Satellites

The French government has launched several military space efforts, spanning space situational awareness initiatives to nanonsatellites.

Finnish satellite-maker Iceye says it will invest more than $287 million to scale up its SAR spacecraft production capacity and speed technology developments.

Two Chinese-built satellites may be on the verge of conducting an on-orbit, satellite-to-satellite refueling activity for the first time, U.S. space situational awareness company Slingshot Aerospace recently announced.

The U.S. Space Force is partnering with SpaceX to field a new satellite communications (satcom) network.

Aalto, Airbus’ high-altitude pseudo-satellite spinoff, will support French military efforts to better understand the stratosphere as a warfighting domain.

Thales Alenia Space is preparing a demonstration satellite for positioning, navigation and timing (PNT) in low Earth orbit (LEO) for launch this year.

Lockheed Martin's push to quickly develop, field and launch a demonstration satellite on its own dime shows how the industry is meeting a moment.

The U.S. Space Force’s CSCO anticipates starting the acquisition process to buy commercially derived maneuverable satellites for use in GEO by early next year.

Astroscale UK and Open Cosmos have won a contract from the UK Ministry of Defense to develop two formation-flying satellites that would track space weather.

BlackSky Technology plans to expand its Gen-3 high-frequency monitoring constellation with new satellites designated AROS.

The U.S. Space Force will launch its first new missile warning satellite no earlier than March 2026.

Portugal has agreed to buy an SAR satellite from Iceye, becoming the latest European state to invest in building up its military Earth-observation capability.

Airbus CEO Guillaume Faury signals talks among his company, Thales and Leonardo to combine satellite operations may drag into 2026.

LEO satellite constellation startup Muon Space completed a $146 million Series B funding round that includes $89.5 million in new capital.

In addition to learning lessons from the Russia-Ukraine War, the French Air and Space Force is working on defense in space.

Sierra Space is ready to pull back the curtain on its defense-centric unit and a new 60,000-ft.2 facility dedicated to its national security programs.

Kymeta says it has demonstrated a new antenna that can simultaneously connect to multiple satellites using Ku and Ka bands.

The European Union (EU) aims to wrap up defining high-level requirements for a governmental Earth observation satellite system in the fall.

York Space Systems has completed the first of 12 planned satellites for a Space Development Agency -related mission.

The latest trend in satellite development is two-dimensional: flat sats.

BAE Systems and South Korea’s Hanwha Systems will work together to develop a multi-sensor satellite system as both companies bolster their space portfolios.

Northrop Grumman’s SpaceLogistics subsidiary has integrated twin robotic arms on its Mission Robotic Vehicle.

The U.S. Space Force has coordinated the launch of two next-generation GPS III satellites at a rapid pace not often expected from the U.S. government.

Impulse Space said it raised $300 million in a Series C funding round, asserting it is “one of the largest venture rounds in the history of the space industry.”

Russian satellite startup Bureau 1440 is poised to be the first customer for the Russo-Kazakh Soyuz-5 rocket, planned to launch before year-end.