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SpaceNews.com • Sandra Erwin

Space Force awards TrustPoint $4M TACFI contract to demo GPS-independent LEO PNT system

TrustPoint, a Virginia startup, received a $4 million Tactical Funding Increase (TACFI) contract from the U.S. Space Force to demonstrate an end-to-end, GPS-independent positioning, navigation and timing (PNT) system. The effort targets a first-of-its-kind GPS backup/complement layer using low-Earth-orbit navigation.

2026-05-12T07:30:46.768508-07:00

SpaceWatch Global

Lockheed Martin, Seagate Space and Firefly Aerospace team on sea-based launch mission concepts and flight demos

2026-05-12T00:56:56.937973-07:00

Space Intel Report

Kratos Q1 signals acceleration in its space/defense business—3:1 book-to-bill as Space Force MEO ground network work scales

2026-05-11T16:30:52.876362-07:00

Space.com

SpaceX to launch a batch of U.S. government spy satellites from California

2026-05-11T09:50:23.695247-07:00

News Timeline

SpaceNews.com

Space Force awards TrustPoint $4M TACFI contract to demo GPS-independent LEO PNT system TrustPoint, a Virginia startup, received a $4 million Tactical Funding Increase (TACFI) contract from the U.S. Space Force to demonstrate an end-to-end, GPS-independent positioning, navigation and timing (PNT) system. The effort targets a first-of-its-kind GPS backup/complement layer using low-Earth-orbit navigation.

2026-05-12T07:30:46.768508-07:00

Space Force awards TrustPoint $4M TACFI contract to demo GPS-independent LEO PNT system

SpaceWatch Global

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Lockheed Martin, Seagate Space and Firefly Aerospace team on sea-based launch mission concepts and flight demos Lockheed Martin, Seagate Space and Firefly Aerospace will collaborate on mission-application concepts and flight-demonstration projects using Seagate’s Gateway offshore launch platform. The effort extends their work to operationalize maritime launch options for national-security payloads, linking systems integration with offshore infrastructure validation.

2026-05-12T00:56:56.937973-07:00

Lockheed Martin, Seagate Space and Firefly Aerospace team on sea-based launch mission concepts and flight demos

Space Intel Report

Kratos Q1 signals acceleration in its space/defense business—3:1 book-to-bill as Space Force MEO ground network work scales Kratos Defense & Security says its satellite business is in “take-off mode,” and Q1 results suggest momentum: a 3:1 book-to-bill supported by space/defense contracting progress, including Space Force MEO ground network work anchored by its OpenSpace virtual ground system. Investors now have financial confirmation of the build-out.

2026-05-11T16:30:52.876362-07:00

Kratos Q1 signals acceleration in its space/defense business—3:1 book-to-bill as Space Force MEO ground network work scales

Ars Technica

Starlink ends its GPS-style “location” feature, but researchers say GPS alternatives could remain viable Starlink is shutting down a GPS-style “location” feature that some users may have relied on as a navigation aid. The move is unlikely to stall broader experimentation: researchers say the underlying mechanisms may be replicable, keeping momentum around non-GPS location and timing approaches.

2026-05-11T13:54:47.492712-07:00

Starlink ends its GPS-style “location” feature, but researchers say GPS alternatives could remain viable

Space.com

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SpaceX to launch a batch of U.S. government spy satellites from California SpaceX is set to launch a classified batch of U.S. government reconnaissance satellites this evening (May 11) from California. The liftoff is live-streamed, underscoring ongoing refresh and expansion of U.S. space-based intelligence capability alongside a busy launch cadence.

2026-05-11T09:50:23.695247-07:00

SpaceX to launch a batch of U.S. government spy satellites from California

SpaceNews.com

Space race warning: failing to pass defense budget, relying on Continuing Resolution would “crush progress” in space The cluster argues that delays in passing a defense budget are a self-inflicted setback for U.S. space capabilities, contending that a Continuing Resolution would undermine the ability to fight and win in space by slowing progress. The message frames budget uncertainty as directly harmful to strategic momentum in the space race.

2026-05-11T08:27:40.026216-07:00

Space race warning: failing to pass defense budget, relying on Continuing Resolution would “crush progress” in space

Payload

SOCOM to trial SkyFi, a sovereign satellite imagery platform for tactical “imagery-to-tablet” access U.S. Special Operations Command is evaluating SkyFi’s “sovereign intelligence” platform that lets operators task commercial satellites for near-real-time imagery and consume it with imagery analytics on handheld Android devices. SOCOM’s field-facing prototype aims to shorten the imagery-to-action cycle for troops at the edge.

2026-05-11T07:58:45.545647-07:00

SOCOM to trial SkyFi, a sovereign satellite imagery platform for tactical “imagery-to-tablet” access

SpaceNews.com

Viasat wins $307M Space Systems Command contract for U.S. Marine Corps satellite communications services The Space Systems Command’s commercial space office awarded Viasat a $307 million contract to provide satellite communications services for the U.S. Marine Corps. The deal underscores continued U.S. reliance on commercial satcom providers to deliver deployable communications capability to warfighters.

2026-05-09T10:03:29.555594-07:00

Viasat wins $307M Space Systems Command contract for U.S. Marine Corps satellite communications services

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Space Defense & Militarization News

Space Force awards TrustPoint $4M TACFI contract to demo GPS-independent LEO PNT system

Lockheed Martin, Seagate Space and Firefly Aerospace team on sea-based launch mission concepts and flight demos

Kratos Q1 signals acceleration in its space/defense business—3:1 book-to-bill as Space Force MEO ground network work scales

SpaceX to launch a batch of U.S. government spy satellites from California

News Timeline