By Karl B. Hille
NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center

Greenbelt, Md. — Finding the biggest collisions in the universe takes time, patience, and super steady lasers.

In May, NASA specialists working with industry partners delivered the first prototype laser for the European Space Agency-led Laser Interferometer Space Antenna, or LISA, mission. This unique laser instrument is designed to detect the telltale ripples in gravitational fields caused by the mergers of neutron stars, black holes, and supermassive black holes in space.

Through partnership, Satellogic will provide high-resolution, high-frequency satellite data to aid in disaster decision making and management

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (Satellogic PR)–Satellogic, a leader in sub-meter resolution satellite imagery collection, is now providing satellite imaging data from its constellation to the  International Charter Space and Major Disasters for use in monitoring and response activities. Satellogic provides images and full-motion video at no cost to the Charter’s Authorized Users to enable access to timely information for disaster events worldwide.

The International Disasters Charter provides Earth observation data for use in monitoring and response activities, acquired by the satellites of its members, contributing partners, and data contributors, to support disaster response worldwide. The Charter Board Members unanimously approved Satellogic’s application to be a data contributor to the Charter in May 2021.

WASHINGTON (NASA PR) — NASA has selected five U.S. companies to help the agency enable a steady pace of crewed trips to the lunar surface under the agency’s Artemis program. These companies will make advancements toward sustainable human landing system concepts, conduct risk-reduction activities, and provide feedback on NASA’s requirements to cultivate industry capabilities for crewed lunar landing missions.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (Inspiration4 PR) – Teams from SpaceX and Inspiration4 are now targeting a five-hour launch window for the Inspiration4 mission opening at 8:02 p.m. EDT on Wednesday, September 15. If needed for any reason, a backup window is available opening at 8:05 p.m. EDT on Thursday, September 16. 

• Soyuz Flight ST35 placed 34 more satellites into orbit. Following this 10th launch for OneWeb, Arianespace has deployed 322 satellites for the global connectivity constellation.
• Ninth successful launches and sixth Soyuz operated by Arianespace and Starsem since the start of the year.
• With this launch, Arianespace will have deployed 1,021 satellite since its incorporation in 1980.

BAIKONUR COSMODROME, Kazakhstan (Arianespace PR) — Performed on Tuesday, September 14, at precisely 11:07 p.m. local time at Russia’s Baikonur Cosmodrome (06:07 p.m. UTC), Soyuz Flight ST35 lifted-off with 34 OneWeb satellites onboard, bringing, after the successful deployment, the size of the fleet in orbit to 322. Flight ST35 was the 60th Soyuz mission carried out by Arianespace and its Starsem affiliate, and the tenth mission to the benefit of OneWeb.

FARNBOROUGH, UK (BAE Systems PR) — BAE Systems has acquired In-Space Missions, a UK company that designs, builds and operates satellites and satellite systems. The acquisition will combine BAE Systems’ experience in highly secure satellite communications with In-Space Missions’ full lifecycle satellite capability, to make a compelling sovereign UK space offer.

In-Space Missions was founded in 2015 and is based in Hampshire with more than 30 employees. It specialises in offering space services for activities covering earth observation, satellite communications, navigation, and space science and exploration. 

VIENNA, Va. & CAMBRIDGE, Ontario (Spire Global PR) — Spire Global, Inc. (NYSE: SPIR), a leading provider of space-based data, analytics and space services, and exactEarth Ltd. (TSX: XCT) (“exactEarth”) announced today that the companies have entered into a definitive arrangement agreement under which Spire will acquire exactEarth for approximately US$161.2 million (CAD$204.2 million) in cash and stock, which implies ~9.1x exactEarth’s Enterprise Value to LTM revenue. Once completed, exactEarth will become a fully owned subsidiary of Spire and continue to operate from Cambridge, Ontario, Canada under the leadership of exactEarth’s CEO Peter Mabson, reporting directly to Spire CEO Peter Platzer.

“Peter and I share a vision about the opportunity for space-based maritime data and the digitalization of the global maritime industry, and I look forward to pursuing that vision together,” said Peter Platzer, Spire’s CEO. “I have great respect for the highly experienced team at exactEarth and am excited to continue driving this digital transformation together, serving more customers with a more robust data and solutions platform.”

HOUSTON (NASA PR) — Two International Space Station crew members have had their stay onboard the orbiting lab extended to nearly a year. Meanwhile, space biology and life support maintenance kept the Expedition 65 crew busy on Tuesday.

With the plans for Russian spaceflight participants to visit the space station as part of the Soyuz MS-19 crew in October 2021, NASA astronaut Mark Vande Hei and Roscosmos cosmonaut Pyotr Dubrov will remain aboard the station until March 2022. Upon return to Earth, Vande Hei will hold the record for longest single spaceflight for an American. [Editor’s Note: The Russians are sending an actress and director to shoot a movied named “Challenge.”]

Alpha Data announces their Versal Core Development Kit for Space 2.0 – the ADK-VA600 – enabling the next generation of adaptable data processing in Space.

EDINBURGH, Scotland (Alpha Data PR) — Alpha Data, in collaboration with Xilinx, Texas Instruments, Teledyne e2v and Infineon Technologies are delighted to announce their Versal Core Development Kit for Space 2.0, the ADK-VA600, based on the revolutionary Xilinx XQR Versal AI Core VC1902 ACAP.

ADK-VA600 builds on a long heritage of leading-edge products for extreme environments and demonstrates a complete radiation-tolerant solution for adaptable data processing in proton environments.

Two industry leaders, Northrop Grumman and Lockheed Martin, invest in Orbit Fab for their Gas Stations in SpaceTM end-to-end refueling services using the Rapidly Attachable Fluid Transfer Interface (RAFTI).

SAN FRANCISCO (Orbit Fab PR) — Orbit Fab closed over $10 Million in its most recent financing, bringing its total funding to $17 Million. Alongside Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE: NOC) and Lockheed Martin Ventures (NYSE: LMT), Asymmetry Ventures led the round. Existing investor SpaceFund is joined by new investors, Marubeni Ventures and Audacious Venture Partners.

TORONTO, September 14, 2021 (Kepler Communications PR) — Space company Kepler Communications announced today that Stephen (Steve) Bennett will be joining the Kepler Team as Chief Operating Officer effective September 20th, to contribute his expertise to accelerating Kepler’s next phase of growth.

This key executive hire follows closely behind Kepler’s successful Series B round, announced in June 2021. At that time, Kepler announced that the funding would advance the company mission of delivering connectivity to other satellites and on-orbit assets, specifically identifying the start of Kepler’s GEN2 satellite program. The formation of a second international subsidiary, Kepler Communications US Inc, was also highlighted.

SEATTLE, Sept. 14, 2021 (Spaceflight Inc. PR) — Spaceflight Inc., the leader in global launch services, today announced a breakthrough cislunar rideshare mission: “GEO Pathfinder.” As a secondary payload on board Intuitive Machines’ IM-2 South Pole Mission, Spaceflight will execute rideshare deployments in trans-lunar orbit, low-lunar orbit and beyond to geosynchronous equatorial orbit (GEO). Spaceflight will utilize a lunar flyby with its new propulsive transfer vehicle, Sherpa EScape (Sherpa-ES), to deliver a payload from GeoJump, a new company dedicated to providing smallsat rideshare opportunities to GEO, that will also contain an Orbit Fab in-space fueling payload. The mission is slated to launch on a SpaceX Falcon 9 no earlier than Q4 2022.