Industry News
Headlines from space publications, linked back to the original articles
Industry / News
- University of Michigan graduate named to lead Taiwan’s space agency SpaceNews · 9 Aug 2021 In an inauguration speech, the new NSPO chief said he will try to “build a more comprehensive infrastructure for space technology in Taiwan and to develop the space industry and its supply chain.”
- China is working on a lander for human moon missions SpaceNews · 9 Aug 2021 China’s main spacecraft maker is developing a human landing system for lunar missions as part of a national strategy, according to a report.
- SpaceX to acquire Swarm Technologies SpaceNews · 9 Aug 2021 SpaceX has quietly agreed to acquire Swarm Technologies, a company that operates a smallsat constellation providing internet-of-things services.
- SpaceX Starship briefly becomes largest rocket in history – now what’s next? Teslarati · 9 Aug 2021 On August 6th, after a great deal of anticipation, SpaceX stacked a Starship on top of a Super Heavy booster for the...
- Antares rocket ready for launch on space station resupply mission Spaceflight Now · 9 Aug 2021 Northrop Grumman packed last-minute cargo into a commercial Cygnus supply ship Monday on a launch pad in Virginia, putting the finishing touches on a spacecraft set for liftoff Tuesday atop an Antares rocket on a mission...
- SpaceX’s first (public) acquisition is nanosat and Internet of Things startup Swarm Teslarati · 8 Aug 2021 Federal Communications Commission (FCC) documents suggest that SpaceX has wholly acquired a satellite communications startup – possibly the first public acquisition in...
- Perseverance’s first sample collection fails, new science points to subsurface Martian clay lakes NASASpaceflight · 8 Aug 2021 NASA’s Perseverance Mars rover recently attempted its first-ever sample collection of the Martian surface on August 6. However, data shows that while the rover’s drill successfully drilled into the surface, no regolith w...
- Starliner investigation continues SpaceNews · 8 Aug 2021 Boeing is continuing its investigation into the thruster issue that delayed the launch of its CST-100 Starliner commercial crew vehicle but could soon run into schedule conflicts on both the International Space Station a...
- Fully stacked Starship caps busy week at SpaceX’s Texas rocket yard Spaceflight Now · 8 Aug 2021 Last week’s progress at SpaceX’s Starship development site culminated with the spectacular, but brief, site of a fully-stacked launcher towering nearly 400 feet above the tidal flats of South Texas.
- NASA, Rocket Lab move first Artemis Moon launch – CAPSTONE – to New Zealand NASASpaceflight · 7 Aug 2021 New Zealand is now set to host the first launch of the Artemis Program, as Rocket Lab is now planning to launch the CAPSTONE mission from their operational launch pad at Launch Complex 1 on the Māhia Peninsula. This is t...
- Perseverance first sampling attempt comes up empty SpaceNews · 7 Aug 2021 NASA scientists and engineers are working to understand why the first sampling attempt by the Mars rover Perseverance failed to collect any material.
- Rocket Lab shifts CAPSTONE launch to New Zealand SpaceNews · 6 Aug 2021 A NASA smallsat mission to test the orbit that will be used by the lunar Gateway will launch from New Zealand and not Virginia as originally planned.
- NASA’s Perseverance Team Assessing First Mars Sampling Attempt NASA · 6 Aug 2021 Data sent to Earth by NASA’s Perseverance rover after its first attempt to collect a rock sample on Mars and seal it in a sample tube indicate that no rock was collected during the initial sampling activity.
- NASA's Perseverance Team Assessing First Mars Sampling Attempt NASA · 6 Aug 2021 The rover continues to explore Jezero Crater while the team assesses today’s activities.
- TESS considering companion smallsat mission SpaceNews · 6 Aug 2021 The leaders of a NASA exoplanet mission are considering using a spare camera for a companion mission that would enable them to confirm existing discoveries and make new ones.
- Ontario’s government invests in Lightspeed constellation SpaceNews · 6 Aug 2021 Telesat has struck a deal with Ontario’s government to partly fund its Lightspeed constellation, which will dedicate some of its satellite capacity to improving connectivity in the Canadian province.
- Europe’s meteorological satellite agency makes first commercial data acquisition SpaceNews · 6 Aug 2021 Europe’s meteorological satellite agency is buying commercial data for the first time, raising hopes that it will open up more agency and government contracts to the private sector.
- Maritime connectivity specialist Marlink finds another private equity buyer SpaceNews · 6 Aug 2021 U.S. private equity giant Providence Equity Partners is in exclusive talks to buy a majority stake in Marlink, the maritime connectivity provider.
- Virgin Galactic resumes ticket sales but delays start of commercial service SpaceNews · 6 Aug 2021 Virgin Galactic announced Aug. 5 it is restarting ticket sales at significantly higher prices but won’t begin flying its existing suborbital space tourism customers until the second half of next year.
- Rocket Report: Virgin Galactic ups ticket prices, Starship surge in Texas Ars Technica · 6 Aug 2021 "It has been a tough journey at times."
- SpaceX ‘sleeves’ Starship-derived propellant tank for the first time – here’s why Teslarati · 6 Aug 2021 In a small but important step towards activating a pad capable of launching the largest and most powerful rocket ever built, SpaceX...
- China launches Zhongxing-2E communications satellite SpaceNews · 6 Aug 2021 China sent the Zhongxing-2E into geosynchronous transfer orbit Thursday with the launch of a Long March 3B rocket from Xichang.
- Tory Bruno says the challenges with BE-4 are real but the engine is moving forward SpaceNews · 5 Aug 2021 United Launch Alliance underestimated the challenges Blue Origin would face in the development, testing and manufacturing of the BE-4 rocket engine, said ULA’s CEO Tory Bruno.
- SpaceX is about to stack Starship on a Super Heavy booster for the first time Teslarati · 5 Aug 2021 After a slight delay, CEO Elon Musk says that SpaceX is now on track to stack a complete Starship prototype on top...
- Australia’s first space accelerator to showcase startups amid expansion plans SpaceNews · 5 Aug 2021 Moonshot, Australia’s first space-focused accelerator, is showcasing five startups Aug. 6 to international investors as it prepares to raise its next fund.
- New Zealand and LeoLabs sign multiyear deal for Space Regulatory platform SpaceNews · 5 Aug 2021 LeoLabs and the New Zealand Space Agency (NZSA) are working together to develop a cloud-based software platform for monitoring space activity.
- Chinese rocket launches two small satellites to test communications tech Spaceflight Now · 5 Aug 2021 A Chinese rocket successfully launched Wednesday with a pair of small communications satellites reportedly linked to a secretive German company. The Chinese institute that built the satellites said they will test laser c...
- China launches Zhongxing-2E on Long March 3B NASASpaceflight · 5 Aug 2021 China’s space program successfully launched the Zhongxing-2E mission on Thursday, June 5. This is the third Chinese mission of the week, after a Hyperbola-1 launch by the private company iSpace which failed to open the p...
- Astra to make next orbital launch attempt in late August for the Space Force SpaceNews · 5 Aug 2021 Small launch vehicle developer Astra will carry a test payload for the U.S. Space Force on its next attempt to reach orbit in August.
- Blue Origin’s powerful BE-4 engine is more than four years late—here’s why Ars Technica · 5 Aug 2021 "This is a success oriented approach, but it could definitely backfire."
- Building a Mars Treasure Chest, One Test Tube at a Time NASA · 5 Aug 2021 This week, the Perseverance team here on Earth hopes to make scientific treasure hunting history on Mars.
- Missile defense space sensor made by Northrop Grumman and Ball Aerospace clears design review SpaceNews · 5 Aug 2021 A new sensor payload developed by Northrop Grumman Corporation and Ball Aerospace to detect missile launches has passed a critical design review.
- Virgin Galactic re-opens ticket sales, first commercial flight slips to late ’22 Spaceflight Now · 5 Aug 2021 Virgin Galactic, buoyed by a successful July 11 sub-orbital test flight with founder Richard Branson on aboard the company’s winged rocket plane, re-opened ticket sales Thursday for rides to space starting at $450,000 pe...
- Planet and SpaceX announce multiyear launch agreement SpaceNews · 5 Aug 2021 Planet announced a multiyear agreement Aug. 5 that designates SpaceX as the Earth-observation company’s “go-to-launch provider through the end of 2025.”
- China’s space station emerges as competitor to commercial ventures SpaceNews · 5 Aug 2021 Companies involved with commercial activities on the International Space Station or planning their own space stations may face a new competitor in China’s new space station.
- SpaceX’s historic private astronaut launch debut gets its own Netflix documentary Teslarati · 5 Aug 2021 Netflix has announced plans for a documentary that will dive deep into SpaceX’s historic Inspiration4 private astronaut launch. Headed by billionaire and...
- China places two KL-Beta satellites into orbit NASASpaceflight · 5 Aug 2021 Without previous warning or announcement, China’s space agency launched two satellites from Launch Complex 16 at the Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center on Wednesday, August 4. The two payloads, called “KL-Beta-A” and “KL-Be...
- Boeing’s Starliner capsule returns to hangar for valve troubleshooting Spaceflight Now · 5 Aug 2021 Ground teams at Cape Canaveral wheeled Boeing’s Starliner crew capsule and a United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket back inside their assembly hangar Thursday for further troubleshooting of misbehaving valves inside the S...
- Returning airline traffic boosts Viasat and Intelsat financials SpaceNews · 5 Aug 2021 The recovering in-flight connectivity (IFC) market is providing lift for satellite operators Viasat and Intelsat, which said their financial results got a boost from passengers returning to the skies.
- Keeping up busy launch schedule, China launches military telecom satellite Spaceflight Now · 5 Aug 2021 China launched a communications satellite likely designed for use by the Chinese military Thursday, keeping up a busy schedule of space missions with the country’s fourth orbital launch attempt in barely a week.