February 19, 2026

‘We’re No Longer Attracting Top Talent’: the Brain Drain Killing American Science (Source: The Guardian)
 Under the Trump administration, Ian Morgan, 33, and thousands of other young American scientists like him have grappled with wave after wave of disruptions. Billions of dollars have been wiped from research budgets, almost 8,000 grants have been cancelled at NIH and the US National Science Foundation alone, and more than 1,000 NIH employees have been fired. Morgan’s research has been rattled by multibillion-dollar cuts that make it impossible for labs to maintain their equipment. They have the choice of paying exorbitant maintenance fees, or giving up on experiments.

Amid the maelstrom, young and early-career scientists like Morgan are among the hardest hit. His own future is now in doubt. In the normal trajectory of a life in science, Morgan would be planning to set up his own laboratory conducting groundbreaking research. But with an ongoing hiring freeze, his options are limited. “Right now there’s no way even to apply to start your own lab at NIH, no matter how good you are, or how critical your work,” he says.

More than 10,000 post-doctoral experts in scientific and related fields were lost to the federal workforce last year, according to Science. The magazine looked at 14 research agencies and found that the number of employees departing outstripped new hires by 11 to one. The brain drain is prompting existential fears that American science, a powerhouse of the US economy and of global public health, is being deprived of its lifeblood. (2/19)

EUSPA Grants Thales Alenia a Framework Contract to Build European GNSS Demonstrator (Source: GPS World)
EUSPA has signed a Framework Contract with Thales Alenia Space to build the European GNSS Service Demonstrator (ESD), a centralized modular platform advancing EU Space services like EGNOS, Galileo, Copernicus, and GOVSATCOM/IRIS2. This EGNSS Service Demonstrator is a key innovation accelerator for EUSPA, paving the way for large-scale end-to-end testing future Galileo and EGNOS augmentation services through both geostationary satellite and internet-based dissemination. (2/18)

Japan’s ispace Warns of Delays in New Lunar Lander Engine (Source: Space News)
Japanese lunar company ispace said work on a new engine for its lunar landers is facing delays and that it is keeping open the option of switching engines. In an earnings call discussing its fiscal third-quarter financial results this month, ispace executives said issues with development of the new VoidRunner engine could delay the company’s next lander mission. (2/19)

Shareholder Advisory Firm Urges Vote Against Avio Bylaw Amendments (Source: European Spaceflight)
Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS), a proxy adviser for institutional investors, has recommended that shareholders of Italy's Avio rocket builder vote against a set of proposed bylaw amendments, setting up a tense run-up to a 3 March Extraordinary General Meeting. In September 2025, Avio introduced a new ten-year business plan that includes opening a new defense propulsion manufacturing facility in the United States, the construction of which is being funded by a €400 million capital increase that the company completed in November 2025.

A significant byproduct of the capital raise was that the company welcomed several new shareholders and broadened the geographic footprint of its shareholder base, with US investors now accounting for 20% of the company’s share capital. The March Extraordinary Shareholders’ Meeting will consider several bylaw amendments that aim to align its governance structure with the company’s growth, evolving shareholder base, and recent changes in Italian corporate law. The most significant change would fix the board of directors at nine members and alter how those seats are allocated. (2/18)

Chinese Astronauts Rejoice Over Space Tomato Harvest for Spring Festival (Source: Xinhua)
As China celebrates the 2026 Spring Festival, the crew of the Shenzhou-21 mission aboard the Tiangong space station has received a remarkable gift, a thriving harvest of tomatoes grown in orbit. The "space vegetable garden" has once again demonstrated the potential for sustained plant life beyond Earth's atmosphere. In a video reported by China Media Group (CMG) on Wednesday, astronaut Zhang Hongzhang gave his fellow people on Earth a tour of what he calls a "healing corner" of the Tiangong to show the tomato plants exhibiting vigorous growth. (2/18)

SSC Space Opens Orbital Launch Control Center at Sweden's Esrange Spaceport (Source: European Spaceflight)
SSC Space has officially opened the Esrange Space Center’s new Orbital Launch Control Center, which will be used to manage future rocket launches from the facility. The Esrange Space Center in northern Sweden has hosted suborbital rocket launches since the 1960s. In October 2020, the Swedish government and the Swedish Space Corporation (SSC), now known as SSC Space, which operates the facility, announced plans to establish an orbital launch capability at Esrange. Just over two years later, in January 2023, the site was officially inaugurated.

On 18 February 2026, three years after the facility was officially inaugurated, SSC Space announced the establishment of the facility’s new Orbital Launch Control Center (OLCC). The OLCC will be used to oversee launch operations for orbital missions from Esrange, including vehicle monitoring, countdown procedures, and coordination with range safety and airspace authorities. (2/19)

River Deltas are Sinking Faster Than the Sea is Rising (Source: ESA)
Earth’s river deltas, home to about 5% of the global population and some of the world’s major cities, are experiencing subsidence, which exacerbates the risks from sea-level rise. The Copernicus Sentinel-1 mission has captured a decade's worth of data showing land sinking faster than previously thought. Ten of the world’s 34 biggest cities are built on river deltas and as such, these low-lying lands are often home to key infrastructure such as transport hubs that support trade links. They are also critical rural and ecological zones that support both agriculture and biodiversity.

Some of the major delta cities include Kolkata (in the Ganges river delta), Alexandria (Nile), Shanghai (Yangtze), Bangkok (Chao Phraya), Ho Chi Minh City (Mekong) and New Orleans (Mississippi). These cities and their surrounding lowlands are on the frontline of climate change. But until now scientists have lacked consistent, global data on how fast deltas are actually sinking. (2/17)

Spaceport America Hosts NAR/ARC Student Launches (Source: KVIA)
Students from New Mexico State University (NMSU) and the Albuquerque Civil Air Patrol Group NM-079 completed a series of rocket launches at Spaceport America Saturday, Feb. 14. The students from NMSU were able to launch rockets they designed and potentially earn Level 1 certifications from the National Association of Rocketry (NAR) for succeeding in launching their rockets up to 1,700 feet. According to officials, of the 11 rockets launched at the spaceport, 10 were deemed successful flights. (2/18)

'Final Preparations' for First Launch From Shetland Spaceport (Source: The Herald)
A German rocket builder is moving toward launching a new vehicle from a spaceport in Shetland. The SaxaVord Spaceport on Unst has been granted a range license by the Civil Aviation Authority for rocket flights, with Rocket Factory Augsburg (RFA) given permission to test there. The company received its spaceflight operator license from the CAA in January 2025, to go with SaxaVord's spaceport license and the range control license. The regulatory approval gives RFA permission to launch into space from Scotland, covering a wide range of orbits and trajectories.

The company expects to launch this year, in what will be the first launch from the Shetland location. Its launch vehicle, the RFA One, is designed to transport small and micro-satellites of up to 1,300 kg into low-Earth polar and Sun-synchronous orbits but has yet to successfully launch. (2/18)

Was SpaceX Even Serious About Mars? (Source: The Verge)
Elon Musk has historically been the ultimate cheerleader for human missions to Mars, and as recently as last year, he said his aim was to go straight to the red planet and that the Moon was “a distraction.” Now, he has apparently changed his mind, announcing that SpaceX has shifted focus to building a city on the Moon. Within the space science community, this news about the Moon has largely been met with eye rolls, primarily because so many have become jaded toward Musk’s overly ambitious plans and wildly unrealistic time scales.

“It was hard for me to take those Mars plans seriously,” said space policy expert Wendy Whitman Cobb of the School of Advanced Air and Space Studies. She has kept an eye on SpaceX’s job postings in recent years and pointed out that the company has shown no interest in hiring roles related to Mars technologies. This suggests there has long been a disconnect between the actual work that SpaceX is doing in its development of Starship versus the grandiose way that Musk has talked about future colonization plans. (2/18)

The Moon Makes More Sense for Musk's Ambitions (Source: The Verge)
The challenges for establishing a human presence on Mars are all potentially solvable, but they require the development and testing of new technologies, which will take years or, more likely, decades. And when you are looking for a testing ground, the Moon — a few days away from Earth, with evacuation possible in an emergency — is significantly more appealing than Mars, where astronauts would be on their own for months at a time. This has been NASA’s approach in recent years under its Moon to Mars program.

But the most pressing motivations to return humans to the Moon are largely geopolitical, with China seeking to expand its human space program and stake out a presence there within the next decade and the US unwilling to be beaten to the punch. Similarly, SpaceX’s guiding motivation may be less philosophical and more classically capitalist, as the company engages in some old-fashioned competition with its rival Blue Origin.

Whatever the motivations of those involved, and for all the frustration with Musk’s off-the-cuff approach to announcing space policy, there is a hope that having him come around to supporting a practically achievable Moon mission is a positive step. Even now, Musk is claiming that, following Moon missions, SpaceX will be building a city on Mars “in about 5 to 7 years,” a hilariously optimistic timeline given that Starship has not even been proven flightworthy yet. You might recall Musk previously claiming that humans would be on Mars by 2022, or 2024, or 2029. (2/18)

Musk Cuts Starlink Access for Russian Forces - Giving Ukraine an Edge at the Front (Source: BBC)
Evidence is mounting that Elon Musk's decision to deny Russian forces access to his Starlink satellite-based internet service has blunted Moscow's advance, caused confusion among Russian soldiers and handed an advantage to Ukraine's defenders. But for how long? And what can Ukraine's military achieve in the meantime? "The Russians… lost their ability to control the field," a Ukrainian drone operator said. "I think they lost 50% of their capacity for offence," he said. "That's what the numbers show. Fewer assaults, fewer enemy drones, fewer everything." (2/19)

Cerberus Completes Acquisition of Vivace International (Source: Vivace)
Vivace International announced that an affiliate of Cerberus Capital Management has completed the full acquisition of the company. Cerberus initially made a strategic growth investment in Vivace in 2024 to strengthen its engineering and manufacturing capabilities, expand its team with key hires, and secure new program supporting U.S. defense and spaceflight customers. The additional investment positions Vivace to further scale its production capacity for mission‑critical propulsion tanks and aerospace systems, and support a growing portfolio of national security and space programs. (2/18)

Orbex Enters Bankruptcy with More Than 150 Employees Affected (Source: Inverness Courier)
A UK rocket manufacturer has now been taken over by administrators, with more than 150 employees made redundant. Orbex has now appointed restructuring advisors FRP as administrators and will charge them with exploring options for the business, including a potential sale. "Orbex has been a leading manufacturer in Europe's space industry, and so it is not surprising that there have been 35 companies in touch to register an interest in the business," said Richard Lochhead. (2/18)

Sentinel ICBM Program to Finish Restructuring This Year (Source: Breaking Defense)
The Air Force's Sentinel intercontinental ballistic missile program is set to complete a mandated restructuring this year, achieving Milestone B certification ahead of schedule, says Gen. Dale White, manager of critical major weapon systems. The program aims for initial operational capability in the early 2030s, earlier than recent estimates but later than the original 2029 target. The program has faced challenges, including an 81% cost increase to $141 billion and the need to build new missile silos, but officials say no additional cost growth has been seen. (2/17)

US Set to Complete GPS III Upgrade (Source: Space News)
The final GPS III satellite is set to launch in March, marking the completion of a landmark upgrade to the US positioning, navigation and timing infrastructure. The upgrade, highlighted by the recent deployment of the GPS III SV09 satellite by SpaceX, enhances the capabilities of systems reliant on GPS. (2/18)

Starfighters Space to Ring the Opening Bell at the New York Stock Exchange (Source: Starfighters)
Starfighters Space announced today that its executive leadership team will ring The Opening Bell at the New York Stock Exchange on Friday, February 20, 2026. The Opening Bell ceremony marks a significant milestone for Starfighters Space and reflects the Company’s continued growth and expanding role in the commercial space sector. (2/18)

Data From this NASA Rover Leave Only One Possible Explanation (Source: Futura)
A new study sheds more light on the discovery of organic compounds on Mars by the Curiosity rover. Since the rover cannot directly analyze the sample and given the limited capabilities of the Martian rover, the researchers had to devise an alternative approach to learn more. They conducted laboratory experiments to determine how Martian rocks, altered by radiation for 80 million years, could preserve such a large amount of organic compounds. This is particularly puzzling because these compounds tend to break down under solar radiation, especially when they have little protection from the atmosphere, which is the case on Mars.

The researchers could not find a convincing abiotic explanation for the presence of these molecules. Does this mean we have the first proof of ancient life on Mars? Not yet, especially since we lack the means to analyze the sample in more detail. The definitive answer may come if a Mars sample-return mission is ever conducted. (2/18)

A Pulsar Near The Milky Way's Galactic Center Is A Perfect Set-up To Test General Relativity (Source: Universe Today)
Researchers with Breakthrough Listen and Columbia University have discovered a candidate millisecond pulsar in the Milky Way's center. If confirmed, it will allow unprecedented tests of Einstein's General Relativity. Pulsars are extraordinarily predictable, and are clock-like in their regularity. General Relativity says that signals from a pulsar near a supermassive black hole should be altered by the SMBH's mass, and this candidate offers a chance to test that. (2/18)

Hubble Identifies a Near-Invisible Galaxy That May Be 99% Dark Matter (Source: Phys.org)
In the vast tapestry of the universe, most galaxies shine brightly across cosmic time and space. Yet a rare class of galaxies remains nearly invisible—low-surface-brightness galaxies dominated by dark matter and containing only a sparse scattering of faint stars. One such elusive object, dubbed CDG-2, may be among the most heavily dark matter-dominated galaxies ever discovered. (2/18)

Canada's DND Offering $2M for Prototypes to Counter Satellite Communication (SATCOM) Threats (Source: SpaceQ)
With the militarization of space accelerating, the Department of National Defence (DND) is turning to the private sector to solve a critical vulnerability: keeping satellites talking when an enemy tries to interfere with them. The department launched a new procurement challenge Tuesday, offering up to $2 million for Canadian companies to build prototypes that shield Low Earth Orbit (LEO) communications satellites (SATCOM) from malicious interference, specifically in “contested” or combat environments. (2/17)

Jacksonville's Cecil Spaceport Expansion Could Have the First Coast Looking Like the Space Coast (Source: First Coast News)
The future of Cecil Spaceport in Jacksonville is beginning to take shape, and it may look a little different from launch sites like Kennedy Space Center. Instead of vertical launch pads, Cecil has horizontal launch capabilities, which is ideal for the future of private space flights. New aerospace manufacturing companies are already getting on board as part of a new expansion.

It has a high-tech mission control center, spaceport hangar with 60,000 square foot and one of its biggest assets, a 12,500-foot runway. The location, formerly a naval airbase, was a designated emergency landing site. "It's the third longest runway in the state of Florida, so it's a huge asset, not only to Cecil, but the city to Jacksonville," Cecil Spaceport Director Matt Bocchino said. "Because with this runway, because of its length, we can accept any aircraft in production in the world. This is why we are a spaceport, because of this long runway."

In January, Embry Riddle's Experimental Rocket Propulsion Lab fired up a test rocket at the spaceport. Other universities, including the University of Florida and University of Central Florida, also use Cecil for testing along with private companies. Cecil is looking towards the future, applying for an FAA space re-entry license. Space Florida is committing to fund the process 100%. The spaceport is already cleared for horizontal launches. (2/17)

Martian Volcanoes Could Be Hiding Massive Glaciers Under A Blanket of Ash (Source: Universe Today)
There are parts of the mid-latitudes of Mars that appear to be glaciers covered by thick layers of dust and rock. So are these features really holding massive reserves of water close to where humans might first step foot on the Red Planet? They might be, according to a new paper from M.A. de Pablo and their co-authors, recently published in Icarus.

The key might be a small, volcanic island in Antarctica. Known as Deception Island, it’s a volcano that has covered some massive glaciers surrounding it with ash and dust from a series of eruptions in the 60s and 70s. The authors think they found a volcano on Mars with a similar history known as Hecates Tholus. Hecates Tholus is an ancient shield volcano on Mars that has many of the same features as the Deception Island volcano. And since we know there’s ice settled under the debris in Antarctica, it would imply that similar features might be underlying the debris surrounding Hecates Tholus. (2/18)

Exotrail Signs Major Contracts with Three Indian Space Companies as Macron Visits India (Source: Spacewatch Global)
Exotrail has signed three major contracts covering the supply of several dozen electric propulsion systems to XDLINX Labs, PIXXEL, and Dhruva Space, three Indian space companies, illustrating the fundamental role that the space industry plays in Franco-Indian cooperation. The contract comes as part of French President, Emmanuel Macron’s visit to India for the inauguration of the Indo-French Year of Innovation, to which Exotrail was invited as part of the presidential delegation. (2/18)

BlackSky International Customer Orders Gen-3 Satellite for Sovereign Access (Source: Via Satellite)
BlackSky Technology announced a deal with an unnamed international customer for a dedicated Gen-3 satellite, along with BlackSky’s imagery and analytics services. The deal announced Tuesday will give BlackSky’s international customer a sovereign, space-based intelligence solution.

The customer will have immediate access to BlackSky’s imagery and analytics, along with dynamic monitoring over their national and regional areas of interest. In addition, the customer purchased one Gen-3 BlackSky satellite, which will work in parallel to BlackSky’s constellation once it is operational. (2/17)

Russia Turns To Balloon-Based 5G Terminal As Alternative To Starlink (Source: Forbes)
Given the critical need for communication, the Russian military has been scrambling to find alternatives. Russian media recently announced the testing of a promising short-term Starlink alternative in the Barazh-1 system, a balloon-based platform capable of carrying a 5G terminal into the stratosphere as a communications relay.

The Barazh-1 system is a Russian-developed “unmanned stratospheric platform” designed to operate at altitudes between 20 and 30 km while carrying a payload of up to 100 kg. Although described in Russian media as a “platform,” it is fundamentally a stratospheric aerostat, or high-altitude balloon, that relies on buoyant lift rather than aerodynamic flight. Russian media report that it is now being tailored to carry a 5G non-terrestrial network (NTN) terminal. This would allow the aerostat to function as a high-altitude relay node, performing a role similar to Starlink. (2/17)

NASA’s Next Great Space Telescope is Getting Ready for Launch (Source: Space Explored)
As NASA moves deeper into a new era of space-based astronomy, another flagship observatory is quietly approaching the launch pad. The Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope, designed to survey the universe at a scale no previous space telescope has achieved, has completed assembly and is undergoing final environmental testing ahead of being shipped to Kennedy Space Center in Florida for a planned liftoff as soon as late 2026. (2/18)

Iris2 Will Be Free to Govt Users, Whose Comms Will be Anonymous; Non-Govt Service to be Preempted in Crises (Source: Space Intel Report)
The European Commission, just a couple of months from finding out whether its Iris2 public-private partnership for a secure connectivity constellation will survive negotiations with industry, is seeking to quash rumors about how the network will be managed.

It is notably fighting allegations that the program has no clear lines of authority between the Commission, ESA and the European Union Agency for the Space Program (EUSPA), that it will usurp military authority from individual EU nations. (2/18)

Stopping the European Space Startup Exodus (Source: Supercluster)
Young space companies have been struggling in Europe for years. Unable to raise sufficient funds to scale and restricted by the fragmented European market, many have failed to outgrow the start-up stage. To some, American investors and venture funds have come to the rescue, offering the much-needed capital, frequently under the condition of relocating to the U.S. The problem has been so widespread that some industry insiders refer to it as the European space start-up exodus. Some hope that the wave of investment in defense projects, motivated by the continued threat from Russia and escalating disputes with the administration of Donald Trump, might thwart the trend.

Europe, however, has a lot of catching up to do. Over the nearly quarter-century since the new space movement emerged to develop space technology faster and more cheaply than the old-school agencies and corporations, the U.S. government departments have nurtured giants like SpaceX, Blue Origin, and Planet Labs. Many of the frequently mediatized names of the European new space world, including rocket developers ISAR Aerospace, PLD, or Rocket Factory Augsburg, have yet to prove they are worth the hype.

So what exactly is wrong with Europe? Bulent Altan, Founding Partner at Munich, Germany-based Alpine Space Ventures, and early executive at SpaceX, told Supercluster that, unlike the US, where government players such as the Space Development Agency, the Department of Defense, and NASA have fully embraced new entrants, Europe has historically lacked “anchor customers” ready to support potentially disruptive players. “Without those demand signals, companies could not scale, and capital formation was nearly impossible,” Altan said. Click here. (2/17)

Loft Orbital and SmartSat CRC to Demonstrate Wildfire Detection with AI-Enabled Satellite (Source: Loft)
Loft Orbital (Loft) today announced it has signed a contract with the SmartSat Cooperative Research Center (SmartSat CRC) to deploy a wildfire detection application to Loft’s on-orbit satellites. The project will serve as a high-tech demonstration of near real-time, software-based wildfire detection from low Earth orbit.

This mission is designed to validate the software's functionality and performance in the space environment, providing a critical proof-of-concept for low-latency early detection of small smoke signatures. The application uses hyperspectral signatures to identify and distinguish smoke from standard cloud cover or fog, allowing early detection of small fires that can build to large wildfire events. (2/18)

Thales Alenia Space to Build Central Platform for EU GNSS Services (Source: Via Satellite)
Thales Alenia Space will build a central ground support platform for EU space services like EGNOS, Galileo, Copernicus, and GOVSATCOM/IRIS². The EU Agency for the Space Programme (EUSPA) recently signed a contract framework with Thales Alenia Space, announced Feb. 17.

Called the European GNSS Service Demonstrator (ESD), it will serve as a modular and flexible ground and support segment. The strategic purpose is to rollout new and improved services without disrupting operations for the European Global Navigation Satellite System (EGNSS), which encompasses the Global Satellite Navigation System established under the Galileo program and the European Geostationary Overlay Service (EGNOS). (2/18)

Space Coast Regional Airport Wins $15M Spaceport Infrastructure Grant (Source: Florida Today)
Space Coast Regional Airport, a legislatively designated Spaceport Territory, has secured a $15M grant for infrastructure upgrades to attract aerospace companies. The grant, made available through the Florida Department of Transportation and Space Florida under the Spaceport Improvement Program (SIP), will allow the airport to make improvements designed to make it more attractive to aerospace companies. (2/16)

Rakuten Mobile Proposal Selected for JAXA Space Strategy (Source: Computer Weekly)
As part of a project to enable “seamless” frequency sharing and handover between satellite and terrestrial networks, Rakuten Mobile today announced that its joint proposal with the University of Tokyo for dynamic frequency sharing technology has been selected by the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency for its Space Strategy Fund program. (2/17)

SpaceX, Not Tesla, Will Make Musk A Trillionaire (Source: Forbes)
As of Feb. 16, 2026, on the Forbes Real-Time Billionaires list, Elon Musk’s net worth stands at $849.3 billion. Larry Page is listed at $251.0 billion, Mark Zuckerberg at $219.5 billion, Jeff Bezos at $214.1 billion and Jensen Huang at $158.8 billion. Combined, Page, Zuckerberg, Bezos and Huang total approximately $843.4 billion. Musk exceeds that combined figure by roughly $6 billion.

Today, Musk’s wealth is no longer primarily tied to electric vehicles. Approximately two-thirds of his net worth is now tied to SpaceX and affiliated private ventures, while roughly one-third corresponds to Tesla. In 2020, Tesla represented the overwhelming majority of his fortune. By 2026, SpaceX and Starlink represent about twice the economic weight of Tesla within his personal balance sheet. (2/17)

Starbase Adding $14M ‘Starship Park’ to SpaceX Company Town’s Amenities (Source: San Antonio Express-News)
SpaceX’s city of Starbase appears to be making life more comfortable for its residents with plans to spend nearly $14 million building a park near the company’s Starship rocket factory. SpaceX’s city of Starbase appears to be making life more comfortable for its residents with plans to spend nearly $14 million building a park near the company’s Starship rocket factory. Construction on the future “Starship Park” could begin this week and is expected to be complete by September. (2/17)

SpaceX Receives Federal Approval to Develop Acres of Wetlands for Launch Pad Expansion (Source: Houston Chronicle)
SpaceX has received federal approval to fill 17 acres of wetlands to expand its launch pad in South Texas. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers granted the company’s request in late January. SpaceX plans to build new pads for testing and staging rockets, areas for storing water and propellant, and new roadways to enter and drive around internally, according to an Army Corps spokesperson.

The company will offset its wetlands destruction by creating an environmental mitigation bank that has also been recently approved by the Army Corps. This bank is not a financial institution. It’s a piece of land that can be tapped repeatedly if SpaceX seeks permission to develop additional wetlands outside of Brownsville. “By authorizing the establishment of Rockhands Mitigation Bank, the Corps could essentially be facilitating further loss of critical habitat in Boca Chica,” Fish and Wildlife said in comments submitted to the Army Corps.

SpaceX has previously received permission to fill about 5 acres of wetlands near Boca Chica Beach. It offset this development by donating some 80 acres to the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department. The Rockhands Mitigation Bank reflects a new approach for the company. And its permit to fill 17 acres — down slightly from the 18 acres of emergent wetlands and wind-tidal flats that SpaceX originally requested — is a dramatic increase in wetlands destruction. (2/17)

Exotic Black Hole Stars Could Explain the Mystery of Little Red Dots (Source: Scientific American)
When astronomers glimpsed the first images from the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) in July 2022, they saw the kind of universe most of them have come to expect. There were dazzling blue bursts of light, glowing trails of stardust, curtains of gas backlit by the birth of stars.

But things got weird very quickly. Almost every new image showed mysterious, tiny red points. The spots were extremely compact, very bright and distinctly red. There were so many of them. Everywhere JWST looked, the telescope found at least one specimen of what are now commonly called Little Red Dots (LRDs). (2/17)

Antarctica’s ‘Gravity Hole’ Has Been Quietly Growing Stronger (Source: Gizmodo)
For a long time, scientists knew of a “gravity hole” beneath Antarctica—an area with particularly weak gravitational force. Considering the various threats currently faced by the region, scientists are hoping to understand this anomaly better. At last, they may have a new lead. A historical analysis of Antarctica’s gravity hole, detailed in a recent Scientific Reports paper, explains that the hole started off weaker but grew stronger between 50 and 30 million years ago, when widespread glaciation took over Antarctica. (2/17)

Environmentalists Sound Alarm as SpaceX Landings Return to Bahamas (Source: EWnews)
Joe Darville of Save the Bays says he was "completely caught aghast" that authorities granted permission without wider public consultation. He warned that any malfunction or explosion could pose serious risks to the Bahamas' ocean-dependent economy, particularly its reliance on tourism, fisheries, and maritime activity, and questioned why the landings couldn't be done in the Gulf of Mexico instead.

He is calling for a national referendum before any further approvals are granted. Regulators say all necessary environmental and regulatory reviews were completed, and that the Falcon 9 operations are very different from the Starship test flight that caused the debris incident, and involve controlled re-entry supported by extensive environmental assessments. (2/18)

Satellite Feature on iPhone Allowed Skiers to Seek Help After Avalanche (Source: New York Times)
The six survivors of Tuesday’s avalanche near Lake Tahoe communicated with emergency responders using the Emergency SOS feature on the iPhone and an emergency beacon, said Don O’Keefe, the law enforcement chief for California’s Office of Emergency Services. The Emergency SOS feature on Apple’s iPhones allows users to text emergency services, even when they don’t have cellular service or Wi-Fi, by connecting the phone to a satellite. (2/18)

California city Considers Banning Contracts with SpaceX (Source: Drive Tesla)
The Davis City Council in California is preparing to consider a resolution that could significantly alter the city’s relationship with companies owned or controlled by Elon Musk, including Tesla, SpaceX, Starlink, and xAI. If approved, the proposal would prohibit the city from entering into new contracts with Musk-affiliated firms and encourage divestment from their publicly traded securities. (2/17)

Saudi HUMAIN Invested $3B Into xAI Pre-Merger; Convertible to SpaceX (Source: Mach 33)
Saudi Arabia’s HUMAIN said it made a $3B investment into xAI’s Series E shortly before xAI was acquired by SpaceX, meaning the position converted into SpaceX equity through the transaction. The capital injection builds on an existing 500MW AI infrastructure partnership between the two entities in Saudi Arabia. This transaction positions HUMAIN as a strategic anchor in the converging space-AI stack. By converting xAI holdings into SpaceX shares post-acquisition, HUMAIN secures exposure to the broader ecosystem. For the market, this strategic partner supports the thesis that orbital compute and terrestrial AI models are merging into a single infrastructure play, with capital flows now reflecting that integration. (2./18)

Starbase Expansion Advances with Wetlands Permit and Annexation Proposal (Source: Mach 33)
SpaceX received U.S. Army Corps approval to fill roughly 17 acres of wetlands near Boca Chica to support additional Starbase site development, with offsets routed through mitigation credits (including SpaceX’s Rockhands Mitigation Bank). Separately, Starbase’s local government is reportedly advancing an annexation proposal covering ~7,133 acres, which would expand Starbase’s municipal jurisdiction even if underlying land ownership does not change.

This is the operational backbone of Starship scale. Launch cadence ultimately depends on site throughput, local governance control, and permitting velocity, not just vehicle performance. The more SpaceX can formalize land use and municipal authority, the more it reduces long-run execution risk around closures, utilities, and industrial expansion. (2/18)

China Completes AI Testing for “Three-Body” Orbital Computing Constellation (Source: Mach 33)
The China Aerospace Science and Industry Corporation (CASIC) has concluded nine months of testing for its "Three-Body" Computing Constellation. The tests successfully demonstrated the ability to run large-scale AI models directly on satellite hardware, significantly reducing latency between data capture and intelligence generation.

This establishes China as a credible, vertically integrated competitor to SpaceX in the emerging orbital compute segment. Like SpaceX, CASIC controls the entire stack, from launch vehicles to satellite manufacturing and now the onboard compute layer. This integration allows them to capture similar margin efficiencies that define SpaceX's dominance, optimizing cost structures that decoupled competitors cannot match. (2/18)

Countdown to Goddard Centennial with New Model Rocket for Launches (Source: Aerospace America)
To mark the 100th anniversary of Robert Goddard’s historic launch, a low-cost replica of his pioneering liquid fueled rocket gives schools and the public a powerful way to introduce the birth of modern rocketry. “Tried rocket at 2:30,” Robert Hutchings Goddard recounted in his diary on that frosty afternoon in 1926 at “Aunt Effie’s farm” in Auburn, Massachusetts. “It rose 41 ft, and went 184 ft, in 2.5 sec, after the lower half of nozzle has burned off,” he wrote. (2/17)