Despite growing enthusiasm in Europe for achieving autonomy in space infrastructure, significant doubts remain about the feasibility of IRIS², a major government-backed satellite communications constellation project aimed at providing secure connectivity across Europe. The Infrastructure for Resilience, Interconnectivity and Security by Satellite (IRIS²) initiative, backed by a consortium known as SpaceRISE, aims to deploy a constellation of satellites in medium and low Earth orbit to deliver broadband and secure communications. European governments and companies signed contracts in December to begin development, with the project currently in a one-year design phase expected to conclude with a critical review by the end…
Author: Michael Hughes
Astronstone, one of China’s newest commercial space startups, announced it has raised over 100 million yuan ($13.9 million) in early-stage funding to develop a stainless steel, reusable rocket inspired by SpaceX’s Starship system. Founded in mid-2024, Astronstone is developing its AS-1 launch vehicle, a 70-meter tall, 4.2-meter diameter rocket powered by a customized version of the 80-ton-thrust Longyun engine from Jiuzhou Yunjian, a commercial Chinese rocket engine manufacturer. The AS-1 features a “chopsticks” style first-stage recovery system designed to catch the returning booster, enabling rapid reuse. The rocket is designed to carry up to 15,700 kilograms to low Earth orbit…
Chinese commercial rocket firm Sepoch has successfully conducted a vertical takeoff and soft splashdown test of its Yuanxingzhe-1 (YXZ-1), a key milestone ahead of a potential orbital launch of the reusable vehicle later this year. The verification rocket lifted off from an elevated platform at the Haiyang spaceport in Shandong province at 4:40 p.m. Eastern (2040 GMT) on May 28, Sepoch, officially known as Beijing Jianyuan Technology Co., said in a statement. The test vehicle, also called Hiker-1 in English, reached an altitude of around 2.5 kilometers during the 125-second flight before performing a controlled propulsive descent and splashdown into…
SpaceX is preparing to launch the U.S. military’s latest Global Positioning System (GPS) satellite, GPS III SV-08, on May 30 from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, Florida, after the mission was reassigned from United Launch Alliance’s (ULA) Vulcan rocket due to ongoing delays. The satellite, built by Lockheed Martin, will be the eighth in the advanced GPS III series and brings improved anti-jamming capabilities and more secure signals to strengthen the U.S. military’s navigation and positioning network. The reassignment of SV-08 marks the second consecutive switch of a GPS mission from ULA to SpaceX’s Falcon 9, as the Pentagon prioritizes…
China is advancing a state-driven campaign to dominate global artificial intelligence through an expanding network of domestic data centers and an emerging space-based computing architecture, according to a new report. The report, titled “China’s AI Infrastructure Surge,” was published by the Special Competitive Studies Project and Strider Technologies. It describes how Beijing is coordinating with local governments and the private sector to build over 250 AI-oriented data centers across the country, with efforts increasingly extending into orbit to support both civilian and military objectives. “The PRC is executing a state-directed campaign to dominate global artificial intelligence,” the report states, calling…
The Japanese Ministry of Defense has selected Space BD and Space One to launch a small optical imaging satellite, marking a milestone in the country’s growing reliance on commercial space services for national security applications. The companies announced Tuesday they had secured a contract to launch the satellite, which will be built by Canon Electronics. While the value and timeline of the launch were not disclosed, the mission underscores Japan’s push to expand its defense capabilities through space-based assets. Under the agreement, Space BD will manage the launch services, while Space One will conduct the actual launch using its Kairos…
The U.S. Space Force has awarded Lockheed Martin a $509.7 million contract for two more Global Positioning System (GPS) satellites, expanding the military’s investment in the advanced GPS III Follow-on (GPS IIIF) constellation aimed at bolstering both civilian and defense navigation services. The new satellites, GPS IIIF-21 and IIIF-22, are scheduled for delivery by 2031, according to a contract announcement issued Tuesday. The order is part of a broader agreement signed in 2018 that allows for procurement of up to 22 satellites in total. With this latest option exercised, the Space Force has now ordered 12 spacecraft under the contract,…
China has intensified its space launch schedule with two recent missions, deploying a Long March 7A rocket to geosynchronous orbit and a Ceres-1 solid rocket from a sea platform into low Earth orbit, marking the country’s 28th and 29th orbital launch attempts this year. A Long March 7A lifted off from the Wenchang Satellite Launch Center on Hainan island at 7:50 a.m. Eastern (1150 UTC) on May 20, successfully placing the ChinaSat 3B (Zhongxing-3B) communications satellite into orbit, according to the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (CASC). The satellite, developed by the China Academy of Space Technology (CAST), is…
SpaceX has disclosed the cause of the Starship Flight 8 failure, revealing it stemmed from a hardware issue in one of its Raptor engines—distinct from the anomaly that led to the loss of Flight 7. The new details come as the company prepares for the vehicle’s next test flight, now scheduled for no earlier than May 27. The March 6 Flight 8 test ended in failure when multiple engines on the Starship upper stage shut down, causing the vehicle to tumble and ultimately break up during reentry over the Caribbean. While the failure occurred around the same point in the…
Satellite transport company Impulse Space has signed a multi-launch agreement with Luxembourg-based satellite operator SES to deliver satellites to medium and geostationary Earth orbits, beginning with a 2027 mission using Impulse’s Helios transfer vehicle. Under the agreement, Impulse will use its Helios kick stage to carry a four-ton SES satellite from low Earth orbit (LEO) to geostationary orbit (GEO) in less than eight hours. The companies did not disclose the satellite model or the launch provider for the mission. Additional opportunities for transporting SES payloads to GEO or medium Earth orbit (MEO) are included under the broader agreement. This marks…