Space Debris & Traffic Management News

Reuters • David Shepardson

NTSB: High‑altitude weather balloon struck United 737‑8 windshield over Utah

The NTSB says an object that struck the right‑side cockpit windshield of a United Airlines Boeing 737‑8 at about FL360 on Oct. 16 was a high‑altitude weather balloon used to collect atmospheric data, showering the flight crew with glass and forcing an emergency diversion to Salt Lake City.

2025-11-20T15:09:29.808207-08:00

Via Satellite

SES and Infinite Orbits to conduct Europe’s first commercial GEO satellite life‑extension mission

2025-11-13T13:16:51.991098-08:00

SpaceNews.com

China closes airspace as Shenzhou-20 prepares for landing after suspected debris strike

2025-11-12T14:53:44.968382-08:00

Universe Today

Cold‑War Liability Rules Leave Civilians Without Recourse After SpaceX Debris Strikes Polish Warehouse

2025-11-12T11:24:48.768867-08:00

Space Debris & Traffic Management News Timeline

Universe Today

Mega-constellations: paper proposes on‑satellite control to offload ground‑station networks As satellite constellations scale into the tens of thousands, ground stations are struggling to keep up with the communications and command load. A new paper from Yuhe Mao and co‑authors proposes shifting control and network decision‑making onboard satellites, offloading ground‑station traffic and enabling more scalable operations.

2025-11-21T07:06:53.707083-08:00

Mega-constellations: paper proposes on‑satellite control to offload ground‑station networks

Reuters

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NTSB: High‑altitude weather balloon struck United 737‑8 windshield over Utah The NTSB says an object that struck the right‑side cockpit windshield of a United Airlines Boeing 737‑8 at about FL360 on Oct. 16 was a high‑altitude weather balloon used to collect atmospheric data, showering the flight crew with glass and forcing an emergency diversion to Salt Lake City.

2025-11-20T15:09:29.808207-08:00

NTSB: High‑altitude weather balloon struck United 737‑8 windshield over Utah

rocketlabcorp.com

Rocket Lab sets 2025 record with 18 successful Electron launches, completes back-to-back hemispheric missions Rocket Lab set a new company record with 18 Electron launches in 2025 — all successful — completing back-to-back missions from New Zealand and Virginia in two days and deploying commercial payloads, including BlackSky Earth-imaging satellites and a confidential customer satellite.

2025-11-20T06:50:12.155890-08:00

Rocket Lab sets 2025 record with 18 successful Electron launches, completes back-to-back hemispheric missions

SpaceNews.com

Next‑generation radar to detect micro‑debris and enable safer operations in LEO Developers are advancing next‑generation radar to detect micro‑debris in low Earth orbit, closing a sensing gap that leaves small fragments untracked and increases collision risk. Improved radar returns aim to enhance LEO situational awareness, feed collision‑avoidance systems and support active debris‑removal efforts.

2025-11-18T08:09:39.281859-08:00

Next‑generation radar to detect micro‑debris and enable safer operations in LEO

NASA Spaceflight

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Launch Roundup: Innospace set to debut new launcher as SpaceX lines up five Falcon 9 missions This week’s schedule includes Innospace’s debut of a new orbital launcher and SpaceX’s plan for five Falcon 9 missions, adding to an intense launch cadence across commercial providers. The concentrated activity underscores rising operational tempo and capacity buildup in the commercial launch market.

2025-11-17T13:16:50.517309-08:00

Launch Roundup: Innospace set to debut new launcher as SpaceX lines up five Falcon 9 missions

latribune.fr

Aldoria and ONERA launch €12m RAMSES to field five multispectral LEO surveillance stations Aldoria and France’s ONERA have launched RAMSES, a €12 million programme to develop and deploy five multispectral, multi‑telescope ground stations designed to detect and track low‑Earth‑orbit satellites day and night, providing persistent optical sensing capability for France’s space‑domain awareness.

2025-11-17T05:26:43.677655-08:00

Aldoria and ONERA launch €12m RAMSES to field five multispectral LEO surveillance stations

Payload

Slingshot detects uncataloged Russian satellite in MEO, exposes five‑week SDA gap Slingshot Aerospace identified a previously uncataloged Russian satellite operating in medium Earth orbit (MEO) that evaded the U.S. public Space Domain Awareness (SDA) catalog for five weeks. The detection underscores a gap in public SDA coverage and the growing role of commercial optical sensors in orbital tracking.

2025-11-17T04:52:47.455505-08:00

Slingshot detects uncataloged Russian satellite in MEO, exposes five‑week SDA gap

technologyreview.com

Chance a passenger jet is struck by space debris: very low, but not zero The probability that a commercial airliner will be struck by falling space debris is very low, but not zero. While actual hits are rare, the residual risk remains a consideration for aviation safety, regulatory oversight and airline operators worldwide.

2025-11-17T02:11:35.619013-08:00

Chance a passenger jet is struck by space debris: very low, but not zero

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