February 23, 2026

Study Questions Assumptions About Hidden Alien Technosignals (Source: Space Daily)
For more than sixty years, astronomers have conducted systematic searches for technosignatures, looking for artificial radio emissions, laser flashes, or excess heat that could reveal advanced civilizations in the Milky Way. Despite decades of monitoring across radio, optical, and infrared bands, no technosignature has been confirmed, a result often attributed to the fact that only a small fraction of the Galaxy has been explored so far. A common idea is that extraterrestrial signals may already have passed through Earth without being recognized, implying that similar signals might still be crossing our planet today and could be detected as instruments become more sensitive. (2/18)

EU Brings Secure GOVSATCOM Hub Online Under GMV Leadership (Source: Space Daily)
The European Union has begun operational use of its "Governmental Satellite Communications Program", known as "GOVSATCOM", opening secure encrypted satellite communications services to EU member states under European control. The move marks a significant step in the bloc's efforts to secure strategic autonomy in space-based communications for government and security users.

At the core of the new capability is the GOVSATCOM Hub, described as the central node that manages service delivery across the system in an efficient, resilient and coordinated way. In 2024, the "European Union Agency" for the Space Program awarded GMV a multi year contract valued at 107 million euros to lead a European industrial consortium tasked with designing, developing and deploying this hub as a critical operational element. (2/18)

AAC Clyde Space Adds Sedna Satellites to Boost Maritime Data Services (Source: Space Daily)
AAC Clyde Space has started building two additional maritime data satellites, Sedna-3 and Sedna-4, to expand capacity in its established space-based maritime data services. The company has placed orders for key components and assigned the build to its U.S. subsidiary AAC SpaceQuest, aiming to support continuity of service and improve performance as its fleet renews and grows. (2/18)

Israel's Remondo Devises New Imagery Tech (Source: Space News)
An Israeli space startup says it has found a way to extract high-resolution imagery from very small satellites. Remondo plans to launch its first mission in 2027 to demonstrate what it calls a partial aperture imaging system, or PAIS. The technology is designed to allow satellites as small as 12U to 16U cubesats to collect imagery at resolutions sharper than 30 centimeters. Remondo intends to build its own constellation and offer imagery as a service. At the same time, it plans to sell the hardware directly to national governments seeking sovereign control over tasking and data. (2/23)

Rocket Lab's Mynaric Acquisition Plan Threatened by Rheinmetall in Sovereign Push to Retain Technology (Source: Space News)
Rocket Lab's plans to acquire Mynaric, a German manufacturer of optical communications terminals, is facing new competition. Rheinmetall, Germany's largest defense contractor, is weighing a potential acquisition of Mynaric, according to German media reports, citing a desire to keep critical aerospace and laser communications technology under German and European control. Rocket Lab announced nearly a year ago it planned to acquire Mynaric for roughly $150 million, subject to approval by German authorities under foreign direct investment rules, but has yet to secure approvals from German regulators. Mynaric develops optical terminals that transmit data between satellites using laser links, a technology viewed as essential for next-generation defense and commercial constellations. (2/23)

Texas Disperses First Tranche of Space Grant Funds (Source: Space News)
The Texas Space Commission has completed dispersing $150 million in funding to companies and organizations. The commission awarded the remaining $14.1 million in its Space Exploration and Aeronautics Research Fund last week to Rice University to support the creation of a Center for Space Technologies at the Rice Space Institute. The Texas Legislature appropriated $150 million in 2023 for the fund, administered by the commission. There were 280 applications worth a combined $3.4 billion for the funding, which ultimately went to 24 projects in the state. The commission is now planning a second round of applications for $300 million allocated by the legislature to the fund last year.

Editor's Note: Texas's approach of granting money to space projects they hope will succeed differs from Florida's current focus on providing equity or debt financing. Florida's approach largely requires companies to demonstrate their viability to investors and bankers, while Texas's approach can rely on political expediency. (2/23)

Controversial Nominee to Lead NSF Lacks Experience (Source: Science)
The White House's pick to lead the National Science Foundation has raised some concerns in the science community. The administration plans to nominate Jim O'Neill, a venture capitalist who most recently was acting director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, to be director of NSF. Astronomers and other scientists, including members of the National Science Board, said they were surprised by those plans, noting O'Neill lacks an advanced science degree or any experience managing research programs. They are concerned he will shift the NSF away from its support of basic research to applied, near-term initiatives, like artificial intelligence and quantum computing. (2/23)

NASA's Perseverance Rover Now Has its Own 'GPS' on Mars (Source: Space.com)
NASA has given its Perseverance Mars rover a powerful new ability to determine its exact location on the Red Planet without waiting for instructions from Earth, effectively giving the six-wheeled explorer its own version of GPS. Unlike on Earth, Mars has no network of navigation satellites. Instead, robotic missions including Perseverance have long depended on onboard sensors and cameras, imagery from orbiting spacecraft and guidance from mission teams millions of miles away to figure out precisely where they are.

"For pinpoint accuracy, it needed humans back on Earth... But not anymore." Perseverance has tracked its position by analyzing geological features in images taken every few feet and factoring in wheel slippage to estimate how far it has traveled. Small errors build up over time, and, on longer drives, those inaccuracies can leave the rover unsure of its position by more than 100 feet. If it calculates that it may be too close to hazardous terrain, the rover may stop early and wait for clarification from Earth. "Humans have to tell it, 'You're not lost, you're safe. Keep going,'" Vandi Verma said.

Now, with the new upgrade, called Mars Global Localization, Perseverance can match its own panoramic imagery to orbital terrain maps onboard, calculate its precise position and continue along its planned route without waiting for Earth-based confirmation. The advancement comes just weeks after NASA announced that Perseverance had completed its first drive on Mars fully planned by generative artificial intelligence. (2/22)

ESA Awards Contracts for Lunar Remote Camp Studies (Source: European Spaceflight)
ESA has awarded a pair of contracts for studies focused on lunar habitat concepts that could support future operations on the surface of the Moon. In late 2024, ESA issued a request for proposals for its Lunar Remote Camp study initiative. The program aims to advance the early development of a “deployable protective unit” designed to protect robotic equipment, provide essential services, and, in future iterations, support short-duration human missions on the lunar surface. According to the agency’s call, the shelters would augment the capabilities of larger installations such as Artemis Base Camp, the Human Landing System, and the Multi-Purpose Habitat being developed by Thales Alenia Space under an Italian Space Agency (ASI) contract.

On 20 February, Copenhagen-based SAGA Space Architects announced that it had been selected to lead one of the two parallel studies. The company is heading up a consortium that includes The Exploration Company and Space Applications Services. According to ESA, the second contract is expected to be announced this week. (2/23)

Collision Avoidance for the Moon (Source: Aerospace America)
Engineers at Pittsburgh-based Astrobotic are developing a digital telescope called Clavius-S (Cis-Lunar Automated Vision-based Identification of Unknown Satellites-Surface) that could be deployed across the moon’s surface to monitor the lunar skies. The small device resembles an aluminum book, with one lens or multiple side-by-side lenses pointed skyward. Astrobotic proposed Clavius-S last year in response to a NASA request for technology that could detect and track noncommunicating spacecraft in lunar orbit, basing it on technology it started developing in 2022 for another digital telescope. (2/23)

Space Force Seeks More Resources After High-Profile Ops (Source: Defense Scoop)
US Space Force guardians played a key role in recent operations in Iran and Venezuela, highlighting the need for more resources to prepare for future conflicts, says Lt. Gen. Gregory Gagnon. During Operation Midnight Hammer and Operation Absolute Resolve, guardians provided satellite communications, GPS data and electromagnetic spectrum control, showcasing the importance of space-based capabilities in modern warfare. (2/22)

Kenya Becomes Africa's Satellite Data Gateway with Skynopy and Safran (Source: Skynopy)
Skynopy announces that it has been selected as a winner of the FASEP – Digital Infrastructures program, a financing scheme of the French Ministry of Economy, Finance and Industrial and Digital Sovereignty (Bercy), for the SkyConnect Kenya project, carried out in collaboration with Safran Space (a member company of Safran Space).

The Kenya Space Agency (KSA) operates a 4.5-meter S/X-band Earth observation antenna, recently installed at its Nairobi site. Currently used for a single satellite, this infrastructure has significant excess capacity. Through the SkyConnect Kenya project, Skynopy, in partnership with Safran Space, proposes to deploy its Ground Station Stack technology on the KSA antenna. (2/23)

Boeing Insists NASA Criticism Will Reinforce Efforts on Starliner (Source: NSF)
Following NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman’s stark assessment of the Boeing CST-100 Starliner program’s troubled history—pinning the blame not just on technical flaws but on systemic failures in decision-making and leadership that he warned could erode the agency’s culture of safety in human spaceflight—Boeing reacted by saying the report will reinforce ongoing efforts to improve its crew vehicle.

“We’re grateful to NASA for its thorough investigation and the opportunity to contribute to it. In the 18 months since our test flight, Boeing has made substantial progress on corrective actions for technical challenges we encountered and driven significant cultural changes across the team that directly align with the findings in the report. ... We’re working closely with NASA to ensure readiness for future Starliner missions and remain committed to NASA’s vision for two commercial crew providers.” (2/20)

German Defense Firm Said to be Weighing Bid for Mynaric (Source: Space News)
Rheinmetall is considering a counterbid for German laser terminal maker Mynaric to keep the strategic technology under European control, threatening Rocket Lab’s planned $150M acquisition. The move stems from intensified German scrutiny of foreign, non-German, defense technology takeovers. The potential deal for Mynaric, which develops critical laser communication terminals for, defense and commercial satellites, would secure technology for Germany's "SATCom Bw-4" LEO constellation. (2/22)

Space Boom Benefits All of Alabama, Including Birmingham (Source: Birmingham Business Journal)
Huntsville’s rise in the space world isn’t new, but the pace and scale of what’s happening now signal a major shift. With U.S. Space Command relocating and federal space and defense operations rapidly building around it, the city’s influence is deepening across the state — and Birmingham stands to benefit in ways only now coming into focus. (2/6)

Greenland Ice Melt Surges Unprecedentedly Amid Warming (Source: Phys.org)
A new study shows that climate change has profoundly altered extreme episodes of melting in the Greenland ice sheet by making them more frequent, more extensive and more intense. Since 1990, the area affected by extreme melting episodes has increased at a rate of 2.8 million km² per decade. Additionally, the production of water from ice melt has increased more than sixfold, rising from 12.7 gigatons per decade to 82.4 gigatons per decade. (2/21)