Chinese Satellite Achieves High-Speed Space-to-Ground Laser Comms
Chang Guang, a Chinese satellite operator, successfully achieved 10 Gbps satellite-to-ground laser communication via a Jilin-1 satellite, the company announced last week. The downlink speed surpassed a previous record of 1 Gbps via radio frequency connectivity. The first laser demonstration downlink included a satellite picture of Doha, Qatar. Beam me down, Scotty: Laser communication’s higher…
The ROI in Space Sustainability
In 2012, there were just over 1,000 active satellites in orbit. There are now 10,000, ~2,700 of which were deployed in the last 12 months. During the early days of the space economy, satellite operators could overlook spacecraft longevity and collision risk. This is no longer the case. As the space economy matures, space sustainability…
Asteroid Day 2023
Each year on this day, the UN honors a little-known event called Asteroid Day. On Asteroid Day, we remember the 1908 Tunguska asteroid, which entered the atmosphere over Siberia and leveled more than 2000 sq km of forest. The event is dedicated to raising public awareness of the risk of asteroid impacts and the importance…
AST SpaceMobile Raises $59.4M, Stock Craters
AST SpaceMobile ($ASTS) stock plunged nearly 30% this week after the cash-strapped company announced Tuesday it had raised $59.4M in a steep discount public offering. The satellite manufacturer sold 12.5M shares at ~$4.75 a pop, well below the ~$6.50 price tag the shares were trading at before the offering. Space → Mobile: The Odessa, TX-based…
Edgybees’ American Hive is Buzzing, Officials Say
Ken Campbell, the newly-tapped head of Edgybee’s US arm, told Payload that it was an “easy decision” to come out of retirement to work with Edgybees because he believes the company’s tech will be so helpful to troops. Campbell, who served for 25 years as a Navy explosive ordnance disposal officer, has only been in…
Advanced Navigation Nabs $3.4M for Lunar Landing Tech
Advanced Navigation, a lunar navigation startup, won an AUD 5.2M ($3.4M) Australian Space Agency grant to accelerate development of its lunar lander LiDAV sensor tech, the company announced yesterday. The funding supports NASA’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services. “By helping Australian organizations like Advanced Navigation to develop their space heritage, they can break into new markets…
World’s First Constellation for Wildfire Monitoring
Canada is experiencing its most severe wildfire season on record, with emissions from the fires at their highest levels since satellite monitoring began in 2003. In a bid to help responders better control the spread of wildfires in the future, OroraTech, a startup founded in 2018 as a Technical University of Munich spin-off, aims to…
Ramon.Space Raises $26M
Space computing company Ramon.Space closed a $26M strategic financing round, just on the heels of finalizing a key manufacturing partnership with Foxconn subsidiary, Ingrasys, the company announced this morning. Ingrasys and the UAE Strategic Development Fund provided the bulk of the financing, with some participation from existing investors. Ramon.Space has raised more than $45M so…
State Sees a ‘Significant Uptick’ in Global Space Collaboration
The Biden administration’s “very intentional” effort to make space part of its international engagement has boosted the number of partners interested in collaborating with the US in orbit, the State Department’s Valda Vikmanis-Keller told Payload. Last week, Ecuador and India became the 26th and 27th nations to join the Artemis Accords. Just a few months…
Mitchell Institute Encourages the Development of Counterspace Capabilities
It’s about time for the US Space Force to start seriously building out its counterspace capabilities, the Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studies argues in a report released yesterday. The report looks at what threats US assets face in space, particularly from China, and encourages the USSF to start building out its own arsenal of military…
Biden Administration Highlights Climate, DEI Efforts
The Biden administration hosted a pair of events last week showcasing two of its top priorities for space: fighting climate change and promoting diversity in the industry. A warming climate: On Wednesday morning, NASA hosted a ribbon cutting for its Earth Information Center, an interactive exhibit at the space agency’s HQ in DC that’s been…
NASA Axes its X-57 Maxwell Electric Aircraft
NASA is pulling the plug on its experimental all-electric X-57 Maxwell aircraft before it ever hit the air, the agency announced on Friday. Officials cited safety concerns as the reason for the cancellation, but the decision comes at a time of overall belt-tightening at NASA, with budget pressures coming down the pike. Electric plane: The…
