Whether they are giant communications satellites or 1U CubeSats, most spacecraft are boxy vehicles that have antennas, solar arrays, and other elements sticking out of them. The Aerospace Corporation wants to change that trend with DiskSat, a flat, compact spacecraft that resembles a giant CD-ROM. During last month’s Small Satellite Conference, Parabolic Arc sat down with Richard Welle, senior scientist at Aerospace’s Space Applications Laboratory, and Darren Rowen, director of the Small Satellite Department, to discuss the project and its upcoming demonstration mission. The interview has been edited for clarity and length.

Welcome to S-SPACⁱ! In this week’s edition, Terran Orbital unveiled seven new satellite buses, Spire conducted a reverse stock split, Intuitive Machines raised $20 million, the former governor who brought Virgin Galactic to New Mexico passed away, and much more.

The launch of thousands of satellites has created major headaches for ground-based astronomers, who find streaks from the spacecraft ruining the images they take of the night sky. A small startup in Los Angeles believes it has found a solution to the problem by taking inspiration from a creature in the ocean.

Welcome to Biz Briefs! In this edition, Spire Global won two satellite data contracts, SpeQtral selected contractors for its quantum key distribution demonstration satellite, Northrop Grumman reached a milestone with its Arctic broadband program, and much more.

Terran Orbital (NYSE: LLAP) reported record revenue of $32.2 million in the second quarter and a backlog of orders for more than 370 satellites worth in excess of $2.6 billion. The company said the $2.4 billion, 300-satellite constellation it is building for Rivada Space Networks is on schedule, and that the customer is current on all payments.

AST SpaceMobile (Nasdaq: ASTS) said it has raised up to $179 million in additional funds to build its first five BlueBird satellite-to-cell phone communications satellites and to launch them during the first quarter of next year, according to the company’s second-quarter earnings.

This year’s Small Satellite Conference in Logan, Utah was the largest and best attended in history. But, is it about to get a lot larger as the space industry grows around the world? And what underrepresented country could boost attendee numbers the most? Let’s take a look.

Greetings from the 37th Small Satellite Conference in Logan, Utah! Momentus and LeoStella have unveiled new satellite buses, NearSpace Launch and SEOPS have partnered to develop a new space tug, Pale Blue and Flight Works won contracts, Interstellar Technologies will use gas from cow manure to power its new launch vehicle, and much more.

LeoStella has introduced a larger version of its small satellite bus the company says is ideally suited for customers seeking to win contracts from the Pentagon’s Space Development Agency (SDA).

The Astranis-built Arcturus geosynchronous communications satellite launched in April has suffered an anomaly with its solar panels that will prevent it from delivering dedicated Internet services to customers in Alaska, CEO John Gedmark tweeted on Friday.

Welcome to Biz Briefs! In this edition, Thales Alenia Space and its Thales parent company signed $400 million worth of contracts for the Galileo Second Generation satellite navigation program, SpaceX is closing in on a $150 billion valuation, Lockheed Martin reported higher quarterly space revenue, India’s space sector is booming, we’ll soon see how well alcohol and zero gravity mix, and so much more.