North America

The US Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has approved SpaceX's February 2019 application to deploy up to one million user terminals throughout the United States for the Starlink satellite communications constellation.

SEAKR Engineering announced on 23 March 2020 that it has been selected to join Lockheed Martin’s team to help design and build a prototype payload for the U.S. Space Force’s Protected Tactical Satellite Communications (SATCOM), or PTS, program.

The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA), the world’s largest aerospace technical society, issued a statement on 20 March 2020, calling on federal government officials and lawmakers to be mindful of and support the aerospace and defense industry during this challenging time. A press release from the AIAA reads: …

NASA has certified Rocket Lab’s Electron launch vehicle, providing confidence for NASA’s low cost scientific, educational and technology demonstration small satellites, the company announced on 17 March 2020.

The Farming by Satellite Prize rewards young innovators exploring the use of satellite technologies to improve agriculture and reduce environmental impact. Applications for the 2020 Prize opened 16 March 2020.

To protect the health and safety of the NASA workforce as the nation responds to coronavirus (COVID-19), agency leadership recently completed the first assessment of work underway across all missions, projects, and programs.

The Boeing Company announced several decisions to support the company as it navigates through the COVID-19 pandemic while ensuring the company is positioned for the industry's recovery. Decisions include:

As space-based Global Maritime Awareness has become more and more robust, I have come to think of it as a house, even my home. The latest addition to this house, provided by the new Radio Frequency Geolocation satellites, have finally made this house truly livable.

SpaceX launched its sixth Starlink mission at 8:16 a.m. EDT (12:16 UTC) on 18 March 2020. The Falcon 9  launch vehicle lifted off from Launch Complex 39A (LC-39A) at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, US.

Let’s face it—the 2020s have thus far been weird. Small sample size, various black swan events, cell phones are driving us crazy, these are all true, but it still feels like 2020 is just a little bit weirder than normal, and perhaps more importantly, some of the weirdness is starting to feel like it will not be temporary weirdness.