March 7, 2026

Spaceport in Peru Makes Progress in Congress: Where Will it Be Built? (Source: Infobae)
In the session of Monday, March 2, the National Defense , Internal Order, Alternative Development and Drug Control Commission of Congress unanimously approved (14 votes) a ruling that proposes to declare the creation of a spaceport in our country to be of national interest. While it is a declaratory ruling, it does propose that studies be initiated to make this spaceport a reality. Furthermore, a parallel project was already detailed in the Ministry of Defense's Multiannual Report on Public-Private Partnership Investments for 2023-2026.

This refers to the " Construction of a Spaceport at the 'El Pato' Air Base in the city of Talara ." It is planned to be implemented in Piura as well. However, there is still not much concrete information available about the progress of this project. The commission approved the opinion which approves a legal formula toward the creation of a spaceport in Peruvian territory in order "to promote the start of the studies corresponding to its creation and position Peru as a regional leader in the space field." (3/6)

Monteith Joins Alaska Aerospace Board (Source: Alaska Aerospace)
Wayne Monteith, after serving as an Associate Administrator for Commercial Space Transportation at the FAA, has been appointed to the board of Alaska Aerospace, the state-sponsored corporation responsible for managing the Pacific Spaceport Complex – Alaska (PSCA) on Kodiak Island, and promoting the Poker Flat Research Range for scientific suborbital launches. Monteith previously served as a Brigadier General in the US Air Force, where he commanded the 45th Space Wing, overseeing Patrick Air Force Base, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, and the Eastern Range. (3/6)

Testing Commences for Ursa Major's Upgraded Hadley H13 (Source: Interesting Engineering)
Ursa Major has conducted the first hot-fire tests of the updated Hadley H13 liquid rocket engine, designed for hypersonic and light-launch applications. The H13, an enhancement of the flight-proven H11, incorporates design improvements, new materials and advanced manufacturing techniques to increase reusability. (3/5)
 
SDA Constellation Faces Supply Chain, Technical Issues (Source: Air and Space Forces)
The Space Development Agency has encountered significant challenges in scaling up its satellite constellation, facing supply chain issues and technical problems that have delayed its launch schedule by several months. The agency, which aims to disrupt traditional Pentagon satellite procurement, has yet to complete formal testing of its first operational satellites launched last fall. Director Gurpartap Sandhoo notes that these challenges highlight the difficulties of managing larger fleets and tight launch schedules, but he remains optimistic that lessons learned will improve future operations. (3/5)

Isaacman Relaxes NASA Dress Code, Plans Improvements to Training, Travel and Badging (Source: SPACErePORT)
In a March 6 email to the NASA workforce, Administrator Jared Isaacman announced agency-wide dress code changes: "Use good judgment and wear whatever is needed, short of gym clothes and weekend wear, to get the job done. If there are questions, supervisors can provide guidance." Also, badging for NASA Center access will be moving to a simplified mobile interface.

For training, Isaacman said NASA would retire outdated online modules and replace them with shorter, more relevant ones. And for travel, approvals will be shifted back to lower-level management and credit/debit card limits will be raised. Recall that DOGE infamously reduced government card spending limits to near zero to make them virtually unusable, and conference participation/travel was substantially scaled back. (3/6) 

NASA Now Officially Has No Plans to Use New Mobile Launcher for Artemis (Source: Orlando Sentinel)
When NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman announced the revamped approach to the Artemis moon program, it was unclear whether the new mobile launcher that has been constructed over the last two years at Kennedy Space Center would ever get used. A NASA rundown of the reconfigured Artemis launch plans released Tuesday, though, answers that question for the foreseeable future: No. “The agency is no longer planning to use the Exploration Upper Stage or Mobile Launcher 2," according to the agency update.

The SLS "Block 1" configuration for the first three Artemis missions uses an upper stage called the interim cryogenic propulsion stage and are assigned to use mobile launcher 1 (ML1), which was converted from the canceled Constellation program. Artemis IV and V were to use a Block 1B version of the SLS, including the taller Exploration Upper Stage, requiring an increase in height called for a new mobile launcher, ML2. (3/4)

House Science Committee Leaders Criticize FCC Rulemaking on Space Safety (Source: Space News)
In a letter last week to FCC Chairman Brendan Carr, Reps. Brian Babin, R-TX, and Zoe Lofgren, D-CA, said elements of the FCC's "Space Modernization for the 21st Century" notice of proposed rulemaking, would impose regulations beyond the commission's statutory authority. (3/5)