2026 01 News

22 Jan 2026

• Open Cosmos advances broadband plans with spectrum once held by Rivada
• Blue Origin flies first New Shepard mission of 2026
• As satellites become targets, Space Force plans for growth and a broader role
• Rocket Lab launches first satellites for Open Cosmos constellation
• L3Harris to supply imager for Korean geostationary weather satellite
• Tomorrow.io unveils DeepSky: constellation of large satellites and instruments
• Rocket Lab suffers Neutron testing setback
• Azimut Group invests $128 million in D-Orbit
• All sorts of interesting flags and artifacts will fly to the Moon on Artemis II
• Blue Origin makes impressive strides with reuse—next launch will refly booster

21 Jan 2026

• Blue Origin plans bespoke high-speed Starlink rival
• The Exploration Company in talks to acquire Orbex
• Starfish Space wins SDA contract to deorbit satellites
• U.S. vulnerable to Russian escalation in space, new report warns
• NASA to end support for planetary science groups
• Another Jeff Bezos company has announced plans to develop a megaconstellation

20 Jan 2026

• Defense appropriations bill for 2026 funds Space Force at $26 billion, presses Pentagon on Golden Dome
• Washington Harbour expands space investments with ground services acquisition
• Sodern to produce star trackers in Colorado
• Gilmour Space raises $146 million
• The first commercial space station, Haven-1, is now undergoing assembly for launch

19 Jan 2026

• Space Force ends ‘Resilient GPS’ satellite program
• The fastest human spaceflight mission in history crawls closer to liftoff
• The race to build a super-large ground telescope is likely down to two competitors

18 Jan 2026

• Eutelsat signs OneWeb launch deal with MaiaSpace
• Live coverage: Space Falcon 9 rocket counting down to Starlink delivery mission

17 Jan 2026

• SLS/Orion rolls to pad for Artemis 2
• White House resubmits NASA deputy administrator nominee
• China hit by dual launch failures as Long March 3B and Ceres-2 debut mission fail

16 Jan 2026

• Isar Aerospace sets date for second Spectrum launch
• China conducts static fire test of new reusable Long March 12B rocket
• China advances plans for dual solar system boundary missions
• Japanese launch company Interstellar Technologies raises $130 million
• China launches AlSat-3A for Algeria, Ceres-1 sea launch adds to Tianqi constellation
• Live coverage: NRO, SpaceX to launch reconnaissance satellites from Vandenberg
• Rocket Report: Ariane 64 to debut soon; India has a Falcon 9 clone too?

15 Jan 2026

• Arianespace to begin Amazon Leo launches in February
• Parsons buys Altamira for $375 million to expand space and intelligence portfolio
• TrustPoint demonstrates non-GPS navigation for LEO satellites
• Portal Space selects ‘Space Armor’ debris shield for 2026 mission
• Slingshot wins $27 million Space Force contract for AI training system
• Hydrosat raises $60 million in Series B funding
• Crew-11 makes early return from ISS
• Indian startup Aule Space enters satellite servicing market
• Crew 11 safely splashes down after shortened mission
• Key Senate staffer is “begging” NASA to get on with commercial space stations
• NASA’s first medical evacuation from space ends with on-target splashdown

14 Jan 2026

• CAS Space conducts first suborbital launch and capsule landing test
• ESA’s Comet Interceptor mission moves up launch
• ThinkOrbital raises seed funding to advance X-ray space inspection
• NASA pessimistic about odds of recovering MAVEN
• SkyFi raises $12.7 million to scale satellite data marketplace
• China’s first launches of 2026 send Yaogan spacecraft into unusual orbit, loft Guowang satellites
• ESA and ClearSpace announce PRELUDE mission to test debris-removal techniques
• Live coverage: NASA, SpaceX prepare ‘medical evacuation’ Crew-11 return to Earth
• SpaceX breaks pad turnaround record at Cape Canaveral with midday Starlink launch

13 Jan 2026

• ESA and ClearSpace announce PRELUDE in-orbit servicing and debris removal mission
• Pentagon commits $1 billion to L3Harris missile unit as ‘anchor investor’
• Orbion delivers 33 electric thrusters to York Space for U.S. military constellation
• Eutelsat orders 340 additional satellites to replenish OneWeb constellation
• Aerospacelab to build eight satellites for Xona’s navigation constellation
• ISS gains new commander as Crew-11 prepares midweek departure

12 Jan 2026

• NRO taps Capitol Hill staffer Bill Adkins as principal deputy director
• NASA outlines path to Artemis 2 launch
• India’s PSLV launch fails during ascent, 16 satellites lost
• China files ITU paperwork for megaconstellations totaling nearly 200,000 satellites
• NASA astrophysics, commercial satellites launch on SpaceX rideshare mission
• India’s PSLV suffers second consecutive launch failure, 16 satellites lost
• Live coverage: SpaceX to launch 29 Starlink satellites on Falcon 9 rocket from Cape Canaveral
• NASA launches new mission to get the most out of the James Webb Space Telescope
• NASA topples towers used to test Saturn rockets, space shuttle

11 Jan 2026

• NASA astrophysics, commercial satellites launch on SpaceX rideshare mission
• Crew-11 to make early return Jan. 15

10 Jan 2026

• Crew-11 to make early return Jan. 15
• FCC approves 7,500 additional Starlink satellites
• Space Force awards $739 million in launch orders to SpaceX

09 Jan 2026

• Landspace secures launch contracts for China’s megaconstellation projects
• Rhea Space Activity applies optical navigation to military rendezvous missions
• Crew-11 to cut mission short and return to Earth due to medical issue
• L3Harris announces $845 million majority sale of Space Propulsion and Power Systems business
• Is Orion’s heat shield really safe? New NASA chief conducts final review on eve of flight.
• Rocket Report: A new super-heavy launch site in California; 2025 year in review

08 Jan 2026

• Roman Space Telescope on track for September launch
• Private group unveils plans for large space telescope
• Vulcan to open 2026 with national security launch
• Medical issue could force early end of Crew-11 ISS mission
• SpaceX scrubs midday Starlink mission launch from Cape Canaveral
• Former Google CEO plans to singlehandedly fund a Hubble telescope replacement

07 Jan 2026

• Space Force moves to standardize satellites with ‘Handle 2.0’ contract
• NASA seeks to accelerate development of Habitable Worlds Observatory
• SkyFi expands virtual constellation with Vantor satellite imagery
• 2026 Outlook: Can Acquisition Reform Deliver for Military Space?
• Here are the launches and landings we’re most excited about in 2026

06 Jan 2026

• Dept. of the Air Force opens bidding for Space Launch Complex 14 at Vandenberg SFB
• Private equity deal shows just how far America’s legacy rocket industry has fallen

05 Jan 2026

• Array Labs raises $20 million to scale production of radar satellites for 3D Earth mapping
• Minibus provides $24.4 billion for NASA for fiscal year 2026
• China’s astronauts complete cave training amid preparations for moon missions
• L3Harris to sell majority stake in space propulsion unit to AE Industrial
• SpaceX to lower orbits of some Starlink satellites
• NASA’s science budget won’t be a train wreck after all
• Our annual power ranking of US rocket companies has changes near the top and bottom

04 Jan 2026

• Space Force begins base network overhaul as cybersecurity demands grow
• SpaceX launches first Starlink deployment mission since problem strikes satellite

03 Jan 2026

• New Spanish communications satellite suffers ‘space particle’ impact
• SpaceX launches next second-generation Italian COSMO-SkyMed satellite

02 Jan 2026

• SpaceX to lower orbits of some Starlink satellites
• Live coverage: SpaceX opens 2026 with launch of Cosmo-SkyMed Earth observation satellite for Italy
• After half a decade, the Russian space station segment stopped leaking
• SpaceX begins “significant reconfiguration” of Starlink satellite constellation

01 Jan 2026

• Space Force offers new Vandenberg launch site