Defense

VisionX Technology is a consortium partner on the TÜBİTAK UZAY-led GEZGİN-1 Earth-observation microsatellite project. The formal collaboration was signed at SAHA 2026 with participation of the Minister of Industry and Technology. VisionX contributes AI-supported data processing and satellite management units for the <75 kg platform, which targets precision agriculture, environmental monitoring, maritime surveillance and AI image analysis, with launch planned for Q4 2028.

VisionX Technology is a consortium partner on the TÜBİTAK UZAY-led GEZGİN-1 Earth-observation microsatellite project. The formal collaboration was signed at SAHA 2026 with participation of the Minister of Industry and Technology. VisionX contributes AI-supported data processing and satellite management units for the <75 kg platform, which targets precision agriculture, environmental monitoring, maritime surveillance and AI image analysis, with launch planned for Q4 2028.

Varda Space Industries recovered its W-6 capsule after orbital reentry, confirming successful operation of Rhea Space Activity’s hosted AutoNav payload. The two-camera flight computer system collected imagery through the plasma sheath to enable celestial navigation when GPS and RF were unavailable. The demonstration advanced GPS-resilient positioning for hypersonic and reentry vehicles.

Varda Space Industries recovered its W-6 capsule after orbital reentry, confirming successful operation of Rhea Space Activity’s hosted AutoNav payload. The two-camera flight computer system collected imagery through the plasma sheath to enable celestial navigation when GPS and RF were unavailable. The demonstration advanced GPS-resilient positioning for hypersonic and reentry vehicles.

Rhea Space Activity received a definitive STTR Phase II contract (W5170126CA069) valued at approximately $1.315 million from the Department of the Army. The work continues Phase I efforts on passive ranging for fire control under day and night conditions and supports GPS-denied targeting applications.

Rhea Space Activity received a definitive STTR Phase II contract (W5170126CA069) valued at approximately $1.315 million from the Department of the Army. The work continues Phase I efforts on passive ranging for fire control under day and night conditions and supports GPS-denied targeting applications.

Rhea Space Activity closed a ~$6 million Series A to scale its optical AutoNav software for GPS-denied environments. The round was backed by Boston Global Space Tech Investors, Iron Prairie Ventures, Blackbird Capital Group, Purdue Research Foundation, New Mexico Vintage Fund, SpaceFund and additional investors. Capital will support hiring, production, validation and expansion to U.S. and allied military/intelligence customers across AUKUS, Five Eyes and NATO.

Rhea Space Activity closed a ~$6 million Series A to scale its optical AutoNav software for GPS-denied environments. The round was backed by Boston Global Space Tech Investors, Iron Prairie Ventures, Blackbird Capital Group, Purdue Research Foundation, New Mexico Vintage Fund, SpaceFund and additional investors. Capital will support hiring, production, validation and expansion to U.S. and allied military/intelligence customers across AUKUS, Five Eyes and NATO.

Portal Space Systems closed a $50M Series A on April 9, 2026, led by Geodesic Capital and Mach33, with Booz Allen Ventures, ARK Invest, AlleyCorp, and FUSE participating, valuing the company at $250M. Total funding including $45M in prior military strategic investment now stands at ~$117.5M. Capital will fund headcount scaling to ~100, a 52,000 sq ft Bothell manufacturing facility, and Starburst-1 launch preparation for SpaceX Transporter-18 in Q4 2026. Portal's HEX Thruster (Flare) passed thermal vacuum testing at operational temperatures in September 2025 — the first commercial solar thermal propulsion test. Starburst-1 will demonstrate rendezvous and proximity operations (RPO) and rapid retasking.

The Space Systems Command (SSC) in El Segundo awarded an indefinite-delivery, indefinite-quantity (IDIQ) contract on April 7, 2026, for space-based space domain awareness capability. The 14-company pool includes Anduril, Astranis, BAE Systems Space, General Atomics, Intuitive Machines, L3Harris, Lockheed Martin, Millennium Space Systems, Northrop Grumman, Quantum Space, Redwire, Sierra Space, True Anomaly, and Turion Space. The IDIQ ceiling and individual task order values were not disclosed. The procurement was competitive with 32 offers received. This represents a significant commercial-first approach to orbital domain awareness infrastructure.

The Space Systems Command (SSC) in El Segundo awarded an indefinite-delivery, indefinite-quantity (IDIQ) contract on April 7, 2026, for space-based space domain awareness capability. The 14-company pool includes Anduril, Astranis, BAE Systems Space, General Atomics, Intuitive Machines, L3Harris, Lockheed Martin, Millennium Space Systems, Northrop Grumman, Quantum Space, Redwire, Sierra Space, True Anomaly, and Turion Space. The IDIQ ceiling and individual task order values were not disclosed. The procurement was competitive with 32 offers received. This represents a significant commercial-first approach to orbital domain awareness infrastructure.

Rhea Space Activity flew a custom two-camera AutoNav payload on Varda’s W-6 mission launched from Vandenberg. The system images stars and LEO satellites, matching them against the U.S. Space Force Unified Data Library to provide position during the RF blackout of reentry. It marks the first hypersonic atmospheric use of the JPL-heritage AutoNav software.

Rhea Space Activity flew a custom two-camera AutoNav payload on Varda’s W-6 mission launched from Vandenberg. The system images stars and LEO satellites, matching them against the U.S. Space Force Unified Data Library to provide position during the RF blackout of reentry. It marks the first hypersonic atmospheric use of the JPL-heritage AutoNav software.

AST SpaceMobile confirmed on March 26, 2026 that BlueBird 7 had been encapsulated for its upcoming launch, with the company maintaining its target of intermittent nationwide direct-to-device (D2D) service in the United States by end of Q1 2026. Shares surged 10.4% ($96.00) on March 26 following a trifecta of catalysts: BlueBird 7 encapsulation, a $30M US government tactical demonstration contract, and sector-wide excitement around SpaceX's IPO filing. BlueBirds 8–25 are in various stages of assembly at Midland, Texas. The company remains on track to deploy 45–60 satellites by year-end 2026. AT&T and Verizon beta service for select commercial and FirstNet users targeted for H1 2026.

K2 Space CEO Karan Kunjur announced on March 19-20, 2026 that the GRAVITAS satellite (2 metric tons, 40m solar wingspan, 20kW generation) had been shipped to the SpaceX launch facility ahead of its Transporter rideshare launch. The satellite carries 12 payloads including DoD customers, under a $60M Space Force STRATFI contract. GRAVITAS features the most powerful Hall-effect thruster ever flown (20kW, krypton-fed) — roughly 4× more powerful than anything previously flown in space. Mission tiers: (1) deploy solar arrays and establish comms; (2) operate customer payloads; (3) orbit-raise LEO→MEO using electric propulsion, the first such raise ever attempted. K2 raised $250M Series C at $3B valuation in December 2025, and $450M total funding.

The U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory awarded BlackSky Geospatial Solutions a $99 million IDIQ Small Business Innovation Research Phase III contract on March 6, 2026 to develop a large-aperture optical imaging system testbed for future space-based intelligence missions. Work will be performed in Herndon, Virginia through March 2032. The payload design centers on a segmented primary mirror architecture, precision laser metrology and mirror positioning, and large-format focal plane arrays — technologies that enable very high-resolution imagery at lower cost than traditional monolithic optics. The award is separate from BlackSky's existing Gen-3 constellation and its planned AROS wide-area search satellite.

Sierra Space raised $550M in Series C equity on March 5, 2026, led by LuminArx Capital Management with participation from General Atlantic, Coatue, Moore Strategic Ventures, and Andalusian Private Capital, valuing the company at $8 billion post-money. The round arrives as Sierra Space executes a $740M SDA Tranche 2 contract (18 missile-warning satellites, three months ahead of schedule) and a classified $450M national security award. CEO Dan Jablonsky, who replaced founder Fatih Ozmen in February 2026, is tasked with transitioning the company from development-heavy to high-rate manufacturing. Dream Chaser demo flight is now targeted for late 2026 as a free-flight uncrewed demonstration rather than ISS resupply.

Sierra Space raised $550M in Series C equity on March 5, 2026, led by LuminArx Capital Management with participation from General Atlantic, Coatue, Moore Strategic Ventures, and Andalusian Private Capital, valuing the company at $8 billion post-money. The round arrives as Sierra Space executes a $740M SDA Tranche 2 contract (18 missile-warning satellites, three months ahead of schedule) and a classified $450M national security award. CEO Dan Jablonsky, who replaced founder Fatih Ozmen in February 2026, is tasked with transitioning the company from development-heavy to high-rate manufacturing. Dream Chaser demo flight is now targeted for late 2026 as a free-flight uncrewed demonstration rather than ISS resupply.

Aalyria, the Alphabet/Google spinout founded in 2022, closed a $100M Series B on February 23, 2026, led by Battery Ventures and J2 Ventures with DYNE participating, at a $1.3 billion valuation. The company develops Spacetime (AI-driven network orchestration for dynamic satellite-ground-air meshes) and Tightbeam (ultra-high-speed laser communications terminals). A January 2026 AFRL contract puts Spacetime in the Space Data Network Experimentation (SDNX) program. Active programs include Telesat Lightspeed (providing the control plane for the $3.5B LEO constellation), NASA EO data delivery, and ESA O-RAN bridging. Battery GP Michael Brown joins the board.

XTEND, the AI-powered tactical drone company, announced a major business combination with JFB Construction Holdings valued at $1.5B, backed by strategic investors including Eric Trump, aiming for Nasdaq listing under ticker XTND in mid-2026.