The future of space tourism may look nothing like the sterile, utilitarian white rooms imagined in the sci-fi staples we grew up with. Instead, it could be comfortable, familiar, and focused on fostering human connection and empathy, according to Space Perspective cofounder, co-CEO and CTO Taber MacCallum. Space Perspective: The space-tourism-via-balloon startup aims to capture […]
Ukrainian firm Antonov owns and operates the largest cargo aircraft in the world. A significant portion of the company’s fleet has been grounded or destroyed since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, leaving many GEO satellites to find other rides to the launch site. Heavy-lift aircraft: Antonov’s large cargo aircraft are some of the only planes in […]
BryceTech has released its 2022 report on the state of space startups. 2021 saw record levels of investment and a record-breaking number of deals funneling into space tech. By the numbers: The startup space sector saw $9B in venture capital investment, an 82% increase YoY. There were 120 total VC deals, up 52% YoY. Overall, […]
The Space Frontier Foundation, an advocacy group with a 35-year history in the aerospace industry, has released its first survey on the state of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) in space. Why? The aerospace industry needs innovation to survive. “Innovation thrives when you bring diverse perspectives into a room together,” Ann Kapusta, Space Frontier Foundation’s […]
Redwire Space (NYSE:RDW), a space infrastructure conglomerate, released its FY2021 and Q4 financial results after the bell on Thursday. The sixth in the rush of space companies that de-SPAC’d in 2021, Redwire began trading on the NYSE in September. The company dabbled on a few key business updates, including its Nov. acquisition of 3D bioprinting […]
Space activity was up and to the right in the first three months of the calendar year. From now on, we’re going to be pulling together a quarterly roundup of the biggest news from the commercial, civil, and military space. January NASA started the year off with a bang by delivering JWST, the most powerful […]
In a victory for NGOs and activists who have been pushing for more environmental accountability in space, the UN has adopted a provision that will ban the use of mercury as a satellite propellant. The UN provision: On Saturday, the UN added satellite propulsion to a long list of banned use cases for mercury under […]
Less than a month after the budget for FY22 was finally approved, President Biden has released his budget request for FY23. NASA funding: The budget proposes $26B for NASA in 2023, $2B (~8%) increase over FY22 enacted levels. Here’s how that breaks down, taking the broad view: $7.5B for Deep Space Exploration Systems $4.3B for […]
Arianespace’s Vega C rocket’s upper stage uses engines built by Ukrainian space contractor Yuzhmash, Stéphane Israël, Arianespace CEO, said on a panel at Satellite last week. The company has three engines in storage, ESA officials said March 17. That’s not much of a strategic stockpile, especially as doubts linger that the Europeans will be able […]
NASA dreams of a future network in which superfast, globally distributed quantum computers transmit data back and forth from space nearly instantaneously, without any packet loss. Enter SEAQUE. The Space Entanglement and Annealing QUantum Experiment (SEAQUE), developed by JPL along with a team of researchers from across the world, is the next step in making […]
NASA announced yesterday that it plans to issue a call for concepts for another human lunar lander, aiming to give its original awardee, SpaceX, some competition on the Moon. New lander concept NASA plans to release a draft solicitation soon and award a second Human Landing System (HLS) contract in the new year. The new […]
ICYMI: SpaceX is hiking up prices for launch, satellite internet, and end user terminals, the company told customers Tuesday (H/T CNBC). The increases are certain to have cascading ripple effects across the space industry, while also affecting the ~250,000 consumers/businesses that use Starlink. The fine text Starlink: The broadband-via-megaconstellation service bumped up the cost of […]
