Welcome to Biz Briefs! In this edition, Sierra Space closed a big Series B round, Blue Origin is replacing its CEO as the FAA closes the New Shepard investigation, SpaceX won a Pentagon contract for Starshield, the Eutelsat-OneWeb merger closed, investors are urging Virgin Galactic to cut spending, and much more.

The rise of SpaceX, Blue Origin, and Virgin Galactic is opening up the thrills of riding rockets, floating in microgravity, and staring open-mouthed at spectacular views of Earth to those wealthy or lucky enough to book a flight. But while more private companies are flying individuals into space, governments around the world remain key to the success of commercial flight providers and future private space stations.

Welcome to Biz Briefs! In today’s edition, India is in talks with Blue Origin to use the Orbital Reef space station, ArianeGroup fired a reusable rocket stage with a reusable engine, Spaceport Nova Scotia plans its first launch, Venturi Group reinvents the wheel for lunar rovers, 2022 was a record year for commercial satellites, and much more.

A Congressionally-mandated review by the Rand Corporation has recommended that the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) be given the authority to formulate safety regulations to protect passengers and crew members on commercial human spaceflights when a regulatory moratorium expires on October 1, 2023.

U.S. commercial human spaceflight is set to accelerate over the next two years as SpaceX launches more commercial missions into orbit, Blue Origin’s New Shepard resumes suborbital flights, and Virgin Galactic’s SpaceShipTwo VSS Unity completes its test flight program and enters commercial service.

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has charged the winner of an auction to fly to space aboard New Shepard in 2021 with fraud related to his cryptocurrency business. The commission also charged eight celebrities with related violations.

Blue Origin’s New Shepard suborbital rocket crashed during a flight last September due to the structural failure of the vehicle’s BE-3 engine nozzle caused by excessive operating temperatures, the company announced on Friday.

NASA has nixed the idea of suborbital training flights for its astronauts aboard vehicles launched by Blue Origin and Virgin Galactic.

WASHINGTON — United Launch Alliance’s (ULA) CEO reaffirmed a May 2023 flight date for the maiden flight of the company’s new rocket; SpaceX and Rocket Lab officials laid out plans for record launch years; and a Blue Origin executive said Jeff Bezos’ company might never reveal what caused one of its rockets to explode last year.

BROOMFIELD, Colo. — The battle over what – if any – government safety regulations will be formulated for people flying on Blue Origin and Virgin Galactic suborbital vehicles and the right of those passengers to sue in the event of an accident was on full display at the Next-generation Suborbital Researchers Conference (NSRC) in Colorado this week.