SpaceNews.com
• Jeff Foust
Loft Orbital is working with NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory to test artificial-intelligence models on spacecraft aimed at improving Earth-science monitoring. The effort extends the push toward more capable onboard processing, reducing reliance on ground-only analytics for Earth observation workflows.
Space.com
• Samantha Mathewson
By Space.com: A new exoplanet model screens rocky worlds by their ability to retain atmospheres over geologic timescales, helping narrow the search for potentially habitable planets beyond Earth.
SpaceNews.com
• Sandra Erwin
By SpaceNews.com: WASHINGTON — Earth observation company Satellogic is partnering with analytics firm SynMax to develop AI-powered intelligence products built around the company’s new Merlin satellite constellation.
Bloomberg
• Carmen Arroyo, Natasha Mascarenhas
By Bloomberg: Antonio Gracias’ Valor Equity Partners, a venture capital firm that’s long-been allied with Elon Musk, is raising about $2.5 billion to invest in startups and build on its success as a backer of the newly public SpaceX.
SpaceNews.com
• Andrew Jones
By SpaceNews.com: A state-funded tender for tank tooling, a delivered stainless steel forging and launch pad planning suggest that China is developing 7-meter-diameter reusable rockets.
SpaceNews.com
• Sandra Erwin
By SpaceNews.com: Mitchell Institute workshop participants found little consensus on where competition ends and conflict begins as China expands counterspace June 23, 2026.
Ars Technica
• Stephen Clark
By Ars Technica: The purpose of Starfall is to support the "transport and delivery of goods through space.".
orlandosentinel.com
Reuters
• Joey Roulette
By Reuters: Rocket and spacecraft maker Firefly Aerospace is expected to secure a $110 million U.S. Export-Import Bank (EXIM) loan that would help fund the company's expansion of spacecraft production facilities in Texas, according to a document reviewed by Reuters.
NASA Spaceflight
• Bastiaan Vellekoop, Haygen Warren
