SpaceRef

NASA Letter To FCC Regarding SpaceX Starlink Gen 2 System

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) submits this letter in response to the amendment (SAT-AMD-20210818-00105) filed by Space Exploration Holdings, LLC (SpaceX) for a ...
SpaceRef

Like a G60 — What’s China Planning with its Other NGSO?

Rendering of “G60 Starlink” Industrial Base. Image credit: ChinaNews.com / Yangtse. For some time, we have been hearing public statements from Chinese decision-makers regarding the country’s LEO ...
SpaceRef

Starship Launch Possible in October, Though Environment Permit Questions Remain Open

The SpaceX Starship sits on the Starbase launch pad in Boca Chica, Texas prior to its first test flight. Image credit: SpaceX. The Federal Aviation Administration’s (FAA) acting administrator, Polly ...
SpaceRef

China’s Answer To Starlink Gets A Call from the Central Government

If I may start with a tired, but extremely true pun: covering the Chinese space industry inevitably involves a lot of reading of tea leaves. Speeches and press releases are full of party jargon. The ...
SpaceRef

SpeQtral-1 will serve as a pathfinder commercial demonstrator for future quantum key distribution services

SpeQtral, a leading quantum communication technology company, has chosen Kongsberg NanoAvionics (NanoAvionics) as the satellite bus provider for its upcoming SpeQtral-1 mission. The second partner in ...
SpaceRef

Memorandum of Understanding Between The National Aeronautics And Space Administration and The United States Space Force

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and the United States Space Force (USSF), through this Memorandum of Understanding (MOU), affirm a strong interest in continuing their ...
SpaceRef

Economic Opportunity Created Through Sustained Lunar Habitation by 2040

NASA illustration of a future lunar outpost. Image credit: NASA. The concept of lunar habitation holds profound implications for scientific exploration, resource utilization, and the expansion of ...
SpaceRef

China Lays Out Plan to Accelerate Lunar Ambitions

CNSA Director Zhang Kejian with ESA Director Josef Aschbacher in June 2023. Image credit: CNSA. China’s lunar program has rapidly evolved into one of the world’s most comprehensive and impressive. As ...
SpaceRef

Ball Aerospace, NASA Complete Primary Instrument for Roman Space Telescope

Ball Aerospace and its partners at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center have successfully completed assembly of the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope’s camera system, called the Wide Field Instrument ...
SpaceRef

Sierra Space Working with NASA on Crewed Dream Chaser

Dream Chaser shuttle during taxi tests at NASA’s Armstrong Flight Test Center in California. Image credit: Sierra Space. Sierra Space is working with NASA to develop a crewed version of its Dream ...
SpaceRef

Mimicking the Moon – Here’s the (Simulant) Dirt

Lunar simulant is used to test a rover at Michigan Tech’s Planetary Surface Technology Development Lab. Image credit: Michigan Technological University. There is a growing business in selling fake ...
SpaceRef

NASA and Freelancer.com Seek Ideas for Refilling Propellant in Space

Illustration of Pathfinder Technology Demonstrator-1 spacecraft, demonstrating a water-based propulsion system in low-Earth orbit. Image credit: NASA. NASA recently announced its latest challenge with ...