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Space manufacturing startup Varda Space Industries has raised $90 million. The company announced its Series B round Friday led by venture firm Caffeinated Capital with participation by several other investors. The funding comes a month and a half after Varda completed its first mission, landing a capsule in the Utah desert containing samples of an HIV drug produced in microgravity. The company plans to use the funding to scale up its operations to produce pharmaceuticals that are not possible or cost-effective to make on the ground, with a goal of flying monthly missions. The company also has interest from government customers for data from the capsule during reentry to support hypersonics research. [SpaceNews]
The departing head of space policy in the Defense Department says the Pentagon has prioritized the issue. John Plumb, who will step down next month as assistant secretary of defense for space policy, said issues related to space policy get far more attention now than when he was at the Pentagon during the Obama administration. Rapid advancements in commercial space technology, coupled with the growing threat of adversaries' space-based capabilities, have thrust space into the spotlight, he said, leading to efforts like a commercial space policy released by the Defense Department last week. [SpaceNews]
SpaceX will soon attempt to recover and reuse Starship boosters. In a recent presentation at the company's Starbase facility, posted on social media by SpaceX on Saturday, CEO Elon Musk said that on the next launch of the vehicle, in as soon as a month, the company will attempt a landing of the rocket's Super Heavy booster on a "virtual tower" in the Gulf of Mexico. If that works well, SpaceX could attempt bringing Starship back to a landing at Starbase on the following flight. Landing the Starship upper stage will take longer, he said, as the company works on getting it to survive reentry and making a controlled splashdown. Musk also outlined performance upgrades to Starship that will lead to a "Starship 3" vehicle at an unspecified future date capable of placing at least 200 metric tons into orbit while remaining fully reusable. [SpaceNews]
SpaceX launched its first mid-inclination dedicated rideshare mission Sunday. A Falcon 9 lifted off from the Kennedy Space Center at 7:16 p.m. Eastern on the Bandwagon-1 mission. The launch carried 11 payloads, including a reconnaissance satellite for South Korea and smallsats from five commercial customers, placing them into a 45-degree orbit. SpaceX announced the Bandwagon line of missions last year to complement its existing Transporter series of rideshare launches to sun-synchronous orbits. [SpaceNews]
Two European space consultancies are merging. Euroconsult and SpaceTec Partners announced Friday that they are merging to create Novaspace, a firm with about 130 people and a global presence. The deal combines Euroconsult's market intelligence expertise with SpaceTec Partners' management consulting strengths and closer ties with European Union agencies. [SpaceNews]
A draft European Union space law is expected to be released this month. The proposed EU space law was previously slated to be published in the first quarter but is now planned for release later this month. The law would attempt to harmonize existing space laws among EU member states on topics such as space safety and cybersecurity of space systems. [Euronews]
| | Scientific Discovery Begins with L3Harris
For more than 20 years, every U.S. Martian rover mission and orbiting spacecraft has relied on L3Harris' transceivers and power and propulsion technology, including NASA's Spirit, Opportunity, Curiosity and Perseverance vehicles. In fact, we've propelled missions to explore not only Mars – but every planet in the solar system and beyond. Learn more about our space capabilities here. | | Other News
A Soyuz spacecraft successfully landed early Saturday, returning three people from the International Space Station. The Soyuz MS-24 spacecraft landed in Kazakhstan at 3:17 a.m. Eastern, a little more than three hours after undocking from the ISS. On board was NASA astronaut Loral O'Hara, who returned after spending six months on the station. Also on board were Russian cosmonaut Oleg Novitskiy and Belarusian spaceflight participant Marina Vasilevskaya, who launched to the station last month on Soyuz MS-25 with O'Hara's replacement, NASA astronaut Tracy Dyson. [CBS]
SpaceX launched a set of Starlink satellites, including the first commercial direct-to-device spacecraft, Saturday night. A Falcon 9 lifted off from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California at 10:25 p.m. Eastern after a one-day delay. The 21 Starlink satellites on the launch included six with direct-to-device payloads, the first such commercial payloads on Starlink satellites after launching several experimental ones. [Spaceflight Now]
The sharp increase in SpaceX launches from Vandenberg is prompting a review by a California board. The California Coastal Commission will take up concerns about beach closures linked to Falcon launches from Vandenberg at a meeting this week. One beach, Jalama Beach County Park, was closed far more often than expected last year, prompting the commission's review. Vandenberg officials said those closures were in some cases misunderstandings and they have taken steps to reduce the number of closures, working with SpaceX to modify times and trajectories of launches. [Noozhawk]
An Indian launch vehicle startup has again delayed the launch of a suborbital vehicle. Agnikul Cosmos said Saturday that unspecified technical issues had further delayed the launch of a suborbital rocket called SubOrbital Technological Demonstrator (SOrTeD). The company postponed a launch attempt of SOrTeD last month as well. The launch is designed to test key systems needed for the company's Agnibaan small launch vehicle. [Reuters]
Japan and the United States could sign an agreement this week to allow American rockets to launch from Japanese spaceports. A technology safeguards agreement between the countries is among the topics for a meeting this week between Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and President Joe Biden in Washington. The agreement would allow Americans rockets to be sent to Japan for launch there. It is unclear what American companies are interested in launching from Japan, particularly after the bankruptcy last year of Virgin Orbit, which had proposed operating its air-launch system from Japan's Oita airport. [Nikkei]
Clouds could spoil the view for many trying to see today's total solar eclipse. A total eclipse will be visible this afternoon on a path from Texas to Maine, as well as parts of Mexico and Canada. Many eclipse chasers flocked to Texas, which historically has the best chance for clear skies, but forecasts call for clouds across the path of the eclipse there. Parts of the northeast in the path of the eclipse also are expected to be cloudy, but the clearest conditions will likely be in northern Maine. [Washington Post]
| | The Week Ahead
Monday: - North America: A total solar eclipse will be visible in parts of Mexico, the United States and Canada, including a path from Texas to northern Maine.
Monday-Thursday: - Colorado Springs: The 39th Space Symposium features a wide range of talks and panels on civil, commercial and national security space.
Monday-Saturday: - Various: Find Your Place in Space Week, organized by the National Space Council, includes events across the United States to highlight the role of space in society.
Tuesday: Wednesday: - Cape Canaveral, Fla.: Scheduled launch of a Falcon 9 carrying Starlink satellites at 12 a.m. Eastern.
Thursday: - Vandenberg Space Force Base, Calif.: Scheduled launch of a Falcon 9 carrying the WSF-M 1 weather satellite for the U.S. military at 8 a.m. Eastern.
Friday: - Online: The Space Weather Advisory Group meets at 10 a.m. Eastern.
- Kennedy Space Center, Fla.: Scheduled launch of a Falcon 9 carrying Starlink satellites at 9 p.m. Eastern.
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