Science

Since OneWeb came back from bankruptcy “we’ve been busy setting up engagements with the U.S. government,” said Dylan Browne. WASHINGTON — OneWeb plans to start offering broadband from space in the Arctic region this fall, a capability the company hopes will attract U.S. military and other national government customers. “Our focus now is Alaska and

WASHINGTON — NASA officials say the agency is still planning to make selections as part of its Human Landing System (HLS) program by the end of next month as it takes into account the reduced funding for the program. The “base period” awards made in April 2020 to teams led by Blue Origin, Dynetics and

TAMPA, Fla. — CEA Space Partners I Corp, a blank check company led by satellite industry veteran Edward Horowitz, plans to raise $250 million in a public stock offering to buy a space business. The special-purpose acquisition company (SPAC), part of a growing trend in the space industry, said it has the backing of private

TAMPA, Fla. — Inaugural satellites for two startups that launched this week on separate rockets aim to disrupt the burgeoning internet-of-things (IoT) market.  Australia-based Myriota has started offering its IoT services in the U.S. and Canada, after Rocket Lab launched March 22 the first operational nanosatellite Myriota has ordered from scratch.  On the same day,

The Space Force is interested in LEO broadband for its fast speeds and low latency. WASHINGTON — The U.S. Space Force last week asked satellite internet companies for updates on the performance and capabilities of their networks. This information is intended to help the government decide how to go about buying broadband services from operators

Credit: boozallen.com From analyzing the terrain on Mars to enhancing communications between satellites and ground communications, artificial intelligence (AI) is playing an increasing important role in space operations and exploration. It is a capability with numerous applications and vast promise for the data-rich and complex environment of space.  For example, many organizations with space operations

WASHINGTON — Small launch vehicle company Launcher has moved across the country to California as it takes its next steps in the development of its rocket. Launcher, which had been based in New York City, is in the process of moving into a 24,000-square-foot building it is leasing in Hawthorne, California, a few blocks from

WASHINGTON — NASA is looking at options to move up the launch of a small lunar orbiter mission, illustrating the challenges the agency faces as it seeks to make greater use of rideshare launch opportunities. The Lunar Trailblazer spacecraft is an orbiter equipped with a spectrometer and thermal mapper to study the distribution of water

SEOUL, South Korea — President Moon Jae-in of South Korea has vowed to launch the nation’s first robotic lunar lander on a domestically developed rocket by 2030. Moon also said feasibility studies are underway for sending a spacecraft to Apophis, an asteroid that will pass near Earth in 2029.  These space exploration goals were unveiled,

TAMPA, Fla. — Japanese satellite operator Sky Perfect JSAT has ordered a spacecraft from Airbus for the first time, choosing the European aerospace giant to build Superbird-9 for a launch in 2024. Superbird-9 will be based on Airbus’ reconfigurable payload platform OneSat, which can steer and reassign beams for different customers and services. JSAT said the geostationary (GEO) satellite will replace a key broadcasting mission,

WASHINGTON — A $1.6 billion Space Based Infrared System satellite arrived last week at Canaveral Space Force Station, Florida. The satellite, made by Lockheed Martin, is scheduled to launch May 17 on a United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket, the U.S. Space Force announced March 24. The geosynchronous SBIRS GEO-5 is the fifth satellite of

VALLETTA, Malta — The European Space Agency awarded UK-based launch startups Orbex and Skyrora a combined €10.45 million ($12.35 million) to support development of competing microlaunchers. The two support contracts announced March 24 were awarded under Boost!, an ESA program that aims to foster new commercial space transportation services. The agency adopted Boost! during Space19+,

“It validates the fact that the industry is maturing, and that it’s not a bunch of crazy rocket scientists out in the field blowing stuff up.” SAN FRANCISCO — Long-term space investors aren’t surprised by the recent surge of space industry mergers and acquisitions. In fact, they say, it’s right on time. Dylan Taylor, Voyager

SAN FRANCISCO – Italian ground segment provider Leaf Space announced plans March 24 to establish a U.S. office to serve government and commercial customers. “There is a clear appetite among U.S. satellite and launch vehicle operators to simplify, outsource and maximize the value from ground services and we believe that need is only going to

WASHINGTON — A small helicopter that hitched a ride on NASA’s Perseverance rover will attempt its first flight on Mars in early April, demonstrating technology that could be used on future missions. At a March 23 briefing, NASA officials discussed plans to perform the first flights of Ingenuity, a 1.8-kilogram helicopter currently attached to the

TAMPA, Fla. — Global Eagle Entertainment, a provider of media services and satellite Wi-Fi to aircraft, boats and remote locations, has exited Chapter 11 bankruptcy. Around half a dozen of the satellite communication provider’s lenders took control of the company March 23, shedding about $488 million of its debt in the process. The new owners

WASHINGTON — Canadian space technology company MDA Ltd. filed paperwork March 22 for an initial public offering of stock, raising funding to pay down its debt and invest in new projects. In a filing with Canadian securities regulators, MDA announced its intent to raise $500 million Canadian ($397 million U.S.) in an IPO, valuing the

WASHINGTON — Rocket Lab launched six smallsats for a variety of commercial and government customers March 22 on a mission also intended to demonstrate the performance of its own smallsat bus. The company’s Electron rocket lifted off from Launch Complex 1 at Mahia Peninsula, New Zealand, at 6:30 p.m. Eastern. The rocket deployed its kick

The Pentagon’s renewed focus on space and the standup of the U.S. Space Force are boosting demand for technologies being developed by commercial companies. The Air Force technology accelerator known as AFWERX is responding by creating new opportunities for space entrepreneurs. “We see space as a rapidly growing sector,” said Jason Rathje, who leads the

WASHINGTON — SpaceX has agreed to maneuver any of its Starlink satellites that come close to the International Space Station or other NASA spacecraft in low Earth orbit as part of an agreement between the agency and the company. NASA announced March 18 it had signed a Space Act Agreement with SpaceX regarding coordination of

WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden’s nomination of former senator Bill Nelson as the next administrator of NASA has won widespread support from both members of Congress and the broader space community. The White House announced March 19 its formal intent to nominate Nelson, a Democrat who served three terms in the Senate from Florida, as

TAMPA, Fla. — The UK Space Agency will partly fund the development of an in-orbit telemetry relay system called InRange, which will use British satellite operator Inmarsat’s L-band constellation to guide rocket launches. Inmarsat says that InRange will reduce launch providers’ dependence on ground-based systems for tracking rockets in flight, potentially saving them money on

Liftoff of GK Launch Services first launch without a Russian government satellite onboard postponed to March 22 This story was updated March 20 at 4:30 p.m. EDT to add a Roscosmos statement about the new March 22 launch date for the mission. SEOUL, South Korea — The launch of a Soyuz-2.1a rocket carrying a South

WASHINGTON — A polar-orbiting weather satellite decommissioned nearly eight years ago has broken up, adding to the growing debris population in a key orbit. The Space Force’s 18th Space Control Squadron said March 18 it hard confirmed the NOAA-17 satellite broke up March 10. The squadron said it was tracking 16 pieces of debris associated

The GAO probe was requested last month by Rep. Doug Lamborn (R-Colo.). WASHINGTON — The U.S. Government Accountability Office confirmed on March 19 that it will review the Air Force’s methodology and scoring that led to the decision to move U.S. Space Command headquarters  from Colorado to Alabama. The GAO probe was requested last month

The question of what it means to behave responsibly in space has taken on increasing urgency following a series of Russian anti-satellite weapon tests. WASHINGTON — As more satellites are launched into space, there is a growing conversation about the need to keep the cosmos safe and establish rules of the road for orbital activities.

TAMPA, Fla. — The frenzy of activity swirling around SPACs is pushing space into a new era of risk-taking, according to two satellite industry veterans.  The past decade’s flow of private capital into megaconstellations and launch startups was a sedate “tea party” in comparison to what’s happening now, Iridium Communications CEO Matt Desch told SpaceNews

WASHINGTON — The White House plans to nominate Bill Nelson to be the next administrator of NASA, putting the former senator in charge of the agency he once advocated for on Capitol Hill. According to several sources, the administration is expected to formally announce the nomination as soon as March 19. An announcement was reportedly

SAN FRANCISCO – Evona, a U.K. space industry recruiting startup, is preparing to establish a U.S. office as part of a campaign to help satisfy global demand for space sector employees. Bristol-based Evona has been growing rapidly since it was founded in 2018 to recruit workers for entrepreneurial space companies. Evona’s year-over-year revenue jumped more

WASHINGTON — NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope is making continued progress for a launch in October as engineers close out a series of technical issues with the spacecraft but deal with one new problem. In a March 16 presentation during a meeting of NASA’s Astrophysics Advisory Committee, Eric Smith, JWST program scientist, said engineers had