Space news

Your Amazon order of internet satellite prototypes have shipped.

Northrop Grumman and Voyager Space executives said their decision to work together on a commercial space station project, rather than pursue competing efforts, is a natural progression for an emerging industry.

Wildly missed revenue projections cast a long shadow over space firms that went public by merging with a SPAC, or special purpose acquisition company, as their shares continue to underperform […]

An issue with the Inmarsat-6 (I6) F6 2 satellite could send the space insurance market deep into the red, pushing up rates that were already rising following news of ViaSat-3’s […]

Economic headwinds: You feel them at the pump, the grocery store, and now in space. Investment in the space industry has fallen back to Earth, totaling only $2.2B in Q1, […]

Payloads: ESA-Education Payload Operations (EPO): Video was recorded in support of the EPO Mogensen – Astronaut Logbook & Humans in Space Exhibition Day 3: How I View Earth. The ISS Education Program makes use of human spaceflight and the ISS as a means to capture the attention and the interest of students, to attract them …

Stoke Space, a startup that recently tested a prototype of the upper stage of a reusable rocket, has raised $100 million to continue development of that vehicle.

"Really it was more of a timeline and uncertainty shrinker, if you will."

Bremen-based startup POLARIS Spaceplanes has announced that on 4 October, it took delivery of a pair of its in-house designed AS1 aerospike engines. The company is developing AURORA, a multipurpose spaceplane and hypersonic transport system. The vehicle can be equipped with an expendable upper stage to enable it to deliver up to 1,000 kilograms to […] The post POLARIS Spaceplanes take Delivery of a Pair of Aerospike Engines appeared first on European Spaceflight.

The liftoff time for India’s historic Chandrayaan-3 lunar lander was shifted four seconds to avoid close approaches to other space objects.

Japanese small satellite thruster developer Pale Blue has raised $7.5 million to establish a mass production facility for its water vapor propulsion systems.

Elon Musk thinks Starship has a “decent chance” of reaching space on the next launch after he changed the design of how the first and second stages separate. On the […]

SpaceX Chief Executive Elon Musk says it will be about a year before the company’s new Starship vehicle will be ready to start launching satellites.

Washington-based startup Stoke Space raised $100 million in new funds, the company announced Thursday, as it aims to develop a fully reusable rocket called “Nova.”

The Indian government is continuing a series of reforms aimed at increasing private involvement in the space sector and attracting global capital.

“Refining strategies and evolving partnerships are part of the process.”

The U.S. Space Force on Oct. 4 released two solicitations for the next round of national security launch contracts, known as National Security Space Launch Phase 3.

Russia says its first lunar lander mission in nearly half a century crashed in August because of faulty commands in an onboard computer during a maneuver.

Airbus DS Geo, Capella Space, GHGSat, Maxar, PlanetiQ, Spire Global and Umbra were selected under the fixed-price, indefinite delivery, indefinite quantity contract to provide Earth observation data and services in support of NASA research.

The U.S. Air Force awarded the Logistics Management Institute, known as LMI, a $98 million contract for modeling and simulation software to analyze warfighting missions in space.

China’s space authorities want to build an expansive, three-stage communication, navigation and remote sensing network to facilitate deep space operations.

Payloads: B Complex: Optical Coherence Tomography 2 (OCT2) Exams were performed. Some astronauts experience swelling near where the optic nerve attaches at the back of the eye, part of a condition called Spaceflight-Associated Neuro-ocular Syndrome (SANS). Evidence exists that genetics and B vitamin status predispose some astronauts to develop this condition. A Nutraceutical SANS Countermeasure …

Spanish launch startup PLD Space has announced that it has kicked off a launch campaign to perform the maiden flight of its suborbital Miura 1 rocket. The company’s first attempt to launch the maiden flight of Miura 1 on 31 May was abandoned due to high winds. The second on 17 June was automatically aborted […] The post PLD Space Prepare for Third Attempt at Maiden Miura 1 Flight appeared first on European Spaceflight.

[Elon Musk is slated to begin speaking at 9:45 a.m. ET. Please refresh the page if you do not see the video player above.]

CesiumAstro demonstrated its latest Ka-band active phased array terminal with the help of a Hughes software-defined modem and an SES geosynchronous satellite.

Rocket Lab has opened a new engine development center in a building that, six months earlier, was the headquarters of a competing launch company, Virgin Orbit.

Japan’s SLIM spacecraft has completed a flyby of the moon as part of a months-long deep space journey to set up a lunar landing attempt.

The 2023 Hyperspace Challenge cohort includes U.S. companies Lexset.ai, Phase Four and TRL11, plus Australia’s High Earth Orbit Robotics, England-based Magdrive and Dawn Aerospace of the Netherlands.

Northrop Grumman will drop plans to develop its own commercial space station and instead assist a competing effort led by Voyager Space, the companies announced Oct. 4.

Germany has announced its intention to pursue a competitive procurement process when purchasing launch services. The country also intends to use its position within the European Space Agency to advocate that the agency does the same. This “paradigm shift in the development and procurement of launch services in Europe” was outlined in the country’s new […] The post Germany Advocates Competitive Launch Procurement Process appeared first on European Spaceflight.

SRI International announced Oct. 4 it selected the defense technology firm Leidos and startup Scout Space as subcontractors for a space debris-tracking project funded by the U.S. intelligence community.

United Launch Alliance (ULA) is about to fly only its second Atlas V of 2023, as Amazon’s subsidiary Kuiper Systems LLC is finally about to place its first Kuiper demonstration satellites into orbit. This week also features a launch from China, a Falcon 9 Starlink launch, a Virgin Galactic suborbital tourist flight, and one of the final flights for the original Vega small satellite launcher.

The presentation had something of the feel of a Potemkin Village.

China will send new modules to its Tiangong space station in coming years to expand the outpost’s volume and capabilities.

Payloads: Complement of Integrated Protocols for Human Exploration Research on Varying Mission Durations (CIPHER): The sample Collection setup was completed. The CIPHER investigation aims to improve our understanding of physiological and psychological changes in humans on missions that range from weeks to one year in duration. Conducting the same research over missions of different durations …

Booz Allen Hamilton won a seven-year, $630 million contract from the U.S. Space Force for systems engineering and integration of satellite systems

he U.S. Army awarded Comtech Telecommunications a $48.6 million contract to develop a satellite modem that can connect to multiple networks

Axiom Space has selected an unconventional partner to assist in its development of spacesuits that will be worn by the next NASA astronauts to walk on the moon: Prada.

Intuitive Machines’ first lunar lander is complete and ready to ship for a launch next month as executives say they’re cautiously optimistic about the prospects of a successful landing.

A small group of ultra-conservative House Republicans ousted Kevin McCarthy as their party leader today. Eight House Freedom Caucus members joined all Democrats in voting in favor of a motion […]

"Our strategy is being there and being ready to go."

The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency is working on plans for a new, large and reusable launch vehicle as the core of its future space transportation plans.

Military space organizations in New Mexico are funding science, technology, engineering and math education, expanding internship programs and bolstering local and long-distance recruitment efforts.

A $70 million contract the U.S. Space Force awarded to SpaceX for Starlink internet services includes “unique terms and conditions” not included in previous commercial contracts.

Scottish satellite builder and mission management company Alba Orbital announced 2 October that it had begun the process of moving into a new manufacturing facility. Alba Orbital was founded in 2012 with two aims: to maximize the value of PocketQube satellites and to offer an Earth observation data service. To date, the company has launched […] The post Alba Orbital Move into new PocketQube Manufacturing Facility appeared first on European Spaceflight.

A working group of nations signed up to the Artemis Accords aim to increase transparency and safety of civil lunar exploration missions.

Payloads: Actiwatch-Plus: The HRF-1 rack was configured and Actiwatch-plus devices were hooked up for battery charge and data downlink. The Actiwatch-Plus is a waterproof, non-intrusive, sleep-wake activity monitor worn on the wrist of a crewmember and contains a miniature uniaxial accelerometer that produces a signal as the subject moves. The data is stored in non-volatile …

A prototype satellite launched by AST SpaceMobile a year ago is at times one the brightest objects in the night sky, raising new concerns about its impact on astronomy.

Intuitive Machines, Lockheed Martin and Westinghouse Government Services won contracts from the Air Force Research Laboratory to advance technologies for nuclear powered space vehicles.

The Federal Communications Commission issued a fine today for violating space debris requirements. The DISH satellite television company must admit liability and pay $150,000 for not properly disposing of its […]