Plus: Europe delays the release of Copernicus images
By Jeff Foust
In today's edition: Poland contributes to IRIS², Europe delays release of Copernicus images of the Persian Gulf, a step forward for mission authorization and more.
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FROM SPACENEWS |
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Someone you know belongs on this list: Whatever category fits — technology, sustainability, defense, advocacy or an entire career's worth of impact — the Icon Awards are built to recognize achievements across the industry. Tell us about the innovators, collaborators and change-makers whose contributions have left a lasting mark. Nominations for this year's awards are open now through Aug. 14, and we want to hear from you. Submit your picks. |
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Top Stories
Poland has agreed to contribute $745 million to Europe's IRIS² constellation. The funding, announced this week. will go toward financing six medium Earth orbit and six low Earth orbit satellites. Poland's participation in IRIS² could also provide multiple business opportunities for more than 400 companies active in the country's space sector. IRIS² is the multi-orbit secure connectivity constellation spearheaded by the European Commission with a projected cost of $12 billion. [SpaceNews]
The European Commission will delay the release of some Copernicus imagery of the Persian Gulf region at the request of the United States. A new Council of the EU decision requires the European Commission to apply a 24-hour delay on the release of Sentinel-1 radar and Sentinel-2 multispectral imagery on a region that encompasses shipping routes leading to and from the Strait of Hormuz, a region relevant to the U.S.'s war against Iran. The published decision does not specify when the delay took effect or when it will be reviewed. Many commercial satellite operators have also agreed to delay or withhold imagery of the region. [SpaceNews]
More than two dozen major NASA programs say they have been hurt by agency workforce reductions. A GAO report released Thursday assessing major NASA programs said that 25 of 36 projects included in its assessment reported feeling effects from workforce reductions last year that included the departure of more than 20% of the agency's civil servant workforce. Some programs reported problems filling key positions and, in some cases, replanned work as a result. Those workforce issues have not had an immediate impact on cost and schedule, but the report warned they could have a bigger impact in the future. NASA has worked to hire more civil servants, largely involving existing contractors, and also announced earlier this year "NASA Force," a program to bring in technical talent from the private sector on short-term assignments. [SpaceNews]
The Office of Space Commerce is pressing ahead with its mission authorization plans for novel space activities. The office announced Thursday it would soon publish a "call for interest" for companies interested in its Space Commerce Certification, a voluntary program where companies would provide information on their space activities that would then undergo an interagency review. The system is designed to provide regulatory certainty for new commercial space activities not regulated by other agencies. The office did not disclose what led it to move ahead on the certification program, announced in March, but at a hearing last week, the office's director said he was awaiting White House approval. [SpaceNews]
The U.S. Air Force has taken control of the Pentagon's long-delayed effort to field jam-resistant GPS receivers. The transfer, announced Thursday, puts the Air Force Life Cycle Management Center in charge of the Military GPS User Equipment program's first two increments. The program had been managed by the Space Force and has experienced years of technical setbacks, schedule slips and divided responsibility among the organizations developing receiver technology and the military services expected to put it into use. The move gives the Air Force center responsibility for developing, integrating and sustaining equipment capable of receiving M-code, an encrypted military GPS signal more secure than civil GPS signals. [SpaceNews]
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Other News
A Long March 3B successfully launched a data relay satellite despite being struck by lightning during its ascent. The Long March 3B lifted off at 8 a.m. Eastern Thursday from Xichang Satellite Launch Center. Amateur video shows the rocket being hit by lightning about 30 seconds after liftoff, but the rocket continued to fly and successfully delivered the Tianlian-2 (06) relay satellite to a geostationary transfer orbit. Separately, a Kinetica-1 (Lijian-1) launched at 7:33 p.m. Eastern Thursday from the Dongfeng Commercial Aerospace Innovation Test Zone at the Jiuquan spaceport. The small solid-fuel rocket placed into orbit five satellites for various customers. [SpaceNews]
SpaceX postponed a Starship launch because of weather. SpaceX called off the Flight 13 launch a few hours before the scheduled 6:45 p.m. Eastern liftoff, citing cloudy conditions that would have prevented observations of the vehicle during its ascent. The launch is now planned for Friday at the same time, with much better weather expected. [Spaceflight Now]
Space startup veteran Mark Matossian has co-founded a venture fund focused on space and other deep tech companies. Whipsmart Ventures will identify "pivotal technologies that can close a business plan" and help companies make the leap from laboratories to scaling up, according to Matossian, who previously led Iceye U.S. and also worked at Google. Matossian co-founded Whipsmart earlier this year with Lylan Masterman, a software developer and technology executive who became a venture capitalist in 2014, and Judy Robinette, corporate leader, venture capitalist and author. The fund has identified seven key area it plans to invest in, including navigation, orbital compute and broadband connectivity. [SpaceNews]
Google's stake in SpaceX is worth nearly $100 billion. The company said in a regulatory filing Thursday it owns $80 billion SpaceX shares with short-term restrictions on selling and $14.1 billion in shares Google can't sell through the third quarter of 2027. Google invested in SpaceX more than a decade ago and owns about 6% of the company. [Wall Street Journal]
A group of retired astronauts is on a new mission: getting people to vote. Astronauts for America, a non-partisan organization of more than 100 former astronauts, announced recently they're embarking on "Vote for Freedom," a tour of college campuses where they will encourage students to vote. They said they hope their prestige will motivate young people to vote in the November midterm elections. "Our message is simple: going to the polls is one small step for you, and one giant leap for our country," said one former astronaut, Steve Smith. [Space.com]
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Forrest Gump of Space
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"I feel a little bit like the Forrest Gump of space. I stumbled into a variety of things."
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– Dave Thompson, co-founder and former CEO of Orbital Sciences, describing at an event this week marking the 50th anniversary of the Viking 1 landing his work as a 22-year-old intern on the mission, supporting legendary JPL engineer Gentry Lee.
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