SpaceNews.com
• Sandra Erwin
A new Government Accountability Office audit details the U.S. Space Force’s expanding use of privately collected space data and analytics, including nearly $124 million in purchases through its commercial data marketplace over less than three years. The findings highlight growing government demand for commercial space-derived intelligence.
Space Defense & Militarization
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Lite Coms’ Lite Sat 1.3A terminal, paired with Comtech’s GTC Type 2-certified SLM-5650B modem, is now available in a validated remote-terminal configuration for SES O3b mPOWER Sovereign Services and Hybrid Sovereign Gateway architectures, expanding a certified option for government and defense SATCOM users.
A new Government Accountability Office audit details the U.S. Space Force’s expanding use of privately collected space data and analytics, including nearly $124 million in purchases through its commercial data marketplace over less than three years. The findings highlight growing government demand for commercial space-derived intelligence.
The Pentagon has awarded SpaceX a new fleet-level contract to expand Starshield satellite-network services aboard military aircraft, offering a clearer view of how the classified communications capability is being integrated across U.S. aviation fleets.
The Canadian government is providing a major financial lifeline to Telesat Canada to support its planned Lightspeed telecommunications satellite constellation. The move underscores Ottawa’s effort to build sovereign space capabilities and strengthen the project’s prospects amid rising defense and strategic reliance on space-based connectivity.
Experts at the 2026 Small Satellite Conference warned that small satellites face increasing threats as potential adversaries recognize their expanding role in communications, Earth observation and navigation. The panel included satellite and cybersecurity specialists, underscoring the convergence of space-system resilience and digital security concerns.
Spire Global will develop and flight-qualify a satellite carrying a hyperspectral microwave sounder under a two-year, $28 million NOAA contract, targeting operational capability by 2030. Separately, LeoLabs won a $20.7 million Space Force contract to modify and demonstrate its transportable Scout radar for a defense mission.
A Washington Post account published May 6 offers the most complete public picture yet of what Iran’s missiles did to American bases in the Gulf. The report’s finding that shutter control worked underscores a vulnerability for commercial imagery providers and their customers.
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President Volodymyr Zelenskyy awarded Elon Musk Ukraine’s Order of Freedom, citing his contributions to protecting life and freedom, as Kyiv seeks broader access to SpaceX’s Starlink terminals for battlefield communications and potentially drone strikes deep inside Russia—an expansion Musk has been reluctant to approve.
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