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• Jason Rainbow
Kepler Communications has begun commercial in-orbit optical data relay services, marking an expansion beyond the smallsat operator’s IoT connectivity business. The launch positions Kepler to provide high-speed data links between spacecraft and ground networks as demand grows for faster space-based communications.
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Kepler Communications has begun commercial in-orbit optical data relay services, marking an expansion beyond the smallsat operator’s IoT connectivity business. The launch positions Kepler to provide high-speed data links between spacecraft and ground networks as demand grows for faster space-based communications.
Beyond Reach Labs has unveiled Flarewing, a patent-pending solar-array deployment system designed to fold flat during launch and expand in orbit. The startup says its large deployable structures could enable small satellites to generate substantially more power without requiring correspondingly larger launch configurations.
Star Catcher Industries, which is developing power-beaming technology for satellites, has signed an agreement with Aethero to distribute its technology. The deal marks a commercial step for Star Catcher as it seeks to advance space-based power delivery for satellite operators and other customers.
ICEYE has formally established ICEYE India in New Delhi to support defense and security cooperation, provide synthetic aperture radar intelligence to Indian agencies, and pursue domestic radar-satellite manufacturing. The move gives the Finnish company a local base in one of the world’s largest defense and space markets.
Veoware successfully demonstrated its mini control moment gyroscopes (miniCMGs) aboard a Planet Pelican Earth-observation satellite, marking the technology’s first demonstration in orbit. The test represents an in-space milestone for Veoware’s compact spacecraft attitude-control technology.
Kongsberg NanoAvionics unveiled a 500-kilogram version of its MP42D satellite bus, increasing the platform’s maximum supported mass by more than twofold. The larger bus is designed to accommodate more demanding defense and intelligence missions, expanding the company’s offering for heavier spacecraft payloads.
Satellite signals-intelligence provider Hawkeye 360 reported 33% organic revenue growth for the three months ended June 30. Including its December 2025 acquisition of Innovative Signals Analysis, revenue growth reached 87%, with international business expanding faster than the company’s U.S. operations.
High activity
Ariane 6 has reached geostationary orbit for the first time, launching the MTG-I2 satellite in a milestone for Europe’s newest heavy-lift rocket. The mission demonstrates Ariane 6’s capability for GEO deployments and advances Europe’s Meteosat Third Generation weather-satellite program.
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