Los Angeles CA (SPX) May 28, 2025
A breakthrough in solar imaging technology is offering scientists their clearest view yet of the Sun's corona, the ultra-hot outer layer of the solar atmosphere. Researchers at the U.S. National Science Foundation's National Solar Observatory (NSO) and the New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT) have successfully applied adaptive optics-typically used for imaging the Sun's surface-to the coron

Los Angeles CA (SPX) May 28, 2025
Redwire Corporation (NYSE: RDW) has delivered the onboard computer for the European Space Agency's Comet Interceptor mission, marking a significant milestone in the development of the pioneering spacecraft. The system, produced by Redwire's Belgian subsidiary Redwire Space NV, will act as the central processing unit for the mission, managing spacecraft systems and relaying essential data to Eart

Los Angeles CA (SPX) May 28, 2025
Rocket Lab Corporation (Nasdaq: RKLB) has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire the parent company of Geost, LLC, a specialist in electro-optical and infrared (EO/IR) payloads for national security missions. The $275 million deal includes $125 million in cash and $150 million in Rocket Lab stock, with an additional $50 million possible through performance-based earnouts. The acquisition

Houston TX (SPX) May 28, 2025
By the end of the decade, the global small satellite industry is projected to nearly double. Small satellites are critical for faster, better and more secure communications and internet solutions as well as environmental sensing, weather monitoring and national security. A team of Rice University engineering students has designed and built a safer, low-cost propulsion module for small sate

Tokyo, Japan (SPX) May 28, 2025
In response to the sharp rise in satellite deployments-now exceeding 9,850 globally-scientists are racing to protect these valuable assets from ground-based detection, particularly in the infrared spectrum. While visible and microwave detection have constraints, infrared sensors exploit low background radiation, making satellites highly vulnerable. Addressing this issue, researchers led by

Los Angeles CA (SPX) May 28, 2025
In the remote edges of planetary systems, far beyond the range of traditional planet-forming regions, astronomers have long grappled with the mystery of wide-orbit planets. These gas giants and planetary-mass bodies orbit hundreds to thousands of astronomical units (AU) from their stars, raising fundamental questions about their origins. A new study led by Rice University and the Planetary Scien

Milan, Italy (SPX) May 28, 2025
Politecnico di Milano is gearing up for a return to deep space as part of the European Space Agency's 2028 RAMSES mission, which will study the near-Earth asteroid Apophis during its exceptionally close approach on 13 April 2029. Apophis, a 350-meter-wide asteroid, will pass within 31,000 kilometers of Earth-closer than many satellites in geostationary orbit. ESA has selected Politecnico's

Los Angeles CA (SPX) May 28, 2025
The Czech Republic has taken a significant step toward launching a national astronaut into space by submitting a Letter of Intent (LOI) to Axiom Space. Signed by Minister of Transport Martin Kupka, the LOI signals the country's commitment to participating in a future human spaceflight mission with the commercial spaceflight company. The move builds upon an earlier Memorandum of Understandi

Video: 00:02:27

2025 marks a landmark year for Europe’s ‘bridge between Earth and space’. The European Space Agency’s Estrack satellite tracking network turns 50.

Since its inception in 1975, Estrack – ESA’s global network of ground stations – has formed the vital communication bridge between satellites in orbit and mission control at the European Space Operations Centre (ESOC) in Darmstadt, Germany.

Now comprising six stations spanning six countries, Estrack has grown into a strategic asset for Europe, enabling communication with spacecraft, transmitting commands and receiving scientific data.

The network keeps an eye on satellites no matter their location: