Jack Kuhr
China to Invest Heavily in its Race to the Moon
China has set out a roadmap to compete with the Artemis program in a race to the Moon, grabbing the attention of NASA and lawmakers. As NASA pursues increased funding to ensure the US lands first, questions remain regarding China’s ability to finance the endeavor. “China’s funding is a bit of a black box,” said…
Terran Orbital Reports Q1 Results
Terran Orbital’s ($LLAP) losses piled up despite progress on its monster $2.4B Rivada contract, the satellite bus manufacturer revealed Monday in its Q1 financial results. By the numbers: Rivada’s three-year, 300 satellite contract accounts for the vast majority of the backlog. Terran received its first milestone payment from the contract last month as it inches…
ULA Conducts Vulcan Testing Ahead of Maiden Flight
ULA rolled its Vulcan rocket to the pad Friday and completed tank testing ahead of its expected first flight readiness firing test for the rocket’s BE-4 engine later this week. “With success here, and a resolution of the Centaur V ground test anomaly, we are projecting for a Vulcan Cert-1 Launch this summer,” said ULA…
Momentus Cash Dwindles Further in Q1 Results
Momentus ($MNTS) notched a number of key milestones this quarter, but continues to stare down a dangerously depleting cash reserve, the company revealed yesterday in its Q1 financial results. By the numbers: Proving out space tug: The company has two functioning spacecraft in orbit. “We are now operating Vigoride-5 and Vigoride-6 concurrently, and both missions…
Virgin Galactic Releases Q1 Results, Details Upcoming Flight
Virgin Galactic ($SPCE) is returning to space after a nearly two-year hiatus. The company provided further details on the upcoming crewed test flight yesterday, along with its Q1 financial results. By the numbers: Virgin Galactic burned through $136M of operating cash in Q1 as it prepares for its first commercial flight and invests heavily in…
Rocket Lab Launches NASA’s Storm Chaser Cubesats
Two NASA storm-tracking satellites lifted off aboard Rocket Lab’s Electron launch vehicle last night in New Zealand, putting the first half of the planned four-satellite constellation into orbit. The “Rocket Like A Hurricane” mission was the first of two launches that will build the Time-Resolved Observations of Precipitation structure and storm Intensity with a Constellation…
Kratos Reports Q1 Results, Sees Space Services Growth
Kratos ($KTOS) is going all-in on space services after growing investment in the division drove strong overall sales growth, the company revealed Wednesday in its Q1 financial results. Overall financials: Breaking out space, satellite and cyber: In the first quarter, Kratos spent $10.2M on R&D, including significant investment in its growing OpenSpace software. OpenSpace is…
Airbus, SES, Eutelsat, Hispasat, and Thales Band Together for IRIS2
In the ultimate example of competitors coming together, Europe’s largest satellite companies announced yesterday that they are joining forces to bid on the EU’s IRIS2 program contracts. Airbus, SES, Eutelsat, Hispasat, and Thales said the partnership will “leverage the expertise and capabilities in the field of secure satellite communications solutions,” according to a joint press…
University of Texas Races Towards the Kármán Line with its Liquid-Fueled Rocket
The University of Texas Rocket Engineering Lab is set to hot fire test its engine today as it ramps up to a Kármán Line launch attempt in 2024. UT is one of 20+ schools racing to be the first collegiate group to launch a liquid-fueled rocket to space. Although the Kármán Line has been achieved…
China Reveals Designs for a Fully-Reusable Rocket
China unveiled plans for a fully-reusable Long March 9 rocket configuration Sunday at its 2023 Space Day ceremony in Hefei, China. The CNSA aims to begin testing the vehicle, which looks a lot like Starship, by the late 2030s. The fully reusable configuration is noteworthy given China has still yet to nail a partially reusable…
Starship Lifts Off in Historic Launch, Clearing Max Q Before Exploding Midair
SpaceX’s Starship made history yesterday with its first-ever orbital launch attempt that notched a lot of successes and one very fiery failure. With tens of thousands of launch enthusiasts watching from South Texas and millions more tuning in virtually worldwide, the rocket cleared the pad, reached Max Q, and soared to an altitude of 39…
North Korea Says it’s Set to Launch its First Military Spy Satellite
North Korea’s military is getting ready to expand to orbit with the launch of its first spy satellite, leader Kim Jong Un announced Wednesday, according to an AP report. North Korea in space: The Hermit Kingdom has previously launched three non-military satellites to orbit: one experimental comms satellite in 2009 and two EO satellites in…
VC Investment in the Space Industry Sees Lowest Numbers Since 2021
VCs invested $310.7M in the US space industry during the first quarter of 2023, according to new Pitchbook data. It’s the lowest amount since Q3 of 2021, but the 24 deals closed in the quarter is comparable to last quarter. The biggest deals ranged across different segments of the industry from launch to manufacturing. These…
