Emerging Tech

Launching Rogue Satellites Into Space Was a ‘Mistake’

Sara Spangelo says she isn’t rebellious by nature. So why did she defy federal regulators?

Digital Government

$600 Million Satellite Imagery Contract Shifts from One Intel Agency to Another

Management of the EnhancedView commercial satellite imagery contract shifted from the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency to the National Reconnaissance Office.

Emerging Tech

For First Time in 3 Years, NASA Is Shopping For New Spacecraft

At first, NASA officials didn’t think they’d see anything new in commercial spacecraft this year. Now they’re taking a second look.

Emerging Tech

NASA Is Running a 3D Printing Competition to Design Homes on Mars

The idea is to send a robot to Mars to autonomously print a habitat for the arrival of astronauts.

Modernization

GAO urges DOD to share data about commercial satellite programs

Centralizing data related to the Defense Department's work with commercial satellites could be one of the first tasks for a “Space Force.”

Policy

How The Space Force Took Over Washington

Blame a potent mix of national security concerns, space spectacle, and pork-barrel spending.

Emerging Tech

NOAA Creates Workarounds for Malfunctioning Weather Satellite

The GOES-17 still isn’t working the way it’s meant to, but engineers believe they have a way to make it more functional than not.

Emerging Tech

Cargo Bases in Space: Air Force General Wants Them Within a Decade

The service’s mobility chief is already talking with SpaceX and other companies about the possibilities of orbiting supply dumps.

Emerging Tech

Satellite Imagery + Social Media = A New Way to Spot Emerging Nuclear Threats

A research team is training computers to find and fuse clues from wildly different rivers of digital data.

Digital Government

Who Should Pay for the Mistakes on NASA’s Next Big Telescope?

The space agency has always coughed up the extra cash, but some politicians wonder if the contractor responsible for major errors should pitch in.

Emerging Tech

NASA Wants to Know If Space Travel Affects Plant and Animal Evolution

The agency is laying the groundwork for long-term human missions to the Moon, Mars and beyond.

Emerging Tech

NOAA’s Next-Gen Weather Satellite is Still Malfunctioning and May Not be Fixable

The second satellite in NOAA’s $11 billion GOES program continues to experience issues with its most important instrument and officials still aren’t sure what’s wrong.

Emerging Tech

Russia May Put Androids in Orbit Next Year, State Media Says

The mission would be the latest for FEDOR, created for rescue work — and more recently given the ability to shoot guns.