We are approaching a watershed moment in the future of the U.S. Space Force. Will all space systems be consolidated into the new service, or will the other services retain some capabilities and personnel? The 2021 National Defense Authorization Act requires the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and the service chiefs to report on the space-related missions and expertise that should remain within each service.

There was no clearer set of contrasts between how SpaceX and NASA approach launch vehicle development than the dueling tests the two performed in early December of Starship and Space Launch System, respectively.

It was hard to miss the Dec.

In recent commercial space acquisitions, founders largely have remained with the businesses they established or moved on to form new space companies. Two exceptions are Roccor co-founder Doug Campbell and Scott Larson, who co-founded UrtheCast and Helios Wire.

Menlo Park CA (SPX) Dec 24, 2020
Space Electric Thruster System (SETS), a Noosphere Ventures aerospace company, will undergo field testing in Low Earth Orbit (LEO) as part of the debut launch of the Firefly Aerospace Alpha rocket, which is scheduled for the beginning of 2021 from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, U.S.A. "The goal of the first SETS mission is to demonstrate and confirm the space worthiness and perfo

Beijing (XNA) Dec 23, 2020
Five days after China concluded its historic 23-day Chang'e 5 lunar mission, Chinese space engineers made a new achievement with the debut flight of the country's newest carrier rocket. The Long March 8, the latest in China's Long March launch vehicle fleet, lifted off at 12:37 pm on Tuesday from a coastal launchpad at the Wenchang Space Launch Center in southern China's Hainan province.

Aalborg, Danmark (SPX) Dec 23, 2020
GomSpace has signed the second FACSAT-2 contract to support advanced science and technology activities to enhance the satellite capabilities of the Colombian Airforce. The contract and collaboration consist of a three-party agreement between CODALTEC / Colombian Air Force ("FAC") and GomSpace to continue the FACSAT-2 satellite mission and associated intensive virtual technology transfer program.

Kourou, French Guiana (SPX) Dec 23, 2020
For its 10th and final launch of the year - and the fifth in 2020 with the Soyuz medium launcher - Arianespace will send the CSO-2 Earth observation satellite, intended for defense and security applications, into Sun-synchronous orbit. CSO-2 will be launched for the French CNES (Centre National d'Etudes Spatiales) space agency and the DGA (Direction generale de l'armement) defense procurem

Bethesda MD (SPX) Dec 21, 2020
Lockheed Martin has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Aerojet Rocketdyne Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: AJRD) for $56 per share in cash, which is expected to be reduced to $51 per share after the payment of a pre-closing special dividend. This represents a post-dividend equity value of $4.6 billion and a total transaction value of $4.4 billion including the assumption of net cash.

United Nations (SPX) Dec 18, 2020
NASA and the United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs (UNOOSA) have signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) pledging cooperation in areas of science and technology to support the peaceful use of outer space. The MOU, signed Thursday, Dec. 17, brings together NASA's wealth of publicly available Earth observation data and dynamic exploration opportunities with UNOOSA's unique positio

Boston MA (SPX) Dec 17, 2020
A new study illuminates surprising choreography among spinning atoms. In a paper appearing in the journal Nature, researchers from MIT and Harvard University reveal how magnetic forces at the quantum, atomic scale affect how atoms orient their spins. In experiments with ultracold lithium atoms, the researchers observed different ways in which the spins of the atoms evolve. Like tippy balle