SAN FRANCISCO – Indian startup SatLeo Labs is preparing to launch its first thermal-imaging payload early next year. By the end of 2026, the Ahmedabad-based startup intends to launch the first of 12 microsatellites to gather electro-optical and thermal infrared imagery. “Not only will we be getting the visible dataset of any particular object or […]

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China launched the latest in a series of clandestine satellites Thursday, using the country’s most powerful rocket to send the spacecraft to geosynchronous transfer orbit.

The post China expands classified geostationary satellite series with Long March 5 launch appeared first on SpaceNews.

In this episode of Space Minds, host David Ariosto speaks with Terry Hart, former NASA astronaut and mission specialist on the Space Shuttle Challenger. Hart reflects on the triumphs of early shuttle missions, the lessons of the Challenger tragedy, and how those experiences shape today’s commercial space era led by companies like SpaceX and Blue Origin.

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The first space race was about getting to the moon. Today’s race to the moon and Mars is about staying there.

The post The next space race will be won at night appeared first on SpaceNews.

Amazon Web Services, or AWS, is the largest cloud provider in the United Kingdom. It holds between 40 and 50% of the market for Infrastructure-as-a-Service, and its technology underpins the National Health Service, the Ministry of Defence and a wide range of public utilities and private companies. When there’s an outage, therefore, the effect is […]

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Three of Europe’s largest aerospace companies have agreed to combine their space businesses into a new joint venture intended to better compete in the global market.

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France-based propulsion startup Ion-X announced Oct. 23 it will provide an upgraded version of its electrospray thruster to Univity, a three-year-old French venture planning 1500 small 5G broadband satellites in VLEO.

The post Ion-X to supply upgraded thruster for Univity’s VLEO 5G constellation appeared first on SpaceNews.

Hungary has become the latest country to sign the Artemis Accords, outlining norms of behavior for sustainable space exploration.

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Quantum Space says it plans to launch its first Ranger spacecraft in mid-2026 to demonstrate its capabilities for national security missions.

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Venus developed a rotating detonation rocket engine with potential applications in hypersonic missiles and space launch vehicles

The post Lockheed Martin Ventures invests in rocket propulsion startup Venus Aerospace appeared first on SpaceNews.

Traditional mining expertise plus space startup innovation will equal the winning formula for lunar resource extraction.

The post The lunar mining gold rush is coming – and success requires bridging two worlds  appeared first on SpaceNews.

Vantor’s space-to-space intelligence business is also known as non-Earth imagery

The post Vantor satellites track space objects in ‘blind spots’ inaccessible to military ground sensors appeared first on SpaceNews.

SpaceX Chief Executive Elon Musk hurled insults at NASA’s acting administrator a day after complaints that the company was behind schedule on its Artemis lunar lander.

The post Musk criticizes Duffy amid NASA leadership debate appeared first on SpaceNews.

Lynk Global plans to merge with Omnispace to upgrade its direct-to-device services with globally coordinated S-band spectrum, joining SpaceX and AST SpaceMobile in shoring up satellite frequencies after initially relying on cellular partnerships.

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Satellite manufacturer Apex is planning a high-stakes demonstration of interceptor technology in orbit

The post Startup takes on space-based missile defense — with its own cash appeared first on SpaceNews.

SAN FRANCISCO – Samara Aerospace’s patented satellite-pointing technology will soon be tested in orbit on an Impulse Space Mira orbital transfer vehicle launching on a SpaceX Transporter rideshare. In ground-based testing, Samara has shown that all elements of the company’s Multifunctional Structures for Attitude Control (MSAC) technology can survive launch forces and work well in […]

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LONDON — The German Aerospace Center (DLR) is looking to purchase satellites capable of jamming other spacecraft and inspecting objects in space, and it wants to do so on tight deadlines.  But experts are skeptical whether Germany could achieve the ambitious goals including launches on a yet unflown domestic launcher after years of underinvestment into […]

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As part of a broader modernization effort, United States defense assistance should focus on freeing Taiwan’s senior military leadership from outdated paradigms by embedding multi-domain operations, joint training and campaign-level wargaming. The Pentagon’s most valuable contribution is doctrinal and architectural: helping Taiwan build a kill web — a distributed sensor-to-shooter network spanning space, air, sea […]

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The Orion spacecraft for the Artemis 2 mission has been installed on its Space Launch System rocket as preparations for the circumlunar flight continue despite a government shutdown.

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SpaceX is supplying optical terminals to Muon Space, the four-year-old Californian manufacturer said Oct. 21, enabling its future Halo satellites to use the Starlink broadband constellation as a global data-relay network.

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Launch startup Landspace is in the final stages of preparations for the first launch of its Zhuque-3 rocket and a potentially landmark mission for China.

The post Landspace begins final preparations for China’s first orbital launch and landing attempt appeared first on SpaceNews.

A Belgian startup led by satellite networking veterans announced $1.4 million in seed funding Oct. 21 to develop a virtual 5G modem, designed for multi-orbit compatibility across traditionally closed communications infrastructure.

The post Belgian startup Nxgsat raises early funds for virtual 5G satellite modem appeared first on SpaceNews.

NASA’s acting administrator says he will “open up the contract” SpaceX holds to land astronauts on the moon for the Artemis 3 mission because the company has fallen behind schedule.

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China is on track to land its first crew on the lunar surface by 2030 and establish a base at the resource-rich south pole — a site that offers continuous sunlight, access to water ice and control of the most valuable real estate beyond Earth. Beijing’s record of steady, disciplined progress in space suggests they […]

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