Tag: LEO

  • Pulse Space Advances Laser-Based Orbital Power Solutions

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    Pulse Space is developing a laser-based space power infrastructure designed to provide remote, on-demand power for satellites operating in low Earth orbit (LEO). As satellite deployments continue to grow and onboard solar arrays and batteries face increasing power limitations, the company aims to build what it describes as the “power grid for space,” enabling energy…

  • SDA Awards L3Harris $955M, Sierra Space $798M for Tranche 3

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    Does the SDA’s $1.75B Tranche 3 Award Signal Accelerating Proliferated Warfighter Space Architecture Buildout? The Space Development Agency has committed $1.75 billion to two contractors for Tranche 3 of its Tracking Layer: L3Harris Technologies receives $955 million and Sierra Space receives $798 million, both under fixed-price Other Transaction Authority (OTA) rapid prototyping contracts. The contracts…

  • D-Orbit Signs Multi-Launch Contract with ArkEdge Space

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    D-Orbit, a space logistics and transportation company, has announced that it has signed a launch services contract with ArkEdge Space, a Japanese satellite systems integrator of micro-satellite systems, to deliver a series of launches aboard D-Orbit’s ION Satellite Carrier.  Under the agreement, D-Orbit will provide its ION launch service across multiple missions, integrating ArkEdge Space’s…

  • Starship Flight 13 Carries 20 Starlink V3 Sats July 16

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    Does Starship Flight 13 Carry Its First Real Payload? Yes — and it matters. SpaceX has confirmed Starship Flight 13 is targeting liftoff from Starbase, Texas, as early as Thursday, July 16, carrying 20 Starlink V3 satellites: the vehicle’s first operational payload in 13 flights of developmental testing. For the first time, the world’s most…

  • Falcon 9 Booster Hits 35 Flights, 12,472 Starlinks Launched

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    Is a 35-Flight Falcon 9 Booster the New Normal for Launch Economics? A single Falcon 9 first stage flew its 35th mission on July 10, 2026, deploying 29 Starlink satellites to low Earth orbit and landing intact for future reuse. The flight is the highest confirmed reuse count in the Falcon 9 fleet to date,…

  • China’s Long March 10B Nails First Net Catch at Sea

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    Is China’s Net-Catch Booster Recovery a Viable Third Architecture? China’s state-owned China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (CASC) recovered an orbital-class booster for the first time on July 11, 2026, catching the Long March 10B first stage in a tensioned cable net mounted to an offshore vessel — a recovery method distinct from both SpaceX’s…

  • China Lands Orbital Rocket First Time in Net at Sea

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    Does China Now Have a Reusable Orbital Rocket? China recovered an orbital rocket’s first stage for the first time on July 10, 2026 — and did it in a way no one has tried before. The Long March 10B’s maiden flight lifted off from the Hainan Commercial Space Launch Site at 12:15 p.m. Beijing time,…

  • FCC Greenlights Reflect Orbital’s 18m Sun Mirror Sat

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    Does the FCC Have Authority to Regulate Space-Based Sunlight Mirrors? The FCC said no — and on July 9, it formally authorized Eärendil-1, Reflect Orbital’s 142-kilogram demonstrator satellite equipped with an 18-meter-per-side thin-film reflector designed to bounce sunlight onto nighttime regions of Earth. The spacecraft is planned for launch later this year into a low…

  • Mercantile Space Partners with Rivada for LEO Connectivity Services

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    Mercantile Space, a communications technology company, has partnered with Rivada Space Networks to provide a next-generation connectivity network with the necessary security and performance to drive digital innovation and transformation. Rivada has now lined up over $US20 billions of business globally for its LEO network. Mercantile Space, alongside its parent company Mercantile Communications, has been…

  • Skyroot Vikram-1 Targets July 12 Orbital Launch

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    Is Skyroot’s Vikram-1 India’s First Private Orbital Rocket? Yes — and the launch window opens July 12. Skyroot Aerospace has placed its Vikram-1 rocket on the pad at Satish Dhawan Space Centre, targeting a window that runs from July 12 through August 4, 2026. The mission, designated Aagaman, is a test flight of what the…