News
Daily coverage of the global space industry with an emphasis on business and political news.
U.S. role in global greenhouse gas constellation still up in the air
The United States is expected to play a supporting role in an international campaign to monitor greenhouse gas emissions from space.
NOAA tracks and analyzes the changing climate
Many different organizations within NOAA monitor climate change with data and imagery captured by ground-based, airborne, maritime and satellite sensors. NOAA officials then gauge the accuracy of the information, analyze it and compare it with historical observations to detect trends.
China acknowledges Long March 5B situation as rocket heads for weekend reentry
China’s foreign ministry on Friday acknowledged the imminent uncontrolled reentry of the Long March 5B as the orbit of the first stage continued to lose altitude.
NASA increases prices for ISS private astronaut missions
NASA has increased the prices it will charge for future private astronaut missions to the International Space Station, saying the new prices reflect the true costs of supporting those missions.
Momentus SPAC merger seeking extension
The blank-check company proposing to merge with in-space transportation company Momentus is going down to the wire in its effort to convince shareholders to give it more time to close the deal.
Defense appropriators ‘disappointed’ with management of Space Force acquisitions
The Space Force has to make more headway in acquisition programs, the chair of the House Appropriations Committee’s defense subcommittee said May 7.
Sierra Nevada Corporation to advertise space spinoff on Saturday Night Live
Sierra Nevada Corporation (SNC) is taking a novel approach to publicizing the spinoff of its space business: buying ads linked to Elon Musk’s appearance on the television show “Saturday Night Live.”
Virgin Orbit schedules next LauncherOne mission for June
Virgin Orbit has scheduled its next LauncherOne mission for June, carrying a mix of defense and commercial cubesats.
Starliner test flight scheduled for July 30
NASA and Boeing have scheduled a second uncrewed test flight of the CST-100 Starliner commercial crew spacecraft for July 30.
Northrop Grumman to supply navigation payloads for DARPA’s Blackjack satellites
DARPA awarded Northrop Grumman a $13.3 million contract to provide positioning, navigation and timing (PNT) payloads for the Blackjack program.
Intelsat and SES on course for mammoth C-band payments
Satellite operators Intelsat and SES say they are on track to meet a key C-band spectrum clearing deadline this year, despite ongoing COVID-19 disruption.
Isar Aerospace wins three-way DLR microlauncher competition
German launch startup Isar Aerospace beat out Rocket Factory Augsburg and HyImpulse Technologies to win a DLR endorsement that clears the way for it to secure 11 million euros from the European Space Agency’s Boost! program.
Space Force tells troops to focus on digital skills
The U.S. Space Force on May 6 released its “Vision for a Digital Service.”
Starship survives test flight
A SpaceX Starship prototype successfully carried out a brief suborbital flight May 5 after four previous vehicles were destroyed during or shortly after landing.
Blue Origin to fly first people on New Shepard in July
Blue Origin announced May 5 that it will fly people on its New Shepard suborbital vehicle for the first time July 20, and will auction off one of the seats on that launch.
KSAT rapidly expands KSATlite small satellite network
KSAT is rapidly installing antennas around the world to keep pace with the dramatic rise in small satellite activity.
