March 23, 2022

Boeing Eyes Investment Candidates at Satellite 2022 Conference (Source: Space News)
Boeing executives are meeting with startups at the Satellite 2022 conference with an eye toward investment and collaboration. “We’re looking for those technologies that would make our platforms and programs better,” Teresa Segura, Boeing’s Applied Innovation leader, told SpaceNews.

Since spinning off its venture capital arm, HorizonX Ventures, last year to establish AEI HorizonX, a strategic partnership with private equity investor AE Industrial Partners, Boeing has focused on identifying promising technology, while AE Industrial Partners manages the investment portfolio and performs financial due diligence.

With $62.3 billion in 2021 revenue, Chicago-based Boeing, is one of the world’s largest aerospace companies. In addition to playing a leading role in supporting the international space station andserving as prime contractor for NASA’s Space Launch System rocket, Boeing produces commercial and military aircraft, satellites, communication systems and provides a variety of logistics and training services. Still the 106-year-old company is eager to identify “innovative solutions that are going to move us forward for the next century,” Segura said. (3/23)

Smallsat Launchers Focus on Customer Requirements and Attracting the Right Talent (Source: Via Satellite)
Dozens of small satellite launch startups have entered the market, aiming to make launching technology more affordable and reliable. Launch providers such as Virgin Orbit, Relativity Space and others are seeing a positive outlook for the sector despite challenges. "We've flown an entire eclectic mix of satellites ... and we'll be launching out of the UK for the Queen's 75th Jubilee," said Jim Simpson, chief strategy officer of Virgin Orbit. (3/22)

Mini Robots Practice Grasping Space Debris (Source: Space Daily)
A challenging feat for a little robot: Honey the Astrobee must grasp and transport Bumble the Astrobee. To pull it off, Honey needs to understand Bumble's trajectory, position itself correctly and avoid a collision at all costs. Artificial intelligence (AI) helps the cube-shaped robot to accurately assess the situation. The experiment is part of the TumbleDock/ROAM project, which the German Aerospace Center is carrying out together with its partners on the ISS. The experiments are part of an effort to determine the best way to remove hazardous pieces of space debris from Earth orbit.

"The two robots on the ISS will simulate an orbital scenario," says Roberto Lampariello from the DLR Institute of Robotics and Mechatronics in Oberpfaffenhofen. Debris is accumulating around the Earth: satellites that are no longer functional collide with others and create a vast quantity of uncontrolled objects. (3/23)

Ex-Workers Say L3Harris 401(k) Charged Exorbitant Costs (Source: Law360)
Defense contractor L3Harris Technologies, headquartered on Florida's Space Coast, ran afoul of federal benefits law by failing to use the size of its $13.5 billion retirement plan to negotiate lower administrative fees and cheaper investment options, former workers said in a proposed class action filed in Florida federal court. (3/23)

Split Aerojet Board Given 1 Week To Find Neutral Counsel (Source: Law360)
Aerojet Rocketdyne Holding Inc.'s deadlocked board has one week to hire neutral counsel for the company and must figure out on its own when the company's annual meeting will be, a Delaware Chancery Court vice chancellor said Tuesday, refusing to take sides in an ongoing board dispute. (3/23)

Firefly Aiming for Second Launch Attempt in May, From California (Source: CNBC)
Firefly Aerospace aims to make its second attempt to reach orbit with its Alpha rocket in the coming weeks, having received government approval to resume launch operations after a controversial investor sold his stake. Firefly CEO Tom Markusic told CNBC that the company “worked methodically and cooperatively with the government” to both complete the divestment, as well as to add “security protocols” at the company.

With the move complete, Markusic said the company now has “full access to our facilities to go back and launch.” Firefly will next transport its second Alpha rocket from its headquarters near Austin, Texas, to California, and aims to launch as soon as it can. “We think it’ll take us about eight weeks from here to launch -- so in May is our target,” Markusic told CNBC. (3/22)

Manager of Blue Origin’s Rocket Engine Program Leaves Company (Source: Ars Technica)
As Blue Origin nears the critical point of delivering flight-ready BE-4 rocket engines to United Launch Alliance, the engineer in charge of the company's rocket engine program has decided to leave. Blue Origin CEO Bob Smith recently informed employees of the departure of John Vilja, the senior vice president of Blue Engines. In Smith's email to employees, obtained by Ars, Vilja is said to be leaving Blue to pursue his "many" interests and hobbies outside of work.

Sources familiar with Vilja's work confirmed that he was a good manager and engineer who helped get the BE-4 rocket engine program back on track. As Ars reported last August, before Vilja's arrival, the numerous challenges faced by the engineers and technicians working to build and test BE-4 development engines included being "hardware poor."

During his tenure, Vilja hired Linda Cova to serve as his deputy. She will now lead, at least on an interim basis, the Engines team at Blue Origin. Cova came to the company in 2021 after working on various propulsion programs at Aerojet Rocketdyne for 35 years. Among her duties, she led the development of the AR1 engine, which lost out to the BE-4 engine in a competition held by ULA for its new Vulcan rocket. It was not immediately clear why Vilja left Blue Origin with the end of the BE-4 development program in sight. However, a Blue Origin spokesperson said Vilja’s departure would have no effect on the production of BE-4 engines. (3/22)

New Target for First SpaceX Starship Orbital Flight (Source: C/Net)
Starship might finally make it to space within the next few months -- or at least that's what SpaceX founder Elon Musk is currently shooting for. The next-generation spacecraft is the vehicle NASA plans to use to send astronauts back to the surface of the moon, and Musk hopes it could put footprints on Mars by the end of the decade.

"First Starship orbital flight will be with Raptor 2 engines, as they are much more capable and reliable," Musk tweeted on Monday. "We'll have 39 flightworthy engines built by next month, then another month to integrate, so hopefully May for orbital flight test." The Raptor 2 is designed to be over 25% more powerful than its predecessor. (3/22)

SpaceX Hikes Prices for Falcon Launches and Starlink Services (Source: Space News)
SpaceX has hiked prices for both launches and its Starlink services, blaming the increases on inflation. The company notified Starlink subscribers it was raising monthly rates by more than 10% while increasing the price of the terminals by up to 20%. Prices for both dedicated and rideshare launches have increased by 8-10%. The company said the increases were due to "excessive levels of inflation" and that additional launch price increases are also possible. (3/23)

Space Coast Company Validates Contingency Rescue Plans for Axiom Crewed Mission to ISS (Source: Operator Solutions)
Operator Solutions, in collaboration with Axiom Space, executed a full-mission profile human spaceflight search and rescue validation exercise in preparation for Axiom's Ax-1 mission, the first private mission to the International Space Station. The exercise demonstrated the operational capabilities involved in bringing the Ax-1 crew back home safely in the event of a contingency during their mission.

The training exercise started with locating the private astronaut crew and spacecraft in the open ocean, initiating the next step of the search and rescue procedures. After airdropping recovery rescue equipment and an inflatable rescue vessel by way of a Lockheed C-130 Hercules four-engine turboprop aircraft, four Pararescue jumpers were airdropped into the recovery zone to prepare their rescue vessel for transport to the crew-members and spacecraft. Key operations once the rescue team neared the crew and spacecraft were a hazard sweep, installing a tow line to the capsule to the rescue vessel to not only tow but stabilize the spacecraft capsule.

In addition, a fully operational Rescue Operations Center — located at Operator Solutions’ Spaceflight Rescue Facility in Melbourne, Florida – monitored and communicated through several critical communications channels, including connectivity to Axiom’s Mission Control Center, personnel at the recovery site, spacecraft partners, and ground and air crews. Once the rescue team reached the Ax-1 crew-members and their spacecraft, helicopter air support hoisted the crew-members with the Pararescue jumpers for transport to a nearby hospital for additional medical support ensuring the health and safety for each crew-member, ending the validation exercise. (3/14)

Geopolitics Shaking Up Space Supply Chains (Source: Space News)
Geopolitics, specifically Russia's invasion of Ukraine, is pushing space companies to tighten international supply chains amid a renewed focus on security. Companies say they are scrutinizing hardware and software for links to China and Russia, including improved cybersecurity amid increasingly sophisticated threats. Some companies say they are expanding restrictions on countries they purchase critical components from, but others say existing export controls will not materially affect how the industry already operates. (3/23)

Russia Launches Military Commsat (Source: TASS)
Russia launched a military communications satellite Tuesday. A Soyuz-2.1a rocket lifted off from the Plesetsk Cosmodrome at 8:48 a.m. Eastern and placed a Meridian-M satellite into orbit. The satellite is the latest in a series that provide military communications services from highly elliptical orbits and likely will replace one that recently failed. (3/23)

Startup Dark Fission Focuses on Nuclear Thermal Propulsion (Source: Space News)
Fred Kennedy, a former Pentagon official and veteran space executive, is founding a startup to commercialize nuclear thermal rocket propulsion. Dark Fission Space Systems seeks to develop the first commercial nuclear thermal propulsion system to serve customers seeking orbital transfer or lunar access services. Dark Fission will seek government and industry partners to pursue the on-orbit demonstration of an operational nuclear thermal rocket engine within the next five years. (3/23)

NASA Asserts Starlink Doubts Are Not Meant For FCC License Rejection (Source: WCCFtech)
NASA has clarified its position in regards to an application filed by SpaceX with the FCC for the Starlink satellite internet constellation. Starlink is currently in the midst of a heated battle to convince the Commission to grant it approval to launch the satellites with SpaceX's Starship next-generation launch vehicle systems. Its competitors have shared a myriad of concerns with the FCC, and NASA itself highlighted the need for additional analysis for the thousands of satellites that Starlink plans to place in LEO. In a new letter, NASA clarifies that any comments by the space agency are not meant to dissuade the FCC from issuing a license. (3/21)

High Throughput Satellites Poised To Become Leading Space Infrastructure Commercial Growers (Source: Euroconsult)
Euroconsult has released the 6th edition of its High Throughput Satellites (HTS) report –  its in-depth analysis of geostationary (GEO) and non-geostationary (NGSO) HTS markets including major drivers, strategic issues, competitive landscape and detailed forecasts of capacity supply and associated demand take-up. High Throughput Satellites are entering a new era of accelerated and drastic transformation, wherein global HTS capacity supply is expected to grow over the next five years (45% CAGR) surpassing 60,000 Gbps (60 Tbps).

Facilitating this growth are non-geostationary orbit (NGSO) broadband constellations, which are projected to account for nearly 90% of capacity supply in 2026. Recent NGSO momentum has been underpinned by the aggressive launch campaign of SpaceX’s Starlink LEO constellation, which nearly single-handedly led to a 350% expansion of global HTS capacity supply in 2021 alone after entering initial operational status.

Euroconsult notes that NGSO supply figures, despite being adjusted to reflect sellable capacity (as opposed to notional aggregate constellation capacity), must be treated with caution as not all projected capacity can be immediately exploited due to lagging national market access authorizations and gradual gateway deployments. Fully software-defined satellite platforms from manufacturers such as Airbus, Thales and new entrant Astranis have accounted for over 50% of GEO-HTS orders over the 2019-21 period and more than 80% of GEO-HTS orders in 2021 alone. (3/22)