Competing with SpaceX Rideshare - SpaceNews This Week 🚀

And other top stories of the week from SpaceNews

View this email in your browser Forward Share Share A weekly roundup of the top SpaceNews stories from this week, every Friday. Our Top Story Small launch companies seek niches to compete with SpaceX rideshare Jeff Foust, Feb. 8, 2024 MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. — Small launch vehicle developers are working to carve out niches in a market for smallsat launches that is increasingly dominated by SpaceX's Transporter rideshare missions. The Transporter missions, which fill a Falcon 9 often with more than 100 smallsats, offer per-kilogram prices significantly below dedicated small launch vehicles. SpaceX has seen high demand for those missions and announced plans last year for a related line of missions called Bandwagon that will go to mid-inclination orbits. Other News from the Week News from SmallSat Symposium, Silicon Valley Space VCs urge startups to pursue government contracts but stay focused on commercial success Space technology startups should carefully weigh the risks and rewards when bidding on Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) government contracts, a venture investor said Feb. 6 at the SmallSat Symposium in Mountain View, California. Space industry urged to take a broader view of sustainability The space industry needs to take a broader examination of issues related to space sustainability that go beyond preventing the growth of space debris, one official says. Venture-backed space companies face "year of reckoning" The aftermath of a "bubble" of investment in space startups in recent years could cause many companies to struggle to raise additional funding even as overall market conditions improve. LAUNCH Falcon 9 launches PACE Earth science mission A SpaceX Falcon 9 placed a NASA Earth science satellite into orbit Feb. 8 on a launch that was the first of its kind for the U.S. government in more than 60 years. Virgin Galactic investigating dropped pin on most recent suborbital flight Virgin Galactic said Feb. 5 it is investigating why a pin fell from the aircraft used by its VSS Unity suborbital spaceplane on its most recent flight last month, adding that the incident did not pose a safety risk to those on board. First Intuitive Machines lunar lander mission set for Feb. 14 launch Intuitive Machines and SpaceX have confirmed plans to launch the IM-1 lunar lander mission as soon as Feb. 14, pending a fueling test on the pad. COMMERCIAL Lynk Global finalizes SPAC merger deal Lynk Global has agreed to a merger that would raise money for the direct-to-smartphone operator and list its shares on Nasdaq, the venture said Feb. 5 in a regulatory filing that details its revenue projections for the emerging market. Viasat preparing to start services from hobbled ViaSat-3 satellite Viasat expects to start providing Wi-Fi to planes by the end of June from ViaSat-3 F1, the satellite that lost more than 90% of its 1 terabit per second capacity after an antenna deployment failure last year. CIVIL JPL to lay off 8% of workforce NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory announced Feb. 6 it will lay off 530 employees, about 8% of its staff, citing uncertainty about its budget for 2024. NASA compiling lessons learned from Artemis 1 NASA is wrapping up an effort to collect lessons learned from the Artemis 1 mission that address both technical and programmatic issues that the agency hopes to apply more broadly to the overall Artemis lunar exploration campaign. China to launch lunar navigation and communications test satellites China is preparing to launch a pair of lunar experimental technology satellites for a planned constellation of satellites to support lunar exploration. MILITARY BlackSky inks $50 million deal to supply imagery services and satellites to Indonesia BlackSky, an Earth observation and data analytics firm, will provide satellite imagery services and imaging spacecraft to the Republic of Indonesia under a $50 million deal announced Feb. 8. THE UK'S LARGEST SPACE INDUSTRY EVENT Space-Comm Expo, 6-7 March 2024 is where the space, satellite, aerospace, and defence industries meet, develop, network, and do business. From the widening of consumer-focused commercial prospects to the emergence of defence and security regulations, products, and services; space plays a vital role within daily life, and the demand is increasing exponentially every day. Supported by key industry associations and influential bodies, Space-Comm Expo showcases the manufacturing supply chain for products, services and solutions supplying and informing commercial enterprises, Government and defence organisations, and developments in technology. Held at the Farnborough International Exhibition and Conference Centre, the Home of Pioneering Spirit, this innovative event brings together the entire sector for two days of face-to-face business and networking. Don't miss out on your free tickets to attend the only exhibition dedicated to the commercial future of space, CLICK HERE TO REGISTER Upcoming SpaceNews Event Webinar - Tuesday, Feb. 20, 1 p.m. Eastern Automating for SmallSat Success - Register Today The purpose of this webinar is to explore how today's smallsat leaders are employing automation in satellite operations and manufacturing. Panelists Chris Winslett, Blue Canyon Technologies Chuck Beames, York Space Marc Bell, Terran Orbital Chester Gillmore, Planet Moderator Jeff Foust, SpaceNews senior staff writer Copyright © 2024 Multiverse Media Inc., All rights reserved. You signed up to receive this newsletter on Spacenews.com. At times you may receive marketing material. Our mailing address is: Multiverse Media Inc. 100 Filmore St. 5th Floor Denver, CO 80206 Add us to your address book Want to change how you receive these emails? You can update your preferences or unsubscribe from this list.