Frontiers

Skyrora and Spirit AeroSystems have announced a collaboration on orbital launch capability. The companies celebrated the announcement on the conference’s opening day in Belfast, home to Spirit’s largest UK manufacturing facility. This partnership will enable Skyrora to transition its orbital launch vehicles from development to full-scale production, in addition to localizing its supply chain. 

Venturi Astrolab, Inc. (Astrolab) has announced that it has reached an agreement with eight enterprise customers to use its Flexible Logistics and Exploration (FLEX) rover to deploy the customers’ payloads on Astrolab’s upcoming mission to the Moon - Mission 1. Five customers are releasing details of their payloads today: Argo Space, Astroport, Avalon Space, Interstellar Lab, and LifeShip. Three more customers are contracted with Astrolab but intend to release details of their payloads at a future date, closer to launch. Collectively, Astrolab values the eight contracts at more than $160 million.

The United Arab Emirates, represented by the Telecommunications and Digital Government Regulatory Authority (TDRA), is hosting the 2023 edition of the World Radio Conference in the Dubai World Trade Centre, Dubai, United Arab Emirates. The conference began yesterday, Monday, November 20 and will continue till 15 December 2023. The conference holds every three to four years to review and, if necessary, revise the Radio Regulations, the international treaty governing the use of the radio-frequency spectrum and the geostationary-satellite and non-geostationary-satellite orbits.

Rocket Lab USA, Inc. has announced the expansion of its space systems business with a dedicated production and development complex. The complex will deliver a comprehensive suite of advanced composite products for the space industry and further vertically integrate supply for the Company’s internal needs across launch and space systems. Furthermore, Rocket Lab's complex will support the development and manufacture of carbon composite spacecraft buses, structural panels and assemblies, among others. 

SpaceX has conducted the second test of its Starship Rocket to launch it into Space in an attempt to evaluate the spacecraft's ability. The Spacecraft lifted off successfully but the rocket's Super Heavy first stage booster exploded in a fireball over the Gulf of Mexico after crucially maneuvering to separate with its core Starship stage. Despite the booster's explosion, Starship continued its trip to space - crossing the 100km mark - until a SpaceX company broadcaster confirmed that mission control suddenly lost contact with the vehicle.

ispace, inc. has announced its Mission 2, part of the HAKUTO-R lunar exploration program, to serve as the company’s second technological demonstration, based on lessons learned from Mission 1. Mission 2 aims to further validate the lander’s design and technology, as well as ispace’s business model, to provide reliable lunar transportation and data services. Concurrently with the second mission, ispace also unveiled the final design of its micro rover, which it will transport to the surface of the Moon by its lunar lander as part of exploration activities during Mission 2.

Firefly Aerospace, Inc. has announced the closing of another tranche of financing, valuing the company at $1.5 billion pre-money. Existing investors led the round, including AE Industrial Partners, LP, as well as new investors, including Mitsui & Co., Ltd. Firefly has consequently raised approximately $300 million in funding since February 2023.

Imagine that we are part of a group responsible for planning a space journey, and our primary guiding principle is to use biomimicry as a tool to inspire the solutions we will need to develop. "Biomimicry involves solving problems by studying and emulating natural processes. For example, the design of whale-inspired wind turbines draws inspiration from the humpback whale." These studies have been done through the observation of behaviors and characteristics of all types of living creatures living in this world.  It holds the key to billions of years of research and development of sustainable, circular, and regenerative solutions.

HyImpulse has partnered with Southern Launch to launch into space from the Koonibba Test Range in 2024. In the same vein, the German rocket manufacturer has entered into agreements regarding the provision of facilities and services of the SaxaVord spaceport for future launch activities. As a result, HyImpulse will offer launch services from SaxaVord Spaceport in the Shetland Islands, and test its SR75 rocket via a suborbital launch at the Koonibba test range. 

“Strategic Autonomy“is a bit like “Diversity”: you can keep repeating all day that mantra for space access, but that alone doesn’t make it happen. How much of a game changer  was the early November 2023 European Space Summit in Séville?