Space

Researchers have confirmed the presence of an exoplanet, a planet that orbits another star, using the NASA/ESA/CSA James Webb Space Telescope for the first time. Formally classified as LHS 475 b, the planet is almost exactly the same size as Earth, clocking in at 99% of Earth’s diameter.

The European Investment Bank (EIB) and SES have announced their €300 million financing agreement details. The seven-year term loan will back investments related to the design, procurement, and launch of three previously announced satellites that will deliver advanced broadcast and broadband services spanning Western Europe, Africa, and the Middle East. The loan is the largest amount that the EIB has ever provided to a Luxembourg-based company.

Optical communications terminal producer, Mynaric, entered into a definitive agreement with an undisclosed US-based customer for the delivery of CONDOR Mk3 optical communication terminals. The order has a value of approximately US $24 million.

The Republic of Djibouti has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Hong Kong Aerospace Technology Group Limited and Touchroad International Holdings Group to develop an international commercial spaceport in its northern Obock Region of Djibouti. 

Capella Space, an American space technology company with data and satellite solutions for government and commercial applications, announced $60 million in growth equity financing in a follow-on to their Series C funding round through Thomas Tull’s US Innovation Technology Fund (USIT). Capella Space is one of the first companies to close financing through Tull’s USIT Fund, bringing the company’s total funding to approximately $250M.

Rocket Factory Augsburg AG (RFA) and SaxaVord Spaceport have announced their launch operations partnership. As a result of the partnership, RFA will have exclusive access to Launch Pad Fredo for orbital launches. Consequently, the company’s first launch of its RFA ONE launch system – currently planned for the end of 2023 – will take place from the northernmost point in the UK.

Commercial near-Earth orbit monitoring service provider, NorthStar Earth & Space, signed an agreement with Japanese microsatellite company Axelspace, to use existing space-based sensors to contribute to NorthStar’s more comprehensive coverage of the space domain. The collaboration will leverage Axelspace’s operational AxelGlobe constellation of five Earth observation low Earth orbit satellites to provide complementary Space Situational Awareness (SSA) data.

Airbus and Dutch high-tech industrial supplier, VDL Group, have signed a partnership agreement for the development and manufacturing of a laser communication terminal for aircraft, known as UltraAir, Airbus said. The duo is currently preparing a prototype demonstration demonstration and a first flight test planned for 2024.

The HAKUTO-R Mission 1 lander, which was successfully launched on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket on December 11, 2022, completed its first orbit control maneuver on December 15, 2022. A second orbital control maneuver followed this on January 2, 2023.

Satellite vehicle and subsystems designer, Rogue Space Systems Corporation (Rogue), has decided to support the United Nations General Assembly’s adoption of Resolution 77/41, calling on all Member States not to conduct destructive direct-ascent anti-satellite (ASAT) tests. The US-led initiative has already been adopted by ten countries.