Entrepreneurship

Amazon Web Services (AWS) has announced the general availability of Wideband Digital Intermediate Frequency (DigIF) for satellite operators using Software Defined Radios (SDRs) with AWS Ground Station. With Wideband DigIF, satellite operators can use an SDR of their choice to perform demodulation and decoding of data in their Amazon Virtual Private Cloud (Amazon VPC), resulting in more control and flexibility of downlink data.

AALTO HAPS, manufacturer and operator of Zephyr, the solar-powered High Altitude Platform Station set to enter commercial service in 2024, has appointed Hassan Kabbani as its Chief Commercial Officer (CCO).

ICEYE has announced the Beta release of its Wildfire Insights product, the ICEYE Wildfire Insights. It provides building-level impact data for a wildfire event in near real-time based on satellite imagery and a combination of advanced analytics and machine learning. Furthermore, the product captures data for any wildfire that impacts communities throughout the United States. As part of the Beta phase, ICEYE will also invite select insurers to participate in the final testing of the product functionality prior to the planned General Availability release in Q3 2023.

Hydrosat has announced $20 million in new funding, including a $15M Series A round and more than $5M in non-dilutive funding. The funding will enable the Company to grow and develop its constellation of satellites and analytics to measure water stress and climate impact. Statkraft Ventures led the latest round of funding, and it included new investors Blue Bear Capital and Hartree Partners. All three firms have an interest in climate tech. 

Virgin Galactic has announced a successful suborbital test of the VSS Unity spaceplane and will begin rocket-powered spaceflight tests in the coming months. The Spaceplane completed its final glide test during a flight in New Mexico. During the test, VMS Eve took off from Spaceport America with Unity between its twin fuselages at 12:35 UTC. After reaching an altitude of 47,000 feet (14.3 kilometers), Eve released Unity at 13:47 UTC, with the spaceplane subsequently gliding back to the runway in New Mexico, testing modifications to the spacecraft's flight controls and handling.

Neumann Space has entered into an agreement to deliver its propulsion system, the Neumann Drive, to Colorado-based CisLunar Industries, a designer and manufacturer of Modular Space Foundries, to help progress a U.S. Space Force-funded project that will create a circular propulsion ecosystem.

Southern Launch has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with UK-based Space Forge at the International Space Symposium to explore possibilities of Satellite Return to Southern Launch’s Koonibba Test Range.

Exotrail has disclosed a new contract with the satellite manufacturer Satrec Initiative to embark on a spaceware™ electric propulsion system for a Korean governmental mission. As a result, within a year, Exotrail will deliver a spaceware™ - micro XL propulsion system engineering model, as well as a flight model for a proof-of-concept mission for an innovative earth observation service aiming to validate the use of Satrec Initiative’s Earth observation platform in LEO.

NASA has selected 16 proposals from 12 companies under the 2022 Announcement of Collaboration Opportunity (ACO) to advance capabilities and technologies related to NASA's Moon to Mars Objectives. As a result, the cadre of U.S. industry-led teams will test a new lunar rover tire design, develop a robotically assembled power system, build an electrically actuated device to join in-space propellant transfer lines, and more.

POLARIS, a German aerospace start-up, announced on the 25th of April that they have been awarded a contract from BAAINBw (Federal Office of Bundeswehr Equipment, Information Technology and In-Service Support) to study potential of a linear aerospike (LAS) rocket engine as a propulsion element in a spaceplane demonstrator. A LAS rocket engine will be ignited and tested in flight for the first time as part of the contract.