Commercial Space

The agency turns to public-private partnerships to equip Artemis spacewalkers.

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.

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.

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.

Astroscale will build its Elsa-M satellite servicer for European customers and perhaps others with the goal of a late-2024 launch after a €14.8 million ($15.9 million) infusion via a European Space Agency and OneWeb alliance.

Space Systems Command on May 26 ordered eight launches from United Launch Alliance and SpaceX under the National Security Space Launch Phase 2 procurement program.

The uncrewed flight test sets the stage for a shakedown flight with astronauts.

LeoLabs argues that government space situational awareness capabilities cannot keep track of the growing number of objects in space.

Test flights of Australian-built scramjet-powered drone targets technology for space launch system and hypersonic defense applications.

SpaceX continued its weekly launch pace with liftoff of a Falcon 9 rocket on May 25 carrying 59 small satellites and hosted payloads, marking the company’s fifth rideshare mission. Following launch at 2:35 p.m. from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, the rocket’s first stage returned to the launch site while the upper stage fired to place the Transporter-5 payloads into a preliminary polar orbit.

Axiom Space and Italy’s minister for Technological Innovation and Digital Transition have signed a memorandum of understanding to advance existing collaboration, the Houston-based firm announced May 25.

Another lunar buggy contender is emerging, this time with an autonomous explorer angle: Lunar Outpost on May 24 unveiled a $12 million seed round, promising a new class of autonomous Moon rovers.

The Outpost Mars Demo-1 payload, an on-orbit metal cutting robotic arm, is being prepared to launch aboard SpaceX’s Transporter 5 rideshare flight on May 25.

Satcom Direct (SD) is nearing commercial introduction of its Plane Simple Antenna System supporting inflight broadband connectivity for business aviation using the Intelsat FlexExec network.

Satellite operator Inmarsat and equipment supplier Honeywell have launched SwiftJet, an enhanced L-band satcoms service for business aviation, at EBACE 2022.

The new inflight broadband service for bizjets will access OneWeb’s constellation using a new electronically steered antenna (ESA) that Gogo has designed in conjunction with Hughes Network Systems.

The uncrewed Starliner flight test is part of a joint NASA-Boeing program to develop crew transportation services to the ISS and future destinations in low Earth orbit.

Commercial flights are targeted to begin in late 2024, according to the company.

The satellite company is weeks from restoring service to all users but is wary about sharing too many details of the Feb. 24 attack.

Aerospace industry executives are committing to a spacefaring future that represents all of humanity.

The space vehicle is schedule to launch into orbit in October via SpaceX’s Falcon 9 Transporter 6 rideshare mission, the company said May 16.

Virgin Orbit, the newly public satellite launch provider, saw revenue halve and its net loss double in the first quarter of 2022.

After 29 months, Boeing will again attempt to fly its commercial space taxi to the space station.

Our roundup of the main aerospace and defense stories making the news this week.

After its KA-SAT satellite internet service in Europe was disrupted on Feb. 24 by an alleged cyberattack from Russia, Viasat shared details of the attack with industry competitors via the U.S. Space Force’s Commercial Integration Cell.