communications – ScyLight program, designed to accelerate the development of optical ground capabilities. (3/10)
Astroscale France is Contributing to ESA’s ECO-Tethers Project for Propellant-Free In-Space Mobility and Deorbiting (Source: Spacewatch Global)
Astroscale France, the French subsidiary of Astroscale Holdings Inc. has announced its participation in ECO-Tethers, a new system study under the European Space Agency’s FIRST! Technologies in Sustainability for Future Space Transportation program. Led by PERSEI Space as prime contractor, and delivered in collaboration with Thales Alenia Space Italy and Astroscale France, the ECO-Tethers project will assess propellant-free technologies for in-space propulsion and deorbiting using electrodynamic tethers. (3/10)
Megaconstellation Regulation Takes Center Stage at DC Moot Court (Source: Payload)
Future space lawyers will gather in DC this month to debate how far federal jurisdiction extends in regulating commercial megaconstellations. The American Space Law Foundation will hold its first moot court on March 20 to 21. The two-day event will give students an opportunity to argue in a hypothetical—but very realistic—commercial space law case, in front of a panel of judges representing government and industry. (3/10)
European Space Merger Faces Pushback From Local Competitors (Source: Wall Street Journal)
A potential three-way merger between the space units of Airbus, Leonardo and Thales is facing pushback from some rivals that fear the deal could curtail competition in the European satellite market. Marco Fuchs, chief executive of German satellite maker OHB, said he is concerned about the deal’s potential impact on European consortia formed to bid for European Union and European Space Agency contracts. (3/10)
Scientists studying Mars may have uncovered a brand-new mineral hidden in the planet’s ancient sulfate deposits. By combining laboratory experiments with orbital data, researchers identified an unusual iron sulfate—ferric hydroxysulfate—forming in layered deposits near the massive Valles Marineris canyon system. The mineral likely formed when sulfate-rich deposits left behind by ancient water were later heated by volcanic or geothermal activity, transforming their chemistry. (3/10)
NASA Valkyrie Humanoid Robot Built for Mars Research Returns to US After 10 Years (Source: Interesting Engineering)
A humanoid robot developed by NASA for future Mars missions is set to return to the US after spending a decade at the University of Edinburgh in Scotland. Named Valkyrie, the 1.8-meter-tall machine weighs about 275 pounds and is one of only three prototypes in the world. Inspired by Norse mythology, the robot supported humanoid robotics research before returning to Johnson Space Center in Texas for further development and future planetary missions. (3/9)
SpaceX Can't Convince Married Engineers to Move to Starbase (Source: EcoNews)
During a recent interview, Elon Musk described SpaceX’s Starbase launch site complex in South Texas as a kind of “technology monastery,” remote and largely male. He also talked about a “significant other problem” since many engineers with families are reluctant to relocate to a site with few other jobs or amenities nearby.
On a map, that isolation looks like open space waiting for rockets. In reality, Starbase sits across from the Las Palomas Wildlife Management Area and the broader Lower Rio Grande Valley wildlife corridor, a patchwork of wetlands, Tamaulipan thorn forest, and grasslands that support migratory birds such as white winged doves and rarer species like chachalacas.
For engineers that Musk hopes to recruit, the choice is complicated. Life near Boca Chica can mean long drives to nearby Brownsville, fewer job options for partners, and schools that do not yet resemble big coastal tech hubs. At the same time, the quiet beaches and bird filled wetlands that draw nature lovers are the same spaces feeling the pressure of repeated launch tests. (3/10)
Rapid Space Launches Shifting the Chemistry of Earth’s Atmosphere (Source: Futurism)
We’re rapidly filling up the orbit around our planet with active spacecraft — and plenty of dangerous detritus as well. And beyond the chance of collisions, all of that activity could have potentially grave environmental consequences as well. The Earth’s atmosphere is being littered with new metal aerosols from burning spacecraft and rockets.
Aluminum oxides from reentering satellites can catalyze the chemistry that destroys the ozone layer. Meanwhile, rocket exhaust — especially black carbon (soot) from rocket engines powered by hydrocarbon propellants — warms the stratosphere and alters winds. Researchers have also found that rocket launches could effectively negate a global, decades-long effort to reduce our reliance on chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), which are synthetic organic compounds used in refrigerants and aerosols that have long been known to deplete the ozone layer. (3/9)
FAA Launches Air Taxi Test Program in 26 States (Source: AccuWeather)
The FAA is launching a pilot program for use of air taxis across 26 states to allow for real-world testing of what it calls "an exciting window into the future of aviation." The Advanced Air Mobility and Electrical Vertical Takeoff and Landing Integration Pilot Program has accepted eight proposals the department said will help it develop regulations to safely enable the technology to scale up.
The range of concepts the program will review include urban taxi services, regional passenger transportation, emergency medical operations, drone technologies, and other potential industrial uses. (3/10)
Toward Practical Laser-Driven Light Sails Using Photonic Crystals (Source: Phys.org)
Conventional light sails typically use metal-coated polymer films. While these films reflect light efficiently, they also absorb part of the incoming energy and convert it into heat. Improving reflectivity often requires adding material, which increases weight and reduces propulsion efficiency. This tradeoff has slowed the development of practical light sail systems.
In the Journal of Nanophotonics, researchers reported that they developed a photonic crystal light sail designed to address these limitations. The proposed structure consists of a nanoscale pattern formed from three dielectric components: germanium pillars, air holes, and a polymer matrix. (3/5)
Rocket Lab's Real Growth Story Isn't Neutron (Source: Seeking Alpha)
Rocket Lab reported $180M Q4 revenue (+36% YoY) with record 38% GAAP gross margins, while full-year revenue reached $602M, continuing accelerating growth. Backlog reached $1.85B, with 37% expected to convert within 12 months, implying about $685M revenue visibility before new contracts. Space Systems and defense programs are driving growth, including over $1.3B in SDA contracts for missile-tracking satellite constellations. (3/10)
After Deep Staffing Cuts, Agencies Seek Mix of Hiring and AI Tools To Rebuild Capacity (Source: FNN)
After deep cuts to the federal workforce under the Trump administration last year, agencies are seeking artificial intelligence tools to make their remaining employees more productive, and continue to hire in a limited capacity to replenish their ranks. According to data from the Office of Personnel Management, more than 386,000 federal employees have left government under the Trump administration — through a combination of firings, layoffs, retirements and early separation incentives.
Factoring in new hires, the federal workforce saw a net decrease of more than 264,000 positions under this administration. Amid this downsizing, the Trump administration has rolled out several initiatives to recruit new hires. It rolled out its plans to recruit talent in last year’s Merit Hiring Plan. More recently, OPM has been looking to bring about 1,000 technologists into the federal workforce through its Tech Force Program, and recruit legal experts through its newly launched Attorney Talent Network. (3/9)
Missile Strike Hits SES Teleport in Israel (Source: Space News)
Satellite operator SES said a missile "targeted and struck" its teleport facility in Israel March 9 as tensions spill across the region amid ongoing Israeli and U.S. military operations against Iran. The Luxembourg-based company said a small portion of the geostationary antenna field was damaged, adding that no injuries were reported and the impact did not affect the main facility at Emek Ha'ela. (3/11)
Viasat to Provide Telecoms for Navy Aircraft (Source: Space News)
Viasat won a contract to provide communications services for some U.S. Navy aircraft. The two-year, $14 million contract announced Tuesday covers connectivity for Navy C-37 aircraft, versions of Gulfstream business jets used for flying senior Navy officials. The sole-source award was made by the U.S. Space Force's Space Systems Command Commercial Space Office, which acts as the Pentagon's central buyer for commercial satellite communications services. (3/11)
Former NOAA Official Speaks Out on Science Workforce and Funding Cuts (Source: Space News)
The head of NOAA's satellite division, placed on administrative leave more than six months ago, is speaking out about cuts to federal science programs. At the "Stand Up for Science" rally on the National Mall over the weekend, Stephen Volz warned that cuts and workforce reductions had "lobotomized the federal government." Volz is the associate administrator for satellite and information services at NOAA, but was placed on administrative leave last July for reasons NOAA has not disclosed, including to Volz.
At the rally, he criticized moves to cancel planned instruments to measure air and water quality as well as restructuring of the agency. Other speakers at the event, including several members of Congress, said that while proposed major cuts to science programs at NOAA, NASA and elsewhere were largely rejected in final 2026 spending bills, the administration may seek to make similar proposals for fiscal year 2027. (3/11)
Anduril to Acquire ExoAnalytic Solutions (Source: Space News)
Defense technology company Anduril Industries said it is buying space surveillance company ExoAnalytic Solutions. Terms of the acquisition, announced Wednesday, were not disclosed. ExoAnalytic operates about 400 ground-based optical telescopes that monitor objects in orbit and provide data to the U.S. government for space domain awareness and missile defense missions. Anduril says the acquisition is intended to strengthen its ability to integrate space-based data into defense systems. It will also significantly expand its space business, which had about 120 employees before the ExoAnalytic purchase. ExoAnalytic will be folded into Anduril's space and engineering division rather than operate as a standalone subsidiary. (3/11)
NASA Drops AXIS Telescope Concept (Source: Space News)
NASA is no longer considering an X-ray telescope in a competition for a large astrophysics mission. The team working on the Advanced X-Ray Imaging Satellite (AXIS) mission concept was notified by NASA they are not eligible for selection as part of the Astrophysics Probe Explorer program because its proposal did not meet cost and schedule requirements. The leader of AXIS said those cost and schedule problems were caused by "seismic shifts" last year within NASA and the Goddard Space Flight Center, which was managing the proposal, including the loss of key personnel and proposed budget cuts.
The AXIS team said it identified ways to bring the proposed mission within cost and schedule, but NASA elected instead to drop it from consideration. "I am, quite frankly, livid that AXIS ultimately fell victim to the programmatic chaos of 2025," principal investigator Christopher Reynolds wrote in a message to the project team. The decision leaves PRIMA, a far-infrared telescope, as the only remaining proposal for the Probe mission competition. (3/11)
China's BlueStar Optical Domain Raises $72 Million for Optical Satcom (Source: Space News)
A Chinese startup has raised funding for optical intersatellite communications. BlueStar Optical Domain, also known as Laser Link, announced Monday a Series C round of $72 million that will be used for expanding manufacturing capacity and production facilities, as well as continued product research and development. The company plans to reach a production rate of 1,000 terminals annually in the first half of this year. Demand may largely be driven by China's planned low Earth orbit internet constellations, notably the national Guowang and Shanghai-backed Thousand Sails projects, each planning to place more than 10,000 satellites in orbit that will likely rely on intersatellite links. (3/11)
Telesat Expanding Ground Stations in Canada (Source: Space News)
Telesat is planning more ground stations in Canada for its Lightspeed constellation. The Canadian operator said Tuesday it acquired sites in Saskatchewan and Quebec and leased land elsewhere in Saskatchewan for stations that would route data between the satellites and major fiber and internet exchange points. Additional sites are set to be contracted in the coming months as the company targets the start of initial global services in 2027. (3/11)
Impulse Space Expanding in Colorado (Source: Space News)
Impulse Space is expanding its presence in Colorado. The space mobility company, headquartered in southern California, announced Tuesday it opened a 20,000-square-foot facility near Boulder, Colorado. That facility will be used to develop the guidance, navigation and control systems for its Mira and Helios vehicle as well as produce some spacecraft components, like pumps and valves. The new facility expands Impulse's presence in Colorado established three years ago. (3/11)
BlackSky Satellite Performing as Expected After Launch (Source: BlackSky)
BlackSky said its latest imaging satellite is working well in orbit. The company said Tuesday its fourth Gen-3 produced its first images within hours of launch. BlackSky did not disclose when the satellite was launched but it is believed to be the confidential commercial payload launched on an Electron rocket last week. (3/11)
Planet Extends Imagery Delay in Middle East (Source: Reuters)
Planet is extending delays in providing imagery of parts of the Middle East during the ongoing conflict there. The company, which said last week it would delay the public release of imagery of some countries in the region by four days, said that delay is now extended to 14 days. Images of Iran, previously exempt from that restriction, are now included, the company announced. Planet said the restriction is intended to limit any use of those images "as tactical leverage by adversarial actors." (3/11)
Isaacman Interested in Additional Mars Mission in 2028 (Source: Science)
NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman has suggested NASA might pursue a Mars mission in 2028. In an interview, he noted that NASA's plans to launch a Mars communications orbiter mission in 2028, as well as ESA's Rosalind Franklin rover. "But I suspect there will be a third as well," he said, declining to provide additional details. NASA's 2026 budget proposal did not explicitly include an additional Mars mission launching in 2028 but did support Mars technology development and potential Mars missions done under commercial services agreements. (3/11)
NASA Authorizes Use of Smartphones on Artemis II (Source: EcoNews)
For the first time in NASA history, astronauts heading for the Moon will carry something most of us toss into a pocket every morning, a smartphone. The agency has approved personal phones, including iPhones, for the upcoming Artemis II lunar flyby and for the SpaceX Crew-12 mission to the International Space Station, breaking a long tradition of banning such devices on government flights. (3/8)
Ex-Google Boss May Launch a Bigger-Than-Hubble Space Telescope Within Three Years (Source: BBC)
A new space telescope has been announced, Lazuli, with a three-meter (10ft) mirror capable of observing in the optical and infrared. This makes it larger than Hubble, and it will fly a sophisticated spectrograph and camera, plus a coronagraph for spotting planets around nearby stars. What’s really notable is that the entire cost of Lazuli is being covered by Eric and Wendy Schmidt. (3/8)
Stars With Low Magnetic Activity Are Likely To Support Exoplanetary Systems, Making the Hunt for These Celestial Objects Less Random (Source: Live Science)
Scientists have found a potential shortcut for identifying stars that host planets. The technique, based on specific signals in starlight, could make it easier to search for exoplanets, according to a new study. The team has already used their new method to turn up half a dozen previously undiscovered planets — but because most of the alien worlds are very close to their stars, they are unlikely to be habitable, the study authors say. (3/7)
ISRO and ESA Sign Agreement for Earth Observation Missions (Source: The Hindu)
The Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) and the European Space Agency (ESA) have jointly signed an agreement on ‘ESA-ISRO Arrangement concerning Joint Calibration and Validation Activities and Scientific Studies for Earth Observation Missions’. The agreement was signed on March 4 by M. Ganesh Pillai, scientific secretary, ISRO, and Simonetta Cheli, director, Earth Observation Program, ESA, in a virtual meeting mode. (3/9)
Lower-Cost Space Missions Like NASA’s ESCAPADE Are Starting To Deliver Exciting Science – But at a Price in Risk and Trade-Offs (Source: The Conversation)
After a yearslong series of setbacks, NASA’s Escape and Plasma Acceleration and Dynamics Explorers, or ESCAPADE, mission has finally begun its roundabout journey to Mars. This low-cost mission is only getting started, and it’s taking bigger risks than typical big-ticket NASA missions.
NASA classifies payloads on a four‑tier risk scale, from A to D. Class A missions are the most expensive and highest priority, like the James Webb Space Telescope, Europa Clipper and the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope. They use thoroughly proven hardware and undergo exhaustive testing. ESCAPADE is at the other end. It’s a class D mission, defined as having “high risk tolerance” and “medium to low complexity.”
A concept put forward by Jared Isaacman is that 10 $100 million missions would be better than one $1 billion flagship – or top-tier – mission. This approach could encourage faster mission development and would diversify the types of missions heading out into the solar system. But that reorganization comes with trade-offs. For example, low‑cost missions rarely match flagship missions in scope, and they typically do less to advance the technology necessary for doing innovative science. (3/7)
Reentry of NASA Satellite Will Exceed the Agency’s Own Risk Guidelines (Source: Ars Technica)
A NASA satellite that spent more than a decade coursing through the Van Allen radiation belts encircling Earth is about to fall back into the atmosphere. This reentry is notable because it poses a higher risk to the public than the US government typically allows. The risk of harm coming to anyone on Earth is still low, approximately 1 in 4,200, but it exceeds the government standard of a 1 in 10,000 chance of an uncontrolled reentry causing a casualty. (3/10)
The Risks of Concentrating National Space Power in Private Hands (Source: Space.com)
Private companies are no longer peripheral participants in U.S. space activities. They provide key services, including launching and deploying satellites, transporting cargo and astronauts to the ISS, and even sending landers to the Moon. Commercial integration is now embedded in US space policy and shapes national space strategy. While the US has begun developing alternatives, in operational reality the concentration of commercial control gives companies disproportionate leverage. If private power and public strategy were to diverge, would Washington have a credible Plan B? (3/7)
New Study Addresses Clotting Risks for Female Astronauts (Source: Universe Today)
It's no secret that prolonged periods spent in microgravity takes a toll on the human body. This includes muscle atrophy, bone density loss, and changes to the cardiovascular, endocrine, and nervous systems. But for female astronauts, there is also the greater risk of developing blood clots, according to recent findings. This highlights the fact that, to date, most studies of human health in space have involved male astronauts. But as the number of female astronauts continues to grow, more research is required to address potentially gender-related health risks. (3/10)
Starlab Space Fully Books Commercial Payload Space on Planned Space Station (Source: Space News)
The Starlab commercial space station has fully booked its commercial payload space as the joint venture developing it awaits the next phase of a NASA program. Starlab and other commercial stations are awaiting the next phase of the CLD program. (3/10)
SSC Space Brings New Optical Ground Station into Service (Source: Via Satellite)
SSC Space is bringing a new optical ground station (OGS) into service at its site in Santiago, Chile. It will enable free-space laser communication between satellites and the ground. The new station is part of the SSC Space optical service development project NODES within ESA's Optical and Quantum Communications – ScyLight program, designed to accelerate the development of optical ground capabilities. (3/10)
Astroscale France is Contributing to ESA’s ECO-Tethers Project for Propellant-Free In-Space Mobility and Deorbiting (Source: Spacewatch Global)
Astroscale France, the French subsidiary of Astroscale Holdings Inc. has announced its participation in ECO-Tethers, a new system study under the European Space Agency’s FIRST! Technologies in Sustainability for Future Space Transportation program. Led by PERSEI Space as prime contractor, and delivered in collaboration with Thales Alenia Space Italy and Astroscale France, the ECO-Tethers project will assess propellant-free technologies for in-space propulsion and deorbiting using electrodynamic tethers. (3/10)
Megaconstellation Regulation Takes Center Stage at DC Moot Court (Source: Payload)
Future space lawyers will gather in DC this month to debate how far federal jurisdiction extends in regulating commercial megaconstellations. The American Space Law Foundation will hold its first moot court on March 20 to 21. The two-day event will give students an opportunity to argue in a hypothetical—but very realistic—commercial space law case, in front of a panel of judges representing government and industry. (3/10)
European Space Merger Faces Pushback From Local Competitors (Source: Wall Street Journal)
A potential three-way merger between the space units of Airbus, Leonardo and Thales is facing pushback from some rivals that fear the deal could curtail competition in the European satellite market. Marco Fuchs, chief executive of German satellite maker OHB, said he is concerned about the deal’s potential impact on European consortia formed to bid for European Union and European Space Agency contracts. (3/10)
March 10, 2026
Starfighters Teams With Mu-GTECH to
Provide Microgravity Flight Services (Source: Starfighters)
Starfighters Space announced a strategic partnership with Mu-G Technologies to pursue microgravity flight missions for NASA, academic institutions and commercial research customers across the United States and Canada. The collaboration combines Starfighters’ high-performance flight operations and aircraft capabilities with Mu-GTech’s expertise in parabolic flight execution, monitoring systems, and payload integration. Together, the companies intend to expand access to reduced-gravity testing environments amid increasing demand from government and commercial space programs. (3/10)
BAE Missile-Tracking Satellites Clear Initial Review (Source: Space News)
BAE Systems has passed a key milestone in the development of a missile-tracking satellite constellation. The Space Force's Space Systems Command said Monday that the 10-satellite program passed a preliminary design review, clearing it to proceed toward final design. BAE Systems won a $1.2 billion contract last May to develop the satellites, which will operate in medium Earth orbit and are designed to detect and track missile launches, including advanced threats such as hypersonic weapons. The satellites are part of the Space Force's proliferated resilient missile warning and tracking program, a new constellation intended to complement existing missile-warning satellites while improving the military's ability to follow maneuvering threats throughout flight. (3/9)
Shenzhou-21 Crew Conducts Advanced Medical Tests, Brain Science Experiments in Space (Source: Xinhua)
The Shenzhou-21 crew members aboard China's Tiangong space station have made significant strides in terms of space medical experiments and physical science research over the past week, while also maintaining the station's habitable environment, according to the China Manned Space Agency. In the field of space medicine, the crew focused on understanding the psychological and physiological effects of long-duration spaceflight. They used laptops to complete tests on "trust and coordination mechanisms" and "human-machine trust," which are crucial for designing future spacecraft interfaces and ensuring efficient teamwork between astronauts and automated systems. (3/9)
Pentagon Equity Investment Strategy Questioned by Lawmakers (Source: FNN)
Lawmakers are seeking more transparency from the Pentagon regarding its growing use of equity investments to strengthen the defense industrial base. During a House Armed Services Committee hearing, lawmakers expressed support for new financing tools but requested clarity on when such investments are appropriate. The Pentagon has recently taken significant equity stakes in companies such as Intel and L3Harris, aiming to build resilience and attract private capital. (3/9)
Lux Aeterna Gets $10 Million for Reusable Satellite Development (Source: Space News)
Denver-based Lux Aeterna has secured $10 million in seed funding to develop a reusable satellite. Early-stage investor Konvoy led the round, announced Tuesday, bringing the funding raised by the startup to date to $14 million. The company is working on spacecraft designed to fly payloads in space and then return to Earth to be reused. Its first spacecraft, Delphi-1, is fully booked with customer payloads for a launch in early 2027 on a SpaceX rideshare mission. The company argues its technology could open new opportunities in a growing market for short-duration space missions and returning hardware from orbit. (3/10)
Surrey (SSTL) to Develop Spacecraft to Carry Lazuli Space Telescope (Source: Space News)
Surrey Satellite Technology Ltd. (SSTL) will build the spacecraft platform for a private space telescope. The British company said Monday it had been selected by Schmidt Sciences to provide the spacecraft platform for Lazuli, a space telescope with a primary mirror larger than that of the Hubble Space Telescope. SSTL, a company best known as an early innovator in small satellites, argued that its approach for building smallsats, including rapid development and use of flight-proven hardware, was suited for building the Lazuli spacecraft. That mission is scheduled for launch as soon as 2028. (3/10)
China's Landspace Tests New Engine for Heavy Lift Rocket (Source: Space News)
Landspace has completed testing of a new engine for future launch vehicles. The Chinese company said it performed a long-duration full-system hot-fire test of its new 220-ton-class methane rocket engine. The engine, called BF, is intended as a core propulsion element for Landspace's next-generation heavy-lift launch vehicles. The company already operates the Zhuque-2 and Zhuque-3 rockets, and successful development of the BF engine would further cement Landspace's position in a crowded Chinese commercial launch ecosystem. (3/10)
SpaceX Launches EchoStar Satellite From Cape Canaveral Spaceport (Source: Spaceflight Now)
A Falcon 9 launched a direct-to-home TV broadcasting satellite for EchoStar overnight. A Falcon 9 lifted off from Cape Canaveral, Florida, at 12:19 a.m. Eastern, placing the EchoStar 25 satellite into a geostationary transfer orbit. The spacecraft, built by Lanteris Space systems, will be used by EchoStar's Dish Network to provide TV broadcasting services for its customers at 110 degrees west in GEO. (3/10)
Sensor Reading Scrubs Firefly Alpha Launch at Vandenberg (Source: NSF)
Firefly Aerospace again delayed the return-to-flight launch of its Alpha rocket. The company called off the "Stairway to Seven" launch a few hours before the scheduled 8:50 p.m. Eastern liftoff time because of a sensor reading that was outside of its allowable range. The company has not disclosed a new launch date, which could be as soon as Tuesday evening. This will be the first launch for Alpha since a failure in April 2025. (3/10)
NASA Armstrong Director Retiring (Source: NASA)
The director of NASA's Armstrong Flight Research Center is retiring. NASA said Monday that Brad Flick would retire from the agency this Thursday. Flick has been at NASA since 1986 and served as director of Armstrong since 2022. Troy Asher, director of flight operations at the California center, will take over as acting director. (3/10)
Army Space Brigade Member Dies in Iran War (Source: US Army)
A member of the U.S. Army's First Space Brigade was killed in the conflict in the Middle East. The Army said Sgt. Benjamin N. Pennington died Sunday of injuries sustained a week earlier when Iranian missiles struck Prince Sultan Air Base in Saudi Arabia. Pennington had been a member of the First Space Brigade, part of the U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense Command, since 2025. (3/10)
The R&D Decisions that Will Shape the Success of Golden Dome (Source: AIA)
Golden Dome for America represents one of the most intricate homeland defense initiatives the Pentagon has contemplated since the conclusion of the Cold War. Public discussions have understandably centered on the effectiveness of space-based sensors, space-based interceptors (SBIs), or layered terrestrial systems in defending against evolving missile threats. However, a possibly more pressing concern at this juncture is the necessity to articulate the applied research and development (R&D) strategy and approach. (3/10)
Hughes Network Systems Tapped for AFRL Space Data Networking Experimentation (Source: Via Satellite)
The Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) has awarded Hughes Network Services a contract focused on resilient, hybrid satellite networks. The award announced Monday is through the AFRL’s Rapid Architecture Prototyping and Integration Development (RAPID) program. Hughes will support the Space Technology Advanced Research – Fast-tracking Innovative Software and Hardware (STAR-FISH) procurement for space data networking experimentation. (3/10)
A Big Night Light in the Sky? Start-Up Wants to Launch a Space Mirror (Source: New York Times)
A start-up company wants to light up the night with 50,000 big mirrors orbiting Earth, bouncing sunlight to the night side of the planet to power solar farms after sunset, provide lighting for rescue workers and illuminate city streets, among other things. Scientists have questions about that. (3/10)
GMV NSL Explores Big-Data Approaches for GNSS Integrity Monitoring (Source: Inside GNSS)
With support from the ESA, UK-based GMV NSL Ltd. has completed the RIGOUR (‘Real-time integrity for GNSS using opportunistic receivers) project, demonstrating how large volumes of measurements from everyday GNSS devices could support future integrity monitoring concepts. RIGOUR used opportunistic measurements collected from large numbers of GNSS receivers found in standard smartphones or vehicle navigation systems. (3/10)
ESA Calls on European Startups to Design Spaceplane (Source: European Spaceflight)
The ESA has published a call for the design of a fully reusable, responsive launch system that employs spaceplanes. The call is restricted to non-prime contractors, limiting eligibility to small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). ESA published the call on 27 February, noting that while current reusable launch systems are primarily based on classic launcher architectures that make use of liquid rocket engines, lift-generating spaceplanes could offer a more efficient, reliable, and responsive solution to reusability. (3/10)
Lockheed Martin Commits £100M to UK Space Hub; New Manufacturing Plant to Create 2,000 Jobs (Source: SatNews)
On Monday, March 9, 2026, Lockheed Martin announced a strategic investment of more than £100 million in the United Kingdom’s space sector, centered on a massive expansion in the North East region. The investment is headlined by the proposed construction of an £85 million satellite manufacturing facility at the NETPark science park in County Durham and the official launch phase of a world-class technology center in Newcastle. (3/10)
McDonnell’s Military Test Space Station (MTSS) (Source: Space Review)
In the early 1960s several companies studied concepts of military space stations. Hans Dolfing explores what’s now known about one of those concepts from recently declassified documents. Click here. (3/10)
Reforging Vulcan (Source: Space Review)
This was supposed to be the year that United Launch Alliance finally ramped up launches of its Vulcan rocket to serve government and commercial customers. Jeff Foust reports on how those plans are now in doubt after an incident on Vulcan’s latest launch, just as the company is going through a change in leadership. Click here. (3/10)
Big Wing Bird: NASA’s WB-57 Gets Grounded (Source: Space Review)
A NASA WB-57 aircraft was damaged in a gear-up landing at a Houston airport in January. Dwayne Day examines the long and unusual history of that aircraft, used by NASA for a variety of missions. Click here. (3/10)
Robert Goddard and the Dawn of the Rocket Age (Source: Space Review)
This month marks the centennial of the first flight of a liquid-fueled rocket by Robert Goddard. Bruce McCandless III and Emily Carney recall that milestone and its significance. Click here. (3/10)
Woytek to Leave NASA After 48 Years (Source: FNN)
Joanne Woytek, the program director of the NASA SEWP program, is leaving after more than 48 years of federal service. Woytek will step down on Oct. 17. Woytek, who joined NASA in 1977 as a software developer and technical lead, said she is not formally retiring, but looking for some non-NASA opportunities that she would find interesting and be useful in. (3/10)
Starfighters Space announced a strategic partnership with Mu-G Technologies to pursue microgravity flight missions for NASA, academic institutions and commercial research customers across the United States and Canada. The collaboration combines Starfighters’ high-performance flight operations and aircraft capabilities with Mu-GTech’s expertise in parabolic flight execution, monitoring systems, and payload integration. Together, the companies intend to expand access to reduced-gravity testing environments amid increasing demand from government and commercial space programs. (3/10)
BAE Missile-Tracking Satellites Clear Initial Review (Source: Space News)
BAE Systems has passed a key milestone in the development of a missile-tracking satellite constellation. The Space Force's Space Systems Command said Monday that the 10-satellite program passed a preliminary design review, clearing it to proceed toward final design. BAE Systems won a $1.2 billion contract last May to develop the satellites, which will operate in medium Earth orbit and are designed to detect and track missile launches, including advanced threats such as hypersonic weapons. The satellites are part of the Space Force's proliferated resilient missile warning and tracking program, a new constellation intended to complement existing missile-warning satellites while improving the military's ability to follow maneuvering threats throughout flight. (3/9)
Shenzhou-21 Crew Conducts Advanced Medical Tests, Brain Science Experiments in Space (Source: Xinhua)
The Shenzhou-21 crew members aboard China's Tiangong space station have made significant strides in terms of space medical experiments and physical science research over the past week, while also maintaining the station's habitable environment, according to the China Manned Space Agency. In the field of space medicine, the crew focused on understanding the psychological and physiological effects of long-duration spaceflight. They used laptops to complete tests on "trust and coordination mechanisms" and "human-machine trust," which are crucial for designing future spacecraft interfaces and ensuring efficient teamwork between astronauts and automated systems. (3/9)
Pentagon Equity Investment Strategy Questioned by Lawmakers (Source: FNN)
Lawmakers are seeking more transparency from the Pentagon regarding its growing use of equity investments to strengthen the defense industrial base. During a House Armed Services Committee hearing, lawmakers expressed support for new financing tools but requested clarity on when such investments are appropriate. The Pentagon has recently taken significant equity stakes in companies such as Intel and L3Harris, aiming to build resilience and attract private capital. (3/9)
Lux Aeterna Gets $10 Million for Reusable Satellite Development (Source: Space News)
Denver-based Lux Aeterna has secured $10 million in seed funding to develop a reusable satellite. Early-stage investor Konvoy led the round, announced Tuesday, bringing the funding raised by the startup to date to $14 million. The company is working on spacecraft designed to fly payloads in space and then return to Earth to be reused. Its first spacecraft, Delphi-1, is fully booked with customer payloads for a launch in early 2027 on a SpaceX rideshare mission. The company argues its technology could open new opportunities in a growing market for short-duration space missions and returning hardware from orbit. (3/10)
Surrey (SSTL) to Develop Spacecraft to Carry Lazuli Space Telescope (Source: Space News)
Surrey Satellite Technology Ltd. (SSTL) will build the spacecraft platform for a private space telescope. The British company said Monday it had been selected by Schmidt Sciences to provide the spacecraft platform for Lazuli, a space telescope with a primary mirror larger than that of the Hubble Space Telescope. SSTL, a company best known as an early innovator in small satellites, argued that its approach for building smallsats, including rapid development and use of flight-proven hardware, was suited for building the Lazuli spacecraft. That mission is scheduled for launch as soon as 2028. (3/10)
China's Landspace Tests New Engine for Heavy Lift Rocket (Source: Space News)
Landspace has completed testing of a new engine for future launch vehicles. The Chinese company said it performed a long-duration full-system hot-fire test of its new 220-ton-class methane rocket engine. The engine, called BF, is intended as a core propulsion element for Landspace's next-generation heavy-lift launch vehicles. The company already operates the Zhuque-2 and Zhuque-3 rockets, and successful development of the BF engine would further cement Landspace's position in a crowded Chinese commercial launch ecosystem. (3/10)
SpaceX Launches EchoStar Satellite From Cape Canaveral Spaceport (Source: Spaceflight Now)
A Falcon 9 launched a direct-to-home TV broadcasting satellite for EchoStar overnight. A Falcon 9 lifted off from Cape Canaveral, Florida, at 12:19 a.m. Eastern, placing the EchoStar 25 satellite into a geostationary transfer orbit. The spacecraft, built by Lanteris Space systems, will be used by EchoStar's Dish Network to provide TV broadcasting services for its customers at 110 degrees west in GEO. (3/10)
Sensor Reading Scrubs Firefly Alpha Launch at Vandenberg (Source: NSF)
Firefly Aerospace again delayed the return-to-flight launch of its Alpha rocket. The company called off the "Stairway to Seven" launch a few hours before the scheduled 8:50 p.m. Eastern liftoff time because of a sensor reading that was outside of its allowable range. The company has not disclosed a new launch date, which could be as soon as Tuesday evening. This will be the first launch for Alpha since a failure in April 2025. (3/10)
NASA Armstrong Director Retiring (Source: NASA)
The director of NASA's Armstrong Flight Research Center is retiring. NASA said Monday that Brad Flick would retire from the agency this Thursday. Flick has been at NASA since 1986 and served as director of Armstrong since 2022. Troy Asher, director of flight operations at the California center, will take over as acting director. (3/10)
Army Space Brigade Member Dies in Iran War (Source: US Army)
A member of the U.S. Army's First Space Brigade was killed in the conflict in the Middle East. The Army said Sgt. Benjamin N. Pennington died Sunday of injuries sustained a week earlier when Iranian missiles struck Prince Sultan Air Base in Saudi Arabia. Pennington had been a member of the First Space Brigade, part of the U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense Command, since 2025. (3/10)
The R&D Decisions that Will Shape the Success of Golden Dome (Source: AIA)
Golden Dome for America represents one of the most intricate homeland defense initiatives the Pentagon has contemplated since the conclusion of the Cold War. Public discussions have understandably centered on the effectiveness of space-based sensors, space-based interceptors (SBIs), or layered terrestrial systems in defending against evolving missile threats. However, a possibly more pressing concern at this juncture is the necessity to articulate the applied research and development (R&D) strategy and approach. (3/10)
Hughes Network Systems Tapped for AFRL Space Data Networking Experimentation (Source: Via Satellite)
The Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) has awarded Hughes Network Services a contract focused on resilient, hybrid satellite networks. The award announced Monday is through the AFRL’s Rapid Architecture Prototyping and Integration Development (RAPID) program. Hughes will support the Space Technology Advanced Research – Fast-tracking Innovative Software and Hardware (STAR-FISH) procurement for space data networking experimentation. (3/10)
A Big Night Light in the Sky? Start-Up Wants to Launch a Space Mirror (Source: New York Times)
A start-up company wants to light up the night with 50,000 big mirrors orbiting Earth, bouncing sunlight to the night side of the planet to power solar farms after sunset, provide lighting for rescue workers and illuminate city streets, among other things. Scientists have questions about that. (3/10)
GMV NSL Explores Big-Data Approaches for GNSS Integrity Monitoring (Source: Inside GNSS)
With support from the ESA, UK-based GMV NSL Ltd. has completed the RIGOUR (‘Real-time integrity for GNSS using opportunistic receivers) project, demonstrating how large volumes of measurements from everyday GNSS devices could support future integrity monitoring concepts. RIGOUR used opportunistic measurements collected from large numbers of GNSS receivers found in standard smartphones or vehicle navigation systems. (3/10)
ESA Calls on European Startups to Design Spaceplane (Source: European Spaceflight)
The ESA has published a call for the design of a fully reusable, responsive launch system that employs spaceplanes. The call is restricted to non-prime contractors, limiting eligibility to small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). ESA published the call on 27 February, noting that while current reusable launch systems are primarily based on classic launcher architectures that make use of liquid rocket engines, lift-generating spaceplanes could offer a more efficient, reliable, and responsive solution to reusability. (3/10)
Lockheed Martin Commits £100M to UK Space Hub; New Manufacturing Plant to Create 2,000 Jobs (Source: SatNews)
On Monday, March 9, 2026, Lockheed Martin announced a strategic investment of more than £100 million in the United Kingdom’s space sector, centered on a massive expansion in the North East region. The investment is headlined by the proposed construction of an £85 million satellite manufacturing facility at the NETPark science park in County Durham and the official launch phase of a world-class technology center in Newcastle. (3/10)
McDonnell’s Military Test Space Station (MTSS) (Source: Space Review)
In the early 1960s several companies studied concepts of military space stations. Hans Dolfing explores what’s now known about one of those concepts from recently declassified documents. Click here. (3/10)
Reforging Vulcan (Source: Space Review)
This was supposed to be the year that United Launch Alliance finally ramped up launches of its Vulcan rocket to serve government and commercial customers. Jeff Foust reports on how those plans are now in doubt after an incident on Vulcan’s latest launch, just as the company is going through a change in leadership. Click here. (3/10)
Big Wing Bird: NASA’s WB-57 Gets Grounded (Source: Space Review)
A NASA WB-57 aircraft was damaged in a gear-up landing at a Houston airport in January. Dwayne Day examines the long and unusual history of that aircraft, used by NASA for a variety of missions. Click here. (3/10)
Robert Goddard and the Dawn of the Rocket Age (Source: Space Review)
This month marks the centennial of the first flight of a liquid-fueled rocket by Robert Goddard. Bruce McCandless III and Emily Carney recall that milestone and its significance. Click here. (3/10)
Woytek to Leave NASA After 48 Years (Source: FNN)
Joanne Woytek, the program director of the NASA SEWP program, is leaving after more than 48 years of federal service. Woytek will step down on Oct. 17. Woytek, who joined NASA in 1977 as a software developer and technical lead, said she is not formally retiring, but looking for some non-NASA opportunities that she would find interesting and be useful in. (3/10)
March 9, 2026
Avio Lands $65 Million Deal Days After
Shareholders Approve New Bylaws (Source: European Spaceflight)
Italian rocket builder Avio announced on 6 March that it had secured a $65 million contract from US-based Defense Systems and Solutions for the development, qualification, and initial production of solid rocket motors. The announcement came just days after the company’s shareholders approved amendments to its bylaws aimed at streamlining its management structure, in part to address its growing exposure to the US market.
The contract covers the “development, qualification and initial production of a solid rocket motor for air defense applications.” It covers a three-year period and will initially leverage the company’s existing development and production facilities in Colleferro, Italy. However, Avio added that full series production, expected to begin in 2029, may take place at its new facility in Hurt, Virginia. (3/9)
Living in Space Can Change Where Your Brain Sits in Your Skull (Source: Space.com)
Going to space is harsh on the human body, and as a new study finds, the brain shifts upward and backward and deforms inside the skull after spaceflight. The extent of these changes was greater for those who spent longer in space. As NASA plans longer space missions, and space travel expands beyond professional astronauts, these findings will become more relevant. (3/7)
Stormy Space Weather May be Garbling Messages From Aliens (Source: The Guardian)
Earth’s leading alien hunters believe extraterrestrials could be out there, they’re just having a hard time getting through to us because it’s stormy in space. Reminiscent of ET’s struggles to “phone home” in Steven Spielberg’s 1982 blockbuster movie, new research by the Silicon Valley-based SETI Institute suggests tempestuous space weather makes radio signals from the distant cosmos harder to detect.
“If a signal gets broadened by its own star’s environment, it can slip below our detection thresholds, even if it’s there, potentially helping explain some of the radio silence we’ve seen in technosignature searches,” SETI astronomer Vishal Gajjar said. The new research highlights an “overlooked complication”: even if an extraterrestrial transmitter produces a perfectly narrow signal, it may not remain narrow by the time it leaves its home system. (3/8)
How Jagged Moon Dust Could Support Future Astronauts (Source: Universe Today)
Simulants can’t really do the real thing justice, and there simply isn’t enough true lunar regolith on Earth to give unlimited samples to every interested researcher. Performing some of the testing also destroys the sample, which makes them unusable for other research later on, so the authors came up with an alternative - do non-destructive testing, and then run a simulation. They settled on the Discrete Element Method (DEM) for the model. This mathematical approach simulates the behavior of bulk materials by calculating the physical interactions, friction, and collisions of millions of individual particles.
The far side sample has fewer large, coarse particles than near-side samples, but also that those particles have low “sphericity”, which measures how close to a true sphere a particle is. After plugging this dataset into their DEM program, the authors found the regolith is exceptionally strong, sitting at the upper bounds of measurements from Apollo-era samples. This is primarily driven by a high internal friction angle and dust cohesion.
Most likely the jaggedness of the particles, which makes them so frustrating when on machines or in human lungs, is actually helpful in the context of increasing their mechanical properties on the ground. In addition, the samples’ mechanical strength was boosted by “cementation” caused by glassy agglutinates, most likely caused by a micrometeoroid impact. These make up roughly 30% of the sample, acting as a cement to hold the rest of the particles together. To build large infrastructure, such as a future Artemis habitat, or the International Lunar Research Station, understanding the underpinnings of the ground is key. (3/9)
China's 1st Moon Astronauts Could Land in Rimae Bode, a 'Geological Museum' on the Lunar Nearside (Source: Space.com)
A diverse volcanic region on the moon's near side could become the landing site for China's first crewed lunar mission, according to a new study. China aims to land its first astronauts on the moon before the end of the decade. Over the last year, the nation has been testing hardware for this ambitious endeavor, including lunar landing and launch simulations and crew spacecraft abort and rocket tests. Now, a team of scientists has conducted a detailed assessment of a priority candidate landing area, providing fresh insights into the planning for the historic mission — and its potential scientific payoff.
Rimae Bode is located near the Sinus Aestuum volcanic plains on the near side of the moon, not far north of the lunar equator, and is one of 14 potential astronaut-touchdown sites selected from an initial 106 candidates. These needed to meet engineering constraints for a safe lunar landing, including being on the near side for communications purposes, relatively flat terrain, and being at a low latitude so as to ensure enough power from the sun. According to the researchers, the Rimae Bode region also provides access to multiple types of lunar material within a relatively small area. (3/9)
Chinese Scientists Map Chemical Composition of the Moon’s Far Side Using AI Model (Source: Global Times)
Chinese scientists have achieved a major breakthrough in mapping the Moon's chemical composition by building an AI-based model using the measured data from the first sample collected on the Moon's far side by the Chang'e-6 mission. The model, for the first time, integrates ground-truth information from the Moon's far side into a global chemical composition map, offering new insights into the Moon's asymmetry and the evolution of the South Pole-Aitken Basin, the Science and Technology Daily reported on Sunday, citing the Deep Space Exploration Lab. (3/8)
Laser-Based 3D Printing Could Build Future Bases on the Moon (Source: IEEE Spectrum)
Scientists use two types of lunar regolith for their experiments and research: Lunar Highlands Simulant (LHS-1) and Lunar Mare Simulant (LMS-1). As part of their research, the team used LHS-1, which is rich in basaltic minerals, similar to rock samples obtained by the Apollo missions. They melted this regolith with a laser to produce layers of material and fused them onto a base surface of stainless steel or glass. To assess how well these objects would fare in the lunar environment, the team tested their fabrication process under a range of different environmental conditions.
One thing they noticed was that the fused regolith adhered well to alumina-silicate ceramic, possibly because the two compounds form crystals that enhance heat resistance and mechanical strength. This revealed that the overall quality of the printed material is largely dependent on the surface onto which the regolith is printed. Other environmental factors, such as atmospheric oxygen levels, laser power, and printing speed, also affected the stability of the printed material. (3/7)
NASA Will Need to Abandon Gateway to Accelerate Artemis (Source: Space,com)
For Artemis 4, NASA planned to upgrade to the SLS Block 1B, which features a design powerful enough to launch elements of the Gateway space station intended for lunar orbit. Beginning with Artemis 4, NASA aimed to use the Gateway outpost around the moon for deep-space science and as an orbital layover stop where Orion and the program's lunar lander could dock to transfer crews headed down to the surface. Gateway, however, is nowhere to be found in any of NASA's recent Artemis updates.
If Gateway is on the chopping block, as seems likely, there is potential for its existing hardware to be repurposed for use in a possible base on the lunar surface, which has been a longstanding component of the Artemis program's goals and NASA's vision for a sustained human presence on the moon. One of the revisions in the authorization bill even grants the NASA administrator the freedom to "repurpose, reprogram, reconfigure, or reassign existing programs, platforms, modules, or hardware originally developed for other programs" in order to ensure that the space agency's Artemis goals are successful. (3/6)
With Gateway Likely Gone, Where Will Lunar Landers Rendezvous with Orion? (Source: Ars Technica)
To reach the Moon, an Artemis lander must dock with the Orion spacecraft. That may sound routine, but Orion is saddled with thousands of requirements, and virtually every decision point regarding docking must be signed off on by the lander company—SpaceX or Blue Origin—as well as NASA, Orion’s contractor Lockheed Martin, and the European service module contractor Airbus. Additionally, Orion has a lot of sensitive elements to work around, such as the plumes of its thrusters, and engineers have spent a lot of time working on issues such as ensuring consistent cabin pressures between vehicles. It gets complicated fast.
One way NASA is helping the lander companies is by no longer requiring them to dock with Orion in a near-rectilinear halo orbit, an elliptical orbit that comes as close as 3,000 km to the surface of the Moon and as far as 70,000 km. This is where NASA planned to construct the Lunar Gateway space station, which is now likely to be canceled. It’s a boon for lunar landers since it required more energy to first stop there before dropping down to the surface.
Why not simply have Orion meet the landers in a low-lunar orbit, similar to the Apollo Program? This would allow the landers to consume less propellant on the way down and back up from the Moon. The reason is that, due to a number of poor decisions over the last 15 years, the Orion spacecraft’s service module does not have the performance needed to reach low-lunar orbit and then return safely to Earth. Hence the use of a near-rectilinear halo orbit. (3/6)
Israel Strikes Iran's Space Headquarters (Source: Jerusalem Post)
The IDF on Sunday attacked Iran’s Aerospace Headquarters, used for launching satellites, which could potentially be incorporated in future attempts to develop nuclear weapons that could be fired into space and hit the US. The headquarters had been used by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps to promote its aerospace efforts, including the 2022 launch of the Khayyam satellite, which was successfully launched by Iran using a Russian Soyuz rocket from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. (3/8)
Centaur Will Power Artemis Missions as SLS Upper Stage (Source: Space News)
NASA has picked ULA's Centaur upper stage for future flights of the Space Launch System. In a procurement filing Friday, NASA said it would use Centaur as the SLS upper stage on the Artemis 4 and 5 missions, replacing the Exploration Upper Stage (EUS) originally planned as part of upgrades to the vehicle. NASA announced in late February it was canceling those upgrades to standardize on a "near Block 1" version of SLS to increase its flight rate. NASA said the only other option to replace the EUS besides Centaur was the second stage of Blue Origin's New Glenn rocket, but concluded Centaur was more mature and would require fewer modifications to adapt it for SLS. (3/9)
Voyager to Invest in Space Coast-Based Max Space (Source: Space News)
Voyager Technologies is investing in expandable module developer Max Space. The companies announced Monday that Voyager will make an investment in the "low eight figures" in Max Space to accelerate that startup's development of inflatable modules. The companies announced last month they would partner to combine their capabilities to offer lunar habitats to NASA as the agency begins plans for a lunar base. (3/9)
SpaceX Pushes Next Starship Mission Back (Source: Space News)
SpaceX is pushing back the first flight of the next version of Starship. Elon Musk said last Saturday the next Starship launch would be in four weeks, or early April. He said in late January that SpaceX was then six weeks away from a first launch, which would have been in early March. Neither Musk nor SpaceX disclosed reasons for the slip, although the recent pace of development of the next Starship vehicle suggested a launch was not imminent. This will be the first launch of version 3 of Starship, with upgrades to improve performance. SpaceX plans to use this version of Starship for Artemis lunar landings and other missions. NASA requested both SpaceX and Blue Origin, the two companies with contracts to develop Artemis crewed lunar landers, to provide plans to accelerate their work, but neither the agency nor the companies have yet released details about those plans. (3/9)
China Considers Neptune Orbiter (Source: Space News)
A senior Chinese space scientist and delegate to the country's national congress wants China to develop a Neptune orbiter mission. Wang Wei, an academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) and a researcher at the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (CASC), made the proposal to prioritize a Neptune orbiter mission as a deputy to the National People's Congress (NPC). Wang is now calling for China to seize a historic opportunity to conduct a world-first orbital study of Neptune, building on the country's recent advances in deep space exploration capabilities and progress in space nuclear power technologies. The most recent planetary science decadal survey in the United States placed as its top priority for a flagship-class mission a Uranus orbiter, but NASA has been slow to implement that recommendation. (3/9)
SpaceX Launches Sunday Starlink Mission From Vandenberg (Source: Space.com)
SpaceX launched more Starlink satellites early Sunday. A Falcon 9 lifted off from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California Sunday, putting 25 Starlink satellites into orbit. SpaceX now has more than 9,900 Starlink satellites in orbit with this latest launch. (3/9)
Germany's RFA Plans Summertime Launch at SaxaVord Spaceport (Source: Space News)
German launch startup Rocket Factory Augsburg (RFA) says it is planning its first launch this summer. The company said Friday the lower two stages of its RFA ONE rocket have arrived at the launch site at SaxaVord Spaceport in the Shetland Islands, although the engines for the first stage are still undergoing acceptance testing in Sweden. The company said it is projecting a launch this summer but did not offer a more precise launch date. RFA is one of several European launch startups seeking to make their first orbital launches in the next year. (3/9)
HawkEye 360 Adds $23 Million to December's $150 Million Investment (Source: HawkEye 360)
HawkEye 360 has added money to its latest funding round. The company announced last week it added $23 million to a $150 million Series E round announced in December. Three new investors and one existing investor contributed to the additional funding. HawkEye 360, which operates a constellation of satellites to collect radio-frequency intelligence data, said the Series E round would support the acquisition of Innovative Signal Analysis and other strategic growth priorities. (3/9)
Eternal Sunshine of the Virgin Mind (Source: Douglas Messier)
Richard Branson remotely attended the Space-Comm Europe conference last week, where he promised Virgin Galactic would do great things when the company returns to suborbital flight later this year. You probably remember Branson from such promises as, ‘we’ll be flying tourists to space by 2007,’ and ‘we’ll fly 50,000 people in the first 10 years from Spaceport America.’ Needless to say, none of that came remotely close to happening. But, Branson’s optimism remains as eternal as his credibility is low.
Virgin Galactic completed seven suborbital flights with 23 paying passengers before retiring its only operational SpaceShipTwo, VSS Unity, in June 2024. The company still had around 800 ticket holders waiting for flights at the time. Virgin Galactic’s future rests on a fleet of second generation Delta-class SpaceShipTwo vehicles that are designed to fly up to two times per week with six passengers instead of four. The new rocket planes are being assembled at a facility in Arizona.
In November, company officials said they were on track to begin flight tests of the first Delta-class ship in the third quarter of 2026. These flights would be followed in the fourth quarter by a commercial mission with scientific payloads aboard. The first flights with paying tourists would follow six to eight weeks later. (3/9)
Why Boeing Built A Real-Life Star Wars X-Wing Starfighter (Source: BGR)
Science fiction is littered with iconic vehicles and starships, but few are more recognizable than the X-wing. The X-wing is so synonymous with "Star Wars" that Boeing once built not one but two "real-life" X-wing starfighters. In 2019, Boeing partnered with Walt Disney to commemorate the opening of Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge in Walt Disney World. For its contribution,
Boeing dressed up two CV2 Cargo Air Vehicles (CAVs) as X-wings and flew them over the heads of attendees. Of course, the CAVs could only slowly hover; they couldn't jump to lightspeed, and their wings were non-functional and stuck in the recognizable X-shaped attack position. Oh, and Disney's imagineers set up ultraviolet spotlights to mask the drones and only illuminate the X-wing shells. (3/8)
How NASA Contractors Are Pressing On To Bring Humans to the Moon With Artemis (Source: The Guardian)
Justin Cyrus’s company, Lunar Outpost, epitomizes the many private contractors of the space agency working on a myriad of projects crucial to the Artemis program that seeks to return humans to the moon, so anything Isaacman had to say about it was naturally of interest to him. What he didn’t expect was the stunning announcement that NASA was restructuring its entire strategy for the first human lunar landing.
But in the best traditions of decades of challenging human spaceflight, Cyrus saw opportunity from adversity. Barring further delays or rethinking by NASA’s senior managers, the company’s Mobile Autonomous Prospecting Platform (MAPP) rover, a small but mighty technology-packed vehicle crucial to the agency’s plans for future long-term habitation on the moon, will now journey alongside the Artemis IV astronauts. Its largest project, the in-development Eagle lunar terrain vehicle (LTV), is billed as “the most capable crewed and cargo transport ever built” for human spaceflight.
MAPP, meanwhile, has not enjoyed much luck to date. The rugged, much smaller rover, which was set to examine dust and soil at the moon’s south pole last year, and provide vital research for a possible human moon base, did make it to the lunar surface in March, becoming the first commercial exploration vehicle to touch down. But the spacecraft on which it made the eight-day journey from Earth – the Athena lander, made by another private space operation, Texas-based Intuitive Machines – toppled on landing and trapped the rover inside. (3/9)
A Call for a Reliable Space Rescue Capability (Source: Space News)
One of the first considerations around space rescue is how quickly one would need to be launched. In the case of SpaceX Crew 11, the medical issue was identified eight days before the crew's return. In this specific situation, this timeline worked because of the level of emergency, but that may not be the case during a more urgent emergency in the future.
To be effective and reliable, a future space rescue capability would need to be on standby, ready to launch in a given window of time much the way Naval aircraft are positioned. It would not be in a matter of minutes like the ready 5, but there would need to be a rocket, specific supplies, a crew and fuel that could be quickly consolidated for a rescue mission. (3/4)
The Supply Chain Bottleneck Facing Space-Based Data Centers (Source: Space News)
Space-based infrastructure is increasingly presented as the solution to the staggering energy and water costs of running data centers on Earth. And while this represents a significant engineering challenge, the real bottleneck for space-based data centers is logistics, and especially building out a space-rated supply chain.
Terrestrial data centers work because they have an assumed standardization and interoperability that space systems haven't yet fleshed out, the authors argue. This lack of interoperability will likely make orbital and lunar data centers several times more expensive than those on Earth.
To stave off the issue, industry players and regulators need to collaborate on a unified bill of materials for data centers with required interoperability, space-rated qualification standards, and a procurement framework that's aligned with realistic launch cadences. (3/5)
DCS Acquires ARCTOS (Source: DCS)
DCS Corp. has acquired ARCTOS, bringing together two companies with decades of success delivering innovative solutions to the aerospace and defense science and technology sector. Based in Dayton, Ohio, ARCTOS Technology Solutions is an engineering and technical services firm conducting research and development and delivering engineering and technical solutions in the areas of aerospace and space launch safety and risk analysis, advanced manufacturing technology, and technology transition and workforce development. (3/5)
Italian rocket builder Avio announced on 6 March that it had secured a $65 million contract from US-based Defense Systems and Solutions for the development, qualification, and initial production of solid rocket motors. The announcement came just days after the company’s shareholders approved amendments to its bylaws aimed at streamlining its management structure, in part to address its growing exposure to the US market.
The contract covers the “development, qualification and initial production of a solid rocket motor for air defense applications.” It covers a three-year period and will initially leverage the company’s existing development and production facilities in Colleferro, Italy. However, Avio added that full series production, expected to begin in 2029, may take place at its new facility in Hurt, Virginia. (3/9)
Living in Space Can Change Where Your Brain Sits in Your Skull (Source: Space.com)
Going to space is harsh on the human body, and as a new study finds, the brain shifts upward and backward and deforms inside the skull after spaceflight. The extent of these changes was greater for those who spent longer in space. As NASA plans longer space missions, and space travel expands beyond professional astronauts, these findings will become more relevant. (3/7)
Stormy Space Weather May be Garbling Messages From Aliens (Source: The Guardian)
Earth’s leading alien hunters believe extraterrestrials could be out there, they’re just having a hard time getting through to us because it’s stormy in space. Reminiscent of ET’s struggles to “phone home” in Steven Spielberg’s 1982 blockbuster movie, new research by the Silicon Valley-based SETI Institute suggests tempestuous space weather makes radio signals from the distant cosmos harder to detect.
“If a signal gets broadened by its own star’s environment, it can slip below our detection thresholds, even if it’s there, potentially helping explain some of the radio silence we’ve seen in technosignature searches,” SETI astronomer Vishal Gajjar said. The new research highlights an “overlooked complication”: even if an extraterrestrial transmitter produces a perfectly narrow signal, it may not remain narrow by the time it leaves its home system. (3/8)
How Jagged Moon Dust Could Support Future Astronauts (Source: Universe Today)
Simulants can’t really do the real thing justice, and there simply isn’t enough true lunar regolith on Earth to give unlimited samples to every interested researcher. Performing some of the testing also destroys the sample, which makes them unusable for other research later on, so the authors came up with an alternative - do non-destructive testing, and then run a simulation. They settled on the Discrete Element Method (DEM) for the model. This mathematical approach simulates the behavior of bulk materials by calculating the physical interactions, friction, and collisions of millions of individual particles.
The far side sample has fewer large, coarse particles than near-side samples, but also that those particles have low “sphericity”, which measures how close to a true sphere a particle is. After plugging this dataset into their DEM program, the authors found the regolith is exceptionally strong, sitting at the upper bounds of measurements from Apollo-era samples. This is primarily driven by a high internal friction angle and dust cohesion.
Most likely the jaggedness of the particles, which makes them so frustrating when on machines or in human lungs, is actually helpful in the context of increasing their mechanical properties on the ground. In addition, the samples’ mechanical strength was boosted by “cementation” caused by glassy agglutinates, most likely caused by a micrometeoroid impact. These make up roughly 30% of the sample, acting as a cement to hold the rest of the particles together. To build large infrastructure, such as a future Artemis habitat, or the International Lunar Research Station, understanding the underpinnings of the ground is key. (3/9)
China's 1st Moon Astronauts Could Land in Rimae Bode, a 'Geological Museum' on the Lunar Nearside (Source: Space.com)
A diverse volcanic region on the moon's near side could become the landing site for China's first crewed lunar mission, according to a new study. China aims to land its first astronauts on the moon before the end of the decade. Over the last year, the nation has been testing hardware for this ambitious endeavor, including lunar landing and launch simulations and crew spacecraft abort and rocket tests. Now, a team of scientists has conducted a detailed assessment of a priority candidate landing area, providing fresh insights into the planning for the historic mission — and its potential scientific payoff.
Rimae Bode is located near the Sinus Aestuum volcanic plains on the near side of the moon, not far north of the lunar equator, and is one of 14 potential astronaut-touchdown sites selected from an initial 106 candidates. These needed to meet engineering constraints for a safe lunar landing, including being on the near side for communications purposes, relatively flat terrain, and being at a low latitude so as to ensure enough power from the sun. According to the researchers, the Rimae Bode region also provides access to multiple types of lunar material within a relatively small area. (3/9)
Chinese Scientists Map Chemical Composition of the Moon’s Far Side Using AI Model (Source: Global Times)
Chinese scientists have achieved a major breakthrough in mapping the Moon's chemical composition by building an AI-based model using the measured data from the first sample collected on the Moon's far side by the Chang'e-6 mission. The model, for the first time, integrates ground-truth information from the Moon's far side into a global chemical composition map, offering new insights into the Moon's asymmetry and the evolution of the South Pole-Aitken Basin, the Science and Technology Daily reported on Sunday, citing the Deep Space Exploration Lab. (3/8)
Laser-Based 3D Printing Could Build Future Bases on the Moon (Source: IEEE Spectrum)
Scientists use two types of lunar regolith for their experiments and research: Lunar Highlands Simulant (LHS-1) and Lunar Mare Simulant (LMS-1). As part of their research, the team used LHS-1, which is rich in basaltic minerals, similar to rock samples obtained by the Apollo missions. They melted this regolith with a laser to produce layers of material and fused them onto a base surface of stainless steel or glass. To assess how well these objects would fare in the lunar environment, the team tested their fabrication process under a range of different environmental conditions.
One thing they noticed was that the fused regolith adhered well to alumina-silicate ceramic, possibly because the two compounds form crystals that enhance heat resistance and mechanical strength. This revealed that the overall quality of the printed material is largely dependent on the surface onto which the regolith is printed. Other environmental factors, such as atmospheric oxygen levels, laser power, and printing speed, also affected the stability of the printed material. (3/7)
NASA Will Need to Abandon Gateway to Accelerate Artemis (Source: Space,com)
For Artemis 4, NASA planned to upgrade to the SLS Block 1B, which features a design powerful enough to launch elements of the Gateway space station intended for lunar orbit. Beginning with Artemis 4, NASA aimed to use the Gateway outpost around the moon for deep-space science and as an orbital layover stop where Orion and the program's lunar lander could dock to transfer crews headed down to the surface. Gateway, however, is nowhere to be found in any of NASA's recent Artemis updates.
If Gateway is on the chopping block, as seems likely, there is potential for its existing hardware to be repurposed for use in a possible base on the lunar surface, which has been a longstanding component of the Artemis program's goals and NASA's vision for a sustained human presence on the moon. One of the revisions in the authorization bill even grants the NASA administrator the freedom to "repurpose, reprogram, reconfigure, or reassign existing programs, platforms, modules, or hardware originally developed for other programs" in order to ensure that the space agency's Artemis goals are successful. (3/6)
With Gateway Likely Gone, Where Will Lunar Landers Rendezvous with Orion? (Source: Ars Technica)
To reach the Moon, an Artemis lander must dock with the Orion spacecraft. That may sound routine, but Orion is saddled with thousands of requirements, and virtually every decision point regarding docking must be signed off on by the lander company—SpaceX or Blue Origin—as well as NASA, Orion’s contractor Lockheed Martin, and the European service module contractor Airbus. Additionally, Orion has a lot of sensitive elements to work around, such as the plumes of its thrusters, and engineers have spent a lot of time working on issues such as ensuring consistent cabin pressures between vehicles. It gets complicated fast.
One way NASA is helping the lander companies is by no longer requiring them to dock with Orion in a near-rectilinear halo orbit, an elliptical orbit that comes as close as 3,000 km to the surface of the Moon and as far as 70,000 km. This is where NASA planned to construct the Lunar Gateway space station, which is now likely to be canceled. It’s a boon for lunar landers since it required more energy to first stop there before dropping down to the surface.
Why not simply have Orion meet the landers in a low-lunar orbit, similar to the Apollo Program? This would allow the landers to consume less propellant on the way down and back up from the Moon. The reason is that, due to a number of poor decisions over the last 15 years, the Orion spacecraft’s service module does not have the performance needed to reach low-lunar orbit and then return safely to Earth. Hence the use of a near-rectilinear halo orbit. (3/6)
Israel Strikes Iran's Space Headquarters (Source: Jerusalem Post)
The IDF on Sunday attacked Iran’s Aerospace Headquarters, used for launching satellites, which could potentially be incorporated in future attempts to develop nuclear weapons that could be fired into space and hit the US. The headquarters had been used by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps to promote its aerospace efforts, including the 2022 launch of the Khayyam satellite, which was successfully launched by Iran using a Russian Soyuz rocket from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. (3/8)
Centaur Will Power Artemis Missions as SLS Upper Stage (Source: Space News)
NASA has picked ULA's Centaur upper stage for future flights of the Space Launch System. In a procurement filing Friday, NASA said it would use Centaur as the SLS upper stage on the Artemis 4 and 5 missions, replacing the Exploration Upper Stage (EUS) originally planned as part of upgrades to the vehicle. NASA announced in late February it was canceling those upgrades to standardize on a "near Block 1" version of SLS to increase its flight rate. NASA said the only other option to replace the EUS besides Centaur was the second stage of Blue Origin's New Glenn rocket, but concluded Centaur was more mature and would require fewer modifications to adapt it for SLS. (3/9)
Voyager to Invest in Space Coast-Based Max Space (Source: Space News)
Voyager Technologies is investing in expandable module developer Max Space. The companies announced Monday that Voyager will make an investment in the "low eight figures" in Max Space to accelerate that startup's development of inflatable modules. The companies announced last month they would partner to combine their capabilities to offer lunar habitats to NASA as the agency begins plans for a lunar base. (3/9)
SpaceX Pushes Next Starship Mission Back (Source: Space News)
SpaceX is pushing back the first flight of the next version of Starship. Elon Musk said last Saturday the next Starship launch would be in four weeks, or early April. He said in late January that SpaceX was then six weeks away from a first launch, which would have been in early March. Neither Musk nor SpaceX disclosed reasons for the slip, although the recent pace of development of the next Starship vehicle suggested a launch was not imminent. This will be the first launch of version 3 of Starship, with upgrades to improve performance. SpaceX plans to use this version of Starship for Artemis lunar landings and other missions. NASA requested both SpaceX and Blue Origin, the two companies with contracts to develop Artemis crewed lunar landers, to provide plans to accelerate their work, but neither the agency nor the companies have yet released details about those plans. (3/9)
China Considers Neptune Orbiter (Source: Space News)
A senior Chinese space scientist and delegate to the country's national congress wants China to develop a Neptune orbiter mission. Wang Wei, an academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) and a researcher at the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (CASC), made the proposal to prioritize a Neptune orbiter mission as a deputy to the National People's Congress (NPC). Wang is now calling for China to seize a historic opportunity to conduct a world-first orbital study of Neptune, building on the country's recent advances in deep space exploration capabilities and progress in space nuclear power technologies. The most recent planetary science decadal survey in the United States placed as its top priority for a flagship-class mission a Uranus orbiter, but NASA has been slow to implement that recommendation. (3/9)
SpaceX Launches Sunday Starlink Mission From Vandenberg (Source: Space.com)
SpaceX launched more Starlink satellites early Sunday. A Falcon 9 lifted off from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California Sunday, putting 25 Starlink satellites into orbit. SpaceX now has more than 9,900 Starlink satellites in orbit with this latest launch. (3/9)
Germany's RFA Plans Summertime Launch at SaxaVord Spaceport (Source: Space News)
German launch startup Rocket Factory Augsburg (RFA) says it is planning its first launch this summer. The company said Friday the lower two stages of its RFA ONE rocket have arrived at the launch site at SaxaVord Spaceport in the Shetland Islands, although the engines for the first stage are still undergoing acceptance testing in Sweden. The company said it is projecting a launch this summer but did not offer a more precise launch date. RFA is one of several European launch startups seeking to make their first orbital launches in the next year. (3/9)
HawkEye 360 Adds $23 Million to December's $150 Million Investment (Source: HawkEye 360)
HawkEye 360 has added money to its latest funding round. The company announced last week it added $23 million to a $150 million Series E round announced in December. Three new investors and one existing investor contributed to the additional funding. HawkEye 360, which operates a constellation of satellites to collect radio-frequency intelligence data, said the Series E round would support the acquisition of Innovative Signal Analysis and other strategic growth priorities. (3/9)
Eternal Sunshine of the Virgin Mind (Source: Douglas Messier)
Richard Branson remotely attended the Space-Comm Europe conference last week, where he promised Virgin Galactic would do great things when the company returns to suborbital flight later this year. You probably remember Branson from such promises as, ‘we’ll be flying tourists to space by 2007,’ and ‘we’ll fly 50,000 people in the first 10 years from Spaceport America.’ Needless to say, none of that came remotely close to happening. But, Branson’s optimism remains as eternal as his credibility is low.
Virgin Galactic completed seven suborbital flights with 23 paying passengers before retiring its only operational SpaceShipTwo, VSS Unity, in June 2024. The company still had around 800 ticket holders waiting for flights at the time. Virgin Galactic’s future rests on a fleet of second generation Delta-class SpaceShipTwo vehicles that are designed to fly up to two times per week with six passengers instead of four. The new rocket planes are being assembled at a facility in Arizona.
In November, company officials said they were on track to begin flight tests of the first Delta-class ship in the third quarter of 2026. These flights would be followed in the fourth quarter by a commercial mission with scientific payloads aboard. The first flights with paying tourists would follow six to eight weeks later. (3/9)
Why Boeing Built A Real-Life Star Wars X-Wing Starfighter (Source: BGR)
Science fiction is littered with iconic vehicles and starships, but few are more recognizable than the X-wing. The X-wing is so synonymous with "Star Wars" that Boeing once built not one but two "real-life" X-wing starfighters. In 2019, Boeing partnered with Walt Disney to commemorate the opening of Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge in Walt Disney World. For its contribution,
Boeing dressed up two CV2 Cargo Air Vehicles (CAVs) as X-wings and flew them over the heads of attendees. Of course, the CAVs could only slowly hover; they couldn't jump to lightspeed, and their wings were non-functional and stuck in the recognizable X-shaped attack position. Oh, and Disney's imagineers set up ultraviolet spotlights to mask the drones and only illuminate the X-wing shells. (3/8)
How NASA Contractors Are Pressing On To Bring Humans to the Moon With Artemis (Source: The Guardian)
Justin Cyrus’s company, Lunar Outpost, epitomizes the many private contractors of the space agency working on a myriad of projects crucial to the Artemis program that seeks to return humans to the moon, so anything Isaacman had to say about it was naturally of interest to him. What he didn’t expect was the stunning announcement that NASA was restructuring its entire strategy for the first human lunar landing.
But in the best traditions of decades of challenging human spaceflight, Cyrus saw opportunity from adversity. Barring further delays or rethinking by NASA’s senior managers, the company’s Mobile Autonomous Prospecting Platform (MAPP) rover, a small but mighty technology-packed vehicle crucial to the agency’s plans for future long-term habitation on the moon, will now journey alongside the Artemis IV astronauts. Its largest project, the in-development Eagle lunar terrain vehicle (LTV), is billed as “the most capable crewed and cargo transport ever built” for human spaceflight.
MAPP, meanwhile, has not enjoyed much luck to date. The rugged, much smaller rover, which was set to examine dust and soil at the moon’s south pole last year, and provide vital research for a possible human moon base, did make it to the lunar surface in March, becoming the first commercial exploration vehicle to touch down. But the spacecraft on which it made the eight-day journey from Earth – the Athena lander, made by another private space operation, Texas-based Intuitive Machines – toppled on landing and trapped the rover inside. (3/9)
A Call for a Reliable Space Rescue Capability (Source: Space News)
One of the first considerations around space rescue is how quickly one would need to be launched. In the case of SpaceX Crew 11, the medical issue was identified eight days before the crew's return. In this specific situation, this timeline worked because of the level of emergency, but that may not be the case during a more urgent emergency in the future.
To be effective and reliable, a future space rescue capability would need to be on standby, ready to launch in a given window of time much the way Naval aircraft are positioned. It would not be in a matter of minutes like the ready 5, but there would need to be a rocket, specific supplies, a crew and fuel that could be quickly consolidated for a rescue mission. (3/4)
The Supply Chain Bottleneck Facing Space-Based Data Centers (Source: Space News)
Space-based infrastructure is increasingly presented as the solution to the staggering energy and water costs of running data centers on Earth. And while this represents a significant engineering challenge, the real bottleneck for space-based data centers is logistics, and especially building out a space-rated supply chain.
Terrestrial data centers work because they have an assumed standardization and interoperability that space systems haven't yet fleshed out, the authors argue. This lack of interoperability will likely make orbital and lunar data centers several times more expensive than those on Earth.
To stave off the issue, industry players and regulators need to collaborate on a unified bill of materials for data centers with required interoperability, space-rated qualification standards, and a procurement framework that's aligned with realistic launch cadences. (3/5)
DCS Acquires ARCTOS (Source: DCS)
DCS Corp. has acquired ARCTOS, bringing together two companies with decades of success delivering innovative solutions to the aerospace and defense science and technology sector. Based in Dayton, Ohio, ARCTOS Technology Solutions is an engineering and technical services firm conducting research and development and delivering engineering and technical solutions in the areas of aerospace and space launch safety and risk analysis, advanced manufacturing technology, and technology transition and workforce development. (3/5)
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