Space Minds: Rethinking the role of pharmaceuticals in low Earth orbit

Will Bruey joins the podcast from the Ascend conference

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07/27/2026 READ IN BROWSER Subscribe now and read anywhere with the SpaceNews app: Unlimited reporting and analysis – plus the monthly digital magazine – from $25/month. Get access now. SPONSORED BY In this episode, David Ariosto speaks with Varda CEO Will Bruey at the Ascend conference. They discuss how Varda hopes to play a role bridging medicine and low Earth orbit as well as the company’s successful re-entry of its space vehicle over Australia and the evolving space sector. FROM THE CONVERSATION David Ariosto: "How do you solve [transport] at scale?" Will Bruey: "The biggest risk at Varda is that we are relying on that transport of Falcon 9 missions. Varda does not work unless there is high cadence, reliable launch. Now, we have solved the reentry aspect of it. We can now have high cadence, inexpensive, reliable reentry. And that is the second half. That's why our vehicle is build explicitly for inanimate objects. It's only a meter in diameter, built for that cadence. So we're doing one part but relying on the first part." SPONSORED Arrow Electronics is a Fortune 500-ranked distributor of electronic components and enterprise computing products that helps thousands of leading manufacturers and service providers turn technology ideas into market-ready solutions. From concept and design through sourcing, integration, manufacturing, and lifecycle management, Arrow comes alongside innovators with deep engineering expertise, comprehensive supply chain services and one of the industry’s most extensive product portfolios. Whether helping enable next-generation aerospace and defense systems, AI-driven applications, industrial automation, robotics platforms or connected devices, Arrow helps its customers accelerate innovation, solve complex design challenges, and bring mission-critical technologies to market faster. Learn more. 📨 Don't miss what's next. Sign up for other SpaceNews newsletters: NEW SpaceNews Mission Brief: Orbital Data Centers: A series explaining the latest developments in the rapid race to conceive, finance, develop and launch the future of on-orbit computing. Europe Report: Tracking the policy landscape, investment climate and regional priorities driving Europe’s space ambitions. First Up: Every weekday morning, Jeff Foust delivers the day's most important industry headlines. Military Space: Veteran defense journalist Sandra Erwin with weekly news and insights for the military space professional. China Report: Biweekly news and analysis from correspondent Andrew Jones on business, politics and technology in the Chinese space industry. SpaceNews Mission Brief: Golden Dome: Explaining the Golden Dome initiative and what it means for the space industry. Editor’s Choice: Our most important recent stories you may have missed, with background and insights from editors, reporters and contributors. Opinions: A weekly digest of the latest commentary and analysis. SpaceNews This Week: The week’s top headlines and our conference coverage. Subscribe to SpaceNews This email has been sent to generalastronomy110.stnirp@blogger.com because you previously opted in to receive emails from SpaceNews. Unsubscribe here. Sign up for other SpaceNews newsletters.  SpaceNews.com  |  Advertise with SpaceNews Contact us  |  Privacy policy  |  Terms and conditions SpaceNews.com  |  Advertise with SpaceNews  |  Contact us  |  Privacy policy  |  Terms and conditions © 2026, SpaceNews, 100 Fillmore Street, 5th Floor, Denver, CO 80206, United States

Exclusive: Intel debuts new chip for space computing

07/27/2026 EXCLUSIVE Intel debuts new chip for space computing Intel Corp., one of the world’s largest semiconductor companies, has spent the past several years quietly developing a processor for satellites as the company looks to tap growing demand for onboard artificial intelligence and data processing in a market long served by specialized aerospace chip makers. The new processor, named Starfire, is undergoing testing. — By Sandra Erwin Read Now Subscribe to SpaceNews This email has been sent to generalastronomy110.stnirp@blogger.com because you previously opted in to receive breaking news alerts from SpaceNews. Unsubscribe here. Sign up for other SpaceNews newsletters.  SpaceNews.com  |  Advertise with SpaceNews Contact us  |  Privacy policy  |  Terms and conditions SpaceNews.com  |  Advertise with SpaceNews  |  Contact us  |  Privacy policy  |  Terms and conditions © 2026, SpaceNews, 100 Fillmore Street, 5th Floor, Denver, CO 80206, United States

Rocket Lab to open a launch site in Alaska

Plus: ULA grapples with financial challenges

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07/27/2026 READ IN BROWSER Submit a nomination for the 2026 Icon Awards: Tell us about the innovators, collaborators and leaders who have left their mark on the industry. Nominate an Icon today. By Jeff Foust In today's edition: Starship's lucky 13th test flight, ULA grapples with financial challenges during Vulcan grounding, Rocket Lab to launch from Alaska and more.  If someone forwarded you this edition, sign up to receive it in your inbox every weekday. Have thoughts or feedback? You can hit reply to let me know. 📲  Download the new SpaceNews mobile app FROM SPACENEWS Let SpaceNews help you close your next deal: With thousands of space professionals gathering in Salt Lake City next month, let us help you build relationships, uncover opportunities and position your company in front of the decision-makers shaping the industry's growth. Advertise in our exclusive print daily editions, sponsor show coverage on SpaceNews.com, partner with us to host an event near the Salt Palace or learn how Stellar Dispatch can amplify your announcements before and during the show. Schedule a meeting or reach out to sales@spacenews.com to start the conversation today.  Top Stories SpaceX launched it Starship vehicle on its 13th test flight Friday, completing most of its planned objectives. The vehicle lifted off from Starbase, Texas, at 6:51 p.m. Eastern on the suborbital test flight. During the 65-minute flight, Starship deployed 20 Starlink V3 satellites, which were quickly put through a series of tests before the satellites reentered. Starship also performed an in-space relight of a Raptor engine before reentry. The vehicle splashed down in the Indian Ocean and, unlike previous flights, remained intact. The Super Heavy booster, though, suffered engine problems on its attempt to perform a soft splashdown in the Gulf of Mexico. Elon Musk said after the flight that SpaceX was considering bring the Starship upper stage back to Starbase for a catch by the launch tower on the next mission. [SpaceNews] United Launch Alliance is getting a loan to deal with financial difficulties caused by the grounding of the Vulcan Centaur rocket. In a regulatory filing last week, Lockheed Martin said it agreed in the second quarter to guarantee "certain ULA borrowings" of up to $500 million, with Lockheed placing the value of its guarantee at $64 million. ULA confirmed it took the loan "to assist with ULA's near-term financial challenges" caused by the solid rocket booster issue on a Vulcan launch in February. Vulcan has not flown since that launch and ULA has not stated when it expects launches to resume. Lockheed owns a 50% stake in ULA with Boeing owning the other 50%; Boeing did not disclose if it also guaranteed loans to ULA. In its filing, Lockheed said it "and Boeing expect to provide additional financial support to ULA to support its liquidity or ongoing operations." [SpaceNews] Rocket Lab will open a launch site in Alaska as part of a Space Force contract. Rocket Lab said Monday it would operate the suborbital version of its Electron rocket from Pacific Spaceport Complex in Kodiak, Alaska, as part of a $266 million Space Force contract awarded last week. That contract calls for 12 suborbital launches from the site, starting as soon as the end of this year, with an option for six additional launches. The company has increasingly positioned its Electron-derived HASTE suborbital vehicle as a platform for hypersonic and missile defense testing, completing multiple missions for Pentagon customers in recent years. [SpaceNews] Amazon has filed plans for a constellation of more than 5,100 satellites for direct-to-device (D2D) services. The company filed an application with the FCC late Friday for the 5,105-satellite system, which would primarily use 1.6 and 2.4 gigahertz spectrum currently assigned to Globalstar. Amazon announced in April it would acquire Globalstar for about $11 billion. The satellites, operating in orbits at altitudes of 510 to 580 kilometers, would provide D2D data and messaging services and work in conjunction with Globalstar's existing satellites and the Amazon Leo broadband satellite constellation. [SpaceNews] NASA and ESA ground stations in Spain escaped major damage from wildfires there. NASA said Friday it evacuated its Deep Space Network (DSN) facility west of Madrid because of fires in the area. NASA said Saturday that initial inspections of the facility after the fires passed showed no sign of significant damage to the equipment there. The site is one of three DSN facilities, with a 70-meter and several 34-meter antennas for communicating with spacecraft. ESA also closed a ground station with a 35-meter antenna west of Madrid because of fires, but said the facility was undamaged and would resume operations on Monday. [SpaceNews] Other News A Soyuz spacecraft returned to Earth Sunday, returning three people from the International Space Station after eight months there. The Soyuz MS-28 spacecraft undocked from the ISS at 3:03 a.m. Eastern and safely touched down in Kazakhstan at 6:27 a.m. Eastern. The spacecraft returned NASA astronaut Chris Williams and Roscosmos cosmonauts Sergey Kud-Sverchkov and Sergey Mikaev, who launched to the station last November. Before their departure from the ISS, Kud-Sverchkov transferred command of the station to NASA astronaut Jessica Meir. [CBS] SpaceX launched a set of Starlink satellites from California on Saturday. A Falcon 9 lifted off from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California at 11:51 a.m. Eastern, putting 24 Starlink satellites into orbit. The launch was the seventh of eight Falcon 9 launches from Vandenberg this month, while SpaceX has performed just four Falcon 9 launches from Florida so far in July with one more scheduled. [Spaceflight Now] Blue Origin will test New Glenn upper stages at NASA's Stennis Space Center. NASA announced Friday that it signed a reimbursable Space Act Agreement with Blue Origin to allow the company to use the B-2 test stand at Stennis for static-fire tests of the second stage of New Glenn. The company has previously conducted those tests at Cape Canaveral's Launch Complex 36 but said using the Stennis site would allow it to "deconflict LC-36 launch operations." That launch site is being reconstructed after a New Glenn exploded on the pad during a static-fire test in May. The B-2 test stand was built in the 1960s for Saturn 5 tests and was mostly recently used for SLS "Green Run" tests in 2020 and 2021. [SpaceNews] Lunar Outpost will use Nvidia processors on its future lunar rovers. The company said last week it would incorporate Nvidia's Jetson GPU on its rovers to control a lidar system used for navigation. If those plans are realized, the rover would likely be the first to operate a GPU on the moon. Nvidia previously announced an agreement with Firefly Aerospace to provide Jetson GPUs for a Firefly orbiter, allowing it to process imagery. [TechCrunch] The Week Ahead Tuesday: Online: Boeing releases its second quarter financial results and holds an earnings call at 10:30 a.m. Eastern. Vandenberg Space Force Base, Calif.: Scheduled launch of a Falcon 9 carrying Starlink satellites at 10 p.m. Eastern. Wednesday: Wenchang, China: Anticipated launch of a Long March 7A with an undisclosed payload at 7:50 a.m. Eastern. Washington: The Secure World Foundation hosts a panel discussion on "An Initial Conversation: Orbital Data Centers & Space Sustainability Implications" at 11:30 a.m. Eastern. Taiyuan, China: Projected launch of a Long March 6A with an unidentified payload at 9 p.m. Eastern. Thursday: Cape Canaveral, Fla.: Scheduled launch of a Falcon 9 on the NROL-95 mission for the NRO at 3:09 a.m. Eastern. McLean, Va.: The Potomac Officers Club holds the 2026 Air and Space Summit featuring Space Force, NASA and industry officials. Saturday: Vandenberg Space Force Base, Calif.: Scheduled launch of a Falcon 9 carrying Starlink satellites at 10 a.m. Eastern. Sunday-Saturday, Aug. 8: Florence, Italy: The Committee on Space Research (COSPAR) holds its 46th Scientific Assembly with sessions on a wide range of space science topics. 📨 Don't miss what's next. Sign up for other SpaceNews newsletters: NEW SpaceNews Mission Brief: Orbital Data Centers: A series explaining the latest developments in the rapid race to conceive, finance, develop and launch the future of on-orbit computing. Europe Report: Tracking the policy landscape, investment climate and regional priorities driving Europe’s space ambitions. Military Space: Veteran defense journalist Sandra Erwin with weekly news and insights for the military space professional. SpaceNews This Week: The week’s top headlines and our conference coverage. China Report: Biweekly news and analysis from correspondent Andrew Jones on business, politics and technology in the Chinese space industry. SpaceNews Mission Brief: Golden Dome: Explaining the Golden Dome initiative and what it means for the space industry. Editor’s Choice: Our most important recent stories you may have missed, with background and insights from editors, reporters and contributors. Opinions: A weekly digest of the latest commentary and analysis. Subscribe to SpaceNews This email has been sent to generalastronomy110.stnirp@blogger.com because you previously opted in to receive First Up from SpaceNews. Unsubscribe here. Sign up for other SpaceNews newsletters.  SpaceNews.com  |  Advertise with SpaceNews Contact us  |  Privacy policy  |  Terms and conditions SpaceNews.com  |  Advertise with SpaceNews  |  Contact us  |  Privacy policy  |  Terms and conditions © 2026, SpaceNews, 100 Fillmore Street, 5th Floor, Denver, CO 80206, United States