Top Stories

NASA’s Van Allen Probe A Reenters Today After 14 Years in Orbit

Van Allen Probe A — approximately 1,300 lbs (590 kg) — is coming down today, March 10, per Space Force’s current reentry estimate. The spacecraft launched in 2012 to study Earth’s radiation belts and has been in a decaying orbit since being decommissioned. Most of the structure will burn up on reentry; surviving fragments, if any, are statistically likely to hit ocean.

Reentry windows carry significant uncertainty until the final hours. For those tracking the object, watch for updated TLEs and decay predictions in KeepTrack’s satellite tracking view. Reentry risk probability for any specific ground location remains extremely low.

Read the full story: Space.com

BAE Systems Hypersonic Tracking Satellites Pass Preliminary Design Review

Space Force’s medium Earth orbit sensor layer program has cleared its preliminary design review, with BAE Systems as the prime contractor. The program targets detection and tracking of hypersonic weapons — a capability gap that existing GEO-based missile warning satellites were not designed to fill.

MEO orbits offer a geometry advantage for tracking fast, maneuvering threats at lower altitudes than traditional ICBM trajectories. Getting sensors into MEO specifically for hypersonic tracking has been a Space Force priority since the proliferation of Chinese and Russian hypersonic glide vehicle programs. Passing PDR moves the program into detailed design.

Read the full story: SpaceNews

SpaceX Starbase Construction Continues Expanding at Boca Chica

Aerial imagery shared by Elon Musk shows continued infrastructure buildout at SpaceX’s Starbase facility in Boca Chica, Texas. The site now functions as an incorporated city and is home to the Starship orbital launch complex, booster catch infrastructure, and expanding production facilities.

Starbase is the origin point for Starship test flights, which directly affect object counts in low Earth orbit during test phases. Booster and ship hardware tracked during flights appear in KeepTrack during active missions.

Read the full story: Teslarati

Meridian International Center Hosts Space Diplomacy Forum March 25–26 in Washington

Meridian International Center is running its Space Diplomacy Forum: Shared Horizons on March 25, followed by an Executive Space Training session March 26, both in Washington, D.C. The forum focuses on international cooperation frameworks for outer space activities.

With debris mitigation norms, spectrum allocation disputes, and dual-use satellite concerns all active on the diplomatic agenda, events like this feed directly into the regulatory environment that shapes commercial and military space operations.

Read the full story: SpaceNews

Swedish Fighter Jets Deploy to Iceland as NATO Arctic Posture Shifts

Sweden deployed fighter jets to Iceland following Reykjavík’s adoption of its first national defense strategy in the country’s 70-year NATO history. The deployment puts Swedish air assets at a strategically critical North Atlantic chokepoint.

Iceland hosts no standing military of its own and sits directly under key satellite ground track corridors and undersea cable routes. Increased NATO activity in the region reflects growing attention to Arctic and sub-Arctic domains, where space-based ISR and communications assets play a direct support role.

Read the full story: Breaking Defense

U.S. Navy and Marine Corps Launch Amphibious Readiness Board

The Amphibious Force Readiness Board held its first meeting and will convene monthly going forward. The board was stood up as both services identified amphibious capability as a priority gap.

Amphibious operations depend heavily on space-based positioning, communications, and maritime domain awareness. The board’s focus on readiness will likely surface requirements that feed back into Space Force and commercial satellite service contracts.

Read the full story: Breaking Defense

U.S. Army’s 2nd Cavalry Regiment Tests 17+ Unmanned Ground Vehicles in Europe

The 2nd Cavalry Regiment — the Army’s largest combat formation in Europe — is evaluating more than 17 unmanned ground vehicles as part of the xTech Edge Strike Ground competition. Cost is emerging as a primary constraint alongside technical performance.

UGV integration at scale requires robust communications links, which in contested European environments means resilient satellite connectivity. How the Army resolves the cost-capability tradeoff here will influence procurement volumes and downstream SATCOM demand.

Read the full story: Breaking Defense

Satellite of the Day

ECHOSTAR 11

ECHOSTAR 11 (also known as Echostar XI) is a direct broadcast satellite operated by DISH Network to deliver television and multimedia services across North America. Launched on July 16, 2008, aboard a Sea Launch Zenit-3SL rocket from the SEAL platform, this satellite was manufactured by Space Systems/Loral using their proven SSL-1300 bus design. With 32 Ku-band transponders and a launch mass of 5,525 kg, ECHOSTAR 11 was designed to provide reliable coverage with an expected operational lifetime of 15 years.

The satellite’s impressive specifications include a 31-meter solar array span when fully deployed, allowing it to generate sufficient power for its extensive transponder payload. Operating from geostationary orbit, ECHOSTAR 11 represents the kind of workhorse communication satellite that underpins the direct-to-home television industry. Its longevity and continued operation make it a notable example of spacecraft reliability in the commercial broadcasting sector.

Track this satellite in real-time: Track ECHOSTAR 11

Upcoming Space Launches

March 11

• Firefly Aerospace Firefly Alpha: Stairway to Seven
  • From Space Launch Complex 2W, Vandenberg SFB, CA, USA (00:50–02:50 UTC) Firefly Aerospace’s Alpha rocket returns to flight following an anomaly during Alpha Flight 6, carrying a “test demo” payload. The mission will also validate new systems ahead of Firefly’s Block 2 configuration debuting on Alpha Flight 8. The two-stage expendable vehicle can carry up to 1,000 kg to low Earth orbit. (Status: To Be Confirmed) Watch Live Launch Preview

March 12

• SpaceX Falcon 9 Block 5: Starlink Group 10-48

  • From Space Launch Complex 40, Cape Canaveral SFS, FL, USA (10:00–14:00 UTC) Batch of 29 Starlink V2 Mini Optimized satellites to low Earth orbit. Watch Live

• China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation Long March 8A: Unknown Payload

  • From Commercial LC-1, Wenchang Space Launch Site, People’s Republic of China (19:40–20:05 UTC) Details not yet available. The Long March 8A is an enhanced variant of the Long March 8 with increased payload capacity of up to 7 tonnes to sun-synchronous orbit, featuring a larger liquid hydrogen/liquid oxygen second stage powered by two upgraded YF-75H engines.

• China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation Long March 2D: Unknown Payload

  • From Launch Complex 3 (LC-3/LA-1), Xichang Satellite Launch Center, People’s Republic of China (22:25–22:46 UTC) Details not yet available. The Long March 2D is a two-stage carrier rocket primarily used for LEO and sun-synchronous orbit satellite deployments.

March 13

• SpaceX Falcon 9 Block 5: Starlink Group 17-31
  • From Space Launch Complex 4E, Vandenberg SFB, CA, USA (10:58–14:58 UTC) Batch of 29 Starlink V2 Mini Optimized satellites to low Earth orbit. Watch Live

March 15

• SpaceX Falcon 9 Block 5: Starlink Group 10-46

  • From Space Launch Complex 40, Cape Canaveral SFS, FL, USA (11:11–15:11 UTC) Batch of 29 Starlink V2 Mini Optimized satellites to low Earth orbit. Watch Live

• China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation Long March 6A: Unknown Payload

  • From Launch Complex 9A, Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center, People’s Republic of China (13:14–13:35 UTC) Details not yet available. The Long March 6A is a further development of the Long March 6, featuring two YF-100 engines on the first stage augmented by four solid rocket boosters — China’s first rocket to incorporate solid rocket boosters.

March 17

• SpaceX Falcon 9 Block 5: Starlink Group 17-24
  • From Space Launch Complex 4E, Vandenberg SFB, CA, USA (02:37–06:37 UTC) Batch of 29 Starlink V2 Mini Optimized satellites to low Earth orbit. Watch Live

March 18

• SpaceX Falcon 9 Block 5: Starlink Group 10-33
  • From Space Launch Complex 40, Cape Canaveral SFS, FL, USA (10:57–14:57 UTC) Batch of 29 Starlink V2 Mini Optimized satellites to low Earth orbit. Watch Live

March 19

• SpaceX Falcon 9 Block 5: Starlink Group 17-15

  • From Space Launch Complex 4E, Vandenberg SFB, CA, USA (14:00–18:00 UTC) Batch of 29 Starlink V2 Mini Optimized satellites to low Earth orbit. Watch Live

• Isar Aerospace Spectrum: Onward and Upward

  • From Orbital Launch Pad, Andøya Spaceport, Norway (20:00–21:00 UTC) Second test flight of Isar Aerospace’s Spectrum rocket, carrying six payloads: CyBEEsat (TU Berlin), TriSat-S (University of Maribor), Platform 6 (EnduroSat), FramSat-1 (NTNU), SpaceTeamSat1 (TU Wien Space Team), and a “Let it Go” experiment from Dcubed. Exolaunch is managing payload integration and deployment. Delayed from January 21 due to a pressurization valve issue. (Status: To Be Confirmed) Watch Live

March 22

• Russian Federal Space Agency (ROSCOSMOS) Soyuz 2.1a: Progress MS-33 (94P)
  • From 31/6, Baikonur Cosmodrome, Republic of Kazakhstan (11:59 UTC) Uncrewed Progress cargo resupply mission to the International Space Station. (Status: To Be Confirmed)

March 24

• Rocket Lab Electron: Daughter Of The Stars (LEO-PNT Pathfinder A)
  • From Rocket Lab Launch Complex 1, Mahia Peninsula, New Zealand (target date TBD) The European Space Agency’s LEO-PNT (Low Earth Orbit Positioning, Navigation and Timing) demonstration mission will deliver two Pathfinder A satellites, built by Thales Alenia Space and GMV, to a 510 km orbit. The mission is the first step toward a 10-satellite constellation designed to complement the Galileo and EGNOS navigation systems. (Status: To Be Determined)

Schedule Changes

• Three new launches added by China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation: Long March 8A with an unknown payload (March 12, 19:40 UTC from Wenchang Space Launch Site), Long March 2D with an unknown payload (March 12, 22:25 UTC from Xichang Satellite Launch Center), and Long March 6A with an unknown payload (March 15, 13:14 UTC from Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center).
• SpaceX Falcon 9 Block 5 | EchoStar 25 status has changed from Go for Launch to Launch in Flight and has been excluded from the upcoming launches calendar.
• Firefly Aerospace Firefly Alpha | Stairway to Seven status has changed from Go for Launch to To Be Confirmed, indicating the launch window remains under review.

Note: Launch dates and times are subject to change due to technical or weather considerations.