NASA leadership has chosen to redirect resources away from the long-planned Lunar Gateway orbital station toward building a more ambitious, sustained human base on the lunar surface. The decision reflects a broader Artemis program shift toward surface infrastructure.

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partnership

Success Mar 23, 2026

Space Compass

Space Compass and SWISSto12 Sign Contract for First Commercial GEO Optical Data Relay Satellite

Space Compass and SWISSto12 executed a procurement contract for the first commercial GEO optical data relay satellite using the HummingSat platform. This enables real-time Earth observation data relay from LEO to GEO.

NASA Signals Monthly Lunar Lander Cadence Starting 2027

NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman called for a monthly cadence of robotic lunar landers to the south pole starting next year, accelerating CLPS 2.0 and surface infrastructure.

SpaceX Launches Starlink Group 10-62 on Falcon 9 from Cape Canaveral

Falcon 9 with 29 V2 Mini Starlink satellites in Group 10-62 targets liftoff from SLC-40, Cape Canaveral SFS on March 22 at 14:43 UTC (10:43 EDT). Booster on ~27th flight with RTLS landing planned. Continues megaconstellation expansion to 10,000+ satellites.[web:34]

Roscosmos Progress MS-33 Cargo Mission Launches to ISS

Soyuz-2.1a rocket with Progress MS-33 (94P) resupply vehicle targets 11:59 UTC liftoff from Baikonur LC-31/6 on March 22, carrying 2.5 tons of food, fuel, water, and science cargo. Automated docking to ISS Rassvet module ~2 days later. Supports multinational station operations amid crew rotations.[web:27][web:36]

SpaceX Launches 25 Starlink Satellites from Vandenberg SFB

Falcon 9 lifted off from SLC-4E at Vandenberg Space Force Base on March 20 at 21:51 UTC with 25 Starlink V2 Mini satellites on northeast trajectory. First stage separated and RTLS landed successfully. Adds to constellation growth pace of 35+ missions in 2026 YTD.[web:37]

NASA X-59 Completes Second Test Flight Despite In-Flight Issue

NASA's X-59 Quesst quiet supersonic demonstrator flew its second test mission on March 20 from Edwards AFB, California, lasting ~1 hour at speeds up to 260 mph and 20,000 ft. A cockpit warning prompted early termination, but the aircraft landed safely after envelope expansion objectives. This advances validation of low-boom tech for future overland supersonic travel.[web:33][web:35]

Kayhan Space Launches Satcat Terminal

Kayhan Space released Satcat Terminal, an AI-powered platform that makes space situational awareness accessible to investors, insurers, and non-technical users through a natural language interface.

NASA Rolls SLS + Orion Stack to Launch Pad 39B for Artemis II

After helium leak repairs and final close-outs, NASA began the ~4-mile rollout of the fully stacked SLS rocket and Orion spacecraft from the Vehicle Assembly Building to Launch Complex 39B at Kennedy Space Center. Rollout started ~8 p.m. EDT March 19 (delayed slightly by winds) and is expected to complete within 12 hours. This positions the vehicle for the April 1 targeted crewed lunar flyby: the first humans around the Moon since Apollo 17.

NASA Astronauts Complete U.S. Spacewalk 94 to Prep for New Solar Arrays

On March 18 astronauts Jessica Meir (4th EVA) and Chris Williams (1st EVA) conducted the first U.S. spacewalk of 2026 from the Quest airlock. They prepared the 2A power channel for future IROSA rollout solar array installation. The 6.5-hour EVA successfully completed all primary tasks. Spacewalk 95 (3B channel prep) is scheduled for the coming days.

7-Ton Meteor Explodes Over Northeast Ohio, Sonic Boom Heard Across Multiple States

At ~8:56 a.m. EDT March 17 a ~6-ft, 7-ton meteor entered Earth’s atmosphere over Lake Erie traveling ~45,000 mph. It fragmented over Medina County, Ohio, releasing energy equivalent to ~250 tons of TNT and generating a pressure wave felt as loud booms and shaking homes across northeast Ohio, western Pennsylvania, and parts of 10+ states. NASA’s fireball network confirmed the event; potential meteorites may have reached the ground in a strewn field south of Valley City.

PLD Space Raises €180M ($209M) to Scale Miura 5 Rocket Production

Spanish launch company PLD Space closed a €180 million Series C round led by Mitsubishi Electric to prepare for the debut flight of its Miura 5 rocket.

Liftero Signs BOOSTER Propulsion Contract with OrbitAID for In-Orbit Servicing

Polish propulsion startup Liftero secured a contract to supply two multi-thruster BOOSTER green chemical propulsion systems to Indian in-orbit servicing company OrbitAID. The systems will enable 6-DOF maneuvering, proximity operations, docking, and life-extension on the upcoming mission.

Sierra Space Raises $550M at $8B Valuation

Sierra Space secured $550 million in equity funding, pushing its valuation to $8 billion as it accelerates development of Dream Chaser and orbital infrastructure.

Satlyt Licenses DiskSat Technology from The Aerospace Corporation

Satlyt signed a commercial license agreement with The Aerospace Corporation to integrate its edge-computing framework with the NASA-backed DiskSat platform. DiskSat is a flat-panel satellite form factor designed for dense LEO constellations. The deal enables real-time autonomy, in-orbit data processing, and distributed satellite coordination — core infrastructure for Satlyt's Virtual AI Data Center concept.

IonQ Completes Skyloom Acquisition

IonQ completed the acquisition of Skyloom on January 28, 2026, integrating its optical communications terminal expertise into the IonQ Quantum Infrastructure division. Skyloom's V'ger and Scotty OCT product lines — capable of multi-Gbps satellite-to-satellite and satellite-to-ground laser links — now underpin IonQ's distributed quantum entanglement roadmap. The deal closes IonQ's full-stack ambition: compute, sensing, secure comms, and optical transport all under one roof.

Orbital Paradigm KID Capsule Survives PSLV-C62 Launch Failure

Orbital Paradigm's KID reentry demonstrator flew on ISRO's PSLV-C62 on January 12, 2026. The launch vehicle suffered an anomaly during the third-stage burn and failed to reach orbit, losing its primary payload EOS-N1 and 14 of 15 co-passengers. KID was the sole survivor — the capsule separated from the fairing, transmitted 190 seconds of reentry flight data, and survived atmospheric entry before impacting Earth. Orbital Paradigm confirmed it achieved 4 of 5 pre-defined mission milestones despite the off-nominal profile, validating separation, power-on, data transmission, and reentry survivability.

Space Forge Achieves World-First Plasma Generation on ForgeStar-1

Space Forge successfully generated plasma aboard its ForgeStar-1 in-space manufacturing satellite — claimed as the first commercial semiconductor manufacturing tool operated in orbit.

Space Forge Generates First Plasma Aboard ForgeStar-1

UK in-space manufacturing startup Space Forge successfully ignited its miniature furnace and generated plasma at ~1,000°C aboard ForgeStar-1 — the first commercial semiconductor manufacturing tool operated in orbit.

Arceon Secures Dutch Ministry of Defense Investment via SecFund

Arceon received investment from SecFund — a Dutch dual-use defense fund backed by the Ministry of Defence and Ministry of Economic Affairs — alongside a follow-on from Tenzing Alpha. The round signals Arceon's commercial scaling phase, with the company expanding production capacity for Carbeon composites used in space and hypersonic defense applications.

IonQ Acquires Skyloom for $33M+ to Build Quantum Optical Networking Stack

IonQ (NYSE: IONQ) announced the acquisition of Skyloom Global in November 2025, closed January 28, 2026. Skyloom had delivered ~90 SDA-qualified optical communications terminals by 2025 — making it the leading provider of multi-Gbps laser comms for government satellite constellations. IonQ acquires Skyloom to complete its quantum networking stack alongside purchases of ID Quantique, Capella Space, Lightsynq, and Vector Atomic. Skyloom CEO Marc Eisenberg stays on as subsidiary leader.

New Glenn NG-2 Achieves Full Mission Success, Lands Booster at Sea

Blue Origin's second New Glenn flight on November 13, 2025 achieved full mission success: the ESCAPADE twin spacecraft were deployed to their loiter orbit en route to Mars, and the first stage booster "Never Tell Me the Odds" landed on the Jacklyn platform vessel in the Atlantic — making Blue Origin only the second company ever to recover an orbital-class booster. The flight certified New Glenn for NASA and set up future Blue Moon lunar lander missions.

Pale Blue Advances to Phase 2 of MEXT SBIR-3 Debris Mitigation Grant

Pale Blue progressed to Phase 2 of the MEXT SBIR-3 program, unlocking up to $7.9M in additional funding for detailed system design and ground verification of its water-based ion and Hall-effect thrusters. Phase 2 runs through December 2026, with in-orbit demonstration the target for Phase 3.

Danti Wins $1.25M Direct-to-Phase II Contract with U.S. Space Force TacSRT

Danti’s AI-powered Earth data search engine selected for automated analysis supporting U.S. Space Force TacSRT and broader Combatant Commands.

Orbital Paradigm Raises €1.5M Pre-Seed for Kestrel Reentry Capsule

Madrid-based Orbital Paradigm secured €1.5M in pre-seed funding from Akka, Demium Capital, id4 Ventures, and other investors to accelerate development of its Kestrel reusable reentry capsule. The company has pre-sold its first mission in full, with its second already 80% booked, and holds commercial interest from 18 clients worth a combined €81M. Founding CEO Francesco Cacciatore brings nearly two decades of ESA experience from Space Rider and Euclid.

Pale Blue Closes $10M Series C with Mitsubishi Electric CVC

University of Tokyo spin-out Pale Blue completed a ~$10M Series C (¥1.5bn), receiving its first investment from Mitsubishi Electric's ME Innovation Fund. Mitsubishi Electric makes and operates satellites — making this a strategic CVC play positioning Pale Blue as a preferred propulsion partner. Other investors include aStart, Nissay Capital, Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance Venture Capital, and Itochu Technology Ventures. Total raised to date reaches approximately $30M.

Antaris Wins Second SDA Contract for TrueTwin Digital FlatSats

Antaris announced a new contract with the Space Development Agency to expand digital FlatSat development for SDA space vehicles using TrueTwin technology. Building on an initial 2024 SDA contract, the expanded program supports Antaris' Full Mission Virtualization push — enabling operators to test satellite software in a virtual environment before deployment, eliminating the need for costly physical hardware FlatSats.

Manastu Space Raises $3M Seed for Green Satellite Propulsion

Mumbai-based Manastu Space raised $3M in seed funding to commercialize its I-Booster green propulsion system, which replaces toxic hydrazine with hydrogen peroxide. IIT Bombay co-founders Tushar Jadhav and Ashtesh Kumar developed the technology from a student satellite project with ISRO. The I-Booster delivers 50% higher efficiency than conventional thrusters and is under evaluation by both ISRO and DRDO.

Geolava Raises $4.3M Pre-Seed for Spatial AI Platform

San Francisco-based Geolava closed a $4.3M pre-seed round in July 2025 led by Luge Capital and others.

General Atomics Invests in Arceon for US Hypersonics Market Entry

General Atomics Aeronautical Systems (GA-ASI) announced a strategic investment in Arceon following the inaugural Blue Magic Netherlands event in November 2024. Arceon becomes the third Dutch startup backed by GA-ASI through the BMN initiative, alongside Emergent Swarm Solutions and Saluqi Motors. The investment provides Arceon with direct entry into the US defense sector, with GA-ASI citing potential applications in high-temperature engine exhaust, hypersonic platforms, and fusion containment.

Starship Flight 8: Booster Caught, Ship 34 Lost Over Atlantic

SpaceX's eighth Starship flight test on March 6, 2025 achieved a third consecutive Super Heavy booster catch at Starbase (Mechazilla), but Ship 34 lost attitude control 8 minutes into ascent due to Raptor engine failures and broke apart over the Bahamas/Atlantic, triggering FAA ground stops at Florida airports. Root cause: hardware failure in a Raptor engine causing propellant mixing. FAA closed the mishap investigation June 12, 2025 after SpaceX identified 8 corrective actions.

Intuitive Machines IM-2 Athena Lander Tips Over at Lunar South Pole

Intuitive Machines' Nova-C lander Athena touched down at Mons Mouton near the lunar south pole on March 6, 2025 — the southernmost lunar landing ever — but settled on its side inside a small crater ~250 m from the target site after an altimeter failure. Power depleted within 13 hours. NASA's PRIME-1 drill could not operate, though 250 MB of data was returned. The company's second consecutive sideways landing.

Firefly Blue Ghost Completes First Fully Successful Commercial Moon Landing

Firefly Aerospace's Blue Ghost lander touched down at Mare Crisium on March 2, 2025 — the first fully successful commercial soft landing on the Moon. All 10 NASA CLPS science payloads powered on and collected data over a 14-day surface mission (346 hours), transmitting 120 GB back to Earth. The mission concluded March 16 when batteries depleted at lunar sunset.

Arceon Carbeon CMC Materials Launched to ISS for In-Space Testing

Four Carbeon C/C-SiC ceramic matrix composite samples from Arceon were launched to the ISS aboard NASA SpaceX CRS-31 in November 2024, attached to the Bartolomeo external platform on the Columbus Module. Materials will be exposed to the full space environment — radiation, thermal extremes, vacuum, and debris — for at least 6 months to benchmark ground test results against real LEO aging. First time the material has been tested in open space.

Arceon Closes Seed Round Led by Tenzing Alpha

Delft-based CMC startup Arceon closed a seed funding round led by Dutch VC Tenzing Alpha (undisclosed amount), with InnovationQuarter also participating. Funds will be used to expand commercial capabilities and market reach as the company transitions from R&D to commercial production scale.

Orbital Matter Launches Replicator 3D Printer on Ariane 6 Maiden Flight

Orbital Matter's Replicator CubeSat — carrying a polymer 3D printer designed to work in vacuum and microgravity — flew as a secondary payload on Ariane 6's inaugural flight on July 9, 2024. The 3U CubeSat deployed successfully from the rocket, becoming the first in-orbit demonstration of open-space 3D printing outside the ISS. Separation confirmed and deployment achieved; two-way communications not confirmed as of July 25. Main objective of proving launch survivability and demonstrating the technology concept validated.

BULL Co. and JAXA Partner on Space Debris Prevention Device

Japanese startup BULL Co. signed MOU with JAXA under J-SPARC to co-develop post-mission disposal (PMD) device for Epsilon S rocket and satellites.

Pale Blue Awarded Up to $27M MEXT Grant for Water Thruster Debris Mitigation

Pale Blue was awarded a grant of up to $27M (JPY 4 billion) from Japan's Ministry of Education MEXT under the SBIR-3 program to develop and demonstrate miniaturized water-based ion and Hall-effect thrusters for space debris mitigation by fiscal 2027. The three-phase grant covers fundamental design, ground verification, and in-orbit demonstration, targeting 10-100 kg class satellites with the ion thruster and 100-500 kg class with the Hall-effect thruster.

Orbital Matter Closes €1.1M Pre-Seed for In-Orbit 3D Printer

Polish-German startup Orbital Matter raised over €1 million in pre-seed funding led by Sunfish Partners, with Dhyan VC and angel investors participating. Thales Alenia Space is also an industrial partner via the Space Business Catalyst accelerator. Funds will support development of Orbital Matter's in-orbit 3D printer technology ahead of a planned Ariane 6 demonstration.

Antaris JANUS-1: World's First Cloud-Built Satellite Reaches Orbit

JANUS-1, designed and tested entirely using the Antaris Cloud Platform, launched aboard ISRO's SSLV-D2 rocket on February 10, 2023 — becoming the world's first satellite designed, simulated, and operated from a cloud platform. The mission validated Antaris' TrueTwin digital twin approach, with pre-launch virtual testing predicting on-orbit behavior accurately.

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