Blue Origin has unveiled a new satellite communications network called TeraWave. Rocket Lab held its first launch of 2026 with “The Cosmos Will See You Now” mission for Open Cosmos. Lunar Outpost has announced a new In‑Orbit Demonstration to support the launch, integration, and on‑orbit operations of Thermal Architecture Components (TACOS), and more.

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T-Minus Guest

Our guest today is Dr. Melissa Patton from Patton Consulting Group.

You can meet Melissa at SpaceCom in Orlando January 27-30.

Selected Reading

Blue Origin Introduces TeraWave, a 6 Tbps Space-Based Network for Global Connectivity

New Glenn-3 to Launch AST SpaceMobile’s BlueBird Satellite- Blue Origin

AST SpaceMobile Announces Timing of BlueBird 7 Orbital Launch, Advancing Direct-to-Device Cellular Broadband Connectivity

New Shepard Mission NS-38 Updates - Blue Origin

Rocket Lab Delivers Mission Success on First Launch of 2026 for New Customer: Open Cosmos- Markets Insider

Rocket Lab Neutron Test Update

New In‑Orbit Demonstration Mission Awarded: TACOS (Thermal Architecture COmponentS)

Thales Alenia Space selected by CNES and DGA for payload and user ground segment for France’s DESIR radar imaging space mission

Orbex’s Subsidiary in Denmark to File for Bankruptcy - European Spaceflight

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SWISSto12 has secured €73 million in financial support from European Space Agency (ESA) member states through the HummingSat ARTES partnership project. Canada Rocket Company (CRC) has emerged from stealth with $6.2 million CAD in seed funding from entirely Canadian investors. Starfish Space has been awarded a $52.5 million contract by the US Space Force’s Space Development Agency (SDA) to provide Deorbit-as-a-Service for satellites within the Proliferated Warfighter Space Architecture, and more.

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Selected Reading

€73 Million From ESA Member States Towards HummingSat – SWISSto12’s Next-Gen Affordable, Compact Satellite, to Meet Growing Demand for Commercial and Sovereign Communications

Canada Rocket Company wants Canada to stop hitching rides to space- BetaKit

Starfish Space Awarded First Ever End-of-Life Disposal Contract for a LEO Constellation

New NASA Artemis Payloads To Study Moon’s Terrain, Radiation, History

Orion Space Solutions to operationalize IARPA system for space debris detection and tracking

Astra Ships 110 Satellite Engines, Focuses on 2026 Test Flight of New Rocket

The first commercial space station, Haven-1, is now undergoing assembly for launch - Ars Technica

Comtech Receives Space Components Award Exceeding $5 Million to Support Critical Civil Space Program

Space sector eyes further investment growth in 2026 after record year- Reuters

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NASA’s Artemis II Space Launch System (SLS) rocket and Orion spacecraft reached Launch Pad 39B after a nearly 12-hour journey from the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB) . Gilmour Space Technologies has raised $217 million Australian dollars in a Series E round. The UK Space Agency UKSA) has supported the opening of a new £20 million space innovation hub in Buckinghamshire.

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T-Minus Guest

Our guest today is Christian Davenport, Journalist, and Author of "Rocket Dreams".

You can connect with Christian on LinkedIn, and learn more about his books on Amazon.

Selected Reading

NASA’s Moonbound Artemis II Rocket Reaches Launch Pad

Gilmour secures $217 million in private investment- Australian Space Agency

Westcott Space Hub opens to boost UK space innovation and create hundreds of jobs - GOV.UK

York Space Systems Announces Launch of Initial Public Offering

BlackSky Lands Multiple Gen-3 Expansion Contracts as Early Access Pilot Programs Pivot into Renewal Deals

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Signals Intelligence (SIGINT) is the practice of intercepting and analyzing electronic signals, like phone calls, emails, radar, and telemetry, to gather actionable intelligence for national security, defense, and military operations. It’s primarily conducted by agencies like NSA, but over the last decade many companies in the commercial sector have grown in this vital area of national defense, especially in space. Our guest is Dave DeWalt, CEO of NightDragon, who shared why his firm is investing in tech and space. 

You can connect with Dave on LinkedIn, and learn more about NightDragon on their website.

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The Fiscal Year (FY) 2026 NASA/NOAA Appropriations Bill cleared the US Senate. Eutelsat has signed a deal with French space startup MaiaSpace for future launches of its low Earth orbit (LEO) satellites. Isar Aerospace is targeting its second flight and qualification mission from the company’s dedicated launch complex at Andøya Space in Norway from January 21, 2026, and more.

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T-Minus Guest

Elysia Segal brings us the Space Traffic Report from NASASpaceflight.com.

Selected Reading

US Senate passes bill to boost federal science spending after White House sought major cuts- Reuters

Final FY2026 NASA/NOAA Appropriations Bill Clears Senate, White House is Next – SpacePolicyOnline.com

Starlink-rival Eutelsat signs deal with Europe's MaiaSpace to launch satellites- Reuters

Isar Aerospace targets second launch not earlier than 21 January 2026

China launches AlSat-3A remote sensing satellite - CGTN

U.S. Space Force switches rockets for upcoming GPS satellite launch – Spaceflight Now

Nigeria grants satellite permits to BeetleSat, Satelio and Amazon's Kuiper - Reuters

AST SpaceMobile Awarded Prime Contract Position on U.S. Missile Defense Agency SHIELD Program

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Zak Kassas, Professor in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at The Ohio State University, recently released a white paper on “Navigating the Arctic Circle with Starlink and OneWeb LEO Satellites” and shares his insights. The study suggests that radio signals from low-Earth orbit (LEO) satellites could become reliable navigation alternatives, as disruptions to GPS services increase globally. Zak helps us understand how he reached that conclusion. 

You can read  “Navigating the Arctic Circle with Starlink and OneWeb LEO Satellites” here.

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NASA’s SpaceX Crew-11 has returned to Earth, concluding a more than five-month mission aboard the International Space Station (ISS). Slingshot Aerospace has been awarded a $27 million US Space Force (USSF) contract to modernize scenario training activities. Chinese commercial company CAS Space debuted its suborbital two-stage research rocket, and more.

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T-Minus Guest

Our guest today is Cherie Matthew, Architect/ Project Manager at Jacobs. 

You can connect with Cherie on LinkedIn, and learn more about Jacobs on their website.

Selected Reading

NASA's SpaceX Crew-11 Mission Returns, Splashes Down off California

Slingshot Aerospace Awarded $27 Million Space Force Contract to Power the AI-Driven Training Environment for Space Warfare

CAS Space Debuts Suborbital Research and Technology Testing Rocket

Axelspace Signs MoU with Ethiopian Company to Address Social Challenges through the Utilization of Satellite Data

Space Force Teams with Universities to Advance Sonic Boom Research in California

NASA and Johns Hopkins play the cult video game DOOM on satellites

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Chinese firms have submitted more than a dozen proposals to the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) for 200,000 internet satellites. China launched a new batch of internet satellites from the Hainan commercial spacecraft launch site on the southern island province of Hainan on Tuesday. ispace has been selected by JAXA to conduct a study and provide a study on space debris mitigation in lunar orbit and disposal management on the lunar surface, and more.

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Selected Reading

China seeks approval for one of largest satellite constellations

China launches new internet satellite group - CGTN

SkyFi Secures $12.7 Million Series A Funding to Advance Access to Satellite Imagery and Analytics

Intuitive Machines Completes Acquisition of Lanteris Space Systems

What time is SpaceX Crew-11's medical evacuation from the ISS on Jan. 14?- Space

Intuitive Machines Completes Acquisition of Lanteris Space Systems

Boeing Announces Fourth Quarter Deliveries

Black Moon Energy Engages JPL for Robotic Lunar Mission Focused on Recovery of Helium-3 for Fusion Energy

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Astroscale UK has been awarded a contract by the European Space Agency to lead the design of the In-Orbit Refurbishment and Upgrading Service (IRUS) mission concept. Planet Lab has signed a multi-year agreement with the Swedish Armed Forces to deliver a suite of satellites, space-based data and awareness solutions to support the country’s peace and security operations. Aerospacelab has been selected by Xona Space Systems to produce eight additional satellites for their Pulsar constellation, and more.

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T-Minus Guest

Our guest today is Mark Lester, Head of Aerospace Strategy at Merrick & Company. 

You can connect with Mark on LinkedIn, and learn more about Merrick on their website.

Selected Reading

Astroscale UK Awarded ESA Contract to Develop World-First In-Orbit Refurbishment and Upgrading Service

Planet Signs 9-Figure Deal with Sweden

Aerospacelab to Supply Eight Additional Satellites for Xona building on success of Pulsar-0 

FCC Approves Next-Gen Satellite Constellation- Federal Communications Commission

2026 Civil Space Shortfall Ranking - NASA

Orbion delivers 33 Aurora propulsion modules to York Space Systems for military constellation

Astronaut Brains Change Shape in Space

Brain displacement and nonlinear deformation following human spaceflight- PNAS

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NASA astronaut Mike Fincke hands command of Expedition 74 to Roscosmos cosmonaut Sergey Kud-Sverchkov ahead of Crew 11’s departure from the International Space Station (ISS). US Space Systems Command (SSC) awards $739 million in launch contracts to SpaceX. SpaceX launched a Falcon 9 carrying NASA’s Pandora planet observing satellite along with 39 payloads as part of the Twilight rideshare mission, and more.

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T-Minus Guest

Parker Wishik, Senior Communications Specialist at The Aerospace Corporation, is joined by Brandon Bailey, Principal Engineer for the Cybersecurity and Advanced Platforms Subdivision (CAPS) at The Aerospace Corporation.

Selected Reading

NASA, SpaceX Set Target Date for Crew-11’s Return to Earth

Change of Command of International Space Station to Occur - NASA

Mike Finke LinkedIn

Space Systems Command Awards Task Orders to Launch Missile Warning and Missile Tracking Space- Space Systems Command 

Liftoff of NASA’s Newest Planet-Observing Satellite

SpaceX - Twilight Mission

Spire Global Successfully Launches 9 Satellites on SpaceX’s Twilight Mission

HawkEye 360 Successfully Launches Cluster 13 and Establishes Initial Communications

Indian rocket launch loses control after liftoff in fresh blow to ISRO- Reuters

Eutelsat Procures a Further 340 OneWeb Low Earth Orbit Satellites From Airbus

ispace Initiates New Entity in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to Advance Lunar Exploration Partnerships

Mitsubishi Corporation Joins Starlab as Major Space Station Customer

IEEE's Highest Honors: Meet the 2026 Pioneers Transforming Our World Through Technology

NASA to roll out rocket for Artemis 2 moon mission on Jan. 17- Space

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