DOD Commercial SATCOM Workshop

https://www.dodsatcom.com/

Join talks around what’s happening in the commercial SATCOM world as well as future plans and capabilities at this 4-day event. Keynote speakers Senior Advisor to Assistant Secretary of Defense for Space Policy Andrea Jaffe and FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel are joined by 20 government and 32 industry speakers. Crystal City, VA. $60-$1,725.00. December 16-18, 2024.

AIAA SciTech Forum

https://www.aiaa.org/SciTech

Aerospace R&D and technology event exploring breakthrough capabilities. Speakers will expound on the theme, "Energize the Future" towards revolutionizing society, achieving sustainability goals, and pushing boundaries. $140-$1,599. Orlando, FL. January 6-10, 2025.

2025 AI Symposium

https://www.rocketcenter.com/institute

Experts share insights around the theme, “Automation vs HITL (Human in the Loop)” across multiple industries, including space exploration. Huntsville, AL. January 28-30, 2025.

SmallSat Symposium

https://smallsatshow.com/

Gain market insights and develop meaningful connections with leading space companies, key decision-makers and innovators in the SmallSat industry. $200-$1,695. Silicon Valley, CA. February 4-6, 2025.

Perspectives Spatiales (Space Perspectives)

https://perspectives-spatiales.com/

Over 200 public and private decision-makers gather to exchange perspectives and hear speakers, including ESA Director General Josef Aschbacher, discuss "dynamics, threats and opportunities of the European space model". Paris, France. February 12, 2025.

Small Satellites & Services International Forum 2025

https://sssif.com/

Join developers, scientists, suppliers and launchers for unique networking and knowledge opportunities around small satellite sector trends under the theme, “Industrialization and Sustainability in Space.” €230-€540. Málaga, Spain. February 18-20, 2025.

Business of Space Conference 2025

https://www.uah.edu/opce/program-topics/business-of-space

This conference brings together leading academics, business leaders, innovators, and policy influencers working on the new space economy for curated sessions under the theme “Economics, Commerce, and Sustainability of New Space”. $150-$425. Huntsville, AL. February 23-25, 2025.

International Conference on Aerospace and Aeronautical Engineering

https://aerospace2025.com/

Join academic scientists and researchers as they share experiences, research results, and solutions adopted in the fields of aerospace and aeronautical engineering. $299-$1099. Rome, Italy. February 20-22, 2025.

ASCENDxTexas

https://www.ascend.events/ascendx/ascendxtexas/

Centered on the innovation and adaptation necessary to navigate the evolving space economy, this year’s conference theme is “Strategic Transitions – Aligning Stakeholders for Giant Leaps.” $199- $149. League City, TX. February 26-27, 2025.

SATELLITE 2025

https://www.satshow.com/

Satellite developers, manufacturers, service providers, and customers gather for updates on the satellite market and opportunities for collaboration on shared technical, policy, and financial challenges. Free-$2999. Washington, DC. March 10-13, 2025.

Space-Comm Expo 2025

https://space-comm.co.uk/

Space-Comm Expo brings together delegations for exhibits, talks, roundtables, and more around the theme, “Accelerating the commercial future of space” as the UK continues to grow its contribution to the global space market. London, UK. March 11-12, 2025.

Farnborough International Space Show

https://farnboroughspaceshow.com/

This annual exhibition and conference connects the space ecosystem across industry, defense, government and academia around six major themes - commercial space, operational space, sustainable space, defending space, exploring space, and earth and space. Farnborough, England. March 19-20, 2025.

CubeSat Developers Workshop 2025

https://www.cubesatdw.org/

Join hundreds of attendees for this annual global small-satellite conference hosted by CubeSat. Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo, CA. April 22-24, 2025.

SmallSat Europe

https://2025.smallsateurope.com/

Insights from technical experts and interactive collaboration on in-depth workshops at Europe's leading SmallSat event. €66.50-€495. Amsterdam, Netherlands. May 27-28, 2025.

Image Credit: Kevin M. Gill

South Pole Safety: Designing the NASA Lunar Rescue System

https://www.herox.com/NASASouthPoleSafety

This challenge seeks a low-mass, efficient design that’s easy for a single astronaut to deploy on the lunar surface, independently of a lunar rover, to quickly and safely evacuate a suited, incapacitated crewmember. Prize: $45,000 Submission Deadline: January 23, 2025.

3D Printable Bioreactor for Deep Space Food Production

https://grabcad.com/challenges/3d-printable-bioreactor-for-deep-space-food-production

NASA’s Synthetic Biology Project is looking for eco-friendly 3D-printable designs for reusable and recyclable small scale bioreactors to produce nutrients on demand, effectively reducing the mass and volume requirements for deep space missions. $7,000 in total prizes. Ends February 24, 2025.

NASA’s LunaRecycle Challenge

https://www.nasa.gov/prizes-challenges-and-crowdsourcing/centennial-challenges/lunarecycle/

This competition around sustainable space exploration seeks to encourage innovative waste management and recycling solutions that can improve the sustainability of longer-term lunar missions. The design that passes the two track, two-phase challenge stands to win $3 million. Phase 1 Submissions Due: March 31, 2025.

Space Waste Revolution Challenge

https://www.nasa.gov/directorates/stmd/prizes-challenges-crowdsourcing-program/center-of-excellence-for-collaborative-innovation-coeci/space-waste-revolution-challenge/

Selected contributors for groundbreaking research on polymer waste recycling in space environments stand to win $5,000 in total prizes for their recommendations for NASA’s space sustainability initiatives. Challenge occurs in 3 stages executed over 6 months. Close Date: May 16, 2025.

The solar system's biggest space jobs site | Space Crew

https://spacecrew.com/

Accelerate your space career with email alerts for key space industry insights and over 4000 space company jobs.

Jobs in the Space Field & Tech Industry | Space Talent

https://www.spacetalent.org/

Space Talent is a resource for careers at the intersection of space and tech. They match employers with top talent while providing insights and resources to grow your career.

Add your event or campaign. Contact us for details.

Fleet Space raises $100 million to advance mineral exploration on Earth and beyond

https://spacenews.com/fleet-space-raises-100-million-to-advance-mineral-exploration-on-earth-and-beyond/

Australia’s Fleet Space Technologies raised $100 million to help miniaturize mineral prospecting ground sensors and expand satellite-based mineral exploration capabilities to the moon. Fleet is currently developing a 600-gram version of ExoSphere, their ambient noise tomography system, to join Firefly Aerospace’s Blue Ghost lunar lander mission in 2026. Teachers’ Venture Growth, part of Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan, led the Series D round.

Pixxel Expands Series B Funding WIth $24M Investment

https://www.satellitetoday.com/imagery-and-sensing/2024/12/09/pixxel-expands-series-b-funding-with-24m-investment/

Hyperspectral imaging startup Pixxel landed a $24 million Series B extension round, adding new investors M&G Catalyst and Glade Brook. Pixxel closed its initial Series B in June 2023 with investors including Google, Radical Ventures and Lightspeed. The funding will help Pixxel develop and launch its hyperspectral Firefly constellation of six satellites in early 2025, plus another 18 satellites.

With new funding, FibreCoat targets space and defense markets

https://spacenews.com/with-new-funding-fibrecoat-targets-space-and-defense-markets/

German materials technology startup FibreCoat raised nearly €20 million ($21 million) in a Series B funding round led by NewSpace Capital and Goose Capital. FibreCoat intends to turn terrestrial applications knowledge of metal and plastic fiber coating to space industry applications such as radiation shielding, temperature regulation and weight reduction for satellites.

SatVu secures 20M cash injection to expand high-resolution thermal imaging for global climate action

https://www.satellitevu.com/news/satvu-secures-20m-cash-injection-to-expand-high-resolution-thermal-imaging-for-global-climate-action

Global climate technology leader SatVu closed £20 million ($25 million) in funding, with half from an insurance payout and half from Adara Ventures’ Energy Fund and Molten Ventures. The funding will accelerate development of HotSat-2 and HotSat-3 satellites to provide near real-time thermal data for climate mitigation.

Ion-X raises 13 million euros to produce electrospray thrusters

https://spacenews.com/ion-x-raises-13-million-euros-to-produce-electrospray-thrusters/

French propulsion startup Ion-X raised €13 million euros ($13.7 million) in a Series A funding round led by Expansion and Technofounders, with new investments from the European Innovation Council (EIC) Fund and the Île-de-France Reindustrialization Fund. Funding will go towards accelerating development and expansion plans for electrospray thrusters for small satellites and constellations.

200 VCs wanted to get into Lumen Orbit’s $11M seed round

https://techcrunch.com/2024/12/11/200-vcs-wanted-to-get-into-lumen-orbits-11m-seed-round/

Washington-based startup Lumen Orbit closed on an $11 million seed round at a $40 million valuation to build data centers in space. Lumen Orbit was founded in January. The deal was led by NFX, with participation from investors including Fuse.VC, Soma Capital, and scout funds from Andreessen Horowitz and Sequoia. CEO Philip Johnston said their multi-gigawatt compute clusters could help AI companies scale without the data center size and power restrictions on Earth, potentially cutting costs from $140+ million for electricity to ~$10 million for launch and solar power.

SpinLaunch raises $11M but hoped to raise much more, source says

https://techcrunch.com/2024/12/03/once-buzzy-space-startup-spinlaunch-raises-11m-but-hoped-to-raise-more-sources-say/

Space startup SpinLaunch closed $11.5 million out of the $25 million they planned earlier this year. The 10-year-old startup is facing a period of flux and leadership changes. It last raised a $71 million Series B round in 2022.

Orbite to expand luxury space training with Series A funding

https://spacenews.com/orbite-to-expand-luxury-space-training-with-series-a-funding/

Seattle-based startup Orbite raised $4 million to expand its spaceflight training / luxury vacations business, starting with its Spaceflight Gateway campus in Florida. The Experience Train Fly Program is opening to the general public as an alternative way to explore the New Space economy.

Trump selects Isaacman to be NASA administrator

https://spacenews.com/trump-selects-isaacman-to-be-nasa-administrator/

President-elect Donald Trump’s pick for NASA administrator is billionaire Jared Isaacman, who commanded two SpaceX Crew Dragon commercial spaceflights. The nomination will require Senate confirmation. Trump cited Isaacman’s passion, experience, and dedication to pushing the boundaries of exploration as keys to driving groundbreaking achievements for NASA in the new Space economy.

The heat shield of NASA’s Orion spacecraft ready for inspection at the Kennedy Space Center Operations and Checkout Building. Image Credits: NASA

NASA says Orion’s heat shield is good to go for Artemis II—but does it matter?

https://arstechnica.com/uncategorized/2024/12/nasa-says-orions-heat-shield-is-good-to-go-for-artemis-ii-but-does-it-matter/

After two years, NASA officials announced the conclusion of the Orion heat shield inquiry and the go ahead for the manned Artemis II mission. The only changes are a modified entry trajectory and updated Orion environmental controls and life support systems. Artemis II is slated to launch in April 2026, with Artemis III crewed lunar landing mission following in 2027.

The Milky Way's Sagittarius A* supermassive black hole in polarised light. Image Credits: European Southern Observatory

“Singularities don’t exist,” claims black hole pioneer Roy Kerr

https://bigthink.com/starts-with-a-bang/singularities-dont-exist-roy-kerr

Physicist Roy Kerr, whose solution to Einstein's general relativity equations predicted spinning black holes, argues that singularities, regions of infinite density, may not exist. He suggests that nature imposes limits preventing infinities and quantum gravity might resolve these issues. Kerr's solution describing highly dense, rotating objects that avoid singularities entirely challenges the long-standing notion of black holes as infinite singularities.