Space

TechCrunch Space: Returning to the moon

Hello and welcome back to TechCrunch Space. Mark your calendars, everyone: Boeing and NASA are planning to conduct the first crewed Starliner mission as soon as May 1.

Atomos Space’s first mission on orbit is a trial by fire

The company has faced two main issues related to communications and the spacecraft rotation rate — and it’s largely solved both those problems.

Intuitive Machines’ second moon mission on track for 2024

Intuitive Machines’ second moon mission is still on track to launch before the end of this year, after the company only had to make minor adjustments to the lunar lander design, executives said duri

SpaceX looks to scale astronaut launch capacity with second Florida pad

SpaceX is in the final stages of certifying a second pad for astronaut launches, which should ease launch site congestion and help the company scale the number of humans it sends to space. SpaceX has

Gitai’s autonomous robot installs panel outside the ISS, showing orbital repairs in action

Los Angeles-based Gitai said Tuesday that its autonomous robotic arm has nailed a tech demonstration outside the International Space Station. Gitai CEO Sho Nakanose told TechCrunch in an interview las

TechCrunch Space: $paceX

Welcome back to TechCrunch Space. This is an uncommonly SpaceX-heavy issue. Apologies (or you're welcome).

Leaked SpaceX documents show company forbids employees to sell stock if it deems they’ve misbehaved

SpaceX requires employees to agree to some unusual terms related to their stock awards, which have a chilling effect on staff, according to sources and internal documents viewed by TechCrunch. That in

SpaceX makes significant progress with third Starship orbital test flight

SpaceX is continuing to make progress on the development of Starship, the largest rocket ever built, with the third test flight Thursday accomplishing considerably more than the previous two tests. Th

Aethero wants to become the space industry’s Intel or Nvidia

Satellite sensors collect an incredible amount of raw data, but on-orbit compute limitations mean that operators have little way to process this data in space. Aethero, a startup founded 13 months ago

SpaceX aiming to launch massive Starship for the third time early Thursday

SpaceX will attempt to send the massive Starship rocket to orbit for the third time early Thursday morning after U.S. regulators gave the green light for launch. The company is aiming to complete the

TechCrunch Space: RIP $ASTR

Hello and welcome back to TechCrunch Space. Happy South by Southwest week for all who celebrate. On to the news.

Astra is the space industry’s first SPAC bust of 2024

Astra Space, the launch company that went public in 2021 at a $2.1 billion valuation, is going private again after months of burning cash and failing to secure alternate investment. The company announ

SpaceX eyes March 14 for next Starship test flight

SpaceX is aiming to launch its massive Starship rocket for the third time as soon as March 14, the company confirmed in a social media post Wednesday. SpaceX is still awaiting regulatory approval from

a16z-backed Apex Space’s first satellite ‘healthy’ on orbit

Apex Space just moved one step closer to its goal of upending satellite bus manufacturing, with the startup announcing on Tuesday that its first vehicle is healthy on orbit. The company launched its f

Satellite servicing tech startup, led by former head of Ukraine’s space agency, lands $4M

Kurs Orbital, a startup founded by Ukrainian space industry veterans, has closed a new tranche of funding to accelerate the commercialization of its satellite servicing technology. The two-year-old co

TechCrunch Space: Good night, Odysseus

Hello and welcome back to TechCrunch Space. SpaceX is launching its Transporter-10 rideshare mission today. These are always really fun to track because they carry dozens of payloads, including from m

Australian space startup Esper wants to build hyperspectral sats for cheap

Australian remote sensing startup Esper wants to capture hyperspectral imagery from space at a fraction of the price of its competitors. The company, which will launch its first demonstration satellit

Intuitive Machines’ first moon lander also broke ground with safer, cheaper rocket-style propulsion

Intuitive Machines’ first lunar lander officially lost power today after spending seven days on the moon. The lander made history for being the first American hardware to reach the lunar surface sin

Rocket Lab has ‘misrepresented’ Neutron launch readiness, congressional memo says

An internal congressional memo viewed by TechCrunch casts strong doubt on Rocket Lab’s claim that its Neutron rocket will be ready for launch in time to meet a crucial contract deadline from the Spa

India lays foundations for a new spaceport dedicated to smaller launches

The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has received the go-ahead to construct a new spaceport in Tamil Nadu, with which it aims to help private players launch small rockets in space with less f
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