The Hidden Physics Complicating Interstellar Lightsails
If we’re to reach another star, chemical propulsion will not get us there in any reasonable time frame. We’re going to need a different propulsion technology, and one of the…
Russia is jamming GPS from space
“America is at risk of high impact GPS jamming and spoofing from space” was the title of my SpaceNews opinion article in October 2024. Little did I know that its…
Quantum Space to go public in SPAC deal
Quantum Space, a company led by a former NASA administrator developing highly maneuverable spacecraft for national security missions, will go public by merging with a special purpose acquisition company. The…
WRC-27: the next arena for U.S.-China space competition
For anyone who wasn’t sure whether China was in it to win the space race and dominate the rapidly growing space economy, its filings in December for 200,000 more satellites…
Axiom and Prada advance design of spacesuit
Axiom Space unveiled the design of another element of the lunar spacesuit it is developing for NASA in partnership with luxury designer Prada. The post Axiom and Prada advance design…
UK startup NewOrbit raises $18.5 million in Series A round
SAN FRANCISCO – NewOrbit Space, a UK startup developing satellites for very low Earth orbit (VLEO), has raised $18.5 million in a Series A investment round. With the funding, announced…
OQ Technology plans direct-to-smartphone demo with cellular spectrum
Luxembourg’s OQ Technology plans to test direct-to-smartphone satellite connectivity next year in Germany using a local telco’s cellular spectrum, setting up a challenge to U.S.-led services in the emerging market.…
Student Astronomer Identifies Source of Mysterious Cosmic Signals
An international team led by astronomers at the University of Sydney has uncovered the clearest evidence yet for the origin of an unusual class of cosmic signals. In doing so,…
Why Can’t the Universe Be Cyclic? Part 2: The Awkward Triumph of Inflation
Inflation is awkward, possibly not even a proper theory, and it has reigned over cosmology for forty years anyway. Here is what it claims, the flatness, horizon, and monopole problems…
Trouble near the Milky Way: The Large Magellanic Cloud is ripping its smaller neighbor galaxy apart
The Magellanic Clouds are a pair of dwarf galaxies passing the Milky Way probably for the first time, but as they move they have been interacting with each other for…