Virgin Orbit, the airborne small-satellite rocket launch upstart that announced its intent to go public Aug. 23, apparently will build and offer a fleet of Earth-observation and internet of things (IoT) satellites starting in 2023, according to investor materials.
NASA has postponed plans for an Aug. 24 spacewalk outside the International Space Station (ISS) by U.S. and Japanese astronauts due to a “minor medical issue” involving NASA astronaut Mark Vande Hei.
Australia has approved a launch permit for tiSPACE, a Taiwanese rocket startup, to test launch its Hapith I rocket from the Whalers Way Orbital Launch Complex by the end of 2021.
Despite the worldwide pandemic, the global space economy grew 4.4% last year to reach $447 billion, with the commercial sector accounting for the bulk of the increase, a new Space Foundation report shows.
General Atomics is gearing up to begin flights with its SkyGuardian unmanned air system (UAS) in the UK in the coming days after the UK Civil Aviation Authority gave the green light for flight operations.
Virgin Orbit, the small-satellite launching startup under aerospace entrepreneur Richard Branson’s portfolio that started operations this year, plans to end 2021 as a publicly traded company after a reverse merger with a special purpose acquisition company, executives announced Aug. 23.
A recent ruling by a U.S. Court of Federal Claims judge adds a new landmark in an ongoing legal war over data rights as the Defense Department seeks to inject competition into the huge business of sustaining decades-old weapon systems.
The Progressive Policy Institute, a Washington think tank, has joined with the National Space Society in calling on U.S. policymakers to pursue a joint NASA and Department of Energy-led space solar power generation capability.
Chinese state media reported on the launch of the weapon without specifying the designation, but the images suggest the system strongly resembles the Dong Feng-15B class of missile with a new series of warhead.
Collins Aerospace is to develop an environmental control and life-support system (ECLSS) for a privately owned and operated outpost in low Earth orbit for an unidentified customer.
Millennium Space Systems says last month’s early re-entry of an experimental spacecraft successfully demonstrated the ability of deployable tape technology to significantly accelerate de-orbiting a satellite.
The third CRAF call-up in 41 years will include three aircraft each from American Airlines, Atlas Air, Delta Air Lines and Omni Air; two from Hawaiian Airlines and four from United Airlines.
A Coalition aircraft shot down an unmanned aircraft system (UAS) with an air-to-air missile near a U.S. military base in eastern Syria on Aug. 21, U.S. Central Command told Aviation Week.
The rise of launch companies like SpaceX and Rocket Lab have shown the U.S. government how it can leverage the investment of private companies to reduce its costs and improve its technologies.
The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency has set up a joint research framework with domestic manufacturers and Boeing with the objective of commercializing noise reduction technology demonstrated under its Fquroh research program.
An EC-130SJ and a C-17A have airdropped pallets containing simulated cruise missiles during demonstrations at White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico, the U.S. Air Force said on Aug. 20.
Low-Earth-orbit launch upstart Rocket Lab will become a publicly traded company Aug. 25 after shareholders approved a reverse merger with Vector Acquisition, a special purpose acquisition company, grossing three-quarters of a billion dollars for the 15-year-old rocket company.
U.S. Transportation Command has asked launch companies and academics to provide cost estimates for delivering military cargo via space over the next 20 years.
Unlike some planetary destinations, the asteroid Psyche was never the target of a spacecraft flyby before becoming an orbital destination for a $1 billion NASA probe, which is adding to the challenge as the Psyche mission team prepares for a planned launch one year from now.
A request for information for a new aerial target to replicate the latest Russian and Chinese fighters restarts a dialogue that has been dormant since 2019.
