European Spaceflight
• Andrew Parsonson
Munich-based startup Project-S has emerged from stealth after announcing a multi-million-euro funding round. The company is developing capabilities in space situational awareness, a growing area focused on monitoring and understanding activity in orbit.
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The U.S. Army’s desert trial of Starlink is highlighting both the potential and limits of commercial satellite technology for military use. Brig. Gen. Shane Taylor said the service is examining whether commercial options can meet requirements before committing to bespoke systems costing as much as four times more.
Munich-based startup Project-S has emerged from stealth after announcing a multi-million-euro funding round. The company is developing capabilities in space situational awareness, a growing area focused on monitoring and understanding activity in orbit.
Axelspace has signed an agreement with Airbus Defence and Space to provide medium-resolution optical imagery from its GRUS Earth-observation microsatellite constellation. The partnership expands Airbus’ access to commercial imagery for Earth-observation and space-safety services, while giving Axelspace an additional channel to commercialize its data.
High activity
Rocket Lab completed its 11th dedicated launch for Japanese radar-imaging company Synspective, deploying another StriX satellite on Electron. The mission was Electron’s 94th overall launch and 15th of 2026, as satellite operators increasingly weigh dedicated missions against constrained rideshare capacity.
High activity
ISRO has successfully returned to flight with the EOS-05 Earth-imaging satellite, reportedly India’s first imaging spacecraft in geosynchronous orbit. Separately, SES’s final three O3b mPOWER satellites have reached Cape Canaveral for a planned September Falcon 9 launch, while ESA and ispace-Europe formalized Europe’s first lunar polar ice exploration rover mission.
SES has expanded its collaboration with Peru’s Navy to provide sovereign, multi-orbit satellite connectivity under a new government agreement. The deal underscores continued demand for resilient satellite communications supporting national maritime and defense requirements, while extending SES’s role in government connectivity across Latin America.
Spanish Science and Innovation Minister Diana Morant said Elon Musk’s control of roughly two-thirds of operating satellites was a motivating factor behind Spain’s decision to invest heavily in Europe’s Iris² constellation, underscoring concerns about concentrated control of orbital infrastructure and the strategic case for European alternatives.
Japanese satellite imagery provider Axelspace has agreed to supply Airbus Defence and Space with mid-resolution optical imagery. The companies will jointly develop and deliver satellite imagery solutions, combining Axelspace’s data with Airbus’s broader market reach and customer relationships.
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