Rocket Lab is moving closer to potential reuse of its Electron small satellite launch vehicle, with plans to attempt a parachute recovery of the first stage as part of its next mission, the company said on Nov. 5.
AE Industrial Partners, a private equity firm with an aerospace and defense focus, is growing its military space business with a new acquisition that serves the Pentagon’s desire to tap into small-form, new-space developments.
NASA’s Tournament Lab, working with social media crowdsourcing platform HeroX, is reaching out for proposals to offload a range of payload types at the Moon in support of the bold vision of developing a sustained human lunar presence this decade.
As Virgin Galactic enters final preparations for the first rocket-powered flight of SpaceShipTwo from its Spaceport America operational facility in New Mexico, the company has added two additional pilots to its ranks.
A 15th batch of Starlink satellites reached orbit on Oct. 24, SpaceX’s second launch within a week to build up an initial 1,450-member broadband communications network.
The U.S. Space Force has not closed the door on helping industry fund a “manufacturing on orbit” concept, meaning building parts for satellites while in space, according to the service’s acquisition executive.
NASA recently conducted certification baseline reviews of the three U.S. companies vying to make landers that will transport astronauts to the Moon by 2024—Blue Origin, Dynetics and SpaceX.
Firefly Aerospace, which plans to debut its Alpha small satellite launch vehicle this year, has signed contracts with Spire Global and Geometric Space Corp. for multiple flights.
NASA and the European Space Agency have signed contracts with privately owned Nanoracks to use the company’s Bishop airlock, which is due to be delivered to the International Space Station next month.
Satellite network operators Inmarsat and Hughes Network Systems announced a “strategic collaboration” on Oct. 20 to provide in-flight connectivity designed for commercial airlines in North America.
With the arrival of 60 more Starlink satellites into orbit on Oct. 18 and another 60 due to launch this week, SpaceX intends to roll out public trials of its high-speed internet service before year’s end.
