WASHINGTON — NASA’s Mars 2020 spacecraft is operating “perfectly” ahead of its Feb. 18 landing on Mars that will be a key milestone for the agency’s future Mars exploration plans.

The spacecraft is scheduled to land the rover Perseverance on the surface of Jezero Crater on Mars at about 3:55 p.m.

WASHINGTON — U.S. Space Command awarded LinQuest Corp. a $200 million contract for advisory and support services, the Defense Department announced Feb. 16.

The contract is for work performed at U.S. Space Command headquarters at Peterson Air Force Base, Colorado, between now and February 2030.

WASHINGTON — Sen. Angus King (I-Maine) was named chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee’s subcommittee on strategic forces, SASC Chairman Sen. Jack Reed (D-R.I.) and Ranking Member Sen. Jim Inhofe (R-Okla.

JOHANNESBURG — The European Space Agency announced Feb. 16 that its first call for new astronauts in more than a decade will be open to candidates with physical disabilities.

During a briefing with reporters, ESA officials said the agency plans to recruit four to six career astronauts and a pool of approximately 20 reserve astronauts, a first for ESA.

WASHINGTON — Axiom Space announced Feb. 16 it has raised $130 million from a group of investors, allowing the company to push ahead with its long-term ambitions of establishing a private space station.

The Series B round was led by C5 Capital, a firm that invests in cybersecurity and “closely aligned” sectors, including space.

WASHINGTON — Small launch vehicle developer ABL Space Systems will launch two satellites for L2 Aerospace on the first flight of its RS1 rocket this spring, the companies announced Feb. 16.

The two satellites developed by L2, a company founded by Lance Lord, a retired Air Force general and former head of Air Force Space Command, will be used to rapidly test new technology and support training activities, according to a statement the companies.