NASA says the Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory, launched in 2004 to study gamma-ray bursts, is expected to fall to Earth next week after 22 years in orbit. A $30 million rescue attempt in July 2026 using a robotic craft called LINK to boost Swift's orbit failed due to control-system problems, and increased solar activity since 2024 had already accelerated the satellite's descent by thickening the upper atmosphere. As of October 26, NASA reported Swift was orbiting less than 170 miles above Earth's surface.
wired.com
· 2026-11-03
The US government says the Russian satellite Cosmos 2612 maneuvered within less than a mile of the Swedish-built Earth-observation satellite Iceye-X36 last Saturday, burning fuel to match its altitude and speed. US undersecretary of state Thomas DiNanno called the move threatening and consistent with 'on-orbit weapons operations,' while Russian officials denied the satellites are armed and said Western nations are using 'loudspeaker diplomacy' over the incident.
futurism.com
· 2026-10-23
LeoLabs, a commercial space-tracking company, reported that Russia's Kosmos 2612 military satellite executed a deliberate rendezvous with ICEYE-X36, a US-operated commercial imaging satellite, closing from hundreds of kilometers to within roughly 2-3 kilometers and at times under 500 meters before moving away. The company said four of six satellites launched alongside Kosmos 2612 in April had adjusted their orbits to track ICEYE-X36, and described the close pass as a controlled approach, loitering period and departure consistent with sophisticated rendezvous and proximity operations.
arstechnica.com
· 2026-10-19
Tracking data shows Russia's Cosmos 2612 military satellite performed a maneuver on October 16 that brought it within roughly 3 miles of ICEYE-X36, a US-registered synthetic aperture radar satellite, after previously keeping over 200 miles away. Satellite tracking firm LeoLabs called the move a deliberate approach of uncertain intent, and the maneuver was made without approval from ICEYE, which operates a satellite fleet that has supplied imagery to Ukraine since 2022.
tomshardware.com
· 2026-10-19
NASA released a 360-page request for proposals asking US companies to develop commercial space stations that could replace the International Space Station in low-Earth orbit as early as 2030. Industry responses are due December 8, with NASA planning to select two or more contractors by April, each guaranteed at least $100 million in this initial phase.
arstechnica.com
· 2026-10-09
Startup Xona Space Systems is set to launch six satellites this month, marking the debut of what it calls the first precision commercial alternative to GPS. Founded in 2019 by five Stanford-trained engineers, the company aims to sell more accurate, harder-to-jam positioning and timing signals than government-run systems like GPS, Galileo, BeiDou and GLONASS. CEO Brian Manning said the company built a new satellite architecture that avoids costly onboard atomic clocks by relying on close ground communication.
techcrunch.com
· 2026-10-09
SpaceX has told NASA and private space station developers including Axiom Space, Voyager Space, and Vast Space that it intends to stop flying Crew Dragon and Falcon 9 missions to low-Earth orbit after supporting the International Space Station through 2030. The move threatens the crew transportation backbone for NASA's two-decade effort to build a commercial human spaceflight market in orbit.
arstechnica.com
· 2026-09-29
Google will launch a prototype satellite to test how its Tensor Processing Units perform in orbit, part of Project Suncatcher, a research effort first announced last year. The initiative explores whether satellites in low Earth orbit, which can access near-constant sunlight and generate far more solar power than on Earth, could eventually host machine learning infrastructure.
blog.google
· 2026-09-24
Researchers are monitoring the atmospheric drag experienced by SpaceX's more than 11,000 Starlink satellites to calculate a daily 'sink rate,' the altitude a typical satellite at 480 km would lose in one day without thruster corrections. In 2026 that figure has swung from 19.7 meters per day during quiet conditions to 127.6 meters per day during the year's largest geomagnetic storm in January.
spaceweather.com
· 2026-09-23
Odin Space is selling adhesive vibration sensor strips that satellites can use to detect and measure debris impacts, addressing the mystery behind many small-satellite failures. Meanwhile, Atlanta-area company Atomic-6 is working on lighter alternative shielding to replace or improve upon traditional aluminum panels and Whipple shields used to protect spacecraft from high-speed debris strikes.
techspot.com
· 2026-09-10
Isar Aerospace, a German startup founded in 2018 by three Technical University of Munich students, launched its Spectrum rocket from Andøya Spaceport in Arctic Norway on Saturday. The two-stage, 92-foot rocket reached low-Earth orbit about seven minutes after liftoff, marking the first fully commercial European launch vehicle to do so. CEO Daniel Metzler called it a milestone giving Europe independent access to space.
arstechnica.com
· 2026-09-06
Russia's Bureau 1440 has launched 32 Rassvet satellites in two batches this year, but none have reached their intended 500-mile orbit. Tracking data shows most satellites topped out near 300 miles, several stopped maneuvering entirely, and at least three have already reentered or appear headed for reentry.
arstechnica.com
· 2026-09-02
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