SpaceNews.com
• Jeff Foust
Starfish Space says it can no longer receive data from its first full-scale Otter servicing spacecraft after a fault-protection issue shut down communications. The failure prematurely ends the NASA-funded SSPICY mission, which was intended to inspect inoperable satellites; the company described it as the vehicle’s first mission.
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Starfish Space says it can no longer receive data from its first full-scale Otter servicing spacecraft after a fault-protection issue shut down communications. The failure prematurely ends the NASA-funded SSPICY mission, which was intended to inspect inoperable satellites; the company described it as the vehicle’s first mission.
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International regulators have granted Europe’s Open Cosmos more time to deploy its planned low Earth orbit broadband network, but effectively limited the constellation to half its intended size. The decision is a setback to the company’s deployment plans and constrains the scale of its proposed satellite service.
Chinese commercial firm Star Vision has signed agreements covering the development, launch and operation of an AI-enabled satellite constellation for Oman. The announcement signals a commercial space partnership between a Chinese provider and an Omani customer, though the agreements’ scope, schedule and constellation size were not specified in the article.
The National Reconnaissance Office’s Cyber Protection Office has more than 600 staff and an annual budget of $250 million, Lt. Col. Luke Shibilski told CyberSat attendees. The disclosure comes as the White House warns of attacks accelerated by artificial intelligence, underscoring the security demands facing satellite operators.
AT&T and AST SpaceMobile have demonstrated a handoff between a cellular network and a direct-to-device satellite network. The companies described the test as a connectivity milestone, though the available report does not specify the test conditions, technical performance or plans for commercial deployment.
SpaceX has held preliminary talks with EchoStar about either acquiring Boost Mobile or securing wholesale access to its cellular network, according to sources cited in the reports. Either path could give SpaceX a terrestrial network component for a hybrid cellular-satellite service; no agreement is reported.
Globalstar has warned that Rocket Lab’s supplier relationship with Iridium could give Rocket Lab an incentive to favor Iridium at Globalstar’s expense. The concern echoes issues raised by SpaceX, according to the report, putting the commercial terms and competitive implications of the relationship in focus.
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