Thursday, December 11, 2025

Spacepower 2025: Blue Origin's four-flight path to certification

12/11/2025

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Blue Origin targets four-flight campaign for New Glenn's path to Space Force certification

By Sandra Erwin

Blue Origin's New Glenn rocket will have to complete four successful orbital flights as its pathway to certification under the U.S. Space Force's National Security Space Launch program, Lt. Gen. Philip Garrant said Dec. 10 at the Spacepower conference.

Garrant, who leads the Space Systems Command, said Blue Origin selected the four-flight benchmark and the government agreed. "The government is supporting a four-flight certification for New Glenn," he told reporters. The rocket has logged two successful missions so far, and Garrant said a third launch is expected "earlier in the new year than later." If upcoming flights stay on track, he added, "I think they're going to be in a fantastic place to become our third certified provider and compete for missions."

Multiple space companies join NATO's DIANA defense accelerator

NATO has picked 150 companies from 24 of its member countries to join its Defence Innovation Accelerator for the North Atlantic (DIANA) next year, including more than two dozen with ties to the space sector.

Voyager wins $21 million Air Force contract for AI-driven signals processing

Voyager Technologies secured a $21 million U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory contract to develop artificial intelligence-enabled signals processing tools. The work centers on software and computing techniques that can interpret raw intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance data collected by sensors.

L3Harris satellite-jamming system approved for export to close U.S. allies
A ground-based satellite-jamming system made by L3Harris Technologies for the U.S. Space Force has been approved for potential export to select American allies, marking a rare expansion of foreign access to sensitive electromagnetic-warfare tools.

Muon Space to develop sensor payload for missile defense satellites

Muon Space has secured a $1.9 million contract to develop an infrared sensing payload for missile detection and tracking, the startup announced Dec. 9. The award is a Small Business Innovation Research Direct to Phase 2 contract from SpaceWERX, the U.S. Space Force's technology arm. The Direct to Phase 2 path lets companies skip an initial feasibility study and move straight to prototype development.

LeoLabs lands interagency contract to feed TraCSS and track adversarial spacecraft

LeoLabs said Dec. 9 it won an interagency contract to provide space-surveillance data for the U.S. government, supporting adversarial spacecraft monitoring and the TraCSS orbital traffic coordination platform due to enter full service early next year.

Helsing and Kongsberg plot multi-mission European defense space network

Two defense technology companies from Norway and Germany have joined forces to bolster Europe's sovereign intelligence and communications capabilities, with plans to start deploying small satellites in about three years.

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Space Minds: Building the future of space defense

12/11/2025

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"Across all these areas — strategic weapons, space-based interceptors, tactical systems — there's just not enough scale. Our goal is to provide those enabling technologies at scale."

Gruss and Magaña discuss how the mission has outpaced traditional development cycles, demanding speed, scalability and commercial-style production across both space and weapons programs. Magaña explains how Voyager is carving out a role not as an end-to-end prime contractor, but as a critical enabler — identifying technology gaps, investing in high-impact capabilities and helping partners scale.

From next-generation propulsion systems and solid-rocket manufacturing to AI, machine learning and dual-use electronics, the conversation highlights the technologies that will shape Golden Dome's future.

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