2026 02 News
28 Feb 2026
[edit]27 Feb 2026
[edit]- NASA revises plans for future Artemis missions, cancels upgrades to SLS
- Rocket Lab delays Neutron debut to late 2026
- China set for its first one-year human spaceflight mission, confirms Pakistani astronaut flight
- Virgin Media O2 launches Europe’s first Starlink direct-to-smartphone service
- NASA announces major overhaul of Artemis moon program: “We’ve got to get back to basics”
- SpaceX Falcon 9 launches from Cape Canaveral with 29 Starlink satellites
- Hyperion author Dan Simmons dies from stroke at 77
- Rocket Report: Vulcan “many months” from flying; Falcon 9 extends reuse milestone
26 Feb 2026
[edit]- Virgin Media O2 launches Europe’s first Starlink direct-to-smartphone service
- Airbus and Leonardo report increased space revenues for 2025
- NordSpace founder backs Wyvern with new Canada-focused venture arm
- Phantom Space reclaims former Vector launch technology
- Sierra Space names Dan Jablonsky CEO
- CesiumAstro acquires Vidrovr to embed AI in communications systems
- NASA astronaut says his medical issue led to early return from the ISS
- China’s Tianwen-2 probe operating normally on approach to asteroid
- Bowersox to retire from NASA
- Space Force halts Vulcan missions pending investigation into solid rocket issue
- A non-public document reveals that science may not be prioritized on next Mars mission
- ULA isn’t making the Space Force’s GPS interference problem any easier
25 Feb 2026
[edit]- Golden Dome to require unprecedented coordination between U.S. combatant commands
- Valve malfunction blamed for failure of Indian satellite to raise its orbit
- In space traffic coordination, the biggest challenge may be coordination
- OQ Technology secures $30 million from Europe for satellite-to-smartphone expansion
- SLS rocket hauled back to VAB for repairs
- SpaceX launches 500th Starlink satellite in 2026 during Wednesday Falcon 9 flight
24 Feb 2026
[edit]- Lockheed Martin presses case that GPS upgrade will counter jamming threats
- At Colorado space firms, Hegseth casts Pentagon bureaucracy as the enemy
- LambdaVision books space on Starlab commercial space station
- Sophia Space claims $10 million in seed round
- Meink, Saltzman make case for Space Force expansion
- Space Force seeks market answers on in-orbit refueling
- Live coverage: SpaceX to launch 29 Starlink satellites on Falcon 9 rocket from Cape Canaveral
23 Feb 2026
[edit]- Space Force seeks market answers on in-orbit refueling
- AST SpaceMobile wins $30 million contract for military broadband demo
- Aalyria hits $1.3 billion valuation after raising funds for satellite mesh network
- Momentus prepares to host 10 demonstration payloads on Vigoride 7 flight
- Texas Space Commission completes $150 million in awards
- Israeli startup targets the economics of high-resolution Earth observation
- Aalto plots Australia base to boost planned high-altitude pseudo satellite service
- Pentagon buyer: We’re happy with our launch industry, but payloads are lagging
22 Feb 2026
[edit]- German defense firm said to be weighing bid for Mynaric
- Study shows how rocket launches pollute the atmosphere
21 Feb 2026
[edit]- NASA preparing for Artemis 2 rollback to fix upper stage problem
- Live coverage: SpaceX’s most-flown Falcon booster to launch on record 33rd flight
- [https://spaceflightnow.com/2026/02/21/nasas-artemis-2-rocket-hit-by-new-problem-expected-to-bump-moonshot-into-early-april/ Live coverage: SpaceX’s most-flown Falcon booster to launch on record 33rd flight
NASA’s Artemis 2 rocket hit by new problem expected to bump moonshot into early April]
20 Feb 2026
[edit]- Aalto plots Australia base to boost planned high-altitude pseudo satellite service
- NASA targeting March 6 for Artemis 2 launch
- Boeing to boost production of missile-tracking sensors for military satellites
- NASA completes second Artemis 2 fueling test
- Moon mission fueling test concludes with no major problems
- Rocket Report: Chinese launch firm raises big money; Falcon 9 back to the Bahamas
19 Feb 2026
[edit]- Starliner investigation identifies flawed NASA decision making
- Japan’s ispace warns of delays in new lunar lander engine
- NASA chief classifies Starliner flight as “Type A” mishap, says agency made mistakes
18 Feb 2026
[edit]- Pentagon seeks commercially built GEO spy satellites
- Vantor partners with Google AI to automate intelligence reports for government agencies
- SpaceX unveils space traffic management system
- UK caps launch liability in timely boost for nascent domestic market
- Landspace targets Q2 for next Zhuque-3 orbital launch and recovery attempt
17 Feb 2026
[edit]- China’s Space Epoch raises new funding, targets 2026 launch and recovery attempt
- SatVu to expand thermal imaging constellation with NATO-backed funds
- Sateliot to launch satellites with PLD Space
- Leonardo funding development of Earth observation constellation
- NASA to attempt second full fueling test of its Space Launch System rocket
- There’s a lot of big talk about sovereign launch—who is doing something about it?
16 Feb 2026
[edit]- NASA work on several programs pending responses to White House executive order
- Low-profile Chinese launch firm conducts first stage static fire
- Portions of the Pentagon’s LEO constellation on hold as acquisition reviews proceed
15 Feb 2026
[edit]- Live coverage: SpaceX to launch predawn Starlink mission on President’s Day
- Replacement crew docks at space station, boosts crew back to seven
- Space Station returns to a full crew complement after a month
14 Feb 2026
[edit]- NASA continues SLS hydrogen leak tests
- Live coverage: SpaceX to launch 600th Falcon 9 rocket to date with Starlink flight from Vandenberg
- ‘Very lucky day’: NASA, SpaceX ace astronaut launch to the space station on Friday the 13th
- NASA has a new problem to fix before the next Artemis II countdown test
13 Feb 2026
[edit]- Senate committee advances FCC satellite licensing bill after changes
- Startup bets on new approach to space-based missile defense
- Crew-12 launches to ISS
- Vast wins ISS private astronaut mission
- China’s iSpace launch firm raises record $729 million for reusable rockets
- Rocket Report: Say cheerio to Orbex; China is getting good at booster landings
- Why is Bezos trolling Musk on X with turtle pics? Because he has a new Moon plan.
12 Feb 2026
[edit]- Space startups find more paths to liquidity as investors warm to maturing sector
- First Ariane 64 launches Amazon Leo satellites
- Axiom Space raises additional $350 million
- ThinKom gets military contract to supply portable ground stations for satellite communications
- Software startup Integrate makes push into defense market following Space Force award
- Launch companies debate how to compete against SpaceX
- ULA’s Vulcan launches Space Force mission; solid booster anomaly under investigation
- FCC Space Bureau chief shares agenda for regulatory reform
- NASA loading liquid hydrogen aboard Artemis 2 rocket in unannounced test
- Vulcan suffers solid rocket booster problem during USSF-87 launch
- ULA’s Vulcan rocket suffers another booster problem on the way to orbit
11 Feb 2026
[edit]- UK launcher Orbex files for administration after failed funding efforts
- Space companies bet on Golden Dome as questions persist over scope and funding
- Demand for sovereign systems extends to the Earth-observation stack
- How much is vertical integration squeezing the smallsat opportunity?
- Eutelsat gets nearly 1 billion euros in French-backed ECA financing
- Stoke Space adds $350 million to Series D round
- China tests crewed spacecraft abort and rocket recovery in major lunar milestone
- FCC approves thousands more Amazon Leo satellites as Gen 1 deadline looms
- Live coverage: ULA to launch geosynchronous orbit surveillance satellite for the U.S. Space Force
- SpaceX launches 24 Starlink satellites on Falcon 9 rocket from Vandenberg SFB
- ULA sets sights on ramping up launch cadence in 2026
- China showcases new Moon ship and reusable rocket in one extraordinary test
- The Feds closed air space around El Paso on Wednesday to address “cartel” drones
- Yes, Rocket Lab is blowing up engines. No, it’s not a big deal, CEO says.
10 Feb 2026
[edit]- National Reconnaissance Office adds HEO, SatVu and Sierra Nevada to commercial imaging program
- Laser-linked satellite networks moving from concept to capability
- Australia Space Innovation Institute applies space technologies to address terrestrial challenges
- ULA seeks to rebuild launch cadence after CEO’s exit
- Germany funds 78 million euro human exploration control center
- Amazon Leo nets anchor maritime resellers
- Aerospace attracts partners for DiskSat demonstrations
- Non-venture space startup investment hits post-SPAC high
- Spaceium demonstrates refueling actuator in orbit
- Apolink and Galaxia team up to improve planned data relay capability
09 Feb 2026
[edit]- Weather delays NASA’s SpaceX Crew-12 flight to the International Space Station
- Why would Elon Musk pivot from Mars to the Moon all of a sudden?
08 Feb 2026
[edit]07 Feb 2026
[edit]- Falcon 9 returns to flight after upper stage engine investigation
- SpaceX IPO could drive investor interest in other space companies
- Space Force awards $54.5 million contract to Starfish Space for GEO servicing vehicle
- China launches reusable spaceplane on fourth secretive orbital mission
- SpaceX launches return to flight Falcon 9 mission following brief stand down
06 Feb 2026
[edit]- ‘We helped usher in the modern era of AI in NGA.’
- ‘Serving the country and pushing the boundaries of human existence is very purposeful.’
- ‘I loved thinking about how to make science possible for America and for the world’
- ‘You need competent people in the government to direct and make decisions.’
- ‘Now it’s time to turn the baton over to others. I hope there’s somebody else to grab that baton.’
- ‘People knew that they could come to us to figure out how to get things done.’
- ‘As far as I know, I’m still the assistant administrator of NESDIS.’
- ‘Leaders can be replaced, institutional knowledge cannot’
- Exodus: The shrinking federal space workforce
- NASA selects two Earth science missions for development
- SpaceX shifts away from Dragon launches at pad 39A as Starship looms
- ULA offloads first Vulcan rocket at Vandenberg at it preps its next Cape launch
- Lawmakers ask what it would take to “store” the International Space Station
- NASA stage show explores “outer” outer space with Henson’s Fraggles
- Rocket Report: SpaceX probes upper stage malfunction; Starship testing resumes
- To reuse or not reuse—the eternal debate of New Glenn’s second stage reignites
05 Feb 2026
[edit]- Satellite servicing startup Starfish taps Quindar for mission operations software
- Voyager Technologies and Max Space partner on lunar infrastructure
- FCC clears Logos to deploy more than 4,000 broadband satellites
- Morpheus raises $15 million in Series A+ round
- Space Force may be done with R-GPS, but Congress isn’t
- Vantor wins $5.3 million NGA contract to spot terrain changes using commercial satellite data
- NASA changes its mind, will allow Artemis astronauts to take iPhones to the Moon
04 Feb 2026
[edit]- FireSat adds orbit-visualization software to help firefighters plan around satellite passes
- Senate committee delays consideration of bill to streamline FCC satellite licensing
- SmallSat Alliance shifts focus from proliferation to coordination
- NASA finally acknowledges the elephant in the room with the SLS rocket
- Russian spy satellites have intercepted EU communications satellites
- US House takes first step toward creating “commercial” deep space program
03 Feb 2026
[edit]- SpaceX pauses Falcon 9 launches after upper stage anomaly
- Artemis 2 slips to March
- Unable to tame hydrogen leaks, NASA delays launch of Artemis II until March
02 Feb 2026
[edit]- At Blue Origin, Hegseth escalates criticism of legacy defense procurement
- UK Space Agency CEO stepping down as agency folds into government
- House NASA bill seeks details on lunar lander and spacesuit development
- Amazon buys 10 more Falcon 9 launches
- CesiumAstro to scale operations with $470 million in equity and debt financing
- Transcelestial to provide satellite laser communication terminals to Gilmour Space
- NASA gears up for one more key test before launching Artemis II to the Moon
- SpaceX acquires xAI, plans 1 million satellite constellation to power it