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• Jeff Foust
The U.S. Department of Transportation is proposing to exempt commercial space launch licensing from many environmental regulations. The initiative would narrow the regulatory requirements applied during the licensing process, changing the compliance scope for commercial launch providers seeking authorization.
Commercial Space
Latest source-backed stories
The U.S. Department of Transportation is proposing to exempt commercial space launch licensing from many environmental regulations. The initiative would narrow the regulatory requirements applied during the licensing process, changing the compliance scope for commercial launch providers seeking authorization.
True Anomaly says its Victus Haze mission for the U.S. Space Force executed a “space pursuit” between Rocket Lab-built Puma and True Anomaly Jackal-0004. The company frames the engagement as a space-to-space pursuit as part of the mission’s planned activities.
Katalyst Space says it has encountered technical problems with the attitude control system on its recently launched LINK spacecraft. The issue arose on a mission intended to rescue NASA’s Swift, prompting attention on in-orbit guidance and control performance for spacecraft-servicing operations.
Former NASA researchers and spaceflight experts say the heat shield protecting SpaceX’s Starship during Earth reentry could limit how quickly the vehicle can be turned around between flights. The assessment points to a key materials/thermal-management challenge for Musk’s vision of rapid, “rapidly reusable” operations.
SpaceX is preparing an early-morning launch on Thursday, July 30, for a classified U.S. government reconnaissance mission. The company plans a live webcast of the event, underscoring the continued outsourcing of national security space launch activity to commercial providers.
LatConnect 60 (LC60) says it is executing a multi-geography industrial strategy to accelerate its SWIRSAT constellation. The company plans to anchor core technology development and payload manufacturing in Western Australia while expanding spacecraft production capacity in Malaysia and the United Arab Emirates.
High activity
MaiaSpace has abandoned plans for a suborbital test flight and will instead pursue an inaugural orbital launch attempt in the second half of 2027. The change indicates a shift in how the company plans to validate its launch pathway ahead of its first orbital mission.
Satellite operators are preparing for changes as SpaceX moves to phase out Falcon rocket configurations used for commercial payload rides. The shift raises near-term questions for manifesting, launch availability, and how operators continue relying on SpaceX’s “workhorse” vehicle for routine access to orbit.
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