Commercial
Ruag to supply Firefly Aerospace payload adapters
Satellite and rocket hardware provider Ruag Space signed a contract with Firefly Aerospace to provide payload adapters for its small launch vehicles.
Rocket Lab hits engine production milestone as next Electron launch approaches
Rocket Lab passed a milestone in the production of its Electron rocket as the company gears up for its next launch and continues work on a new launch facility.
Inmarsat buyer Bidco vows to stay local amid regulatory scrutiny
The Connect Bidco consortium told the British government that for at least three years it would keep Inmarsat’s core network operations center and skilled engineering resources in the country once the merger, expected to close late this year, is complete.
U.K. deepens space ties with U.S., announces investments in small satellites, responsive launch
The U.K. will invest $34 million in small satellites, will increase support for the Combined Space Operations Center.
Viasat wins $49 million lawsuit against supplier to Cisco
A company Cisco is poised to buy for $2.6 billion is required to pay damages to Viasat for failing to pay royalties on a decade-old technology it used from the satellite operator.
Spacecom’s Amos-17 launching in August • OneWeb hits satellite testing milestones • Telebras cleared to issue new stock
OneWeb says its first six satellites are all healthy and have each demonstrated live video streaming in 1080 resolution from low Earth orbit.
Op-ed | The omnipresence of space
The breadth of engagement in space continues to increase as new companies are formed to take advantage of the flexibility and affordability of cubesats and smallsats to use space in new ways.
Momentus raises $25.5 million for in-space shuttle
Momentus, an in-space transportation startup, has raised nearly $34 million in funding to date for its Vigoride and Vigoride Extended vehicles to move small satellites from one orbit to another.
FAA to extend comment period again for revised launch licensing rules
The FAA plans to further extend the public comment period for a proposed revision of commercial launch and reentry regulations that’s faced significant industry criticism.
UbiquitiLink raises $12 million for communications satellites
Satellite communications startup UbiquitiLink has raised more than $12 million for its plan to launch a constellation of satellites to extend the reach of terrestrial mobile networks, the Falls Church, Virginia, company announced July 17.
Glass-ceramics company, with eyes on space, raises $12 million
“The closure of this round is really allowing us to accelerate the ability to move into higher levels of production for these tip of the spear type of customers, and those are the space-related defense contractors.”
Enabling true mobility: what does the next 40 years of connectivity hold in store?
I believe that the days are receding rapidly when we considered ourselves a niche and, from the perspective of the wider world, a somewhat invisible industry.
Faulty valve blamed for Crew Dragon test accident
SpaceX said July 15 that the explosion that destroyed a Crew Dragon spacecraft during a ground test in April was likely caused by oxidizer that leaked into the spacecraft’s propulsion system and destroyed a valve, but didn’t give a firm schedule for resuming test flights.
FCC outlines proposed smallsat licensing rules
Under newly proposed rules, smallsat operators will be able to choose a licensing path — for authorization as a domestic operator or for U.S. market access as a foreign operator — for $30,000 instead of the $472,000 fee required today for satellites in non-geosynchronous orbits.
House committee takes skeptical view of ISS commercialization plans
A month after NASA rolled out a strategy to increase commercial use of the International Space Station, some in Congress are skeptical of the effort.
The Aerospace Corporation finds new purpose in space
Kevin Bell with The Aerospace Corporation describes the 59-year-old organization as an “innovation shop that helps invent and maintain essentially the corporate knowledge for the U.S. government.”
