Europe

Starlab Space LLC (Starlab Space), the joint venture between Voyager Space and Airbus, today welcomed Mitsubishi Corporation as a strategic partner and equity owner in Starlab Space. This partnership expands Starlab Space's reach beyond a transatlantic partnership and transforms the joint venture into a global organization.

The Proba-3 mission of the European Space Agency (ESA) is successfully completing its pre-launch tests. Led by Sener, in close collaboration with an industrial team consisting of Redwire, Airbus, GMV and Spacebel, and encompassing a large consortium of over 29 companies from 17 countries, Proba-3 will demonstrate the viability of high-precision formation flying by satellites in space.

The Government of Norway has reversed its decision to close the Andoya Spaceport as it intends to develop the spaceport into a base for long-range drones. This will consequently make the Andoya Spaceport central to the support and development of the Norwegian Armed Forces' space operations. As a result, there will still be a daily military presence at the Spaceport as it becomes an important airbase for allied reception. 

The Satcoms Innovation Group (SIG) has welcomed new academic members: Coleg Cambria, the Institute of Physics, The Northern Space Consortium and Space Wales. SIG is a membership organization that promotes innovation within the satellite communications industry to improve operational efficiency and minimise negative impact. It aims to foster relationships between operators, manufacturers, and solutions providers by providing a platform for members to exchange ideas, discuss challenges and opportunities, and explore technical aspects of industry efficiencies.

The Heinrich Hertz communications satellite has successfully commenced scientific operations as it was recently used to test the functionality and capacity of the ILKA mobile satellite communication system. The satellite launched on 6 July 2023 at 00:00 CEST and to a geostationary orbit at 0.5 degrees East.

Orbex has successfully patented its REFLIGHT reusable rocket technology following patent approval in several European markets, based on the patent grant by the European Patent Office, as well as in the United States. The technology works well with micro-launcher rockets like Orbex’s Prime rocket since it enables recovery of the launch vehicle by repurposing existing structural features while adding very little additional weight to the vehicle. It thereby enables reusability with very limited overall performance penalty and no additional rocket propulsion emissions in the upper atmosphere during re-entry.

UKspace has appointed Colin Baldwin as Executive Director of UKspace to lead the organization, following the decision by its Director, Lizzie Kerr, to step down from her role with the official trade association of the UK space industry. Lizzie will be retiring on 30 June 2024 after more than five and a half years in her post. Colin Baldwin's appointment as Executive Director of UKspace will consequently take effect from 1 July 2024.

The UK Space Agency (UKSA) is opening new headquarters in Harwell, Oxfordshire and regional offices in Scotland, Wales and the Midlands as it works to support the space sector across the UK. Aligned with the UK Government’s Levelling Up strategy, the expansion will enable the Agency to collaborate more closely with the UK’s thriving space sector while promoting regional skills and job opportunities to deliver increasingly ambitious missions and capabilities.

Qosmosys, a company in the field of lunar economy, has signed a Letter of Intent (LoI) with the Luxembourg Space Agency (LSA) to collaborate on cutting-edge research and development projects in the burgeoning field of the growing lunar economy.

The European Space Agency (ESA)'s Gaia space telescope has discovered two surprising streams of stars that formed and wove together over 12 billion years ago. The two streams, named Shakti and Shiva, helped form the infant Milky Way. Both are so ancient they likely formed before even the oldest parts of our present-day galaxy’s spiral arms and disc.