Virgin Orbit Targeting September For First UK Launch

By Irene Klotz Jun 28, 2022
Virgin Orbit is targeting September for the first of two launches this year from the UK’s new spaceport in Cornwall, a mission that will mark the first rocket launch from British soil and the first commercial launch from Western Europe.
Commercial Space
NASA Launches Rockets From Australia In Commercial First
The flight marks the first time NASA has launched from a commercial spaceport outside of the United States.
jeff.morris@av… Mon, 06/27/2022 - 15:14
Author
Primary Category
Companies Laying Groundwork For Civilian Astronaut Corps
With private space stations on the horizon, NASA may soon have options for astronaut services.
alex.harrell@a… Fri, 06/24/2022 - 08:00
Author
Primary Category

Satellite Communications Equipment Startup SatixFy Names New CEO

By Michael Bruno Jun 23, 2022
Satellite communications equipment startup SatixFy, which is waiting to go public under a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) deal, said June 23 David Ripstein will be its new CEO.
Commercial Space

New Space Startups Face Market Realities

By Michael Bruno Jun 20, 2022
Space remains popular. But everything moves faster in a vacuum, including cash burn.
Commercial Space

SpaceX Sets New Booster Reuse Record With 13th Flight

By Irene Klotz Jun 17, 2022
SpaceX kicked off a trio of launches planned for June 17-19 by sending another bank of Starlink satellites into orbit aboard a Falcon 9 booster making its13th flight, a new company record.
Commercial Space

Impulse Space Lands $10M From Lux Partners

By Michael Bruno Jun 17, 2022
Three months after emerging from so-called stealth mode, Impulse Space Propulsion, an in-orbit transfer services company founded by SpaceX co-founder Tom Mueller, has added $10 million to its initial fundraising. Lux Capital, a venture capital firm focused on emerging science and technology ventures that is familiar to aerospace startups, is investing in Impulse, bringing the latter’s total raised to date to $30 million.
Commercial Space

Velo3D Unveils 3D Printer For Aerospace Parts

By Garrett Reim Jun 17, 2022
Velo3D has unveiled the Sapphire XC 1MZ, a 3D printer that can make aerospace parts up to 1 m in height.
Advanced Air Mobility

Stratolaunch Reaches Highest Altitude In Latest Test

By Guy Norris Jun 17, 2022
The flight, which marked the first time Roc had flown at altitudes required for effective launch trajectories of Stratolaunch’s Talon-A hypersonic test vehicle, lasted just over three hours.
Aircraft & Propulsion

Podcast: AAM, New Space Face Financial Wilderness

By Carole Rickard Hedden Jun 17, 2022
For new space and advanced air mobility startups, the past two years have been a heady experience of investment, mergers with special purpose acquisition companies and high-risk plays into segments of the aerospace and defense industry that were mere dreams a decade ago. As the economy changes, Aviation Week editors discuss what comes next.
Aerospace

Firefly Aerospace Replacing Cofounder CEO Again

By Michael Bruno Jun 16, 2022
Launch startup Firefly Aerospace is rotating through another CEO as its recently installed private equity sponsors assert more control over the embattled new-space upstart.
Commercial Space

OneWeb, Stellar Blu Claim LEO Broadband Test Flight Success

By Alan Dron Jun 15, 2022
Two companies aiming to improve inflight connectivity have carried out what they describe as the successful delivery of high-speed, low-latency inflight connectivity from a low-Earth-orbit satellite to a commercial airliner.
Interiors & Connectivity

NRO EOCL Award To Planet Worth An Initial $146M

By Michael Bruno Jun 15, 2022
The contract from the U.S. National Reconnaissance Office practically doubles the remote-sensing upstart’s backlog.
Commercial Space

Space Flight Laboratory Uses ‘Drag Sail’ Tech To Deorbit Nanosat

By Garrett Reim Jun 14, 2022
The Space Flight Laboratory deorbited its CanX-7 demonstration nanosatellite using four drag sails in April, five years after the sails were deployed and significantly sooner than it would have deorbited naturally.
Commercial Space

SpaceX Spared New Environmental Assessment For Boca Chica Ops

By Irene Klotz Jun 13, 2022
SpaceX has some more work to do before it will receive U.S. clearance to launch Starship on an orbital flight test from Boca Chica Beach, Texas, the FAA has determined in its long-awaited study assessing the program’s environmental impacts.
Commercial Space

NASA Hurricane-Tracking Cubesats Lost In Launch Accident

By Irene Klotz Jun 13, 2022
NASA’s gamble on a startup launch company to deliver a pair of novel hurricane-probing cubesats into orbit got off to a rough start on June 12 after the upper stage of an Astra 3.3 rocket shut down early, dooming the first two members of the agency’s Tropics constellation.
Commercial Space

Lockheed Adds Inovor For JP9102 Australian Military Satellite Bid

By Chen Chuanren Jun 13, 2022
Lockheed Martin has added Australian small satellite-maker Inovor Technologies under the so-called Hosted Missions Program for the JP9102 military satellite project.
Space

Russia Agrees To Station Crew Seat Exchange

Aviation Week Network Staff Jun 12, 2022
The Russian government has cleared state-owned Roscosmos to sign a long-delayed agreement with NASA for cosmonauts to fly on SpaceX’s Crew Dragon capsules in exchange for astronauts joining Russian Soyuz crews. 
Space

SpaceX Building Airline-Type Flight Ops For Launch

By Irene Klotz Jun 10, 2022
SpaceX is making headway in space MRO.
Space

First Take, June 13, 2022

By Graham Warwick Jun 10, 2022
Our roundup of the main aerospace and defense stories making the news this week.
Aerospace

The Aerospace Corp. To Fly DiskSat Demo Mission For NASA In Fiscal 2024

By Garrett Reim Jun 08, 2022
NASA is eyeing the DiskSat as a follow-up to the cubesat.
Space

NASA To Partner With Collins and Axiom To Develop New Spacesuits

By Mark Carreau Jun 08, 2022
The agency turns to public-private partnerships to equip Artemis spacewalkers.
Space

Ursa Major Offering New Arroway Rocket Engine

By Jen DiMascio Jun 02, 2022
Startup propulsion company Ursa Major announced June 2 that it is offering a 200,000 lb. thrust liquid oxygen and methane staged-combustion rocket engine called Arroway.
Commercial Space

Kleos Space Wins USN Contract For Geolocation Tracking Experiment

By Garrett Reim Jun 01, 2022
The U.S. Navy has signed a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement with Kleos Space to provide radio frequency geolocation data as part of an experiment.
Commercial Space

Sierra, Spirit Partner On Shooting Star Cargo Module

By Garrett Reim May 31, 2022
Sierra Space and Spirit AeroSystems have signed a strategic partnership to improve production efficiency and assembly of Sierra Space’s Shooting Star cargo module. The letter of intent covers the development and production of future Shooting Star cargo modules. Sierra Space and Spirit AeroSystems will also work together to find ways to speed up the time it takes to bring Sierra Space’s Dream Chaser family of spaceplanes to market, the companies said on May 31.
Commercial Space