News
Daily coverage of the global space industry with an emphasis on business and political news.
FAA releases draft environmental report on SpaceX Starship orbital launches
A draft environmental assessment released by the Federal Aviation Administration suggests that SpaceX will be able to proceed with orbital Starship launches from Texas, but with a number of mitigations required.
Space community ponders right-of-way rules for space traffic
The growing number of satellites in orbit is leading to calls to develop formal “right of way” rules, although there is no consensus on what those rules should be and how they should be established.
Space Force grappling with aging infrastructure used to operate satellites
The ground stations and tracking antennas the U.S. military relies on to communicate with its satellites — known as the Satellite Control Network, or SCN — are decades old and short of the capacity needed to keep up with the projected growth in space activities.
Crew Dragon splashes down to conclude Inspiration4 mission
SpaceX’s first private crewed mission ended with the splashdown of the Crew Dragon spacecraft off the Florida coast Sept. 18.
SpaceX to launch Turksat 6A
Turksat will launch its first domestically built communications satellite on a SpaceX Falcon 9, the Turkish government announced Sept. 17.
Inspiration4 mission to conclude with Sept. 18 splashdown
SpaceX’s first private Crew Dragon mission is set to end with a splashdown off the Florida coast Sept. 18, three days after liftoff from the Kennedy Space Center.
CesiumAstro plots in-house satellite production ramp-up after debut launch
CesiumAstro expects to be building satellites mostly by itself in two years to house the active phased arrays it has been developing, aiming to shift the paradigm for electronically steered antennas with commercial-like industrialization processes that lower costs and speed up production.
Space Force to consider space sustainability in any future conflict
The U.S. military will take space sustainability factors into account should it have to respond to an attack on its satellites, a Space Force official said Sept. 16.
U.S. generals planning for a space war they see as all but inevitable
The Pentagon has declared space is a warfighting domain. Generals and executives in the space industry are preparing to defend the ultimate high ground.
Shenzhou-12 astronauts return to Earth after 3-month space station mission
Three Chinese astronauts safely returned to Earth Sept. 17 after completing the first crewed mission aboard the Tianhe space station module.
SpaceX emphasizes coordination with other satellite operators
Two years after the close approach of a Starlink satellite with a European Space Agency satellite alarmed some in the space industry, SpaceX says it’s working closely with a wide range of satellite operators to ensure safe space operations.
L3Harris opens manufacturing facility in Indiana for DoD missile-defense satellites
L3Harris Technologies on Sept. 16 opened a classified facility in Fort Wayne, Indiana, where the company will assemble and test satellites for U.S. missile-defense programs.
Satellite operators need more accurate SSA data
Space situational awareness data used by satellite operators isn’t accurate enough to support the decisions they need to make on whether and how to maneuver their spacecraft to avoid potential collisions.
OneWeb signs distribution deal with Peraton, broadens reach into military market
Under a new agreement with U.S. defense contractor Peraton, OneWeb’s satellite communications services will be more widely available to military users in hard-to-reach areas, including ships at sea.
ABL Space Systems to launch NASA technology demonstration mission
Small launch vehicle developer ABL Space Systems has won a contract to launch a NASA technology demonstration spacecraft in 2023.
ESA to be anchor customer on commercial lunar satellite
The European Space Agency has signed a contract with Surrey Satellite Technology Ltd. (SSTL) to be the anchor customer on a commercial lunar communications satellite that company is developing.
