Earth observation

By Raphael Roettgen - We are only one month into the new decade and, while we have not yet seen the SpaceX/BlueOrigin/OneWeb type mega financing rounds of 2019, this month has brought over U.S.$280 million in disclosed financing transactions in the space sector.

Centre national d'études spatiales (CNES) President Jean-Yves Le Gall was in Athens for the France-Greece space industry day organized by CNES, the French Embassy in Greece, and the Greek authorities, on 31 January 2020.

Centre national d'études spatiales (CNES) President Jean-Yves Le Gall was in Athens for the France-Greece space industry day organized by CNES, the French Embassy in Greece, and the Greek authorities, on 31 January 2020.

Last year was a record year for the space industry with the Seraphim Space Index showing continued momentum from global venture investors who increased their investment in the sector by 21%.

Centre national d'études spatiales (CNES) President Jean-Yves Le Gall was in Israel on 28 January 2020 to speak at the 15th Ilan Ramon International Conference, focused this year on the theme of the next decade in space.

Rocket Lab, the commercial small satellite launch company, successfully launched a small classified payload into low-Earth orbit (LEO) for the U.S. National Reconnaissance Office (NRO) from Rocket Lab’s Launch Complex 1 in New Zealand on 31 January 2020.

The UK defence policy community is awaiting the 2020 Strategic Defence and Security Review (SDSR) and the National Security Strategy (NSS), which were last produced together in 2015.

Virgin Orbit, the California-based small satellite launch company, has signed an agreement with ImageSat International (ISI), a global leader in space-based intelligence solutions, to develop an end-to-end responsive space service offering focused on national security customers.

Russia is willing to assist the Central Asian republic of Turkmenistan in developing its second satellite and in the selection, training, and launch of the first Turkmen astronaut, according to Yuri Baturin – vice president of the Tsiolkovsky Russian Academy of Cosmonauts, politician, and a former cosmonaut – during a visit to the Turkmen capital Ashgabat on 25 January 2020.

Iran is believed to be preparing to launch two satellites from its Imam Khomeini Satellite Launch Centre over the coming days, according to numerous reports in Iranian and international news media.