North America

Scorpius Space Launch Company (SSLC), a US-based space systems manufacturer, is examining using liquid methane as a propellant, highlighting its environmental benefits and potential to revolutionise aerospace. It is providing the all-composite tank technology that it has pioneered since the early 2000’s under its trademark PRESSURMAXX.

Impact Observatory has partnered with Planet Labs to use AI-powered analytics to monitor land cover and land use (LULC) on top of Planet’s high-frequency, medium- and high-resolution satellite data. Automated analytics are core to helping customers better understand changes and anticipate threats at previously unobtainable speed and scale

On the 5th and 6th of June 2023, the Financial Time’s held its second Investing In Space conference. Similarly to last year, it was held in a hybrid form. The first day online, the second day live from London. Titled “Balancing Optimism with Realism”, the two-day summit hosted a selection of investors, innovators, government, and end-users for analyses of the opportunities of space.

The Financial Times Investing In Space Summit took place in person and online on 05-06 June 2023, under the motto "Balancing optimism with realism". In Part 1 (LINK) we covered the state of the space market and its investment value. We also looked at why the future for UK space looks bright, and how different countries can have differentiated space investment and capacity-building strategies. In Part 2, we will look at more stories behind the numbers, bold visions, disruptions, opportunities, emerging markets such as space-based solar power as potential remediation to climate issues, space resource utilization, and Moon mining, and even alternative modes of access to space. Readers who missed this event are encouraged to check out the Video-On-Demand.

The Financial Times Investing In Space Summit < https://ftspace.live.ft.com/agenda > took place in person and online on 05-06 June 2023, under the motto "Balancing optimism with realism". Indeed it was the first significant space investment and financing conference to take place after the rise of interest rates by the US FED, together with other macro headwinds, such as conflict-driven economic deterioration. This thorough and intensive FT conference did a fairly good job of articulating trends and putting the spotlight on both mainstream markets (launchers, constellations) and emerging space activities, Moon included.

Dr. Matteo Genna is joining Fleet Space, an Australian company specialising in NanoSatellite technology, as Chief Technology Officer. 

Share My Space, a space situational awareness (SSA) company, and Hiscox, a global insurance provider with a legacy in the space sector, announced on the 5th of July a collaboration through a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU). The partnership aims to enhance cooperation in the space industry and tackle the challenges caused by the increasing number of satellites and collision risks. 

In this  Space Café Radio - SpaceWatch.Global publisher Torsten Kriening spoke with Niklas Nienass, Member of the European Parliament for The Greens/ European Free Alliance, about GLOC - the Global Space Conference on Climate Change in Oslo in May 2023 and about the challenges in climate change where space can be part of the solution. They also covered the current status of the European Space Law and the new study about life-cycle assessments for space missions.

The European Space Agency has launched the Euclid Space Telescope, an orbital telescope built to shed light on mysterious cosmic phenomena known as dark energy and dark matter. The space telescope launched aboard a Falcon 9 rocket at 11 a.m. EDT (1500 GMT) from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, Florida, United States of America. The mission has cost about $1.4 billion and has a design lifespan of about six years. Furthermore, the Agency expects it to transform astrophysics and potentially the understanding of the very nature of gravity itself.

Virgin Galactic has successfully completed its inaugural commercial spaceflight from Spaceport America in New Mexico. The Galactic 01 spaceflight carried 13 research payloads and three crew members from the Italian Air Force and the National Research Council of Italy. The spaceflight took off at 8:30 am MT (14:30 GMT), rising to an altitude at release at 44,500 feet. The flight's apogee was 52.9 miles, the top speed was Mach 2.88, and the landing time was 9:42 am MT (15:42 GMT).