PLD Space raises €7 million as it aims for sounding rocket’s 2021 debut
VALLETTA, Malta — Launch startup PLD Space of Spain raised 7 million euros ($8.2 million) this week from Madrid-based investment bankers Arcano Partners to continue development of its Miura family of partially reusable rockets. PLD Space spokeswoman Lorena Santos said Sept. 17 the new investment will allow the Elche, Spain-based company to add at least 10 people to its roughly [...]
Mars smallsat mission bumped from launch
WASHINGTON — A smallsat mission to study the atmosphere of Mars is looking for a new ride after being removed as a secondary payload on the launch of a NASA asteroid mission. The Escape and Plasma Acceleration and Dynamics Explorers, or EscaPADE, mission, was one of three smallsat missions selected by NASA in 2019 for initial studies as part of [...]
AF Week in Photos
This week's photos feature Airmen from around the globe involved in activities supporting expeditionary operations and defending America. This weekly feature showcases the men and women of the Air Force.
Reliable COTS Components for AOCS – Gyro and IMU Modules
New Space has for the last decade challenged the established design rules for spacecraft, and proved that is it possible to design and launch small spacecrafts at a fraction of the cost of traditional designs. OneWeb being one of the pioneers challenging the established supplier base using new thinking to drive down the cost and at the same time aiming [...]
Reality show latest sign of growing commercial interest in ISS
WASHINGTON — As a new venture proposes to send the winner of a reality show to the International Space Station, some investors see a stronger business case for a future commercial space station. A television production company, Space Hero LLC, announced Sept. 17 that it was planning a “global, unscripted casting show” called “Space Hero” that would send the winner [...]
NASA human spaceflight directorate completes reorganization
WASHINGTON — The NASA directorate responsible for human spaceflight efforts has completed a long-anticipated internal reorganization intended to better align activities ranging from the International Space Station to Artemis. At a Sept. 16 Washington Space Business Roundtable webinar, Kathy Lueders, who took over as NASA associate administrator for human exploration and operations three months ago, said that NASA Associate Administrator [...]
Space Development Agency praised as change agent in Pentagon procurement
WASHINGTON — “We couldn’t believe they went so fast,” Telesat executive Don Brown said of the Space Development Agency’s first major contract award for 20 satellites. Brown, general manager of government services for the Canadian communications satellite operator Telesat, said he and many colleagues in the space industry expected that the SDA would take years to review contractor proposals and [...]
Astranis adds former NASA Administrator Dan Goldin to advisory board
WASHINGTON — Astranis, a startup developing small geostationary satellites, has brought onboard former NASA Administrator Dan Goldin as an adviser. Astranis announced Sept. 17 that Goldin will chair the company’s new technical advisory board, and recently oversaw the critical design review of the company’s first satellite ahead of a mid-2021 launch. In an interview, Astranis CEO John Gedmark said Goldin [...]
Exotrail wins ESA contracts • SmartSky suing ATG equipment contractor • Eutelsat executive steps down
To receive FIRST UP Satcom, a weekly SpaceNews newsletter for satellite and telecom professionals, sign up here. TOP STORIES French propulsion startup Exotrail has signed two contracts with the European Space Agency for its smallsat electric propulsion technology. Under the first contract, Exotrail said it will “accelerate the qualification and flight demonstration” of its 150-Watt ExoMG-Micro thruster. The second contract calls for [...]
Intelsat taps Maxar for fifth C-band satellite, capping order spree
WASHINGTON — Intelsat has signed a satellite contract with Maxar Technologies, placing the final order in a one-time surge in manufacturing deals triggered by the Federal Communications Commission’s upcoming C-band spectrum auction. Maxar will build the Intelsat-37 communications satellite at its Palo Alto, California, factory on a 1300-class platform, Intelsat said Sept. 17. Intelsat-37 is the last of 13 satellites [...]
Megaconstellation startup Mangata Networks joins T-Mobile-backed 5G incubator
WASHINGTON — Mangata Networks, a broadband megaconstellation venture created by former OneWeb Satellites CEO Brian Holz, is one of 16 startups newly added the 5G Open Innovation Lab, an ideas-and-partnership incubator founded earlier this year by T-Mobile, Intel and NASA to help unleash the potential of 5G mobile networks. Mangata said Sept. 16 that inclusion in the nontraditional accelerator will [...]
Air Force improves lactation support for nursing mothers
The updated policy, which is effective immediately, increases flexibility with lactation breaks and also mandates access to a refrigerator for the purpose of storing human milk.
China is quietly preparing for November launch of the Chang’e-5 lunar sample return mission
HELSINKI — China has initiated preparations to launch Chang’e-5, a mission seeking to collect and return the first lunar samples since the 1970s. Chang’e-5 aims to collect and return around two kilograms of lunar samples and was earlier slated for launch before the end of 2020. Ship tracking and satellite data now indicate that China is readying for launch in [...]
Xage Security prepares U.S. Space Force cyber strategy
SAN FRANCISCO – Xage Security, a Silicon Valley cybersecurity startup, announced a contract Sept. 17 to develop evaluate and prepare a data protection strategy for the U.S. Space Force Xage won a $743,000 phase two Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) contract from AFWERX, the U.S. Air Force organization charged with spurring innovation. Under the contract awarded in June, Xage will [...]
CSF president to join Voyager Space Holdings
WASHINGTON — The longtime president of the Commercial Spaceflight Federation (CSF) is stepping down next month to become an executive with one of the organization’s member companies. The CSF announced Sept. 17 that Eric Stallmer will leave the organization in late October to become executive vice president for government relations and public policy at Voyager Space Holdings, a holding company [...]