Joining forces on the complexities of clouds and aerosols
In just a few months, ESA’s EarthCARE satellite will be lofted into orbit to fill in a piece of the complex climate puzzle – that piece being how clouds and aerosols, small particles such as dust suspended in the air, affect Earth’s energy balance.
With the climate crisis upon us, this information is needed more urgently than ever – so much so, that the science of clouds and aerosols has been prioritised by the European Commission and ESA as part of their new Earth System Science Initiative.
Contract for new Galileo atomic clock tech signed
ESA, on behalf of the European Commission, has signed a €12 million contract with Leonardo S.p.A (Italy) and Istituto Nazionale di Ricerca Metrologica to design and develop a new ultra-precise atomic clock technology for Galileo.
Buy Before Build: SSC’s Commercial Space Office seeks to disrupt business as usual
SAIC scores $444 million contract to upgrade data systems at U.S. space launch sites
Webinar – Beyond Earth: Blueprint for Small Medium Business (SMB) Innovation
Astra Space goes private as it recovers from Space Coast launch failures
The value of publicly traded Astra Space has been falling since it shelved a rocket design that only went for 2 for 7 on launches, including two highly visible failures from the Space Coast. Now the company is going private.
Once valued at more than $2.1 billion, the Alameda, California-based company closed at about $20 a share on the Nasdaq Stock Market in February 2021, months before its first orbital success with its Rocket 3 design. It has since made a steady drop in value. including the threat of delisting from Nasdaq last year and the potential for bankruptcy looming.
The deal announced Thursday calls for a group that includes company cofounder and CEO Chris Kemp and cofounder and CTO Adam London to buy back company shares for $0.50 per share. The stock was trading at $0.55 on Friday morning. The closing price was $0.86 per share on Wednesday.
The takeover transaction is expected to close in the second quarter of 2024.
The company managed to reach orbit in November 2021 during a demonstration flight for the Space Force from Alaska and that led to its first launch attempt from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in March 2022.
SpaceX gets E-band radio waves to boost Starlink broadband
