When multiple daily launches become the norm

Plus: Why astronauts said it's 'not the right time' to call it quits with the ISS

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View in Browser A SpaceNews daily newsletter 03/05/2025 Top Stories Executives with major launch companies say U.S. spaceports are not equipped to handle a surge of launch activity. At the Air & Space Forces Association's Warfare Conference this week, the CEOs of Blue Origin and United Launch Alliance and a SpaceX vice president said the industry must collectively prepare for a future where multiple daily launches are the norm, a tempo that  government-run launch ranges at Cape Canaveral in Florida and Vandenberg Space Force Base in California cannot support. They cited issues such as protocols that don't allow simultaneous launches by different providers at the Cape. They suggested federal launch ranges should conduct exercises simulating multiple daily launches to identify bottlenecks and called on the Space Force to work with launch companies to prioritize investments in spaceport infrastructure. [SpaceNews] Astranis has successfully demonstrated it can transmit GPS signals using its geostationary broadband communications payload. The company announced Tuesday it demonstrated in the lab that its small GEO satellites can provide GPS signals as part of a Resilient GPS (R-GPS) program study. Astranis is competing with L3Harris and Sierra Space for the next phase of the program when the Space Force is expected to select a vendor to deploy eight R-GPS satellites by 2028, and ultimately up to 24 satellites. [SpaceNews] NASA astronauts on the International Space Station say it would be a mistake to deorbit the station early. In a call with reporters Tuesday, Suni Williams argued that the station is "in our prime" and that "right now was probably not the right time to call it quits." SpaceX CEO Elon Musk recently called for deorbiting the station as soon as 2027 to focus on Mars, arguing that the station has "very little incremental utility." The astronauts said they had no information about Musk's earlier claims that he offered an early return of Williams and Butch Wilmore, who arrived on the station in June on a Starliner test flight, although Wilmore said he believed what Musk said was "absolutely factual." [SpaceNews] Apex marks one year of on-orbit operations of its first satellite. The company's Aries SN1 spacecraft launched on a Transporter rideshare mission in March 2024 and continues to work normally. The company launched SN1 as a technology demonstrator that also carried payloads for customers such as Anduril and Booz Allen Hamilton. The company is incorporating lessons learned into future Aries spacecraft and is seeing strong demand for the smallsat bus from defense customers. [SpaceNews] Additive-manufacturing startup Raven Space Systems has secured agreements with NASA and the Air Force Research Lab (AFRL). The company is developing technologies to produce solid rocket motor nozzles and thermal protection systems using 3-D printing. The agreements with NASA and AFRL will support work to test and characterize printed solid rocket motor parts. The startup also has Air Force, NASA and the National Science Foundation contracts valued at more than $4 million to apply its patented microwave-assisted deposition process to aerospace and defense products. [SpaceNews] Other News SpaceX will try again today to launch its Starship/Super Heavy vehicle. The company is targeting  6:30 p.m. Eastern for liftoff of the eighth suborbital test flight of the vehicle, two days after unspecified issues with it scrubbed an initial launch attempt. Arianespace, which scrubbed an Ariane 6 launch on Monday as well, has rescheduled that launch for Thursday at 11:24 a.m. Eastern after correcting issues with ground equipment that caused the scrub. NASA late yesterday further delayed the Falcon 9 launch of the SPHEREx and PUNCH space science missions from Thursday to Friday, citing launch availability at Vandenberg Space Force Base. Issues with the Falcon 9 have delayed that launch by a week. [Space.com | Arianespace | NASA] NASA selected Firefly Aerospace to launch an Earth science mission. The agency said Tuesday it awarded a task order through its Venture-Class Acquisition of Dedicated and Rideshare contract to Firefly for the launch of the Investigation of Convective Updrafts mission, no earlier than late 2026 on an Alpha rocket. INCUS will fly three smallsats in formation to study the creation of storms. Firefly is preparing for the Alpha launch of a Lockheed Martin satellite as soon as this month, the first of a projected five Alpha missions this year. [SpaceNews] Isar Aerospace won a launch contract from a Japanese company. Microgravity services startup ElevationSpace signed a contract with Germany's Isar for the launch of AOBA, a 200-kilogram spacecraft designed to test a recoverable platform for space-based experiments and manufacturing. That satellite is planned to launch in the second half of 2026 on Isar's Spectrum rocket. Isar recently announced it completed testing of the first Spectrum rocket and needs only a launch license from Norwegian regulators before attempting a launch from Andøya Spaceport in Norway. [SpaceNews] President Donald Trump briefly mentioned Mars and Golden Dome in an address to a joint session of Congress Tuesday night. In the speech, Trump said "we're going to lead humanity into space and plant the American flag on the planet Mars and even far beyond." That is similar to comments from his inaugural address when he said astronauts would plant the Stars and Stripes on Mars, but did not offer a schedule or other details in either speech. He also asked Congress to fund "a state-of-the-art Golden Dome shield," a missile defense system previously called Iron Dome for America that will likely include a significant space-based component. [SpacePolicyOnline.com] The Space Force is preparing for potential workforce reductions. Lt. Gen. Philip Garrant, head of the service's Space Systems Command, said there's "a lot of concern" about potential firings of probationary civil servants and broader layoffs directed by the Office of Personnel Management. He said he is working to make sure affected employees are taken care of while redistributing work among the remaining staff. Chief of Space Operations Gen. Chance Saltzman separately said he is worried about cuts to a service that is trying to grow, but added that the Space Force was designed to be "lean and agile." [Defense News] Startups Versus Commissions "I was remembering this quote from a CEO, who was mentioning, 'Why do we need more entrepreneurs in Europe when we can just have more commissions?' That's this idea that we're having more and more bureaucracy in Europe." – Saloua Moutaoufik of Aldoria, a European space situational awareness company, discussing development of a new European Union space law during a session of the 11th Annual Space Traffic Management Conference on Tuesday. What's New With SpaceNews? Check out the latest episode of Commercial Space Transformers, our new video series featuring conversations between SpaceNews Senior Staff Writer Jason Rainbow and the people driving the space industry's commercial transformation. This week, Tess Hatch, Managing Partner at Stifel Venture Banking, covers the evolving landscape of space investment and commercialization. Hatch, a former venture investor now in a banking role, discusses the shift in financing for space startups, moving from equity investments to debt financing. She highlights a significant trend where many space companies are now branding themselves as defense tech firms due to updated government contracting methods, making defense-focused business models more attractive to investors. Watch out for new episodes every Tuesday on SpaceNews.com and on the SpaceNews YouTube channel. Manage Preferences

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Saltzman: A guardian's job is warfighting

View in Browser 03/04/2025 National security insights for space professionals. Delivered Tuesdays. Welcome to this week's edition of SpaceNews Military, your source for the latest developments at the intersection of space and national security. If this newsletter was forwarded to you, sign up for free here Space & defense brief 🛰️ SPACE FORCE CHIEF: EMBRACE THE WARFIGHTER MINDSET The head of the U.S. Space Force is urging guardians to embrace their role as warfighters in space. Speaking Monday at the Air & Space Forces Association's Warfare Conference in Aurora, Colorado, Gen. Chance Saltzman emphasized that the Space Force isn't just a support arm — it's a military branch tasked with securing America's dominance in orbit. Saltzman's remarks follow a recent report questioning the Space Force for focusing more on defense than on offense, as well as broader directives from Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to "revive the warrior ethos." "We must think of space as a warfighting domain, rather than just a collection of support activities," Saltzman said, reinforcing a strategic shift from passive satellite protection to active space control. "Space control is how the Space Force achieves space superiority," he said, insisting that contesting and dominating the domain is the primary goal. The ability to control space in a conflict ensures that the U.S. and its allies can operate freely while denying that same advantage to potential foes. "Domain control is the special province of warfighters. It's what separates the Navy from the Merchant Marine and the Air Force from Southwest Airlines." Space control, including both kinetic and non-kinetic capabilities to disrupt, degrade, and, if necessary, destroy adversary space systems, is a top priority, he said. "Historically, we've avoided talking too much about space control," he admitted. "But why would you have a military space service if not to execute space control?" To that end, Saltzman announced that the Space Force will soon publish new doctrine guiding its approach to space control.  Beyond doctrine, Saltzman made it clear that frontline units must take ownership of their readiness. "At headquarters, we are not living the mission day to day," he said, calling on guardians in the field to innovate and adapt. While promising improved training systems, ranges, and simulators, he warned: "You cannot afford to wait on headquarters to deliver better answers. I need Guardians in the field to find a way." PENTAGON GREENLIGHTS 'WHAT YOU DID LAST WEEK' EMAIL Defense Department civilians are required to comply with the Office of Personnel Management's (OPM) "What You Did Last Week" email directive, according to new guidance from Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth. In a memo last week, Hegseth underscored the "strong and important contributions of our civilian workforce" and directed personnel to submit to the Office of Management and Budget five bullet points detailing their accomplishments from the prior workweek. The move comes after an initial pause in implementation as Pentagon leadership reviewed the request. "I am directing each member of the Department's civilian workforce to provide five bullets on what they accomplished in their specific jobs last week to their immediate supervisors," Hegseth wrote. The directive prohibits classified or sensitive information in the responses. Federal civilians across DoD were set to receive the email yesterday, March 3, with a 48-hour deadline for submission. Employee responses may be subject to review by Pentagon leadership and could be accessible via Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests. According to the memo, failure to comply may result in disciplinary action. AIR FORCE ANNOUNCES NEXT STEPS IN 'DEFERRED RESIGNATION PROGRAM' The Department of the Air Force, which oversees the Air Force and the Space Force, has begun implementing the Deferred Resignation Program, also referred to internally as the "Fork in the Road" email. The "Fork in the Road" sent to federal employees was an initiative spearheaded by Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), mirroring a similar message Elon Musk sent to Twitter employees in 2022. The offer proposes a "deferred resignation" option, where employees could resign and receive pay and benefits through September 30.  On Feb. 28, the Air Force began notifying employees regarding the status of their DRP applications, though officials have not disclosed how many personnel opted to resign under the program. Approved participants will receive paid administrative leave through Sept. 30, during which they are generally not expected to perform work duties or report in person. Air Force officials say the voluntary program offers a structured off-ramp for employees leaving federal service while simultaneously supporting the Defense Department's goals of reshaping its civilian workforce. AIR FORCE CONFIRMS FULL HIRING FREEZE The Department of the Air Force also announced an immediate hiring freeze in response to Hegseth's directive aimed at aligning the civilian workforce with national defense priorities. Per directives in the "Immediate Civilian Hiring Freeze for Alignment with National Defense Priorities" memo, all Air Force organizations — including headquarters, major commands, and field agencies — must halt hiring, cease onboarding new employees, and rescind all tentative and final job offers. For the duration of the freeze, Air Force entities are prohibited from filling vacant civilian positions or creating new roles. While the Pentagon has not specified how long the freeze will remain in effect, defense officials say the move is part of a broader effort to reassess workforce requirements amid shifting national security priorities. NOAA LAYOFFS SHAKE UP SPACE TRAFFIC MANAGEMENT  The Department of Commerce, particularly the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), experienced a wave of layoffs last week, with approximately 880 employees reportedly let go. Among the hardest-hit offices was the Office of Space Commerce (OSC), which lost all of its senior personnel. The OSC plays a critical role in issuing licenses for commercial remote sensing satellites and is leading the development of a new civil space traffic coordination system. The departures come at a precarious time for the implementation of Space Policy Directive-3 (SPD-3), which aims to transition space traffic management responsibilities from the Department of Defense to the Department of Commerce. A shortage of staff at OSC could hinder the rollout of the Traffic Coordination System for Space (TraCSS), the system designed to carry out this transition. In other news 🚀 A robotic lunar lander built by Texas-based Firefly successfully landed on the moon March 2. The lander, called Blue Ghost, launched to orbit on a SpaceX rocket in January. Firefly is only the second private-sector company ever to achieve a soft lunar landing. The company is carrying out this mission as a contractor under NASA's CLPS and Artemis programs, which aim to use robotic landers to explore the moon before humans return. The U.S. Air Force plans to start an environmental impact review for a novel military logistics project, proposing the construction of two landing pads on Johnston Island, a remote atoll in the Pacific Ocean.  The pads would support the reentry of vehicles under the Air Force's Rocket Cargo program, an initiative to harness commercial rockets and reentry capsules for cargo delivery.  The review will evaluate the effects of building and operating the landing pads on Johnston Atoll, where up to 10 reentry vehicle landings would take place annually over four years. Thanks for reading! Please send comments, suggestions and tips to serwin@spacenews.com

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How SpaceX lost a Falcon 9 booster Sunday

Plus: Space Force leaders want guardians to be warfighters and BAE's ground system win

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View in Browser A SpaceNews daily newsletter 03/04/2025 Top Stories Maxar announced a contract Monday for a commercial GEO satellite from an unidentified customer. Maxar said the satellite will be based on its 1300 series platform, the largest in the manufacturer's product line with a mass of up to 6,800 kilograms. It is the first order for a Maxar commercial GEO satellite in nearly two years, and one of just a handful of such satellites ordered in the last decade without disclosing the customer. Manufacturers used to vie for 15-20 large GEO orders annually, but only six for commercial communications were placed in 2024, the lowest number in two decades. [SpaceNews] The Space Force's top general is calling on members of the service to see themselves as warfighters. Speaking at the Air & Space Forces Association's Warfare Conference Monday, Gen. Chance Saltzman, chief of space operations, insisted that guardians, as Space Force personnel are known, must view themselves as warfighters on par with their counterparts in other military branches. Saltzman's remarks come in the wake of a recent report that called into question the Space Force's "warfighting ethos," suggesting the service has prioritized defensive satellite protection over developing offensive capabilities needed to deter adversaries. "Space control is how the Space Force achieves space superiority," Saltzman said, announcing that the service will soon publish new doctrine and guidance on space control. [SpaceNews] BAE Systems won a $151 million contract to develop a next-generation ground system for U.S. Space Force missile-warning satellites. BAE Systems will lead the second phase of the Future Operationally Resilient Ground Evolution (FORGE) command and control (C2) ground system program, known as FORGE C2. That program aims to modernize the ground infrastructure that controls and tracks spacecraft from the military's constellation of missile-warning satellites in both geostationary and polar orbits. The contract award follows a competition that began in November 2023, when the Space Systems Command awarded $9.7 million contracts to four companies to develop FORGE C2 designs. [SpaceNews] A Falcon 9 booster was lost after a droneship landing, the latest incident involving the workhorse rocket. SpaceX said Monday that the booster that launched a set of Starlink satellites Sunday night suffered an "off-nominal fire" that damaged a landing leg, causing the booster to tip over. It is the latest in a series of anomalies for the rocket since last summer, although only one of the incidents has led to the loss of its payload. SpaceX had been separately working on undisclosed issues with another Falcon 9 that will launch NASA's SPHEREx and PUNCH space science missions. That launch has now slipped to no earlier than Thursday. [SpaceNews] Earth-observation startup Albedo won a U.S. Air Force Strategic Funding Increase contract. The award, worth up to $12 million, supports Albedo's efforts to send satellites into very low Earth orbit to gather visible and thermal imagery. Albedo's first satellite, the phone-booth sized Clarity-1, is scheduled to launch within days on the SpaceX Transporter-13 rideshare. Clarity-1 is designed to collect 10-centimeter visible imagery and thermal infrared imagery with a resolution of two meters per pixel. [SpaceNews] Voyager Technologies is looking for partnership opportunities to win work on the Golden Dome missile-defense system. The company, previously known as Voyager Space, is emphasizing work in national security and one executive says there should be ways for Voyager to work on ground systems, space sensors, and interceptor missile components. A takeaway by Voyager from recent discussions on Golden Dome is that the Department of Defense intends to break from its traditional procurement approach and will seek to leverage a broader supplier base. [SpaceNews] Other News SpaceX scrubbed a Starship launch attempt Monday evening because of technical issues. The countdown halted at T-40 seconds ahead of the 6:45 p.m. Eastern launch, going into a hold initially to address an issue with the Super Heavy booster. SpaceX suggested that problem was corrected but there were other issues with the Starship upper stage, and the company ran out of time to fix them, calling off the launch. SpaceX CEO Elon Musk said later there were "too many question marks about this flight" and that the company would try again in a day or two. As of early Tuesday, SpaceX had not announced a new launch date for the suborbital test flight. [SpaceNews] Arianespace scrubbed an Ariane 6 launch attempt Monday. The company said problems with "ground means" that interface with the rocket prompted the scrub, announced less than an hour before the scheduled 11:24 a.m. Eastern launch from French Guiana. Arianespace did not announce a new launch date. The launch, just the second for the Ariane 6, is carrying a French reconnaissance satellite. [Arianespace] Intuitive Machines and ispace announced landing dates for their lunar landers Monday. Intuitive Machines said its IM-2 lander, which entered lunar orbit early Monday, will attempt a landing in the south polar regions of the moon on Thursday at 12:27 p.m. Eastern. Separately, Japanese company ispace said its Resilience lander, launched on the same Falcon 9 as Firefly Aerospace's Blue Ghost 1, will touch down on the moon June 5 at 3:24 p.m. Eastern. Resilience is on a low-energy trajectory to minimize fuel use, flying by the moon last month before returning to enter lunar orbit in early May. [Intuitive Machines | ispace] Spire announced it demonstrated laser intersatellite links between two cubesats. The 6U cubesats, equipped with an optical communications payload about the size of a tissue box, transmitted data as far as 5,000 kilometers. The optical intersatellite links were demonstrated by cubesats launched in 2023. Spire plans to launch three additional Lemur cubesats with the links this year, two on the upcoming Transporter-13 rideshare launch. [SpaceNews] The saga of Europa Clipper's electronics provides lessons for future missions. The spacecraft launched on time in October but only after electronics components known as MOSFETs were found to fail at lower levels of radiation than originally claimed by their producer. That prompted work by a JPL "tiger team" to analyze the MOSFETs on Europa Clipper, concluding that the components did not need to be replaced, which would have delayed the launch, instead taking measures to speed up the annealing process to repair any radiation damage encountered while orbiting Jupiter. Engineers involved in the effort said it showed the need to perform testing of components and not solely rely on any mil-spec rating those components have. [SpaceNews] Eutelsat shares are soaring on the prospect that its OneWeb network might replace Starlink in Ukraine. Shares in the satellite operator have nearly tripled since Friday on the belief that Ukraine might switch to OneWeb after a contentious meeting between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and President Trump on Friday. Eutelsat said Monday it would work to provide more satellite capacity for Europe. Eutelsat was recently trading at all-time lows because of investor concerns about losses on its GEO satellites. [Reuters] Well, When You Put It That Way "Gayle's Natal Mars is at 17° in Pisces, which signals risks in travel, especially in unpredictable environments...think space or deep waters. With transit Jupiter squaring (a hard aspect) her Natal Mars, those risks get amplified, bringing potential overconfidence or unforeseen dangers. Space travel? It's a hard NO." – Ashley Sipes, an astrologer, warning CBS Morning News anchor Gayle King not to go to space on an upcoming Blue Origin suborbital flight announced last week. [Instagram] What's New With SpaceNews? Check out the latest episode of our new podcast, Space Minds. Join David Ariosto, Mike Gruss and journalists from the SpaceNews team for compelling interviews with scientists, founders and experts who love to talk about space, and their takes on the week's biggest news. New episodes come out every Thursday on SpaceNews.com, YouTube and wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts. Manage Preferences

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