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Rocket Lab USA, Inc. has launched its first Electron mission for 2024, a "space-junk focused" mission for Spire Global, Inc. and NorthStar Earth & Space. The ‘Four Of A Kind’ mission for Spire’s customer NorthStar successfully launched from Rocket Lab Launch Complex 1 in New Zealand.

Starlab Space LLC (Starlab Space), the transatlantic joint venture between Voyager Space and Airbus, has selected SpaceX to launch the Starlab commercial space station into low-Earth orbit (LEO). Starship, SpaceX's fully reusable transportation system designed to carry both crew and cargo to Earth orbit, the Moon, Mars and beyond, will launch Starlab in a single mission prior to the decommissioning of the International Space Station.

Sidus Space, a multi-faceted Space and Data-as-a-Service company, has announced the successful completion of the launch processing of LizzieSat at the Astrotech Space Operations facility at Vandenberg Space Force Base in California. The Company has consequently turned over LizzieSat to SpaceX with the payload ready for launch on the Transporter-10 mission, which is tentatively no earlier than March 2024.

Space Systems Command (SSC) has selected Northrop Grumman Corporation’s Passive Refueling Module (PRM) as its first preferred refueling solution interface standard for use across SSC satellites. Northrop Grumman is collaborating with SSC, Defense Innovation Unit (DIU) and other customers to develop in-space refueling technologies for the US's space-based assets. These advancements address a critical national security capability: sustained maneuverability for dynamic space operations.

Pixxel has announced the appointment of William McCombe as its new Chief Financial Officer. In this role,  McCombe will oversee Pixxel's accounting, financial planning, capital raising, treasury, legal and regulatory functions, all supporting the Company's mission to revolutionize earth observation through cutting-edge hyperspectral satellite technology

The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) has announced that it has re-established contact with its Smart Lander for Investigating Moon (SLIM) spacecraft lander after it powered back on. The lander could not generate power upon landing on the lunar surface, quickly exhausting its battery power. JAXA had noted that its chances of recovering SLIM would increase as the sunlight illumination condition improves with time. This has consequently cemented Japan's position as the fifth country to soft-land on the moon, joining the USA, China, the former Soviet Union, and India.

Airbus U.S. Space & Defense, Inc. has announced the completion of a deal with Eutelsat OneWeb to purchase its 50% share of the Airbus OneWeb Satellites (AOS) joint venture. As a result, Airbus is now the sole owner of AOS and the satellite manufacturing facility in Merritt Island, Florida. Both parties expect the new structure to provide maximum efficiency and increased competitiveness for commercial, institutional and national security space customers.

The Karman Project, a globally recognized non-profit foundation, has announced the launch of applications for the Karman Fellowship 2024. With the space sector aiding some of humanity's most time-critical needs - from communication to climate monitoring, food supply and disaster management - the foundation considers its investment in the people shaping these technologies as equally time-critical.

In this latest episode of Space Cafè Radio,  Dr Emma Gatti, the editor-in-chief of SpaceWatch Global, interviews Dr Luigi Scatteia,  PWC Advisory France Global Space Practice Lead, at the 16th European Space Conference in Brussels. They discuss Commissioner Breton's keynote speech, emphasizing Europe's challenges in the global geopolitical theme and the need for independence and non-dependency in the space sector.

NASA’s Ingenuity Mars Helicopter has come to the end of its mission on Mars after surpassing expectations and making dozens more flights than NASA had planned. While the helicopter remains upright and in communication with ground controllers, imagery of its Jan. 18 flight sent to Earth this week indicates one or more of its rotor blades sustained damage during landing, and it is no longer capable of flight.