News about Earth Observation. Author of https://teapawt.org/t.co/Whdgzt5wES and https://teapawt.org/t.co/E5OkTBcEIH @stromgade .bsky.social Opinions my own
Joined March 2011
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NEW: A database of observation satellites, with resolution, swath widths, and orbits
satelliteobservation.wordpre…
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Six years of collaboration, and we're just getting started.
Satellogic and @heospace have signed a new three-year agreement to advance Non-Earth Imaging (NEI).
Under the agreement, HEO will use Satellogic’s high-resolution satellite constellation to image and analyze objects in orbit on demand, supporting space domain awareness worldwide.
Read more: satellogic.com/news/press-re…
6 years ago, @Satellogic helped us explore what Earth observation satellites could see when pointed at other spacecraft.
Today, we're announcing a three-year agreement to expand non-Earth imaging and deliver insights to commercial and government customers.
Together, we're pushing what's possible in orbit.
Read more: heospace.com/resources/stori…
BlueWalker 3 imaged by a Satellogic satellite from 17 km at 3 cm/pixel.
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I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about, and talking to people about a post-Falcon world. Why sunset the world’s best rocket? Can Starship replace it? What about Artemis? Why are SpaceXers flocking to Memphis? Grab a coffee, this is a long one.
arstechnica.com/space/2026/1…
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Astroscale has secured a £15 million UK Ministry of Defence contract for Project LEDA, a secretive initiative linked to countering threats in orbit.
europeanspaceflight.com/uk-m…
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U.S. Intel Warns China’s Space-Based Directed Energy Weapons Could Soon Threaten Satellites
Battlefield space is heating up as the DIA warns that China could use orbital directed energy weapons to take down satellites by the end of the decade.
twz.com/space/u-s-intel-warn…
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🛰️ CHANGING OF THE KINGS: China's TJS-17 & TJS-19 swap coverage in GEO
The "Four Kings" (TJS-15, 16, 17, and 19) are classified as Chinese GEO Satellites launched in 2025 to support the PLA's SIGINT and early warning missions.
Over the past month, our team watched two of the "Four Kings" satellites trade places across 40° of the GEO belt, leaving one sitting between Yaogan 41, a GEO surveillance satellite, and a U.S. inspector, USA 270.
TJS-17 (SSC.63524), the "King of the North", held 164.5°E (above the Pacific, just west of Nauru) since Aug 2025. On 29 Sep it raised its orbit ~202 km and began drifting west at ~2.6°/day.
TJS-19 (SSC.63924), the "King of the South", held 141.3°E (above the equator north of New Guinea) since May 2025. On 7 Oct it lowered its orbit ~197 km and began drifting east at ~2.5°/day, toward the slot TJS-17 had just left. The two crossed paths on 8-9 Oct.
TJS-17 stopped its drift on 15 Oct and parked at ~123.5°E, between YAOGAN-41 (SSC.58582) at 123.2°E and GSSAP USA 270 (SSC.41744) at 125.3°E. Its new spot sits above the Molucca Sea, nearly due south of the Philippines and Taiwan.
TJS-19 reached 167.3°E and then burned again on 22 Oct to drift back west at ~0.85°/day. That's an interesting use of fuel, possibly a correction for an overshoot.
Net effect: Western-Pacific coverage at 165°E stays (TJS-19 takes over), 141°E is now empty, and TJS-17 now watches the South China Sea / Taiwan Strait from ~123°E.
A coordinated handoff or a new mission? We'll keep watching.
#Space #GEO #China
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.@AirbusSpace Systems reports 5.3% increase in revenue for 9 months to Sept. 30, to $2.4 billion. @Airbus.spaceintelreport.com/airbus-…
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"'We want American companies to be the most competitive,' said one former senior military official who worked in space policy, operations, and acquisitions. Episodes like the Starlink scandal 'create an environment where you make more competitors.'”
defenseone.com/business/2026…
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The @DefenseIntel latest Challenges to Security in Space report makes clear that competition in space is accelerating as China and Russia advance their capabilities.
The report documents China’s expanding presence in space, including reusable space systems, and features Vantor’s WorldView Space imagery of a Chinese spaceplane in orbit in 2024. Our analysts provide additional context on the image in the graphic below.
Commercial space is now a critical part of the national security toolkit. Commercial imagery and analysis give the U.S. and its allies greater visibility into activity in orbit and help decision-makers understand emerging capabilities. Continued investment in these capabilities is essential as the space domain becomes increasingly contested.
Read the full DIA assessment and view the Vantor image on page 53: dia.mil/Portals/110/Images/N…
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With a 20.6kW burn, we just shattered the record for highest Hall thruster burn ever completed on orbit – four times more powerful than any thruster that has ever flown in space.
And that’s just the beginning. We’re continuing to test and refine our in-house, custom-designed avionics and propulsion systems for next year’s launches. Below, our gimbal moves our thruster while it fires in our vacuum chamber. Of course, we couldn’t resist the opportunity to draw our Dyson sphere logo, which represents the abundant space future that we’re aiming for as we push the bounds of what’s possible in space.
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Boeing to be awarded sole-source deal worth up to $946 million to maintain military satellites spacenews.com/boeing-to-be-a…
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Putin praised Musk, calling him a "true genius," and stated that despite all political differences, they are "working closely together."
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Every small satellite launcher should have Korea's Kompsat-6 story in its sales pitch. Satellite in storage since August 2022, waiting for a ride. @ITUradiocomms @msitmedia @Arianespace @SITAELspa @ASI_spazio @kari2030.spaceintelreport.com/every-s…
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BREAKING: The Pentagon’s Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) says Russia is developing a satellite designed to carry a nuclear weapon into orbit, potentially threatening thousands of spacecraft simultaneously.
In its newly released 2026 space threat assessment, the DIA warns that a nuclear detonation in orbit could disable or destroy thousands of satellites and create radiation belts lasting years, damaging spacecraft long after the initial explosion.
The threat extends beyond military satellites to GPS, communications, weather forecasting and critical commercial space infrastructure worldwide.
The report does not confirm that Russia has deployed a nuclear weapon in orbit.
Read the Pentagon’s full assessment: dia.mil/Portals/110/Images/N…
stromgade retweeted
🛰️ HIMERA та @GomSpaceGroup запустили суверенний український супутник у рамках ініціативи OBRIA.
Українська HIMERA та данська GomSpace вивели на орбіту OBRIA NANO, перший тестовий супутник майбутньої незалежної української мережі зв'язку, і вже отримали від нього перші сигнали. Супутник був запущений у межах місії SpaceX Transporter-18 1 жовтня 2026 року.
stromgade retweeted
NASA has confirmed the UVEX (UltraViolet EXplorer) mission for launch by January 2031. 🚀 UVEX will map the universe in ultraviolet light, study the evolution of stars and galaxies, and help capture cosmic events tied to gravitational waves. Read more: go.nasa.gov/4sM2DYt
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❗️ISRO will launch NVS-03 with its pyro valve open!
Given the critical nature of this mission, ISRO has decided to launch the NVS-03 satellite on GSLV-F18 with its pyrotechnic main oxidizer valve pre-fired into open state, to avoid a failure like its predecessor NVS-02.
NVS-02 had failed to reach its final Geostationary orbit despite a successful launch into GTO on GSLV-F15 after the main oxidizer valve on its 440N Liquid Apogee Motor thruster failed to open, leaving it unable to ignite the thruster. This stranded the satellite in its transfer orbit, rendering it unusable.
ISRO had formed an Apex Committee to review the observations leading up to the failure and the committee had determined the cause of failure to be the electrical drive signal to open the valve not reaching the valve as a result of the "disengagement of atleast one contacts (in each of the main and redundant paths) of the connector."
ALT The NVS-02 satellite
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Flipping the script: has any Chinese commercial satellite snapped on-orbit imagery of the US X-37B spaceplane? ChangGuang demonstrated their Non-Earth Imaging capability by releasing images of ISS and Maxar's Worldview Legion 2 last year.
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#ICYMI- SDA posted an RFI for T4 Tracking Layer resilient MWTD payloads and architecture + capabilities to detect and track more challenging targets across full flight trajectories. Input due by Noon ET on Dec 4, 2026.
bit.ly/3TKSaPW
#SemperCitius #Space #USSF #Industry
