Viasat Wins $14 Million Contract to Provide In-Flight Satcom for Navy Executive Aircraft
Viasat has been awarded a $14 million contract to provide in‑flight satellite communications for the U.S. Navy’s C‑37 executive transport aircraft. The two‑year sole‑source agreement, issued by the Space Systems Command Commercial Space Office, will equip the Gulfstream‑based jets with Viasat’s ArcLight broadband system. The service will enable senior Navy leaders to maintain secure voice, video and data connectivity while airborne. Viasat previously secured the same role in 2015, reinforcing its position as the sole provider for this capability.
Astronauts and Space Leaders to Appear at the 2026 International Space Development Conference
The National Space Society will host the 44th International Space Development Conference (ISDC) in McLean, Virginia, from June 4‑7, 2026. The agenda features high‑profile NASA astronauts and industry leaders, including former shuttle commander Michael López‑Alegria, planetary scientist Lindy Elkins‑Tanton of the...
Space RCO Adopts New Approach to Fielding Cloud-Based, Consolidated C2 System
The Space Rapid Capabilities Office has pivoted to an incremental strategy for migrating both new and legacy orbital‑warfare systems onto the cloud‑based Rapid Resilient Command and Control (R2C2) platform. The revised plan shortens delivery cycles to two weeks, enlists Space...
Space Force Surveying Industry on Collaboration With Canada on Allied Space Domain Awareness C2
The U.S. Space Force’s Space Systems Command has issued a solicitation for industry input, including Canadian firms, on a joint command‑and‑control (C2) system for allied space domain awareness (SDA). A letter of offer and acceptance with Canada’s Department of National...
Exciting (But Crowded) Opportunities
In this episode, Tyler Crowe, Matt Frankel, and Lou Whiteman discuss how once‑sparse industries are becoming crowded with startups and IPOs, focusing on the space sector and the emerging nuclear power market. They highlight the rapid influx of launch companies,...
SpaceX Starbase Will Double in Size
SpaceX is expanding its Boca Chica Starbase to double its current footprint, creating a massive integrated facility for Starship and Super Heavy production. The enlarged site will accommodate the assembly of hundreds, potentially thousands, of Starships and the manufacturing of...
The WMO OSCAR Database: How the World Tracks Its Weather-Watching Machines
The World Meteorological Organization’s Observing Systems Capability Analysis and Review (OSCAR) database now serves as the definitive inventory linking quantitative weather‑and‑climate observation requirements to the actual capabilities of satellites and surface networks. Version 3.0, released in early 2026, adds advanced gap‑analysis tools...
Equatys D2D Venture Targets Up to 2,800-Satellite Constellation
Viasat and Space42 detailed their Equitays direct‑to‑device venture, outlining a potential constellation of up to 2,800 satellites spread across 60 orbital planes and three altitude layers. The network will operate in globally harmonized L‑ and S‑band mobile satellite service spectrum,...
Insights Into Spallation Mechanisms of Thermal Protection System Materials From Mass Spectrometry and HyMETS Testing
NASA researchers used the Hypersonic Materials Environmental Test System (HyMETS) and mass spectrometry to map how gases evolve inside thermal protection system (TPS) materials under high‑enthalpy conditions. The study identified an early release of absorbed water that creates localized stress...
The Rubin Observatory's LSST Will Detect Imminent Impactors Before They Crash Into Earth
The Vera Rubin Observatory’s Legacy Survey of Space and Time (LSST) is poised to detect one to two meter‑scale near‑Earth objects each year, roughly doubling the current discovery rate for imminent impactors. Simulations of 343 historic fireballs show a median detection...
March 2026 Satellite Puzzler
NASA’s Earth Observatory has launched its March 2026 Satellite Puzzler, a monthly challenge that presents a cryptic satellite image for the public to identify. The image shows green terrain interspersed with brown, uneven oval formations and invites participants to pinpoint...
Computational Modeling of Failure at the Fabric Weave Level in Reentry Parachute Energy Modulators
NASA researchers developed a high‑fidelity computational model of re‑entry parachute energy modulators (EM) at the fabric‑weave level using LS‑DYNA. The model represents each Kevlar and nylon thread as solid elements and includes a Python script that replicates the unit stitch...
Leicester Space Nuclear Firm Lands Blue Origin Partnership For Deep Space Power
Perpetual Atomics, a University of Leicester spin‑out, has signed a memorandum of understanding with Blue Origin to explore americium‑241 radioisotope power systems for space missions. The partnership aims to develop nuclear generators that can supply continuous electricity where solar panels...
EoPortal: The World’s Most Complete Reference for Earth Observation Satellite Missions
ESA’s eoPortal has become the world’s most comprehensive free reference for Earth‑observation satellite missions, hosting detailed articles on more than 600 missions from 1959 to present. Built on Dr. Herbert Kramer’s three‑decade research, the portal now benefits from a dedicated...
Expanding the Human Factors Toolbox: An Approach to Balancing Crew and Mission Design Parameters
NASA’s Human Factors team has created a quantitative methodology to guide crew‑size decisions for future crewed Mars missions. The approach adapts Department of Defense manpower models and introduces four human‑performance models that evaluate EVA support, robotic arm operation, transit workload,...
SpaceX Now Targeting Early April for Next Starship/Superheavy Test Flight
SpaceX announced on March 7 that it is targeting early April for the 12th Starship/Superheavy orbital test flight. Booster 19, the first Block 3 Superheavy prototype, has been rolled to Pad 2 and is undergoing fueling‑system checks, ambient pressure tests, and static‑fire rehearsals with...
Precision in Orbit: Heraeus Catalysts Safeguard Satellite Control
Heraeus Precious Metals supplies the iridium‑based H‑KC12GA catalyst for hydrazine thrusters that provide precise orbit control on satellites. The catalyst enables rapid, repeatable hydrazine decomposition and survives thousands of firings and extreme temperatures. NASA JPL’s 57‑day SMAP test recorded only...
COPV Damage Tolerance Life Demonstration Guidelines
NASA's NESC released new guidelines for damage‑tolerance life demonstration of composite overwrapped pressure vessels (COPVs). The guidance aligns with AIAA S‑081 and NASA‑STD‑5019, applying a four‑times life factor to ensure detectable cracks remain subcritical throughout service. It outlines procedures for...
Celebrating NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter’s 20th Anniversary: Crater Near Sirenum Fossae
NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter celebrated its 20th anniversary by releasing a high‑resolution image of a relatively fresh impact crater near Sirenum Fossae. The crater, captured on June 3 2015, displays a sharp rim, well‑preserved ejecta and steep gullied walls that may host...
Impulse Space Expands Colorado Presence
Impulse Space has opened a 20,000‑square‑foot manufacturing facility near Boulder, Colorado, dedicated to developing guidance, navigation and control (GNC) systems and precision‑machined components for its Mira and Helios transfer vehicles. The plant will scale in‑house production of valves, pumps, and...
NASA Space Probe Expected to Reenter the Atmosphere with a Chance of Raining Debris
NASA’s Van Allen Probe A re‑entered Earth’s atmosphere on March 11, 2026, burning up over the Pacific Ocean south of Mexico. The 600‑kilogram spacecraft, launched in 2012 to study the planet’s radiation belts, came down months earlier than the projected 2034 timeline due...
A Satellite Crashes Home a Bit Too Soon
NASA’s Van Allen Probe A re‑entered Earth’s atmosphere on March 10, 2026, ending a 14‑year mission that was originally slated to last until 2034. Intensified solar activity during Solar Cycle 25 heated and expanded the upper atmosphere, increasing drag and accelerating the satellite’s...
OIG Report: NASA Management Of Human Landing System Contracts
The NASA Office of Inspector General found that the agency’s acquisition strategy kept human landing system (HLS) cost growth modest—SpaceX contracts rose 6 percent and Blue Origin’s less than 1 percent. Both firms, however, are lagging behind schedule, with SpaceX’s...
GPS Attacks Near Iran Are Wreaking Havoc on Delivery and Mapping Apps
Electronic warfare near Iran is jamming and spoofing GPS signals, causing delivery and navigation apps to misplace drivers and inflate travel times. The interference stems from low‑cost jammers and sophisticated spoofers that either drown out satellite signals or broadcast false...
Commercial Space Law Takes Center Stage at DC Moot Court
The American Space Law Foundation will host its inaugural moot court in Washington, D.C., on March 20‑21, where law students will argue a realistic commercial space law dispute. The hypothetical case involves Interra LLC, a fictional megaconstellation operator, challenging an...
High-Frequency EO Constellations Target Southeast Asia’s “Gray-Zone” Maritime Security Gap
A new market analysis released on March 10, 2026 identifies Southeast Asia as the next growth engine for Earth Observation and Synthetic Aperture Radar constellations, driven by rising territorial disputes and illegal maritime activity. Traditional AIS‑based maritime domain awareness is being undermined...
SSC Space Inaugurates Next-Generation Optical Ground Station in Santiago, Chile
SSC Space announced that its new Optical Ground Station (OGS) in Santiago, Chile, is now operational and integrated into the NODES network. The Safran‑built facility delivers up to 10 Gbit/s data rates, a tenfold increase over typical RF links, and operates...
China’s First Moon Astronauts Could Land at This Surprising Site
A new Nature Astronomy paper identifies the equatorial Rimae Bode region as a prime candidate for China’s first crewed lunar landing, targeting a 2030 timeline. The study highlights the area’s flat terrain, near‑constant sunlight, and direct line‑of‑sight to Earth, reducing...
SpaceX’s Launch Cadence Rivals Commuter Rail, Fueling Trillion‑dollar IPO
*Stand clear of the closing doors please* SpaceX’s launch schedule is looking more like a commuter railway than a rocket company. They've already completed 5 launches in March, with 7 more targeted this month. ...
World’s First Moon Factory Built in Six Weeks
🌕@GRU_Space built the world's first Moon factory in just 6 weeks—patent-pending hardware turning lunar dirt into bricks and inflates habitats on the Moon. It's landing as early as next year to lay the foundation for lunar hotels and base infra. Congrats on...
Lux Aeterna Raises $10 Million Ahead of 2027 Reusable Satellite Demo
Lux Aeterna, a Denver startup founded by former SpaceX engineer Brian Taylor, announced a $10 million seed round led by Konvoy, bringing its total capital to $14 million. The funding will support development of Delphi‑1, a 200 kg reusable satellite with a 30 kg...
Van Allen Probe A Assigned New Space Force Orbit
New Space Force orbit for Van Allen Probe A , epoch 1440 UTC [6 hours ago], 113 km perigee, 952 km apogee. No updated reentry estimate
KVH Secures $45M Starlink Deal, Boosts 2026 Outlook
Maritime satcom provider #KVHIndustries: 2025 was our turnaround year; new 18-mo, $45M capacity deal w/ @Starlink is 3X the size of our earlier one; 2026 revenue to climb 24%; adj EBITDA 66%. LEO competition's increasing - great news. @EutelsatGroup.https://t.co/Zxf08GDZmr...
'The Future of the Space Economy': Colorado Startup Lux Aeterna Raises $10 Million to Develop Reusable Satellites
Colorado startup Lux Aeterna announced a $10 million seed round to accelerate its fully reusable satellite program. The funding, led by Konvoy, brings total capital to $14 million and will support the 2027 test flight of its Delphi prototype on a SpaceX...
FSD and Starlink Could Spark US Suburban Reversal
@elonmusk believes FSD + Starlink may reverse urbanization in America. This is a plausible possibility... The US has <50 people per sq km.
NASA, SpaceX Clash over Starship’s Manual‑control Landing Requirement
NASA and SpaceX fought over this issue with Dragon a decade ago. Now, Starship. “There is disagreement between NASA and SpaceX on whether the provider’s current proposed approach for landing meets the intent of the Agency’s manual control requirement." https://t.co/5QEjeehemw
Lux Aeterna Closes $10M Seed to Build Reusable Sats
Lux Aeterna, a Colorado‑based startup founded by former Starlink engineer Brian Taylor, closed a $10 million seed round led by Konvoy Ventures to develop its reusable satellite platform Delphi. The 200‑kg demo satellite, built with COTS parts and a NASA‑partnered heat...
NASA Decommissions Van Allen Probes After Seven Years
NASA's Van Allen Probes A and B were two half-ton spacecraft launched in Aug 2012 to elliptical 600 x 30000 km orbits to study the radiation belts. In 2019 their perigees were lowered to 200 km so...
Watch Laura Delgado Lopez's Space Security Webinar on YouTube
If you're trying to listen to Laura Delgado Lopez's webinar on Space Security in Latin America and couldn't get a link from the registration website, here's the YouTube link: https://t.co/umexorvqwx
WISPA Raises Interference Concerns About SpaceX's Mega Constellation
SpaceX has filed an FCC application for a mega‑constellation of up to one million low‑Earth‑orbit satellites that would host space‑based AI data centers. The system would operate in the 18.8‑19.3 GHz (space‑to‑Earth) and 28.6‑29.1 GHz (Earth‑to‑space) bands, relying on narrow‑beam optical links....
Amazon Leo Urges FCC to Block SpaceX Orbital Data Centers
Amazon Leo has urged the FCC to deny SpaceX's plan to build orbital data centers comprising up to 1 million satellites, arguing that it's 'wholly unrealistic' and would give SpaceX 'near-total control' of launch insertion orbits. @Light_Reading https://t.co/FjxmufLF9g
Perseverance Achieves 90% Autonomous Travel After 1,312 Sols
Perseverance had completed about 90 percent of its travels autonomously, as of its 1,312th Martian day since landing https://t.co/EpREqOS43q #AI
Starliner and Artemis: Commercial Label Vs. Commercial Discipline
NASA classified Boeing's 2024 Starliner crewed test flight as a Type A mishap, pinpointing decision‑making and leadership failures rather than hardware flaws. The investigation revealed a pattern of closing anomalies without full root‑cause analysis, exposing a gap between the program’s commercial...
Tight Timeline Limits Science Payloads for Upcoming Test
A great question. Isaacman has talked about maximizing science and other exploration goals wherever possible. This will be an interesting test case. Unfortunately ~18 months between now and a potential launch date does not leave much time for scientific payloads.
Canadian PM Pushes Telesat Lightspeed on Middle‑powers Tour
Canadian PM Carney pitches @Telesat Lightspeed participation to Australia; Norway/Nordics and UK are next. Can he make the sale on his rally-the-middle-powers tour? @defis_eu @NATO #MitsubishiElectric @LMSpace @AirbusSpace. https://t.co/vBaxNc6f3k https://t.co/iEkZbKTFfa
SpaceX Is 'About 4 Weeks' Away From Launching Its Most Powerful Starship yet, Elon Musk Says
SpaceX announced that its upgraded Starship V3 is slated for a test flight in early April, roughly four weeks away. The version features taller Super Heavy and upper stages powered by the new Raptor 3 engine, delivering higher thrust and efficiency....
Artemis II No More Wet Dress Rehearsals Post‑FRR
Re Thursday's Artemis II update bfg, which is after the Flight Readiness Review (FRR), I asked if that meant there won't be another Wet Dress Rehearsal. They said that's correct, no more WDRs are planned, but after the FRR will...
Landspace Tests 220-Ton Methane Engine for Future Heavy-Lift Launchers
Chinese launch startup Landspace announced a successful long‑duration hot‑fire test of its BF methane‑liquid oxygen engine, which generates roughly 220 metric tons of thrust. The full‑flow staged combustion (FFSC) cycle engine is intended as the core propulsion unit for the company’s...
ESA Calls on European Startups to Design Spaceplane
The European Space Agency (ESA) has issued a call for proposals from European small‑ and medium‑sized enterprises to develop a fully reusable spaceplane‑based launch system. The agency seeks at least two distinct concepts and encourages the integration of novel propulsion...
What Is the UCS Satellite Database, and Why Is It Important?
The Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS) Satellite Database is a publicly available catalog of 7,560 active Earth‑orbiting satellites, with data current through May 1 2023. It uniquely combines 28 technical and operational fields—including ownership, purpose, and orbital parameters—allowing users to sort satellites...