MILAN — United Kingdom-based launch company Orbex announced that its business is folding after multiple attempts to stay solvent fell through.  The company announced Feb. 11 that it has filed […]

The post UK launcher Orbex files for administration after failed funding efforts appeared first on SpaceNews.

MILAN — The French-German aerospace company The Exploration Company completed mock splashdown tests for its Nyx space capsule, a modular, reusable spacecraft designed to transport cargo and eventually crew to […]

The post The Exploration Company completes water-impact tests for its Nyx space capsule appeared first on SpaceNews.

MILAN — Bavarian Minister-President Markus Söder announced Feb. 4 that the German Aerospace Center (DLR) will receive 58 million euros ($69 million) to build a Human Exploration Control Center to […]

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BRUSSELS — Exotrail, a French company specializing in multi-orbit satellite mobility and focused on LEO service vehicles, together with Astroscale France, the French subsidiary of the Japan-based on-orbit servicing company, […]

The post Exotrail and Astroscale France join forces to build deorbiting capability for LEO appeared first on SpaceNews.

BRUSSELS —  The European Union’s new government satellite communications program, GOVSATCOM, which pools capacity from eight already on-orbit geosynchronous satellites, began operations last week, European Commissioner for Defence and Space […]

The post EU launches government satcom program in sovereignty push appeared first on SpaceNews.

MILAN — The European Space Agency and Luxembourg’s ClearSpace announced Jan. 12 a new collaboration on an in-orbit servicing removal mission called PRELUDE, one that will involve two small spacecraft […]

The post ESA and ClearSpace announce PRELUDE mission to test debris-removal techniques appeared first on SpaceNews.

MILAN — OroraTech has entered a multi-year partnership with Kepler to supply thermal sensors for Kepler’s new optical communications constellation.  The first four SAFIRE Gen4 sensors under the agreement launched […]

The post Kepler network to link OroraTech sensors for Earth monitoring appeared first on SpaceNews.

Launchers Isar Aerospace is expected to attempt its second two-stage Spectrum vehicle test flight, a key step after its first, partially successful liftoff in 2025. In parallel, Spain’s PLD Space […]

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MILAN – A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket lifting off from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California, successfully launched a second-generation satellite for Italy’s COSMO-SkyMed Earth observation constellation, on Jan. 2 […]

The post SpaceX launches next second-generation Italian COSMO-SkyMed satellite appeared first on SpaceNews.

MILAN — The European Space Agency has confirmed a security breach of unclassified material from  science servers following reports on social media. A threat actor claimed to have compromised ESA […]

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MILAN — The European Space Agency announced plans to hire approximately 520 new staff members starting in 2026, following decisions approved at ESA’s 342nd Council meeting earlier this month.  The […]

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MILAN – When the European Space Agency announced its new three-year spending plan last month, two countries stood out for the increased size of their contributions.  Poland boosted its budget […]

The post How Spain and Poland pushed Europe’s new priorities with record contributions appeared first on SpaceNews.

BREMEN – The European Space Agency’s Human and Robotic Exploration (HRE) program fell short of its budget request at the ministerial, with member nations agreeing to contribute 2.98 billion euros […]

The post Europe’s Human and Robotic Exploration hit by budget shortfall appeared first on SpaceNews.

ESA and Norway have signed a letter of intent and formed a joint working group to assess the feasibility of a new ESA Arctic Space Centre.

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BREMEN, Germany –  As the 23 member states of the European Space Agency meet this week to decide its budget for the next three years, its three major contributors – […]

The post Diverging priorities shape opening day of ESA Ministerial 2025 appeared first on SpaceNews.

MILAN — The European Space Agency has tapped a consortium led by Thales Alenia Space Italy to develop its Argonaut lunar lander and has outlined a division of labor for […]

The post ESA unveils Thales Alenia Space-led consortium for its Argonaut lunar lander appeared first on SpaceNews.

Milan — The European Space Agency has refined its plan for the European Resilience from Space (ERS) program, outlining a €1 billion ($1.15 billion) framework that more directly ties Earth […]

The post ESA advances ERS program, marking shift toward dual-use and defense appeared first on SpaceNews.

Krakow — The European Commission on Oct. 28 proposed that EU member states approve talks with Ukraine on its participation in its government satellite communication program, known as GOVSATCOM. The […]

The post European Commission weighs inviting Ukraine to Europe’s GOVSATCOM platform appeared first on SpaceNews.

Krakow — The European Commission presented a working plan to track progress and deliver key defense capabilities by 2030 to European Union member states on October 16. The roadmap, titled […]

The post Europe outlines defense flagship programs and confirms European Space Shield by 2026 appeared first on SpaceNews.

MILAN – A report from Italy’s space policy office questioned whether the country is underrepresented in the IRIS² program, the European Union’s planned public-private communication constellation for low and medium earth orbit, […]

The post Italy’s crossroads: build its own satellites or lean on Starlink while waiting for IRIS² appeared first on SpaceNews.

On May 5, 2025, Interlune — a Seattle-based startup — announced a new agreement with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE): they’ll deliver helium-3, harvested from the moon, to Earth […]

The post Lunar helium-3: separating market from marketing appeared first on SpaceNews.