Synspective tapped to provide satellite imagery for Japan’s new military constellation The project reflects a broader global shift toward using commercial remote-sensing satellites for national security missions

Former ULA chief Bruno joins Blue Origin Tory Bruno, who recently stepped down as chief executive of United Launch Alliance, is joining Blue Origin as head of the company’s new national security business unit.

Perseverance continues science mission amid uncertainty about Mars Sample Return NASA’s Perseverance Mars rover is continuing its mission to collect samples despite uncertainty about how, when or even if those samples will be returned to Earth.

Innospace plans second launch in 2026 after failure of first Hanbit-Nano rocket South Korea’s Innospace said it will attempt a second launch of its small rocket in the first half of 2026 after its inaugural flight failed shortly after liftoff Dec. 22.

Indian rocket launches AST SpaceMobile’s next-gen BlueBird-6 satellite An Indian LVM3 rocket launched AST SpaceMobile’s next-generation direct-to-device BlueBird satellite Dec. 23, kicking off a rollout of dozens of spacecraft built around the largest commercial communications antenna ever…

ESA to hire 520 new staff as workforce expansion begins in 2026 MILAN — The European Space Agency announced plans to hire approximately 520 new staff members starting in 2026, following decisions approved at ESA’s 342nd Council meeting earlier this month.  The recruitment will result in a net…

How physics AI is transforming the future of space engineering In this episode of Space Minds, host David Ariosto speaks with Juan Alonso — CTO and Co-founder of Luminary Cloud and professor at Stanford University — about the rapid transformation underway in aerospace engineering.

Long March 12A reaches orbit in first reusable launch attempt, but landing fails A first launch of the Long March 12A Chinese state-owned reusable rocket reached orbit late Monday, but attempted recovery of the first stage downrange failed.

CACI to buy space technology firm ARKA for $2.6 billion Deal deepens contractor’s push into space-based sensing and optical communications.

ULA CEO Bruno resigns Tory Bruno, the longtime chief executive of United Launch Alliance, is leaving the joint venture for another opportunity.

Microgravity Research Rideshare Program Launched by Genesis, Experiments from €6K to and from SSO 21 December 2025, Čakovec — Genesis Space Flight Laboratories launches its Microgravity Research Rideshare Program, making it easier and more affordable to conduct retrievable experiments in space.…

It’s time to unburden space cooperation with China The time is ripe to end the “Wolf Amendment,” a congressional bar inhibiting civil collaboration between the United States and China in space. The impetus for the law was noble — an attempt to challenge human rights conditions in China and prevent…

Desert Works Propulsion expands U.S. ion propulsion capability through domestic manufacturing partnership and test capacity growth New Mexico — December 22, 2025 — Desert Works Propulsion (DWP) today announced the expansion of its domestic electric propulsion development and testing capabilities…

Japan’s H3 suffers second-stage anomaly, QZS-5 satellite lost Japan’s flagship H3 rocket suffered an issue with its second stage late Sunday resulting in the loss of the Michibiki 5 (QZS-5) navigation satellite.

Isaacman emphasizes accelerating NASA programs as he takes agency’s reins New NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman said he wants NASA to move faster on programs such as Artemis but acknowledged he needs time to get up to speed on NASA’s activities.

Rocket Lab wraps up record launch year Rocket Lab successfully launched a Japanese radar imaging satellite Dec. 21 in the final flight of a record-setting year for the company.

Blue Origin flies first wheelchair user to space Blue Origin flew its final New Shepard suborbital mission of the year Dec. 20, carrying six people, including the first person who uses a wheelchair to travel to space.

NASA safety panel recommends review of Artemis plans NASA’s safety advisers are recommending that the agency reconsider its Artemis lunar landing architecture as well as how it handles incidents such as the flawed Starliner test flight.

Space Development Agency awards $3.5 billion in contracts for missile-tracking satellites L3Harris, Lockheed Martin, Rocket Lab and Northrop Grumman won contracts to build 72 satellites

Hungary’s 4iG commits to $100 million Axiom Space investment Hungarian communications provider 4iG has agreed to invest $100 million in U.S.-based space station developer Axiom Space, broadening its footprint in the space industry amid a broader push toward vertically integrated capabilities in…

ESA weighing options to address exploration funding shortfall The European Space Agency expects to decide in February how to address a 20% funding shortfall in its exploration program.

Middle East Space Conference 2026 Returns to Muscat as a Strategic Platform for Regional Growth Paris, December 2025 — The Ministry of Transport, Communications and Information Technology of the Sultanate of Oman (MTCIT) and Novaspace announce the second Edition of the Middle East Space Conference…

The hidden backbone of space security: how to keep satellites safe through proper logistics The modern space economy is increasingly powered by dual-use satellites that support both civilian services and national security needs. These assets deliver critical capabilities, from communications to…

Astrobotic secures contracts for suborbital vehicle development Astrobotic said Dec. 19 it has won $17.5 million in NASA and military contracts to develop three new reusable suborbital vehicles for technology demonstrations and other applications.

Trump signs sweeping executive order to assert U.S. dominance in space The White House issued a sweeping executive order on space policy Dec. 18 covering topics from NASA’s exploration plans to space security.

What problem is charging for Space Situational Awareness supposed to solve? A recently issued Executive Order revises how the government implements Space Policy Directive-3, removing the longstanding expectation that basic space situational awareness (SSA) services, including conjunction warnings,…

Germany awards $1.9 billion SAR satellite deal to Rheinmetall-Iceye venture New constellation would provide security for NATO’s eastern flank, German brigade in Lithuania

HawkEye 360 expands defense footprint with acquisition of Innovative Signal Analysis Deal backed by $150 million Series E equity and debt round

Congress’s SBIR standoff is slowing Space Force innovation — it must act now At a time when space is unmistakably a contested warfighting domain, the United States risks slowing its own progress not because of a lack of technology or talent, but because Congress has failed to act on renewing…

2025 was “almost a watershed year” for the Space Development Agency In this episode of Space Minds, host Mike Gruss talks with Dr. Gurpartap “GP” Sandhoo about what he calls "almost a watershed year" for the Space Development Agency.

The Army’s contribution to joint space operations Recent analysis by Reeves in the Mitchell Institute's "Charting a Path to Space Superiority: The Cross-Domain Imperative" identifies the need for centralized command and control (C2) of counterspace capabilities under U.S. Space Command to ensure…

Space community celebrates Isaacman confirmation The space community welcomed the confirmation of Jared Isaacman as NASA’s next administrator, expressing hope he can lead the agency forward and relief that a long confirmation process is over.

Things to come: Important bellwethers for space exploration in 2026 NASA is at an inflection point. 2026 will now begin with a newly-confirmed Jared Isaacman as a NASA Administrator with the White House directive to beat China back to the moon with astronauts. On the science side, we hope that…

Senate confirms Isaacman as NASA administrator The Senate confirmed Jared Isaacman as NASA administrator Dec. 17, concluding arguably the most unusual effort to select a leader in the space agency’s history.

Lux Aeterna to land first reusable satellite in Australia Denver-based Lux Aeterna announced plans Dec. 17 to land its debut reusable satellite at the Koonibba Test Range in South Australia, shortly after launching on a SpaceX rideshare mission in early 2027.

Speed, risk, and the future of national security space In this episode of Space Minds, host Mike Gruss moderates a timely panel discussion at the Spacepower conference on how commercial space capabilities are reshaping national security, civil space, and military decision-making.

What Germany got right (and wrong) in its first ever space strategy Germany’s first national space security strategy was unveiled last month to much fanfare. And who’s surprised? It was long overdue, and puts into plain language a simple but vital truth: space is now a theatre of power. With…

Max Space unveils plans for commercial space station Max Space, a startup developing expandable module technologies, plans to build a commercial space station that could launch on a single Falcon 9 rocket.

Ariane 6 launches Galileo navigation satellites An Ariane 6 rocket placed two satellites for Europe’s Galileo navigation system into orbit Dec. 17.

OQ Technology links commercial IoT chipset to LEO satellite Luxembourg-based OQ Technology said Dec. 17 it has connected a commercial IoT chipset directly to one of its LEO satellites, using internally developed software based on 3GPP mobile standards.

Digantara raises $50 million to expand from space surveillance to missile defense Digantara Industries, an Indian space situational awareness company, has raised $50 million as it expands into the United States and pursues opportunities in missile defense.

How the Space Force trains Guardians for the future of warfare In this episode of Space Minds, host Sandra Erwin sits down with former NASA astronaut and Space Force leader Brig. Gen. Nick Hague for a wide-ranging conversation on how the U.S. Space Force is shaping its culture, training Guardians,…

Trump’s national security strategy ignores space The Trump administration’s new national security strategy has rightly drawn criticism for presuming to tell our European allies how to arrange their domestic affairs. Equally as baffling is its near silence on a genuine United States national…

Vantor partners with Niantic Spatial on GPS-free navigation for defense market Firms aim to link air and ground platforms using visual positioning technology

EraDrive raises $5.3 million for software-hardware kits to enhance satellite autonomy SAN FRANCISCO – EraDrive, a Stanford University spinoff developing software and hardware for satellite autonomy, raised $5.3 million in an oversubscribed seed round, the startup announced Dec. 16. “EraDrive is…

SpaceX claims close approach to Starlink satellite by payload from Chinese launch A reported close approach between a Starlink satellite and a recently launched Chinese spacecraft highlights the challenges of coordinating spacecraft operations and verifying potential close calls in orbit.

China launches experimental cargo spacecraft, opaque tech demo mission and remote sensing satellite China conducted a pair of launches in recent days, sending a commercial cargo spacecraft and tech demo into orbit, followed by a remote sensing satellite.

MAVEN telemetry shows changes to spacecraft orbit and rotation New analysis suggests that problems with NASA’s MAVEN Mars orbiter may be more serious than a simple communications glitch.

Space Force uses AI challenge to push everyday use of artificial intelligence Senior leaders emphasize internal expertise and hands-on experimentation

Beyond the ground station: Why space data centers require a distributed RAID Low Earth orbit is undergoing the fastest expansion in its history. However, the nature of the payload is changing. We are moving past simple "bent-pipe" communication relays — where a satellite simply receives a signal…