Ars Technica
• Stephen Clark
SpaceX is increasing its West Coast tempo at Vandenberg Space Force Base, which is set to become its busiest launch site for now. Mission 17-29 launches 24 Starlink satellites, marking the 44th dedicated constellation flight of 2026 from Vandenberg SFB.
CNBC
• Ashley Capoot
By CNBC: Anthropic has signed a deal with SpaceX, which owns rival xAI, to use all of the compute capacity at the company’s Colossus 1 data center in Memphis, Tennessee.
Breaking Defense
• Theresa Hitchens
By Breaking Defense: The Andromeda IDIQ contract vehicle will fund a replacement for the current GSSAP on-orbit inspection satellites as well as the classified SILENTBARKER space surveillance birds.
Space.com
• Josh Dinner
By Space.com: Space Rider, a novel spacecraft concept from the European Space Agency, is passing key milestones in its tests and qualifications to bring the vehicle to flight readiness.
Space Intel Report
• Peter B. de Selding
By Space Intel Report: LA PLATA, Maryland — The proposed merger of Europe’s three biggest space hardware companies — Airbus Space, Thales Alenia Space and Leonardo Space — has drawn surprisingly little negative reaction from the companies’ labor unions and competitors.
Space Intel Report
• Peter B. de Selding
By Space Intel Report: LA PLATA, Maryland — Leonardo Space reported increased revenue profit and backlog in the three months ending March 31, meaning all three components of a planned European space industry merger have confirmed continued robust health in 2026.
SpaceNews.com
• Emma Gatti
By SpaceNews.com: MILAN – French-led satellite operator Eutelsat and Indian maritime service provider Station Satcom have signed a multi-year agreement to expand Eutelsat-owned OneWeb LEO connectivity services across Station Satcom’s maritime fleet, the companies announced April 30.
Space.com
• Mike Wall
By Space.com: Two Russian satellites got within 10 feet (3 meters) of each other recently, demonstrating a sophisticated set of orbital maneuvering skills.
SpaceNews.com
• Jeff Foust
SpaceNews.com
• Olivier Lemaitre, Pierre Lionnet
