From Kyiv to Taipei: Unraveling the impact of space on military power and Taiwan’s daunting prospects
The Space Rapid Capabilities Office co-sponsored this year’s Hyperspace Challenge to get more insight into commercial technologies that could enable dynamic space operations, such as satellite propulsion.
Investors grant Astra extension on loan
BERLIN — Investors in launch vehicle and spacecraft propulsion company Astra Space have given the company a four-day extension on a loan to provide the company more time to line up a longer-term funding deal.
Jupiter-3 deploys solar arrays and antennas in orbit
SAN FRANCISCO – EchoStar’s Jupiter-3, the world’s [heaviest commercial communications satellite](https://spacenews.com/hughes-jupiter-3-preps-for-launch/), is performing as expected after deploying solar arrays and antennas in geostationary orbit.
MDA gets $131 million from mystery NGSO constellation customer
TAMPA, Fla. — An undisclosed customer is paying MDA 180 million Canadian dollars ($131 million) to start engineering a non-geostationary constellation of 36 satellites.
NASA Mars smallsat mission to be on first New Glenn launch
WASHINGTON — NASA expects that a Mars smallsat mission will be on the first launch of Blue Origin’s New Glenn launch vehicle within a year, although with some risk about whether the rocket will be ready in time.
NASA still studying Orion heat shield erosion from Artemis 1
BERLIN — A year after the launch of the Artemis 1 mission, NASA is continuing to study the performance of the heat shield on the Orion spacecraft, a review that may take several more months to complete.
Op-ed | Space Force launch strategy a step in the right direction
The Space Force’s embrace of competition within the commercial launch market has been a slow and in many ways painful process.
Sierra Space lays off 165 in workforce realignment
WASHINGTON — Sierra Space laid off 165 employees who had been working on its Dream Chaser vehicle as part of what the company described as efforts to realign its workforce to other projects.
Space Force eyes a future of speed and agility in orbit
The Space Rapid Capabilities Office co-sponsored this year’s Hyperspace Challenge to get more insight into commercial technologies that could enable dynamic space operations, such as satellite propulsion.
Starliner “on track” for April crewed test flight
WASHINGTON — NASA says the first crewed launch of Boeing’s CST-100 Starliner vehicle remains on schedule for the middle of April as the company completes work to resolve the latest technical problems with the vehicle.
Starship cleared for Nov. 18 launch
BREMEN, Germany — China launched the first of a new series of Haiyang ocean observation satellites late Wednesday.
Starship lunar lander missions to require nearly 20 launches, NASA says
BERLIN — As SpaceX prepares for its next Starship test flight, a NASA official said that the use of that vehicle for Artemis lunar landings will require “in the high teens” of launches, a much higher number than what the company’s leadership has previously claimed.
Starship/Super Heavy lifts off on second flight
BERLIN — SpaceX’s Starship vehicle reached space on its second integrated test flight Nov. 18 but broke apart late in its ascent after successfully demonstrating the performance of its booster and a new stage separation technique.
Starship’s second test flight: where to watch
You can watch the official SpaceX live stream via the social media platform X or watch the Spaceflight Now and NASAspaceflight.com webcasts via the YouTube feeds
ULA gearing up for first Vulcan launch
BERLIN — All the major components for the first Vulcan Centaur rocket are now at the launch site as United Launch Alliance prepares for a launch in late December.
U.S. delegation stokes optimism on wireless and satellite goals at WRC-23
Jessica Rosenworcel, chair of the FCC, said a key goal of the U.S. delegation is to “foster continued growth and U.S. leadership in the space economy.”
World View ends plans to go public through a SPAC merger
WASHINGTON — World View, the stratospheric ballooning company that has offered an alternative to spacecraft for applications from remote sensing to space tourism, has terminated plans to go public through a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) merger.
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