Geopolitics News

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) has selected Dana Weigel as the International Space Station (ISS) Program manager, based at the agency’s Johnson Space Center in Houston. Weigel succeeds Joel Montalbano, who has accepted a position as deputy associate administrator for the Agency’s Space Operations Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters in Washington. Both positions will be effective April 7.

Iridium Communications Inc. has announced that the Republic of Korea (ROK) Ministry of Defense (MOD) has adopted Iridium connectivity for strategic use within its military operations. The ROK Army will consequently leverage a full suite of Iridium products and services to enhance operations, including real-time position-tracking capabilities for soldiers.

In a strategic move to boost the telecommunications landscape, the Global Satellite Operator's Association (GSOA) and the GSM Association (GSMA) have announced an important cooperation to foster innovation and seamless TN-NTN integration. Both associations consequently commit to advancing the capabilities of global communications by driving innovation, promoting standards, and delivering value to their members and the broader telecommunications industry. Furthermore, by combining the expertise and resources of both associations, they aim to explore new frontiers in technology and leverage synergies between mobile and satellite technologies.

Rwanda Space Agency (RSA) and the Polish Space Agency (POLSA) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to advance partnership opportunities, marking a significant milestone in bilateral collaboration between Rwanda and Poland in space technology. Rwanda and Poland share robust bilateral ties, demonstrated by a state visit by Polish President Andrzej Duda this month to Kigali, Rwanda's capital city.

In his review, Torsten Kriening shares his takeaways from the last week. The 60th Munich Security Conference featured discussions on geopolitical hotspots, collaboration, civil applications, global commons protection, and struggles for a unified vision for the Ukraine war within the EU. Notable moments include the signing of a Memorandum Of Understanding between the German Aerospace Center and the World Food Program and discussions on urgent global issues, but the “priorities are on the urgent issues, not the important issues” the discussions reflect on the critical but underrepresented role of space in addressing global challenges such as climate change and security issues.

Intuitive Machines has successfully soft-landed its IM-1 mission Nova-C class lunar lander (Odysseus) on the lunar South Pole after launching it a week ago from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The uncrewed lunar lander landed at 6:23 pm ET (23:23 UTC), making Intuitive Machines the first commercial outfit to soft-land on the moon. It also marks the US's first moon soft landing in 51 years. 

The UK Space Agency has opened two new funding calls worth £15 million, one for science and another for technology demonstrators. The calls are in preparation for a tentative agreement to fly a team of four British astronauts on a commercially sponsored mission, potentially to the International Space Station (ISS). The announcement follows the Memorandum of Understanding the UKSA and Axiom Space signed in October 2023, which outlined the plans to pursue a commercially-sponsored UK astronaut mission and an initial request for ideas for science and technology.

The European Space Agency (ESA) has given the green light for the realization of the Dutch TANGO satellites with ISISPACE as the prime contractor. TANGO (Twin Anthropogenic Greenhouse gas Observers) comprises two satellites flying in tandem. It will be a unique European measurement system that will determine methane, carbon dioxide and nitrogen dioxide emissions for individual industrial plants. Furthermore, it measures greenhouse gas emissions at source level from power plants, coal mines, landfills and factories, among others

Unseenlabs has announced its satellite fleet expansion and will consequently be launching two new satellites, the new unseenlabs bro-12 and bro-13 satellites. The satellites will tentatively launch in March as part of the transporter-10 mission aboard SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket via Exolaunch from the Vandenberg Space Force Base in California.

The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) has announced strengthening its partnership with the commercial space industry. NATO Deputy Secretary General Mircea Geoană made the announcement during NATO’s first Space Reverse Industry Day yesterday, 20 February 2024, as he highlighted the importance of cooperation with the commercial space industry to ensure Alliance security.