Asked what a Golden Dome satellite bus would have that a commercial satellite bus doesn’t, Apex Space CEO Ian Cinnamon’s answer was simple—”Hopefully, nothing.” The post Golden Dome Will Use COTS Parts, Space Execs Say appeared first on Payload. Source: https://payloadspace.com/golden-dome-will-use-cots-parts-space-execs-say/

“This is the latest stupid move made by a president who continues to harm science and American innovation,” Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-CA) said in a statement. The post Dems Slam Trump Over NSF Board Cuts appeared first on Payload. Source: https://payloadspace.com/dems-slam-trump-over-nsf-board-cuts/

The hearing also gave Isaacman a chance to provide more detail on the agency’s top objective: accelerate the US return to the Moon. The post Isaacman Continues to Defend Budget Cuts to Congress appeared first on Payload. Source: https://payloadspace.com/isaacman-continues-to-defend-budget-cuts-to-congress/

Meta announced an agreement today to secure up to 1 GW of power capacity through Overview Energy’s planned solar power-beaming satellite system. The post Meta Secures Overview Energy Space Solar Power Capacity  appeared first on Payload. Source: https://payloadspace.com/meta-secures-overview-energy-space-solar-power-capacity/

Both nominees will need to be confirmed by the Senate before they can get on the job.  The post Trump Taps Space Execs For Military Space Roles appeared first on Payload. Source: https://payloadspace.com/trump-taps-space-execs-for-military-space-roles/

“We’re going to do target practice. We’re going to make the clay-pigeon rocket,” Kemp said. “That’s great, because that will drive scale for us…and allow us to bring our cost down for commercial customers, and other government customers.” The post Astra Targets Golden Dome With Small

In this piece, we open our models to compare the build costs of an orbital data center and a terrestrial data center (inclusive of the delay-driven terrestrial opportunity cost). The post Orbital vs. Terrestrial Data Center Cost Analysis appeared first on Payload Pro. The post Orbital vs. Terrestrial Data Center

The continuous burn of 300 seconds (five minutes) with one of their two Chakram engine prototypes was one of several tests the company conducted at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, AL.  The post Astrobotic Hotfires Engine That Could Power Moon Missions appeared first on Payload. Source: https:

Blast Club and Expansion Venture Capital contributed to the round, which also included support from the Deep Tech fund managed by Bpifrance.  The post UNIVITY Raises €27M Series A appeared first on Payload. Source: https://payloadspace.com/univity-raises-e27m-series-a/

“I simply do not believe that this budget proposal is capable of supporting what President [Donald] Trump himself has directed the agency to accomplish,” Babin said.  The post Lawmakers Promise to Reject Proposed NASA Cuts—Again appeared first on Payload. Source: https://payloadspace.com/lawmakers-promise-to-reject-proposed-nasa-cuts-again/

“This financing allows us to move to regular operational service,” CEO and cofounder Sebastian Klaus said in a statement. “With ATMOS WORKS and PHOENIX 3, we are building the full architecture—commercial, institutional, and defense-capable—in parallel.”  The post ATMOS Space Cargo Raises €25.7M Series A appeared first on

Satellites protect Navy ships by giving them domain awareness. Some officers think the Navy can return the favor.  The post Tracking Sats From the Sea appeared first on Payload. Source: https://payloadspace.com/tracking-sats-from-the-sea/

When Golden Dome was first announced (under a different moniker) in January 2025, companies immediately got to work, positioning themselves to compete for the ambitious missile defense program aiming to protect the US.  The post Payload Field Guide: Golden Dome appeared first on Payload. Source: https://payloadspace.com/payload-field-guide-golden-dome/

Today, we’re kicking off the first analysis article in a four-part report unpacking the economics of orbital data centers. The post The Terrestrial Bottlenecks Pushing Compute to Space  appeared first on Payload Pro. The post Economics of Orbital Data Centers Report: Part 1 appeared first on Payload. Source: https:

NASA said it intends to launch monthly uncrewed missions to the Moon starting next year. That’s good news for more than just Moon-focused companies.  The post Opportunities Beyond the Moon Opened by CLPS appeared first on Payload. Source: https://payloadspace.com/opportunities-beyond-the-moon-opened-by-clps/

NASA’s 2028 Moon-landing date for astronauts is threatened by delays in spacesuit development, according to an Office of the Inspector General (OIG) report released Monday. The post NASA’s 2028 Moon Landing Has A Spacesuit Problem, New Report Says appeared first on Payload. Source: https://payloadspace.com/nasas-2028-moon-landing-has-a-spacesuit-problem-new-report-says/

“While I’m thrilled with 61 countries, a third of the world having signed, that’s wonderful. But we need to transition those signatures from supporting norms of behavior, which is important, to making contributions to the Artemis program,” Mike Gold, Redwire’s president of civil and international space, said

SpaceX is tasked to fly the ESA Rosalind Franklin rover as soon as late 2028, for a reported $175.7M. But the White House’s FY2027 budget request also suggests canceling NASA’s participation in the Mars mission. What comes next is anyone’s guess.  The post SpaceX Won A

“Early technology development can be done at these small mom and pop shops, but when it really comes prime time to make things at scale, people like ourselves who are procurers of that, if they don’t vertically integrate, they get very nervous,” Rocket Lab CFO Adam Spice told Payload

“From a production standpoint, we’re putting together the first qualification suit,” Michael López-Alegría, the company’s chief astronaut, told Payload. “That continues regardless of what they say.” The post Axiom Space’s Suit Set to Fly in 2027 appeared first on Payload. Source: https://payloadspace.com/axiom-spaces-suit-set-to-fly-in-2027/

The council will look at the most complex challenges plaguing the industry—from sustainability, to regulatory hurdles, to national security, to working across national borders. The post Seraphim Space Aims To Shape Strategy With New Advisory Council appeared first on Payload. Source: https://payloadspace.com/seraphim-space-aims-to-shape-strategy-with-new-advisory-council/

Axiom Space was the only provider for the first five PAMs awarded by NASA, but new players have entered the competition in 2026.  The post Voyager Technologies Wins Its First Private ISS Mission appeared first on Payload. Source: https://payloadspace.com/voyager-technologies-wins-its-first-private-iss-mission/

The goal is to track companies that earn more than half of their revenue from space tech—everything from transportation, to space software, to satellite-enabled data services. The post ORBX ETF Launches Amid Wave of Space Tech IPOs appeared first on Payload. Source: https://payloadspace.com/orbx-etf-launches-amid-wave-of-space-tech-ipos/

ESA has picked a Kepler Communications-led team to test the agency’s “fiber in the sky” HydRON orbital communications network, the companies announced Tuesday.  The post Kepler, Astrolight to Test ESA’s ‘Fiber in the Sky’ appeared first on Payload. Source: https://payloadspace.com/kepler-astrolight-to-test-esas-fiber-in-the-sky/

“There's a lot of passionate people out here. They can do incredible things from a scientific perspective,” Isaacman told Payload. “I don't know how many of them have ever pulled together a financial model, and driven execution on some of these things, to say what should