By Jeff Foust

In this today's edition: more funding for the Space Force, new investment for Quantum Space, SpaceX has a BEAD on more rural broadband funding, and more.

Today at 3:30 p.m. ET: Tune in this afternoon as I interview California Rep. George Whitesides. Previously NASA's Chief of Staff and CEO of Virgin Galactic, we'll discuss all the changes in civil and national security space policy. Register here.

If someone forwarded you this edition, sign up to receive it directly in your inbox every weekday. Have thoughts or feedback? You can hit reply to let me know directly.

Top Stories

A House spending bill would increase funding for the Space Force. The House Appropriations Committee released Monday a draft of its fiscal year 2026 defense bill, which keeps overall defense spending flat at $831.5 billion as proposed by the White House. However, the bill increases the Space Force's budget by about 10% from the White House proposal of $26 billion. The bill includes a significant increase for research, development, testing and evaluation and a smaller bump for procurement, partially offset by reductions in personnel and in operations and maintenance. The committee will mark up the bill this week. [SpaceNews]

New rules for a federal rural broadband program could create opportunities for Starlink. The Department of Commerce's National Telecommunications and Information Administration said it will now apply a technology-neutral approach in awarding subgrants under BEAD, or Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment. Congress created the program in 2021 with a focus on fiber to help close the country's digital divide, but the new rules would allow satellite services to compete for funding. Analysts say the changes should help SpaceX's Starlink, the satellite operator with the most to gain. [SpaceNews]

Quantum Space has raised $40 million as the company pivots towards national security applications of its spacecraft. The company said Tuesday it raised the money as an extension of a Series A round with support from several investors. The company plans to use the funding to accelerate work on Ranger, a spacecraft it describes as a highly maneuverable platform capable of hosting payloads and performing satellite refueling. Quantum Space once envisioned Ranger as part of a cislunar architecture, but now is focused on applications such as supporting the Golden Dome missile defense system. The first Ranger is slated to launch in late 2026 on a test flight. [SpaceNews]

Two Chinese Shijian satellites appear to be maneuvering towards each other in a potential satellite refueling demonstration. China's Shijian-21 and Shijian-25 spacecraft, designed for servicing and refueling, were within about two degrees of longitude, or roughly 1,500 kilometers, of each other in geostationary orbit Monday. Shijian-25 was launched in January to test on-orbit refueling and mission extension technologies, while Shijian-21 was launched in October 2021. The two spacecraft are expected to dock, with Shijian-25 possibly refueling Shijian-21. American surveillance satellites USA 270 and USA 271, part of the Geosynchronous Space Situational Awareness Program, are in the vicinity to observe the expected operations. [SpaceNews]

The government of Quebec is providing funding to a Canadian launch startup. The provincial government said Monday it would award $10 million Canadian ($7.3 million) to Reaction Dynamics, working with Canadian software and engineering services firm Maya HTT. The companies will use the funding to qualify a hybrid propulsion system and establish a testing facility. That propulsion system would be used on Aurora, a small launch vehicle Reaction Dynamics is developing with a first orbital launch slated for 2027 or 2028. The award, Quebec Premier François Legault said, would ensure that the work is done entirely within Quebec. [SpaceNews]

Other News

Weather has delayed the launch of a private astronaut mission to the International Space Station by a day. SpaceX and Axiom Space said they delayed the launch of the Ax-4 mission to Wednesday at 8 a.m. Eastern because of weather conditions in the ascent corridor in the unlikely event of a launch abort. A Falcon 9 will launch a new Crew Dragon spacecraft to the ISS on the Ax-4 mission, where the four-person crew will spend two weeks performing research and outreach activities. Ax-4 is commanded by former NASA astronaut Peggy Whitson and includes astronauts from Hungary, India and Poland. [NASA]

Blue Origin now expects to perform the second launch of its New Glenn rocket no earlier than mid-August. Blue Origin CEO Dave Limp announced the new schedule for the launch Monday, saying a key goal will be to land the booster, a feat the company was unable to do on the vehicle's inaugural launch in January. Blue Origin did not disclose the payload for the second launch, although NASA said in its fiscal year 2026 budget it expected to fly its ESCAPADE Mars mission on the second New Glenn launch. Blue Origin had previously targeted late spring for the second New Glenn launch, and the revised timeline comes as one key executive retires and another takes a leave of absence. [Ars Technica]

Xplore has released hyperspectral imagery from its first satellite. XCUBE-1, a six-unit cubesat launched in December, provides imagery with a resolution of five meters per pixel over a range of spectral bands, the company announced Tuesday. Xplore envisions defense and intelligence, agriculture, forestry and other applications for that hyperspectral imagery, as well as the ability to observe other satellites and space debris. XCUBE-1 is the first satellite in a planned constellation. [SpaceNews]

A group is planning a protest against NASA's budget cuts in Cleveland next week. The group Stand Up for Science will host a rally next Saturday in a park in downtown Cleveland to protest proposed budget cuts for NASA. The fiscal year 2026 budget would, if enacted, reduce the workforce at the Glenn Research Center in Cleveland by 40% and threaten programs at the center like the lunar Gateway. [WKYC-TV Cleveland]

Space Plumbing Oddity

"Fixing the toilet. They break all the time. Being elbows deep in a toilet anywhere is no fun – it's even worse when it's weightless."

— Former astronaut Chris Hadfield, when asked in an interview what the worst space chore is. [The Guardian]

🚀 🕑 🎧 Don't miss SpaceNews' FirstUp Audio
The day's most important space headlines delivered in less than 10 minutes every Monday-Friday. Listen on our website, YouTube, Apple Podcasts, Spotify or your favorite podcast app.

FROM SPACENEWS

Sign up for our other newsletters

Military Space: Veteran defense journalist Sandra Erwin delivers news and insights for the military space professional. Delivered Tuesday.
China Report: Analysis of China's space activities and what it means as one of the United States' top competitors from correspondent Andrew Jones. Delivered every other Wednesday.
SpaceNext AI: Exploring the intersection of space and artificial intelligence. Delivered Thursday.
SpaceNews This Week: A round-up of the week's top stories, including our conference coverage. Delivered Friday.
Video & Audio: Upcoming live programs, scheduled guests, and recent Space Minds podcast episodes, webinars and other events. Delivered Friday.
Marketing Minute: Covering PR, marketing, and advertising trends, upcoming SpaceNews opportunities, and editorial insights for communications and marketing leaders. Delivered monthly.