Europe

Seraphim Capital prepares to list on the London Stock Exchange, the space fund’s co-founder Mark Boggett told the BBC. Seraphim Capital, one of the world's leading investors in space, is transferring all assets from its existing fund into the Seraphim Space Investment Trust, the report said.

Virgin Orbit is close to merging with a SPAC, valuing Richard Branson’s company at $3 billion, Sky News reported. Virgin Orbit is close to finalising a deal to combine with NextGen Acquisition II, a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) set up by George Mattson, a former Goldman Sachs banker, Sky News reported.

This Thursday’s Space Café "Moriba’s Vox Populi" was hosted by University of Texas academic Associate Professor Moriba Jah, an American astrodynamicist, space scientist and aerospace engineer known for his work in spacecraft navigation, space sustainability and space situational awareness.

Iceye’s radar satellite data have been fully integrated into ESA’s Third Party Missions (TPM) programme, the company said. This allows researchers and Earth Observation application developers to access synthetic-aperture radar (SAR) data, the Finnish startup said.

ESA goes to Venus with EnVision, the European Space Agency said. The mission was selected by ESA’s Science Programme Committee as the fifth Medium-class mission in the Agency’s Cosmic Vision plan, targeting a launch in the early 2030s, ESA said. EnVision follows ESA’s Venus Express (2005-2014)

The UK government has appointed Paul Bate as CEO of the UK Space Agency, succeeding Graham Turnock. Bate is currently Vice President, Commercial at Babylon Health, working with healthcare organisations in the NHS and across the world. Prior to that, he was the Executive Director of Strategy and Intelligence at the Care Quality Commission.

Kongsberg Satellite Services (KSAT) will support and service Intuitive Machines (IM) for all its Moon missions, the company announced. KSAT has entered a long-term agreement with IM to support every stage of IM’s missions to the Moon, from launch and early operations, through transit, including lunar operations, KSAT said. IM will use KSAT services for its 2022 IM-1 mission.

An Alnwick-headquartered sustainable space specialist NORSS has received £10,000 in research and development (R&D) tax credits, thanks to the innovation demonstrated in its projects. Opening sustainable opportunities in outer space for businesses, the government and the public, NORSS was formed in 2017 and specialises in Space Situational Awareness

Kepler Communications raised $60 million to fund its satellite communications network, the company said. This Series B fundraising round was led by Tribe Capital and includes participation from existing investors like IA Ventures and Costanoa Ventures and new investors like Canaan Partners.

Sierra Space, a subsidiary of the aerospace and security group Sierra Nevada Corporation, announced a memorandum of understanding with Spaceport Cornwall in South-West England. The memorandum paves the way for sustained operations with UK’s horizontal launch spaceport at Cornwall Airport Newquay. The UK Space Agency is funding Sierra’s Dream Chaser concept.