Civil
Stories about US and international civil space missions, including those led by NASA and ESA.
NASA Launches Artemis I
We’re on our way back to the Moon. In the wee hours of the morning, NASA finally got the 322-foot-tall Artemis I off the ground. This was the third attempt to launch the $4.1B Mega Moon Rocket. Previous attempts dating back to August were foiled by leaky hydrogen lines, faulty sensors, and two hurricanes. The…
RFA Secures New Test Site for Helix Engines
Rocket Factory Augsburg has struck an agreement with the German Aerospace Center (DLR) to test its Helix engines at the historic Institute of Space Propulsion in Lampoldshausen. Who’s who in the zoo: RFA currently does all its engine testing at the Esrange Space Center in Sweden. Lampoldshausen is significantly closer to the company’s manufacturing facility…
Euroconsult Releases Space Exploration Report
Expect new players in the spacefaring game, says Euroconsult. Analysts from the space market intelligence firm have released their third annual report on the state of space exploration. Gone are the days when only a few major powers monopolized spacefaring—instead, Euroconsult sees a future where many more nations are active participants and investors in space…
Trade Groups; Industry Look Ahead to Space Council Sessions
Trade groups are urging the White House to use a “light touch” to regulate new orbital sectors, ahead of companies making their own appeals later this month. Mike French, VP for space systems at the Aerospace Industries Association, said AIA is working with members to help shape the process by which industry receives authorization for…
FCC Announces Space Bureau
The Federal Communications Commission is building a new home for space activities. Last week, FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel revealed a new plan to split the International Bureau into two distinct offices: the Office of International Affairs and the Space Bureau. The thought process: “A new Space Bureau at the FCC will ensure that the agency’s…
Australia Bans Direct-Ascent ASAT Testing
In an effort to make the orbital environment a little bit safer, Australia has joined the US-led pledge not to conduct any destructive, direct-ascent anti-satellite (ASAT) tests. The story so far: Last November, Russia fired an ASAT missile at a defunct Soviet satellite, exploding it into a cloud of 1,500+ pieces of debris that forced…
CONFERS Highlights: Policy, Transparency, and Future Plans
Government officials and industry gathered just outside DC last week at the CONFERS Global Satellite Servicing Forum to brainstorm solutions for challenges facing the satellite servicing industry. CONFERS = the Consortium for Execution of Rendezvous and Servicing Operations, an industry group with 60+ members that started in 2017. Here’s a dispatch from the two-day conference…
White House Releases National Security Strategy Report
The Biden administration’s National Security Strategy highlights America’s exploration goals and economic opportunities in orbit, but some critics say it misses the mark on national security and largely ignores threats in orbit. The 48-page, unclassified document released last week has one paragraph dedicated to America’s space ambitions, including a pledge to lead the way in…
A Dispatch from the Beyond Earth Symposium
The International Space Station has served as a beacon of international diplomacy, ground-breaking R&D, and scientific discovery for nearly 30 years. Its commercial follow-on could serve as a movie set, thanks to Axiom and its entertainment partner. The policy and regulatory challenges facing commercial space station developers were front and center at Thursday’s Beyond Earth…
SpaceX and NASA Launch Crew-5 Mission
SpaceX launched four astronauts to the ISS aboard its Crew-5 mission with NASA yesterday. The Dragon Endurance spacecraft is expected to dock with the space station today around 5pm ET. This mission had many, many milestones. First up, geopolitics. All signs point to collaboration in space, for now. The crew includes Roscosmos cosmonaut Anna Kikina,…
Looking Ahead to FY2023
Happy Fiscal New Year, Payload readers. On Oct. 1, fiscal year 2023 (FY23) officially began. As is tradition in recent years, Congress has yet to pass any of the 12 appropriations bills necessary to keep the government running for the next fiscal year. President Biden signed a continuing resolution (CR) into law on Friday, avoiding…
Q3 2022 News Roundup
Time just flies by in the space industry, and we’ve already arrived at the end of the third quarter of 2022. It was a busy quarter, full of major partnership announcements, strides in science, and a jam-packed conference season. Here are the highlights from the last three months in commercial, military, and civil space. July…
SpaceX and NASA Explore Raising Hubble’s Orbit
Hubble needs a boost, and SpaceX has stepped up to provide it. Yesterday, NASA and SpaceX announced that they’ve teamed up through an unfunded Space Act agreement to conduct a feasibility study into whether a crewed commercial mission could boost Hubble’s orbit and extend its lifetime. Hubble: an abridged history When the Hubble space telescope…
