Rocket Lab shatters responsive space record, deploys orbital interceptor
Rocket Lab launched a spacecraft 16 hours 42 minutes after receiving orders, beating the prior record by 10+ hours, and immediately began rendezvous operations against a target satellite in orbit.
Canada splits C$2.4M ground-segment contracts among three competitors
Canada awarded concept-study contracts to MDA Space, Calian, and Kepler for its next-generation RADARSAT+ ground infrastructure, signaling a competitive down-select before full program spend.
Pentagon picks Viasat, Intelsat to build military SATCOM swarm
U.S. Space Force awards $437.7M to Viasat and Intelsat for first production mini-GEO satellites, signaling shift from monolithic AEHF constellation to proliferated commercial architecture.
Anduril lands $100M Space Force mesh network contract modification
Anduril's IDIQ ceiling for space domain awareness mesh networking doubles to $200M, extending the company's AI-powered infrastructure into orbital layers of next-gen integrated defense.
Space Force awards $3.2B for orbital kill vehicles by 2028
The U.S. Space Force distributed 20 contracts worth up to $3.2 billion across 12 companies to build space-based missile interceptors in low-Earth orbit, aiming for operational capability within two years.
Blue Origin Wins Vandenberg Heavy-Lift Lease, Breaks Cape Monopoly
Space Force selects Blue Origin to negotiate lease of SLC-14 at Vandenberg, enabling New Glenn launches to polar orbit and ending Cape Canaveral's monopoly on U.S. heavy-lift national security missions.
Blue Origin Attempts First Reflown New Glenn Booster, AST SpaceMobile Payload Ready
Blue Origin hot-fired its first recycled New Glenn booster on April 16, targeting April 17 launch of AST SpaceMobile's BlueBird 7 satellite—the company's critical proof point for booster reuse cadence.
Blue Origin Wins Vandenberg Launch Pad, Breaks Florida Monopoly
U.S. Space Force selects Blue Origin for West Coast heavy-lift launch pad at Vandenberg, ending sole reliance on Cape Canaveral for national security polar orbits and establishing New Glenn as dual-coast operational platform by 2028.
China's Kinetica-2 Reaches Orbit; CBC Architecture Arrives in Commercial Fleet
CAS Space successfully flew Kinetica-2 to orbit on March 30, delivering a 4,200 kg cargo spacecraft prototype. The tri-core booster design gives China's commercial sector heavy-lift capacity for the first time outside state ownership.
SpaceX Files for IPO: $1.75 Trillion Valuation, National Security Moat
SpaceX submitted a confidential IPO filing to the SEC on April 1, seeking a $1.75 trillion valuation and up to $75 billion in capital. The filing values a merged aerospace-AI enterprise built on military launch dominance and Starlink's near-10-million-user base.