News

Wall Street Journal • Micah Maidenberg

Contractor death at SpaceX Starbase ahead of next Starship launch push

A contractor died at SpaceX’s Starbase facility in Texas, where the incident comes days before the company’s planned launch of a new version of Starship. The fatal workplace accident adds risk to the lead-up schedule as SpaceX prepares to resume rapid test operations.

2026-05-18T14:54:56.974199-07:00

NASA Spaceflight

Super Heavy Block 3: SpaceX’s largest Super Heavy redesign since Block 1/2

2026-05-18T11:40:01.640804-07:00

Space Intel Report

KVH turnaround: Starlink and OneWeb LEO services reach 45% of revenue as units shipped rise

2026-05-18T12:10:31.921598-07:00

SpaceNews.com

Astrolab’s first lunar rover to carry four NASA payloads on late-2026 launch

2026-05-18T11:09:35.504992-07:00

News Timeline

Wall Street Journal

Contractor death at SpaceX Starbase ahead of next Starship launch push A contractor died at SpaceX’s Starbase facility in Texas, where the incident comes days before the company’s planned launch of a new version of Starship. The fatal workplace accident adds risk to the lead-up schedule as SpaceX prepares to resume rapid test operations.

2026-05-18T14:54:56.974199-07:00

Contractor death at SpaceX Starbase ahead of next Starship launch push

Space Intel Report

KVH turnaround: Starlink and OneWeb LEO services reach 45% of revenue as units shipped rise KVH Industries reported a 27% revenue increase for the three months ended March 31, with a sharply reduced operating loss, and said its business is increasingly driven by SpaceX Starlink and Eutelsat OneWeb LEO connectivity. In Q1, those two LEO sources accounted for 45% of revenue (up from 30% a year ago) as KVH shipped 3,100 units.

2026-05-18T12:10:31.921598-07:00

KVH turnaround: Starlink and OneWeb LEO services reach 45% of revenue as units shipped rise

NASA Spaceflight

Super Heavy Block 3: SpaceX’s largest Super Heavy redesign since Block 1/2 SpaceX’s Super Heavy booster has already seen multiple design iterations, but the shift from Block 1/2 to Block 3 represents its biggest change to date. The Block 3 update is positioned as the next major step in making the redesigned Starship/Super Heavy system ready for upcoming test campaigns.

2026-05-18T11:40:01.640804-07:00

Super Heavy Block 3: SpaceX’s largest Super Heavy redesign since Block 1/2

SpaceNews.com

Astrolab’s first lunar rover to carry four NASA payloads on late-2026 launch Astrolab will fly its first lunar rover later this year with four NASA payloads, marking another step in NASA’s push to mature robotic surface capabilities ahead of sustained lunar operations. The package underscores how mission-specific payload integration is being built into early rover flight plans.

2026-05-18T11:09:35.504992-07:00

Astrolab’s first lunar rover to carry four NASA payloads on late-2026 launch

DefenseNews.com

❗️

US Air Force plan would repurpose decommissioned offshore oil rigs as sea-based rocket booster recovery stations The U.S. Air Force is proposing to convert retired offshore oil platforms into “sea-based recovery stations” to support U.S. Space Force and commercial rocket-recovery operations. The concept reframes maritime infrastructure as an aircraft-like recovery asset, expanding recovery options beyond land and traditional range assets.

2026-05-18T08:53:46.937333-07:00

US Air Force plan would repurpose decommissioned offshore oil rigs as sea-based rocket booster recovery stations

SpaceNews.com

CSF report flags U.S. launch-infrastructure limits as satellite launches could reach 7,000+ annually by mid-2030s The Commercial Space Federation (CSF), with Rational Futures, released SCRUBBED: America’s Launch Capacity Challenge, a data-driven assessment of how scaling U.S. launch throughput may strain existing infrastructure. The report projects potential growth to 7,000+ satellite launches annually by the mid-2030s and outlines the resulting infrastructure constraints.

2026-05-18T05:10:27.640159-07:00

CSF report flags U.S. launch-infrastructure limits as satellite launches could reach 7,000+ annually by mid-2030s

Ars Technica

US space ecosystem awaits Starship delivery as questions persist over when the program will start reliably delivering Reporting frames the US space enterprise as “desperately waiting” for SpaceX’s Starship to finally deliver, highlighting an uneven run of highs and lows as stakeholders look for schedule and performance certainty. The question centers on whether Starship can move from test-cycle variability to operational dependability.

2026-05-18T04:09:33.740356-07:00

US space ecosystem awaits Starship delivery as questions persist over when the program will start reliably delivering

Space.com

Scientists warn Starlink and other LEO megaconstellations are fueling an “unregulated geoengineering” effect via high-altitude p Researchers say SpaceX Starlink and comparable satellite megaconstellations are creating a largely unregulated high-altitude “geoengineering” experiment. They argue rising pollution in the upper atmosphere—alongside the scale and pace of deployments—could alter atmospheric chemistry and, potentially, climate dynamics.

2026-05-18T03:04:30.080895-07:00

Scientists warn Starlink and other LEO megaconstellations are fueling an “unregulated geoengineering” effect via high-altitude p

Menu

Commercial Space News

Contractor death at SpaceX Starbase ahead of next Starship launch push

Super Heavy Block 3: SpaceX’s largest Super Heavy redesign since Block 1/2

KVH turnaround: Starlink and OneWeb LEO services reach 45% of revenue as units shipped rise

Astrolab’s first lunar rover to carry four NASA payloads on late-2026 launch

News Timeline