Space Industry News: Headlines from Across the Industry

36,861 headlines. We show the headline and the publisher's own teaser; the full story is at the source.

NASA Invites Media to James Webb Space Telescope Launch NASA · 8 Oct 2021 Members of the media may now register their interest in attending the launch of NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope, the premier space science observatory for the next decade.
Report offers way to ease Mars mission planetary protection requirements SpaceNews · 8 Oct 2021 Future Mars lander missions could adopt less stringent planetary protection requirements by landing in regions of the planet unlikely to allow any terrestrial contamination to propagate, a study concludes.
How forecasters use GOES weather satellite data for hurricane tracking and forecasting NASASpaceflight · 8 Oct 2021 Since the dawn of the satellite era, weather satellites have been an instrumental and mainstay feature of space exploration. Numerous countries and agencies around the world have launched their own sets of sentinels that...
Astronauts choose ‘Endurance’ as name for new SpaceX crew capsule Spaceflight Now · 8 Oct 2021 The astronauts who will ride SpaceX’s newest Dragon spaceship into orbit later this month said Thursday they named their spacecraft “Endurance” as a tribute to the human spirit and a historic sailing vessel used by Antar...
Putin slashes Russia’s space budget and says he expects better results Ars Technica · 8 Oct 2021 This cannot be a comfortable position for a certain Dmitry Olegovich Rogozin.
NGA plans annual survey of international Earth imagery leaders SpaceNews · 8 Oct 2021 The National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency plans to conduct an annual assessment of commercial satellite imagery like the Olympic-themed evaluation the organization conducted earlier this year.
Industry skeptical about the business case for megaconstellations SpaceNews · 8 Oct 2021 Companies that have demonstrated the technical viability of broadband satellite megaconstellations now face a bigger challenge: closing the business case.
Rocket Report: Falcon Heavy delayed due to payload issue, DART gets a date Ars Technica · 8 Oct 2021 Also, an update on Arca's first orbital launch attempt.
Chinese partnership to create Tianxian SAR satellite constellation SpaceNews · 8 Oct 2021 A Chinese state-owned enterprise and a private firm are partnering to establish a 96-satellite SAR constellation, with the first launch set for February 2022.
SpaceX’s first orbital-class Starship ‘tank farm’ is almost finished Teslarati · 8 Oct 2021 Roughly six months after the process began, SpaceX has installed the seventh and final custom-built propellant storage tank at Starbase’s first orbital-class...
Analyst uses radar imagery to shed additional light on Chinese missile sites SpaceNews · 8 Oct 2021 Based on intelligence from SAR imagery, Lewis concluded that the Chinese are building a large wind turbine farm presumably to power missile silos.
Earth observation is expanding into new markets SpaceNews · 8 Oct 2021 Markets for Earth observation data and associated services are growing and evolving, according to panelists at the Satellite Innovation 2021 conference.
Japanese satellite launch facing weeks-long delay Spaceflight Now · 8 Oct 2021 The launch of a solid-fueled Japanese Epsilon rocket with nine small satellites, originally scheduled to blastoff last week, has been grounded until after the flight of a larger H-2A launcher later this month, Japan’s sp...
Astra to fly Rocket 3 from Kennedy Space Center as soon as December Space Scout · 7 Oct 2021 Astra has filed with the FCC ahead of a first-time launch from KSC's Launch Complex 48.
Maxar still confident Legion constellation will be in orbit in 2022 SpaceNews · 7 Oct 2021 Maxar remains confident that it will launch all six of its next-generation WorldView Legion imaging satellites in 2022,
NASA swaps two astronauts from Boeing missions to SpaceX crew flight Spaceflight Now · 7 Oct 2021 NASA has reassigned two rookie astronauts from missions on Boeing’s troubled Starliner crew capsule to a SpaceX crew mission to the International Space Station late next year, a move agency officials said will allow the...
Industry has more work ahead to make data analytics less dependent on human supervision SpaceNews · 7 Oct 2021 There is still much work ahead for the AI industry to automate data analytics.
NRO begins journey toward commercial data program of record SpaceNews · 7 Oct 2021 The National Reconnaissance Office is preparing to survey commercial capabilities to provide various geospatial datasets as part of a long-term campaign to establish a new program of record.
NASA's Perseverance Sheds More Light on Jezero Crater's Watery Past NASA · 7 Oct 2021 Pictures from NASA’s latest six-wheeler on the Red Planet suggest the area’s history experienced significant flooding events.
NRO to tap commercial industry for space-based radar data SpaceNews · 7 Oct 2021 The director of the National Reconnaissance Office Christopher Scolese announced Oct. 7 the agency will start buying space radar imagery from commercial providers.
Taiwan’s TiSPACE to try again after launch attempt ends in flames SpaceNews · 7 Oct 2021 Launch startup Taiwan Innovative Space Inc.’s quest to field a commercial smallsat launcher suffered a setback last month when a suborbital prototype of a planned orbital rocket caught fire during liftoff.
DART in transit to Vandenberg Space Force Base ahead of November 2021 launch NASASpaceflight · 7 Oct 2021 After completing months of tests and assembly, NASA’s Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) is in transit to Vandenberg Space Force Base (VSFB) in California ahead of its launch. DART is a first-of-its-kind NASA missio...
Intelligence agencies seek resilient and reliable commercial tools SpaceNews · 7 Oct 2021 U.S. intelligence agencies are eager to adopt cutting-edge commercial tools and technologies, but need confidence in the security of the data delivered, Stacey Dixon, U.S. principal deputy director of national intelligen...
NASA Releases Climate Action Plan NASA · 7 Oct 2021 NASA released a climate action plan Thursday, Oct. 7, aimed at averting mission impacts due to climate change, ensuring the resiliency of facilities and assets, and providing the nation and world unique climate observati...
Asteroid probe mounted on Atlas booster originally assigned to astronaut flight Spaceflight Now · 7 Oct 2021 Teams at Cape Canaveral transferred NASA’s Lucy asteroid explorer to a United Launch Alliance integration building Thursday and mounted the robotic science probe atop an Atlas 5 rocket for liftoff later this month, using...
Maxar looks to fill demand for accurate 3D mapping for autonomous vehicles SpaceNews · 7 Oct 2021 Maxar has produced high-fidelity maps for military customers, and is now positioning to fill a growing demand for this technology in commercial markets.
NASA reshuffles commercial crew astronaut assignments because of Starliner delays SpaceNews · 7 Oct 2021 NASA has reassigned two astronauts from Boeing commercial crew missions to a SpaceX one as the agency addresses delays in the development of the CST-100 Starliner and works out a seat barter agreement with Russia.
SpaceX to double fleet of reusable Dragon spacecraft in less than nine months Teslarati · 7 Oct 2021 Comments from NASA and SpaceX officials during a briefing ahead of Crew Dragon’s third operational astronaut launch have offered a more detailed...
Longtime SpaceX executive joins Mynaric board SpaceNews · 7 Oct 2021 Hans Koenigsmann, one of the first employees of SpaceX and who recently retired from the company, has joined the board of satellite laser communications company Mynaric.
Watch a video tour of NASA’s Lucy asteroid explorer Spaceflight Now · 6 Oct 2021 Set for launch Oct. 16 on a flight to explore asteroids in the outer solar system, NASA’s Lucy spacecraft has been fueled and encapsulated inside the payload fairing of its Atlas 5 rocket. Watch as Chris McKaa, a manager...
NASA’s Lucy asteroid mission 10 days from launch Spaceflight Now · 6 Oct 2021 Fueled up for a 12-year mission of exploration, NASA’s Lucy science probe is nearly ready for launch Oct. 16 from Florida’s Space Coast to begin a journey through the solar system to visit eight asteroids, a record numbe...
Finland’s Kuva Space raises funds for hyperspectral constellation SpaceNews · 6 Oct 2021 Finland’s Kuva Space raised 4.2 million euros ($4.85 million) to fund its campaign to establish a constellation of commercial hyperspectral cubesats.
NASA Sets Coverage, Invites Public to Virtually Join Lucy Launch NASA · 6 Oct 2021 NASA will provide coverage of upcoming prelaunch and launch activities for Lucy, the agency’s first mission to explore the Jupiter Trojan asteroids.
Japan’s Epsilon scrubs another attempt to launch RAISE-2 and eight secondary satellites NASASpaceflight · 6 Oct 2021 Japan is working to make its first orbital launch in ten months, using its small satellite launcher Epsilon to deliver nine satellites to orbit. Notably, this includes the RAISE-2 technology demonstrator.
NGA chief hails agency’s expansion out west, outreach to startups and universities SpaceNews · 6 Oct 2021 NGA broke ground on the St. Louis campus in November 2019 and expects to open for business in 2025
Work on Artemis I Orion nears completion, other Orions make progress NASASpaceflight · 6 Oct 2021 The Artemis I Orion spacecraft is currently undergoing final checkouts before the critical milestone of transportation to the Vehicle Assembly Building for final stacking, integration, and checkout ahead of launch.
Rate of space industry deals may slow down in the next year SpaceNews · 6 Oct 2021 The torrid pace of investment and acquisitions involving space companies this year is unlikely to continue next year, but investors and bankers are still optimistic about the long-term growth prospects for the industry.
SpaceX is adding two more Crew Dragons to its fleet Spaceflight Now · 6 Oct 2021 SpaceX is about to double the size of its fleet of Crew Dragon spaceships. The company is debuting a new spacecraft for a NASA launch later this month, and is building a fourth human-rated capsule that should be ready fo...
NASA Announces Astronaut Changes for Upcoming Commercial Crew Missions NASA · 6 Oct 2021 NASA has reassigned astronauts Nicole Mann and Josh Cassada to the agency’s SpaceX Crew-5 mission to the International Space Station as part of the Commercial Crew Program.
Kleos reveals results of RF reconnaissance demonstration SpaceNews · 6 Oct 2021 Kleos Space presented a technical paper at the GEOINT 2021 Symposium that highlighted better-than-expected performance of RF reconnaissance satellites.

Launch and satellite data: Jonathan McDowell's GCAT (CC BY 4.0) and CelesTrak. Rockets, spacecraft and agencies: Launch Library 2 by The Space Devs and Wikidata. News headlines link to their publishers via the Spaceflight News API and RSS feeds. Records come from several sources and are matched automatically, so treat the directory as a research aid, not an authority. How the data is built and checked.