Topics

Browse Resources by Topic

November Space Council Meetings Could Shape Commercial Regulations

The National Space Council asked for comment on new commercial space systems and how the commercial space sector could be regulated during a pair of online meetings set for November. The council wants input from industry and the public. The move is part of a Biden Administration push to deal with issues including crowded orbits and the safety of space tourists.

Read More

NASA’s EMIT Instrument Detects Massive Methane Emitters

One of NASA’s newest instruments on the International Space Station (ISS) is proving to be a multipurpose climate research tool as it demonstrated a secondary capability to detect methane gas emissions. The Earth Surface Mineral Dust Source Investigation (EMIT) mission seeks to better understand varieties of dust and the effects on the climate. The instrument, launched to the International Space Station (ISS) in July 2022, is an imaging spectrometer that gathers data to determine the mineral compositions of arid regions on Earth.

Read More

U.S. Defense Strategy Document Pledges Commercial Space Protection

In a first-of-its-kind shift in stated strategy, the Biden Administration pledged, in a document that outlines Pentagon plans, to protect growing American commercial interests in space while advancing military space capabilities and international cooperation in orbit. Military space has returned to the spotlight in recent years after a slump that accompanied the end of the Cold War.

Read More

Nation in Review: Bahrain

In 2018, Bahraini space officials signed a Declaration of Principles with the UAE Space Agency (UAESA) and the UAE’s Khalifa University

The kingdom of Bahrain is the smallest country in the Middle East, measuring only 294 square miles with a population of 1.7 million people. The small nation is an ambitious emerging playerin the space sector.

Read More

Latest Employment Data Hints at Space Workforce Hiring Slowdown

Astrobotic employees run the software for a CubeRover ground test in NASA’s lunar regolith pit at the Granular Mechanics and Regolith Operations Laboratory on June 30, 2022. Software developers are one of the most sought-after occupations in the space industry, and the field has a strong employment outlook over the next decade.

Space-related employment has been growing steadily over the past two years, but the declining financial market could finally be slowing the industry’s growth. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) employment data and space job boards both hint at reduced hiring over the past few months. However, the latest BLS employment outlook shows that many space jobs have a higher-than-average growth projected over the next decade.

Read More

Budget Gridlock Delays Spending on New U.S. Space Programs

Among programs that could face budget-driven delays are NASA’s proposed robotic rovers to explore for lunar water.

Congressional gridlock delayed a 2023 spending plan for U.S. government space programs, which have made up about 12 percent of the global space economy in recent years. The delay stalled budget increases for NASA and the Pentagon topping $6 billion, but a stopgap measure keeps agencies operating at 2022 spending levels.

Read More

Quilty Analytics Q3 22 Quarterly Transactional Update:

The macro environment and public equity market conditions remained highly volatile during the third quarter, a quarter that saw the bellwether S&P 500 equity market index decline by 5% with heavy losses in late August and through most of September. Against this less-than-favorable backdrop, satellite and space mergers and acquisitions(M&A) and equity financing activity remained in line with the previous quarter.

Read More

New Spacesuit Design Promises to Fit Diverse Generation of Future Astronauts

NASA’s newest spacesuits, under a contract announced in September, will be rented by the agency much like tuxedos for a wedding or high-school prom night. Unlike suits in use since the Space Shuttle program, they’re designed to fit astronauts of any size, taking the agency back to the early days when all those headed to space got a custom suit.

Read More

Handheld Bioprinter Could Be a New Tool in an Astronaut’s First Aid Kit

ESA astronaut Matthias Maurer learns how to use the Bioprint First Aid device during preflight training for his November 2021 launch to the ISS to complete his Cosmic Kiss mission.

Astronaut safety in space is always a top priority, especially as deep-space missions become a reality and the risk of medical emergencies increases. Alongside traditional 3D printing applications, bioprinting has the potential to support astronauts for medical issues ranging from small abrasions to lifesaving organ transplants.

Read More

8 Stories from the Front Lines of the New Space Workforce

Before any astronaut selfie is taken in space, legions of other space workers ensure mission success.

Getting to space and keeping the space industry moving ahead takes a diverse group of people with a wide range of talents, including many who didn’t picture themselves as part of the race to the stars just a few years ago. Here are few of them.

Read More