ORLANDO, Fla., March 08, 2022 (ACME AtronOmatic PR) — ACME AtronOmatic, LLC, makers of the popular MyRadar weather and environmental awareness app, has secured its FCC license for the upcoming launch of its first batch of prototype satellites out of New Zealand on a Rocket Lab Electron rocket. The launches are expected to begin in April.

The prototype launch will validate some of the company’s key hardware components for its upcoming HORIS (Hyperspectral Orbital Remote Imaging Spectrometer) commercial constellation expected later this year. The license is part of a streamlined, experimental license program available from the FCC geared towards expediting and simplifying the application process in order to nurture domestic innovation.

PARIS (ESA PR) — The recruitment of the next ESA astronauts continues. Phase 2 began with the psychotechnical tests and will continue until the end of May with the psychological assessments. 404 French men and women are still in the race.

22,523 Europeans had applied last year to become a member of the European Astronaut Corps. A 1st selection on file selected 1,361, including 250 French and 154 French women, who therefore began phase 2 at the start of the year. And that’s where the serious stuff begins. 

“Phase 2 is divided into 2 stages ,” explains Arnaud Beck, director of clinical research at MEDES, the health subsidiary of CNES, and in charge of organizing part of the tests. The 1st (called phase 2.1) takes place in Hamburg, it involves psycho technical and cognitive tests : memorization, mental calculation… There is also an exercise which takes place in front of a control screen: the candidates must manage several parameters simultaneously, using different joysticks and controllers. They are also assessed on their level of English. This stage, which ends in early March, should see around 400 candidates access phase 2.2, which began on 01/31 in Cologne, at the European Astronaut Center (EAC).

PARIS (CNES PR) — SpaceFounders, the European NewSpace start-up accelerator, launched in 2021 at the initiative of CNES and the Bundeswehr University of Munich, is recruiting its new cohort of start-ups with a call for applications open until March 25. If the year 2021 turned out to be extremely rich, the year 2022 promises to be ultra-ambitious.

Online applications: https://www.spacefounders.eu/apply-now

In 2021, SpaceFounders demonstrated its ability to select and support an ultra-promising cohort of European spacetech entrepreneurs. Seed and Series A fundraising for a cumulative amount of more than €70 million is underway for the 10 winning start-ups, in order to innovate across the entire space value chain: space tourism, space surveillance, but also reusable launchers and innovative downstream services, including components for nanosatellites and in-orbit services.

by Douglas Messier
Managing Editor

NASA is funding research into a swarm of satellites that would enable scientists to measure the impacts of space weather in low-Earth orbit.

The space agency awarded a NASA Innovative Advanced Concepts (NIAC) Phase 1 grant worth $175,000 to Marcin Pilinski of University of Colorado Boulder for the In-situ Neutral-Optics Velocity Analyzer for Thermospheric Exploration (INOVATE) project.

HOUSTON, March 10, 2022 (FibroBiologics PR) – FibroBiologics, a clinical-stage company focused on the development of fibroblast cell-based therapeutics for chronic diseases, today announced the addition of Kathleen “Kate” Rubins, Ph.D., to its Scientific Advisory Board (SAB). A microbiologist and NASA astronaut, Dr. Rubins has conducted pioneering medical research on viruses at high-profile academic institutions as well as on board the International Space Station (ISS). She holds a B.S. in Molecular Biology from the University of California and Ph.D. in Cancer Biology from Stanford University. 

PARIS (CNES PR) — Created by CNES in 2021, SpaceFounders offers ultra-intensive and very high-level support to help startups think big. The explanations of the president of SpaceFounders France, Emmanuelle Méric.

What is SpaceFounders?

Emmanuelle Méric: SpaceFounders is an accelerator for European space startups. This is a public program, created at the initiative of CNES, which brings together a large community of public and private players, foremost among which are ESA and DLR, the German space agency , to bring out new world-class European champions in the space sector. Concretely, SpaceFounders is an entrepreneurship support program intended for managers of Space Tech startups. The ultra-intensive program lasts 3 months, virtually and face-to-face in the heart of European space capitals, and includes meetings, master classes, targeted networking and workshops.

“The great strength of SpaceFounders is the mentoring and connection with leading personalities from the space and digital world and investors.“

by Douglas Messier
Managing Editor

NASA is funding research into how to reduce noise levels produced by the next generation of vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) air mobility vehicles.

LONGUEUIL, Quebec, March 10, 2022 (CSA PR) — Canada is a global leader in the space robotics market thanks to strategic investments by the Government of Canada. Today the Honourable François-Philippe Champagne, Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry, announced that Brampton-based company MacDonald, Dettwiler and Associates Ltd. (MDA) will receive $268.9 million to execute the second phase of Canadarm3. Through this design work, Canadian industry will push its capabilities and know-how in space robotics further than ever before.

AURORA, Colo. and BOSTON, March 07, 2022 (Pine Technology Acquisition/Tomorrow.io PR) — Pine Technology Acquisition Corp. (Nasdaq: PTOC, PTOCW, PTOCU), a special purpose acquisition company (“Pine Technology”), and The Tomorrow Companies Inc. (“Tomorrow.io”) today announced that they have agreed to terminate the previously announced agreement and plan of merger (the “Business Combination Agreement”) due to market conditions and will not complete their previously announced business combination.

Pine Technology intends to continue to pursue the consummation of a business combination with an appropriate target.

by Douglas Messier
Managing Editor

The Georgia Supreme Court denied a request from Camden County for emergency relief to prevent the certification of a referendum in which residents voted overwhelmingly to rescind the county’s purchase of 4,000 acres from Union Carbide for the construction of Spaceport Camden.

The decision will allow Camden County Probate Judge Robert C. Sweatt Jr. to certify the results of the March 8 referendum in which 72 percent of voters cast ballots against the purchase of the property. The Current reports that this is not the end of the county’s efforts to have the referendum voided as being illegal under the Georgia constitution.

HOUSTON, March 10, 2022 (OneWeb PR) — OneWeb Technologies, the premier provider of innovative and secure commercial satellite communications (SATCOM) application solutions, has named former astronaut Tim Kopra as President. In his new role, Tim will be responsible for leading the company’s growth as it continues to expand its partnerships and solve secure, mission-critical real-time connectivity challenges for the U.S. government, its allies, and global enterprise customers.

A dedicated leader with a passion for space innovation, Kopra was Vice President for Robotics and Space Operations at MDA immediately prior to joining OneWeb Technologies. Before that, he held various leadership and operational roles as an engineer and astronaut at NASA. Kopra lived and worked on board the International Space Station (ISS) during two spaceflights and served as ISS Commander during one of its missions. During his time with NASA, Kopra completed three spacewalks and spent 244 days in space.

AUSTIN, Texas/EL SEGUNDO, Calif., March 10, 2022 (Slingshot Aerospace PR) — Slingshot Aerospace, Inc., a company building world-class space simulation and analytics products to accelerate space sustainability, announced today that it has raised $25 million in Series A-1 funds. The new money is in addition to the $9.6 million Series A funds raised in October 2020, bringing the total raised for the A and A-1 rounds to $34.6 million to date.

The oversubscribed A-1 round was co-led by Draper Associates, the global venture capital firm of prominent Silicon Valley venture capitalist Tim Draper, and ATX Venture Partners. Additional participation in the round included Edison Partners, Embedded Ventures, Valor Equity Partners, Lockheed Martin Ventures, and more. Participation from previous investors also included Revolution’s Rise of the Rest Fund, Okapi Venture Capital and others. Since inception in July 2017, Slingshot Aerospace has raised $42 million in funding.