STARLINK RIVAL AST SPACEMOBILE TIPS NEW SATELLITE PROTOTYPE - AST SpaceMobile—a rival to SpaceX’s cellular Starlink system—is requesting permission to launch a new prototype satellite that differs from the company’s original plans. On Friday, AST asked the FCC for experimental authority to launch and operate an "FM1" satellite. At first glance, it appears to be a second-generation BlueBird satellite. The FM1 and second-gen BlueBird satellites are both 223 square meters, or about three times larger than first-gen BlueBirds, which launched in September and have successfully powered demo video calls.   More
(Source: PCMag - Mar 25)

THIS SATELLITE COULD ONE DAY BE USED TO EAT OTHER SATELLITES - Space junk left over from the tens of thousands of satellites we’ve launched into orbit is a real problem. It not only affects researchers on the International Space Station, which has to dodge debris to avoid a hole-punched hull, but sometimes crash-lands here on Earth, as it recently did when some unidentified man-made space junk crashed into a Kenyan village. A British company called Magdrive is trying to solve these problems.   More
(Source: VICE - Mar 25)

SPACEX LAUNCHES NATIONAL SECURITY SATELLITE FOR NRO ON FALCON 9 ROCKET FROM CAPE CANAVERAL - The National Reconnaissance Office, which manages the American military’s spy satellites, launched its fifth mission of the 2025 out of roughly a dozen planned for the year. The flight, dubbed NROL-69, lifted off onboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket to an undisclosed orbital location. The launch from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station happened at 1:48 p.m. EDT (1748 UTC).   More
(Source: SpaceFlight Now - Mar 25)

CZECH REPUBLIC, UKRAINE LAUNCH SPY SATELLITE PROJECT - The Czech Republic is moving forward with the creation of a joint satellite reconnaissance constellation with Ukraine designed to provide high-resolution optical surveillance capabilities in support of Ukraine’s defense needs. According to Militarnyi outlet, the project stems from an October 2022 agreement between the Czech and Ukrainian governments to establish a joint defense cluster.   More
(Source: Defence Blog - Mar 24)

NASA TO COVER NORTHROP GRUMMAN'S 21ST CARGO SPACE STATION DEPARTURE - After delivering more than 8,200 pounds of supplies, scientific investigations, commercial products, hardware, and other cargo to the orbiting laboratory for NASA and its international partners, Northrop Grumman's uncrewed Cygnus spacecraft is scheduled to depart the International Space Station on Friday, March 28. Watch NASA's live coverage of undocking and departure at 6:30 a.m. EDT on NASA+. Learn how to watch NASA content through a variety of platforms, including social media. Northrop Grumman's Cygnus spacecraft is pictured in the grips of the Canadarm2 robotic arm shortly after its capture (Credits: NASA). Northrop Grumman's Cygnus spacecraft is pictured in the grips of the Canadarm2 robotic arm shortly after its capture (Credits: NASA). This mission was the company's 21st commercial resupply mission to the space station for NASA.   More
(Source: PR Newswire - Mar 23)

CHINA IS PRACTICING ‘DOGFIGHTING’ WITH SATELLITES AS IT RAMPS UP SPACE CAPABILITIES: US SPACE FORCE - China is practicing “dogfighting” satellites as part of its expanding capabilities in space, according to the United States Space Force, which warned that Washington’s key rivals are closing the technology gap as space becomes increasingly critical to security on Earth. The Space Force observed “five different objects in space maneuvering in and out and around each other in synchronicity and in control,” its vice chief of space operations Gen. Michael A. Guetlein said Tuesday at a defense conference.    More
(Source: CNN - Mar 22)

NASA DEFENDS DECISIONS ABOUT ASTRONAUTS, SAYS THEY NEVER WERE 'STRANDED' - After the safe return Tuesday of two astronauts left behind for months on the International Space Station, the White House characterized the pair as "stranded" and trumpeted their return as a "rescue." Those are words that NASA has been resisting for months. It made for an awkward situation in a post-splashdown press conference, when NASA administrators insisted they could have brought Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams home at any time, while also seeking not to contradict the president.   More
(Source: Phys.org - Mar 21)

SATELLITE OPERATORS WANT BETTER SPACE WEATHER MODELS - Satellite operators need better space weather models to maximize the life of their satellites and to avoid collisions in low Earth orbit. The growth in the population of satellites and debris in orbit, driven by megaconstellations like SpaceX’s Starlink, has provided a new impetus to efforts to better model how space weather events can increase the density of the upper atmosphere and thus the drag satellites in low orbits can experience.   More
(Source: SpaceNews - Mar 21)

SPACEX TO LAUNCH RECONNAISSANCE SATELLITES FOR THE NRO ON A FALCON 9 ROCKET FROM VANDENBERG - The National Reconnaissance Office is preparing to launch its eighth batch of satellites to support its proliferated architecture constellation. The mission includes a number of notable milestones for the Falcon 9 rocket program, including a record-fast turnaround time for its booster. A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket will carry an unspecified number of satellites that are believed to be Starshield, a government variant of the Starlink satellites that are built by SpaceX in partnership with Northrop Grumman. This will be SpaceX’s 450th Falcon 9 launch to date.   More
(Source: SpaceFlight Now - Mar 21)

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