SpaceNews : Astro Digital to plug into Star Catcher solar-energy grid
[[{“value”:” PARIS – Astro Digital announced plans Sept. 16 to purchase and distribute power from Florida startup Star Catcher’s future space-based energy grid. The goal is to enable ESPA-class satellites like Astro Digital’s Corvus XL to obtain more power than they could generate on their own. “Demand is growing exponentially for small satellites that can […]
SpaceNews : Josef Aschbacher on geopolitics and Europe’s changing space debate
[[{“value”:” PARIS – Josef Aschbacher, the head of the European Space Agency, said member states are quickly changing how they view space, from its role in geopolitics, to the need for sovereign capabilities to working more closely with their national security counterparts. During a Sept. 15 interview here at World Space Business Week, Aschbacher, the […]
SpaceNews : How SpaceX turned a Texas marsh into the world’s most watched spaceport
[[{“value”:” EDITOR’S NOTE: Starbase is SpaceX’s massive rocket development site and the home of Starship — the vehicle Elon Musk envisions as humanity’s path to Mars and that many in the U.S. civil space program see as a way back to the moon. But Starbase started as little more than an impossible stretch of empty […]
SpaceNews : SDA picks GMV to build next-generation space safety system
[[{“value”:” TAMPA, Fla. — The Space Data Association (SDA) has picked Spanish technology provider GMV to upgrade and operate its global space traffic coordination platform starting early next year, the non-profit group of satellite operators announced Sept. 16. The Space Safety Portal (SSP), which ingests flight dynamics information from SDA members and public sources to […]
SpaceNews : Isar Aerospace prepares for second Spectrum launch
[[{“value”:” PARIS — A loss of attitude control and an open valve contributed to the loss of Isar Aerospace’s first Spectrum rocket in March as the company gears up for a second flight. In a Sept. 15 briefing held in conjunction with World Space Business Week, company executives discussed the outcome of the investigation into […]
SpaceNews : Telesat pitches Lightspeed as stopgap to Europe’s IRIS²
[[{“value”:” TAMPA, Fla. — Canada’s Telesat is pitching Lightspeed as a bridge to IRIS² as its low Earth orbit (LEO) broadband constellation is set to come online in 2027, at least three years before Europe’s sovereign multi-orbit network is due to enter service. “We believe there’s a great opportunity for the Government of Canada to […]
SpaceNews : Inside ESA’s vision with Josef Aschbacher
[[{“value”:” [embedded content] In this week’s special CEO Series edition of Space Minds, we’re at the World Space Business Week in Paris. In today’s episode, SpaceNews editor Mike Gruss talks with Josef Aschbacher, Director General of the European Space Agency. They discuss Europe’s case for greater investment in space, the growing role of defense and […]
SpaceNews : York Space hits milestone with largest satellite delivery yet
[[{“value”:” WASHINGTON — York Space Systems’ recent delivery of 21 satellites for the U.S. military marks the company’s largest batch to date, a milestone its chief executive says reflects years of investment in scaling up production for constellation-level programs. The satellites, launched Sept. 10, are the first plane of the Space Development Agency’s (SDA) Tranche […]
SpaceNews : Swissto12 clears PDR for debut small GEO D2D satellite
[[{“value”:” TAMPA, Fla. — Swissto12 has completed the Preliminary Design Review for its first direct-to-device connectivity satellite, the Swiss small geostationary spacecraft manufacturer announced Sept. 15. The company announced a contract in March to deliver the 1,000-kilogram Neastar-1 satellite for Singapore’s Astrum Mobile, which aims to provide low-bandwidth multimedia and connectivity services across Asia. Roughly […]
SpaceNews : Launch companies double down on increasing flight rates despite setbacks
[[{“value”:” PARIS — Launch companies are reiterating plans to sharply increase flight rates to meet growing government and commercial demand, even as some fall short of earlier projections. Executives speaking at a Sept. 15 panel at the World Space Business Week conference highlighted efforts to scale up flights of new vehicles that have entered service […]