By Jeff Foust
In today's edition: EnduroSat raises a big round as investor interest in space returns, SpaceX offers a "simplified" lunar lander plan, companies struggle with a lack of Golden Dome details and more.
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Top Stories
Bulgarian smallsat manufacturer EnduroSat has raised $104 million. The company announced Thursday it raised the new round, bringing its total investment to more than $150 million. The extra funds will help ramp up production at a recently opened 17,500-square-meter facility in Sofia, Bulgaria. EnduroSat leaders said the expansion will support growing demand for small- to mid-sized satellite constellations, ranging from dozens to hundreds of spacecraft. Early-stage investors Riot Ventures, Google Ventures, Lux Capital and Shrug Capital participated in the latest funding round, alongside the European Innovation Council Fund. [SpaceNews]
A recent interest-rate cut could fuel further investment in the space industry. During a panel at the Satellite Innovation conference this week, investors said there is a "fervor" in the markets unlike any seen recently, making it a great time for companies to raise money. That renewed interest could also mean a return to special purpose acquisition companies, or SPACs, "blank-check" public companies that merge with private firms. Many space companies went public through SPACs several years ago, with mixed results. [SpaceNews]
SpaceX is expected to win a $2 billion Pentagon satellite contract. The award would be for a constellation of "air moving target indicator" satellites whose funding was included in the budget reconciliation bill passed in July. The satellites, designed to track missiles and aircraft in flight, could be incorporated into the Golden Dome missile defense system. The expected contract shows the greater role SpaceX is playing in military programs, one apparently not hurt by the falling out between Elon Musk and President Donald Trump earlier this year. [Wall Street Journal]
Companies interested in participating in Golden Dome are struggling with a lack of information about the program. Executives at the MilSat Symposium said Thursday that they still have no information on the overall architecture for Golden Dome and thus aren't sure how they fit into it. The information vacuum comes at a particularly challenging time, as the ongoing government shutdown has frozen funding allocations and disrupted program timelines, adding another layer of complexity to companies' investment decisions. Companies are also considering whether Golden Dome would continue beyond the Trump administration. [SpaceNews]
The Space Force is adopting a business model for satellite systems that would be owned by the government but operated by contractors. The move toward so-called GOCO, or government-owned, commercially-operated, arrangements has been shaped by developments such as Russia declaring that Western commercial satellites could be legitimate military targets if they support Ukraine. The GOCO model allows the government to leverage private sector technology and operational expertise while retaining ownership and control over critical infrastructure deemed essential for national security. For companies, the model offers crucial protection from the financial devastation that could result from having their assets targeted in a conflict. [SpaceNews]
SpaceX says it has a "simplified" plan for getting humans to the moon on Starship while defending its current approach. In a statement Thursday, the company said it responded to "the latest calls" for changes by offering a "simplified mission architecture and concept of operations" that would be faster and safer. SpaceX did not reveal any details of that alternative architecture. SpaceX has been the subject of criticism, including from NASA Acting Administrator Sean Duffy, about delays in Starship's development. Duffy has also suggested he would "open up" SpaceX's existing Artemis 3 landing contract. SpaceX, in the statement, said Starship is "the fastest path" to getting humans back on the moon in a sustainable way, and noted it has achieved most of its 49 contract milestones to date on or ahead of schedule. [SpaceNews]
Ukraine may join a European Union satellite communications program. The European Commission proposed this week that Ukraine join GOVSATCOM, which provides secure satellite communication capabilities by pooling and sharing existing satellite resources from member states and accredited private operators. The new initiative aims to ensure that Ukraine can access fast, reliable and secure satellite communications from member states' facilities to support its defense and resilience against Russia. Ukraine must first submit a formal request for EU support, which in turn will assess specific capacity needs in Ukraine and the wider Black Sea region. [SpaceNews]
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SPONSORED |  | ST Engineering MRAS is a leading manufacturer of complex aerostructures including nacelle systems and critical airframe components. Operating from a 2 million sq ft site near Baltimore, Maryland, the company houses design, engineering, manufacturing, and MRO operations under one roof. MRAS has been involved in the space industry since the 1960s, when it contributed components for the Gemini spacecraft as part of Martin Marietta Corporation. Today, MRAS applies its composite materials expertise to produce fuselage sections, external panels, heat shields, and technologies for reusable rocket structures and in-space satellite panels, supporting various space programs and projects. | | |
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Other News
Blue Origin conducted a static-fire test of its second New Glenn rocket Thursday night. The company ignited the seven BE-4 engines in the rocket's first stage just before 10 p.m. Eastern on the pad at Cape Canaveral. The test, lasting 38 seconds, also simulated aspects of the booster's landing burn to test interaction among propellant lines. The test is one of the final milestones before the rocket's launch, scheduled for as soon as Nov. 9. It will carry NASA's ESCAPADE Mars mission. [SpaceNews]
China is scheduled to launch a new crew to its Tiangong space station today. A Long March 2F rocket is set to launch the Shenzhou-21 spacecraft at 11:44 a.m. Eastern from the Jiuquan spaceport. The spacecraft will carry astronauts Zhang Lu, Wu Fei and Zhang Hongzhang to Tiangong for a six-month stay. Zhang Lu, the commander, will be making his second flight while Wu Fei and Zhang Hongzhang will be on their first. [Space.com]
Russia has replaced the Soyuz spacecraft for the next mission to the International Space Station. A Soyuz spacecraft with the serial number 759 was built for the Soyuz MS-28 mission launching in late November. However, the spacecraft reportedly suffered damage to its thermal protection system during testing, and Roscosmos elected to replace it with another Soyuz, number 753, that was built for tourist missions and is in storage. [RussianSpaceWeb]
A Chinese startup raised funding to develop space domain awareness and other services. StarDetect raised about $14 million in Series A1 and A2 rounds in late September. The company claims to have over 20 payloads in stable operation in orbit, with its products serving multiple commercial satellite constellations. The company says it will work with industry partners to verify new space-based intelligent application scenarios, including satellite communication optimization, onboard mission planning, space domain awareness and space computing. [SpaceNews]
Shares in Globalstar surged on reports that SpaceX is interested in buying the company. The satellite operator is exploring a potential sale, which reportedly attracted attention from SpaceX. Shares in the company closed up more than 22% Thursday on the reports. Globalstar currently operates satellites whose capacity is primarily used by Apple to provide emergency connectivity services for iPhones. Globalstar is working on a new generation of satellites using funding provided by Apple. [Reuters]
A startup will fly a hosted payload on a Momentus spacecraft next year. DPhi Space's Clustergate-2 payload will be on the Vigoride 7 mission launching early next year, the companies announced Thursday. The payload is designed to support computing applications linked to sensors on Vigoride. [SpaceNews]
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Just Say No
| "If you really want to get into the rocket business, I think the first answer is, go find another business."
| – Clint Hunt, senior director of intelligence and defense programs at United Launch Alliance, during a panel discussion about the challenges of getting into the launch market at the Satellite Innovation conference this week.
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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.
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