January 2, 2025

Spaceport Flyover Video: Busy 2025 Ahead! Starship, New Glenn, and Stoke Progress (Source: NSF)
The Space Coast is buzzing with activity as 2025 promises a landmark year in spaceflight! SpaceX is ramping up Starship development in Florida, including a new Orbital Launch Mount at LC-39A and expanded facilities at Roberts Road. Blue Origin is making strides toward New Glenn’s debut, with testing, upgrades, and lunar goals in sight. Stoke Space is preparing for the first flight of its fully reusable Nova rocket, and Relativity is building out its pad for Terran R. Don’t miss this flyover overview of the latest updates from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center and beyond! Click here. (12/10)

The Wait Is Over: Blue Origin's New Glenn Takes Center Stage with Sunday Launch Debut (Source: NSF)
Blue Origin’s New Glenn rocket is finally on the pad and ready for its highly anticipated maiden flight. This marks a monumental moment for the space industry as Blue Origin takes a leap into orbital spaceflight. From the innovative Blue Ring payload to booster recovery on Jacklyn, we dive into everything you need to know about this historic launch. Plus, a detailed look at New Glenn’s BE-4 engines, giant fairings, and future missions, including Blue Moon and Project Kuiper. Will this launch set the tone for Blue Origin’s reusable rocket ambitions? Click here. (1/2)

A Record Year for Space Launches (Source: Space News)
Last year set another record for the most orbital launches worldwide, thanks largely to SpaceX. There were 259 orbital launch attempts worldwide in 2024, a 17% increase from the previous record in 2023. That increase was primarily due to SpaceX, which conducted 134 Falcon launches in 2024, up from 96 in 2023. Even that increase fell short of SpaceX's internal goal for 2024, originally 148 launches and later revised to 136. SpaceX President Gwynne Shotwell said last month the company has a goal of 175-180 launches in 2025.

That increase translated into a record year for launches from Florida as well. The Eastern Range, including Cape Canaveral Space Force Station and Kennedy Space Center, hosted 93 launches in 2024, up from 74 in 2023. SpaceX performed 88 of those launches with ULA the other five. Space Force Brig. Gen. Kristin Panzenhagen, commander of the Eastern Range, said the spaceport has accommodated those "crazy numbers" through automation and infrastructure improvements. (1/1)

FCC Assigns Additional Spectrum for Launches (Source: Space News)
The FCC is allocating additional spectrum for launches. The FCC released a report and order Tuesday formally assigning spectrum between 2360 and 2395 megahertz for use in communications to and from commercial launch and reentry vehicles on a secondary basis. The assignment complies with language in the Launch Communications Act signed into law in September and directing the FCC to allocate spectrum in three bands for use in commercial launches and reentries; the FCC had already allocated spectrum in the other two bands identified in the bill. Launch companies will have to avoid any interference in operations in the new band with aircraft and missile testing, which has priority use. (1/1)

Ingenuity Featured in Rose Bowl Parade (Source: Collect Space)
The Ingenuity Mars helicopter took to the skies again Wednesday — as part of a parade float. The "Rover Rendezvous" float in the Rose Parade in Pasadena, California, featured a flower-covered replica of Ingenuity, marking the first appearance of a drone in a float in that famous parade. The float also featured a rover modeled on the Mars rovers Curiosity and Perseverance. It was created by the city of La Cañada Flintridge, California, within whose city limits the Jet Propulsion Laboratory is located. (1/1)

The Next Gold Rush is Above Us, Not Below Us (Source: The Hill)
The United States stands at a critical crossroads in space policy. While our space activities already generate over $380 billion annually and support 100,000 American jobs, we risk falling behind international competitors in the next great economic frontier. It’s time to fundamentally reimagine our approach to space — not as a “government-led program,” but as America’s next realm for economic expansion and industrial development.

The current NASA-centered approach, exemplified by the Artemis program, is both unsustainable and insufficient for maintaining American leadership in space. Already $100 billion over budget and years behind schedule, Artemis represents an outdated model of government-led space exploration that cannot compete with nimbler commercial alternatives or match the pace of international rivals like China. (1/1)

India's Space Economy to Grow Nearly 5 Times in Next Decade (Source: Siasat Daily)
The Indian space economy is set to grow nearly 5 times from $8.4 billion to around $44 billion in the next decade, Union Minister of State for Science and Technology, Dr Jitendra Singh, has stressed. Investments in the sector reached Rs 1,000 crore in 2023 alone, placing India as a frontline player globally. India’s space sector has also emerged as a significant foreign exchange earner. (1/1)

Transforming the Moon Into Humanity's First Space Hub (Source: WIRED)
This year will mark a turning point in humanity’s relationship with the moon, as we begin to lay the foundations for a permanent presence on its surface, paving the way for our natural satellite to become an industrial hub—one that will lead us to Mars and beyond. Developing a lunar economy boils down to three critical elements: the ability to get there, the means to refuel for the return journey, and profitable enterprises operating on the lunar surface. And, in 2025, technologies in all three areas will finally begin to take tangible shape.

Getting to the moon is only the first piece of the equation. A sustainable lunar economy depends on the ability to transport people and materials from the lunar surface back to Earth. The critical limiting factor for returning home is access to fuel for the return journey. The company I founded, Starpath, is creating the first “gas station” on the moon, with an end-to-end fuel production system on the lunar surface capable of turning icy regolith into rocket fuel. (1/1)