Blue Origin Unveils 5,400‑satellite TeraWave Communications Network
Two months after launching New Glenn for the second time, @blueorigin has unveiled its latest project. TeraWave is a 5,408-bird, multi-orbit communications constellation designed specifically to serve enterprise and government customers. https://t.co/Whds6kmLE0
Starfish Wins SDA Deorbit-As-A-Service Contract
Starfish Space secured a $52.5 million contract from the U.S. Space Force to provide deorbit‑as‑a‑service for the SDA’s Proliferated Warfighter Space Architecture (PWSA) constellation. The award marks the first operational, paid mission for end‑of‑life satellite disposal, moving beyond earlier demonstration studies....
Loft Orbital Wins €50M Contract to Build French SAR Sat
Loft Orbital has secured a €50 million contract from the French Ministry of Defence to deliver the nation’s first sovereign synthetic‑aperture radar (SAR) satellite under the DESIR programme. The satellite will be built on Loft’s Longbow platform, with a payload co‑designed...
Senators Introduce Bills on Space Workforce, Regulations
Senators introduced two bipartisan bills—the NASA Talent Exchange Program Act and the Satellite and Telecommunications (SAT) Streamlining Act—to strengthen the U.S. space sector. The Talent Exchange would allow NASA and commercial employees to rotate between agency and industry for up...
Vast Delays Haven-1 Launch to 2027
Vast announced that its single‑module commercial space station, Haven‑1, will not launch until no earlier than Q1 2027, pushing back the original 2026 target. The company has begun Phase‑1 integration, installing thermal control and life‑support systems, with subsequent phases adding avionics...
Canada Rocket Secures $6.2M Seed to Build Indigenous Launchers
Canada Rocket Company emerged from stealth last week with the announcement of a $6.2M CDN ($4.5M) seed funding round—and with plans to create sovereign light- and medium-lift launch capabilities for the Great White North. https://t.co/jNyfibjct6
Samara Closes $10M Seed Round
San Francisco‑based Samara Aerospace announced a $10 million seed round led by Balerion Space Ventures, with participation from Illinois Ventures, MFV Partners and Access Venture Partners. The company’s Hummingbird satellite replaces traditional reaction wheels with solar‑panel hinges, promising up to 1,000‑times...
Voyager Details Its Plans for In-Space Manufacturing
Voyager Technologies has secured a U.S. patent for a microgravity process that grows ultra‑large optical crystals, a key component of next‑generation communications and computing hardware. The company will launch a demonstration to the International Space Station this spring, aiming to...
CesiumAstro Secures $200M Government Financing
CesiumAstro secured $200 million in government financing, split between a $185 million EXIM‑authorized debt facility and a $15 million revolving‑credit line from JPMorgan. The funding underpins the company’s plan to expand its Texas manufacturing footprint, including a 270,000‑sq‑ft facility slated to start operations...
ESA Calls for EO Companies to Join the Insurance Game
The European Space Agency (ESA) and Liberty Mutual Reinsurance have launched a three‑year partnership to develop parametric insurance products using satellite Earth observation data. The collaboration will begin with a February workshop where LMRe outlines forestry‑related climate risks and invites...
AuleSpace Secures $2M to Extend GEO Satellite Lifespans
.@AuleSpace announced the closing of $2M in pre-seed funding to develop spacecraft that will be able to grapple onto existing sats in GEO (no preassembly required) and provide up to six years of extra propulsion. https://t.co/5Qw44UmT5A
Atomic-6 Space Armor to Fly in October With Portal
Atomic-6’s Space Armor hexagonal tile system will debut on SpaceX’s Transporter‑18 rideshare mission in October, attached to Portal Space Systems’ Starburst‑1 satellite. The lightweight “Light” tiles are designed to shield against micrometeoroids and debris up to 3 mm, while a larger...
Hydrosat Closes $60M Series B to Grow Its Constellation
Hydrosat announced a $60 million Series B financing round led by Hartree Partners, Subutai Capital Partners, and Space4Earth, with participation from several other investors. The capital will fund a new generation of higher‑resolution thermal‑imaging satellites slated for launch next year, expanding the...
SkyFi Secures $12.7M Series A
Austin‑based SkyFi announced a $12.7 million Series A round co‑led by Buoyant Ventures and IronGate Capital Advisors, with participation from existing and new investors. The capital will enable SkyFi to transition from a pure Earth‑observation data provider to a platform delivering actionable...
ISRO's PSLV Suffers Anomaly, 16 Satellites at Risk
.@isro's Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) suffered an anomaly six minutes after launch Sunday, falling into a tumble at the end of the third stage engine burn. Many speculated that all 16 satellites on board had been lost. https://t.co/H39Q4O6g0H
Op-Ed: Mars Sample Return May Be Canceled, But the Legal Questions It Leaves Behind Continue
NASA’s Mars Sample Return mission has been cancelled, leaving ten sealed sample tubes on the Martian surface. Under Article VIII of the 1967 Outer Space Treaty, the United States retains jurisdiction and control over those objects, even without a retrieval...
Diffraqtion Raises $4.2M to Accelerate Space Imaging
Diffraqtion is looking to see farther in space, and to understand its environment faster. The MA-based startup emerged from stealth today with a $4.2M pre-seed round. https://t.co/FCFSjdhUjX
Exclusive: Orbital Paradigm Emerges as the Lone Survivor of Failed PSLV Launch
India’s PSLV suffered a catastrophic anomaly six minutes after liftoff, leaving 16 satellites stranded. Orbital Paradigm’s Kestrel Initial Demonstrator (KID) managed to separate around 18 minutes into flight, endure up to 28 g, and transmit roughly 190 seconds of re‑entry telemetry...
Quantum Imaging Startup Diffraqtion Emerges From Stealth
Quantum imaging startup Diffraqtion announced its emergence from stealth with a $4.2 million pre‑seed round led by QDNL Participations and backed by DARPA’s $1.5 million SBIR contract. The company is developing quantum‑enhanced cameras that fuse AI to deliver high‑resolution space imagery at...
GRU Space Opens Bookings for Planned Lunar Hotel
GRU Space, a Y Combinator‑backed startup, opened bookings for its planned lunar hotel, requiring a $1 million deposit to reserve a spot. The company’s roadmap includes three lunar missions, with an inflatable habitat test in 2029 and a full‑scale hotel launch...
Portuguese Firm Buys Two EO Sats for $18M From Satellogic
Satellogic will deliver two NewSat Mark V 50 cm Earth‑observation satellites to Portugal’s CEiiA for $18 million, with hand‑over scheduled for Q2 2026. The payloads are built with 85% European components, underscoring the EU’s drive for space sovereignty. These satellites will become part of...
Eric Schmidt's Foundation Launches New Observatory System
Former Google CEO Eric Schmidt announced late Wednesday that @schmidtsciences, one of his philanthropies, would build the Eric and Wendy Schmidt Observatory System. https://t.co/MJJA9jqN9O
Viasat’s HaloNet: Eliminating Launch Telemetry Blackouts
Viasat's HaloNet launch telemetry data relay service uses its global L‑band geostationary network to provide uninterrupted, real‑time telemetry from lift‑off through early orbit. By routing data through multiple satellites and employing beam‑hopping resource management, the system eliminates traditional line‑of‑sight blackouts...
Martian Dust Samples May Never Leave the Red Planet
The dozens of tubes of Martian dust collected so far by the Perseverance rover are waiting for a ride that may never come. https://t.co/Hy6zjRf29d
Op-Ed: Golden Dome Will Stand or Fall on Its Sensors. Here’s How to Make Them Endure
The op‑ed warns that the U.S. Golden Dome missile‑defense concept hinges on a robust sensor network. Emerging threats—hypersonic glide vehicles, drone swarms, sophisticated decoys, and cyber‑spoofed signals—target the sensor layer as its weakest link. The authors argue that only a...
United Semiconductors, Aegis Aerospace Partner on In-Space Manufacturing Platform
United Semiconductors and Aegis Aerospace announced a joint effort to launch an in‑space manufacturing platform for semiconductor materials. The partnership will move United's ISS‑tested processes onto Aegis' Advanced Materials Manufacturing Platform, with a demonstration slated for the ISS by late...
NASA Picks Habitable World-Finders
NASA announced seven contracts to advance key technologies for the upcoming Habitable Worlds Observatory, a flagship mission aimed at directly imaging nearby potentially habitable exoplanets. The awardees—Astroscale US, BAE Systems, Busek, L3Harris Technologies, Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, and Zecoat—will develop...
2025 Orbital Launch Attempts by Country
In 2025, the world saw 329 orbital launch attempts, with 321 reaching orbit or near‑orbit. The United States led with 181 attempts and 179 successes, driven largely by SpaceX’s 170 launches, nearly double China’s total. Europe rebounded, logging eight attempts...
L3Harris Sells Majority of Propulsion Business to AEI for $845M
L3Harris Technologies is divesting a 60% stake in its propulsion unit to AE Industrial Partners for $845 million, valuing the business at roughly $1.4 billion. The transaction excludes the RS‑25 engine program, which L3Harris will retain. Under AEI’s majority ownership the unit...
