Satellite   Europe   North America   Launch Vehicles & Space Transportation   Commercial Space   Space Defense & Militarization  
Spaceflight Now • Will Robinson-Smith

SpaceX to close 2025 with Falcon 9 launch of Italy's Cosmo‑SkyMed Second Generation FM3 from Vandenberg

SpaceX will close 2025 with a Falcon 9 launch from Vandenberg Space Force Base carrying Italy's Cosmo‑SkyMed Second Generation Flight Model 3 (CSG‑FM3) Earth‑observation satellite, which is encapsulated in the rocket's payload fairing. The liftoff is scheduled as the company's final Falcon 9 mission of the year.

2025-12-27T06:00:25.663470-08:00
Satellite   Launch Vehicles & Space Transportation   Space Exploration & Science Missions   Commercial Space  
Universe Today • Andy Tomaswick

Kirigami-enabled Solar Sails: Using Structural Cuts to Control and Turn Sailcraft

By Universe Today: Solar sails have some major advantages over traditional propulsion methods - most notably they don’t use any propellant. But, how exactly do they turn? In traditional sailing, a ship’s captain can simply adjust the angle of the sail itself to catch the wind at a different angle.

2025-12-27T03:54:23.461136-08:00
China   Launch Vehicles & Space Transportation   Commercial Space   Policy & Regulation  
Reuters • Eduardo Baptista

China opens STAR-market fast lane for reusable commercial rocket developers

By Reuters: Chinese companies developing reusable commercial rockets will have access to a fast lane for initial public offerings on the tech-heavy STAR market that exempts them from some financial requirements, the Shanghai Stock Exchange said on Friday.

Also: CNBC
2025-12-26T04:15:00.518590-08:00