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In this Space Café Radio - SpaceWatch.Global publisher Torsten Kriening spoke with Severin Meister, CEO of Rivada Space Networks about their ambitions and plans. We spoke with Severin during this year's ILA Berlin which is the largest aerospace trade show in Germany which took place this year June 22 - 26.

Egypt’s President, Abdel Fattah El-Sisi, appointed Professor Sherif Mohamed Sedky as the new executive head of the Egyptian Space Agency, Space in Africa reported. Professor Sedky will serve as executive head for one year. Professor Sedky is replacing Dr Mohamed Al-Qousi, who has been in the position since 2019.

Strategic space infrastructure developer Space Norway, has signed contracts with Surrey Satellite Technology and Oxford Space Systems, to build a radar satellite system, MicroSAR, optimized for maritime surveillance, capable of detecting relatively small vessels in a very large area, the company said.

Space logistics and orbital transportation company D-Orbit, won a public tender for the launch and deployment of two satellites designed and built by TU Berlin’s (Technische Universität/Berlin Institute of Technology) Chair of Space Technology, D-Orbit said.  The two NanoFF (Nanosatellites in Formation Flight)

Our Space Café WebTalk “33 minutes with Prof. Dr. Kai-Uwe Schrogl - Europe’s Space Ambitions – what’s up during this autumn?” Took place on Tuesday, 16th August, ending our 7-week summer break. Kai-Uwe is the Special Advisor for Political Affairs at the European Space Agency (ESA) at its Headquarters in Paris.

The word “solaris”, which until recently evoked a 1972 Soviet science-fiction movie directed by Andrey Tarkovsky, is taking on new meaning. “SOLARIS” is now a proposal for a preparatory program of technology research & development envisioned by the European Space Agency (ESA) to tackle the techno-economic feasibility of space-based solar power (SBSP).

Virginia, In-space services technology provider Scout Space, won two U.S. Space Force Small Business Technology Transfer contracts - each worth US $250,000 - in support of debris-cleanup project, Orbital Prime, Scout said. Scout partnered with Stanford University’s Space Rendezvous Laboratory (SLAB) and the Florida Institute of Technology’s Orion Lab to deliver the assignment.

SaxaVord Spaceport is in talks with the North East Scotland Green Freeport (NESGF) bid partners to create a strategic partnership, under which SaxaVord would become a subzone of the NESGF, the Spaceport said. The Scottish spaceport will give place to the United Kingdom’s first vertical rocket launches in 2023, deploying small satellites into orbit. 

T-Mobile and SpaceX announced their new plan: Coverage Above and Beyond, to provide near complete coverage in most places in the U.S., even in many remote locations previously unreachable, leveraging SpaceX’s Starlink constellation and T-Mobile’s wireless network.