Top Stories

Space Force Awards SpaceX $4.16B to Track Airborne Moving Targets from Orbit

Space Force handed SpaceX a $4.16 billion Other Transaction Authority agreement to build a LEO constellation for Space-Based Airborne Moving Target Indication (SB-AMTI). The network is designed to detect and track aircraft, cruise missiles, and other airborne threats from low orbit. The contract establishes initial capability, and Space Force says it expects to issue additional awards to other companies within the coming year.

This is a separate program from Starshield and Starlink, though it will likely use SpaceX’s existing LEO infrastructure as a foundation. A dedicated tracking constellation optimized for moving ground and air targets adds a new category of military satellites to watch in the catalog.

Read the full story: Breaking Defense

New Glenn Explodes During Ground Testing, Visible Hundreds of Miles Away

Blue Origin’s New Glenn rocket exploded at its test site Thursday night, May 28, during a ground test. The fireball was large enough to be spotted from across wide swaths of Florida. No details on the specific test phase or cause have been released.

New Glenn completed its first orbital flight in January 2026 after years of delays. A test explosion of this scale will likely ground the vehicle while Blue Origin investigates the failure mode. No debris reached orbit, so there are no new tracking objects from this event.

Read the full story: Space.com

ULA Atlas 5 Delivers 29 Amazon Kuiper Satellites in Second-to-Last Booked Flight

ULA launched 29 Amazon Kuiper LEO satellites on an Atlas 5 from pad 41 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station at 7:53 p.m. EDT (2353 UTC) on May 29. The mission, designated Leo Atlas 07, is the second-to-last Atlas 5 flight Amazon has contracted with ULA.

Amazon is building out its Kuiper broadband constellation to compete with Starlink. With Atlas 5 retiring after its final manifest flights, Amazon’s remaining launches are spread across ULA’s Vulcan, Arianespace, and Blue Origin — though that last option is now complicated by Thursday’s test explosion.

Read the full story: Spaceflight Now

SPACECOM Is Actively Developing Offensive Cislunar Operations Capability

U.S. Space Command’s chief scientist confirmed the command is exploring technologies for offensive operations in cislunar space — the volume between Earth and the Moon. One analyst described the shift as a “massive policy change” for the Pentagon. Cislunar space has no established rules of engagement norms and is increasingly contested as China and others expand lunar programs.

For satellite trackers, cislunar is a practical challenge: objects at lunar distances are largely untracked by existing catalogs. KeepTrack’s deep space tracking tools cover high-altitude objects, but cislunar domain awareness remains an open gap across the field.

Read the full story: Breaking Defense

Space Force’s COMSO Chief Lays Out What Defense Contracts Actually Require from Startups

Col. Tim Trimailo, head of Space Force’s Commercial Space Office (COMSO), detailed what separates startups that win defense business from those that don’t. His list: transparency, patience, and a military value proposition that goes beyond technical capability. COMSO serves as Space Force’s primary interface for integrating commercial space products into defense architecture.

For companies tracking defense procurement opportunities, Trimailo’s framing is a rare direct statement of evaluation criteria from the office controlling commercial access to Space Force programs.

Read the full story: SpaceNews

Army Deployed Jailbroken Commercial Tech to Middle East in Live Hackathon

The U.S. Army sent modified, jailbroken commercial technology to the Middle East as part of an ongoing hackathon program, according to Army Secretary Dan Driscoll. The goal is integrating new systems into command and control structures and getting them to communicate with radars and sensors that have never been networked together before.

The program is moving faster than formal acquisition. Systems are being fielded and tested in operational environments before they complete standard procurement cycles.

Read the full story: Breaking Defense

SpaceX $4.16B SB-AMTI Award: Additional Context from SpaceNews

SpaceNews confirmed the same contract award with additional detail on the constellation’s intended mission: tracking aircraft, cruise missiles, and other airborne threats from LEO. Space Force framed the OTA as establishing “initial” SB-AMTI capability, with the program expected to expand through competitive follow-on awards.

The distinction between this program and existing missile warning constellations like Next-Gen OPIR is that SB-AMTI is focused on airborne movers, not ballistic missile launches. It fills a different part of the kill chain.

Read the full story: SpaceNews

Satellite of the Day

FLOCK 4Y-18

FLOCK 4Y-18 is a 3U CubeSat that launched on January 3, 2023, aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 from Cape Canaveral. Manufactured and operated by Planet Labs (PLAN), this tiny satellite was designed as a technology demonstrator carrying a Dove 24ce imaging payload with advanced PS0, PS1, or PS2 sensor options. At just 5.7 kg, FLOCK 4Y-18 exemplifies the growing trend of miniaturized Earth observation satellites that can be deployed rapidly and at lower cost than traditional platforms.

The satellite operated in a near-polar, sun-synchronous orbit at 97.3° inclination—ideal for consistent Earth imaging with predictable lighting conditions. Like other Dove satellites in Planet’s Flock constellation, FLOCK 4Y-18 was designed with a lifespan of one to three years depending on its specific orbital altitude. The satellite has since decayed from orbit, completing its mission as part of Planet’s continuous effort to demonstrate and validate imaging technologies for their commercial Earth observation network.

Learn more about this satellite: View FLOCK 4Y-18

Upcoming Space Launches

May 30

• SpaceX Falcon 9 Block 5:

  • Starlink Group 17-41 from Space Launch Complex 4E, Vandenberg SFB, CA, USA (14:00 UTC) A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket will launch 29 Starlink V2 Mini Optimized satellites into low Earth orbit. Booster 1085, flying for its 16th time, will land on drone ship A Shortfall of Gravitas. Watch Live Launch Preview

• 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 (17:57 UTC) Details to be determined. The Long March 2D is a two-stage Chinese orbital carrier rocket primarily used for LEO and SSO satellite deployments, with a lift capacity of up to 3,500 kg to low Earth orbit.

May 31

• Rocket Lab Electron:
  • The Grain Goddess Provides (iQPS Launch 7) from Rocket Lab Launch Complex 1, Mahia Peninsula, New Zealand (TBD) A synthetic aperture radar Earth observation satellite for Japanese Earth imaging company iQPS. The Electron is a small-lift vehicle powered by electric-pump-fed Rutherford engines.

June 3

• SpaceX Falcon 9 Block 5:

  • Starlink Group 10-43 from Space Launch Complex 40, Cape Canaveral SFS, FL, USA (08:02 UTC) A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket will launch 29 Starlink V2 Mini Optimized satellites into low Earth orbit. Watch Live

• SpaceX Falcon 9 Block 5:

  • Starlink Group 17-47 from Space Launch Complex 4E, Vandenberg SFB, CA, USA (14:00 UTC) A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket will launch 29 Starlink V2 Mini Optimized satellites into low Earth orbit. Watch Live

June 4

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

  • Unknown Payload from Launch Complex 9A, Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center, People’s Republic of China (11:31 UTC) Details to be determined, likely SpaceSail Polar Orbit LEO communication satellites. The Long March 6A is China’s first rocket with solid rocket boosters, featuring two YF-100 engines on its first stage augmented by four solid boosters, with a liftoff mass of 530 tonnes.

• Blue Origin New Glenn:

  • Amazon Leo (LN-01) from Launch Complex 36A, Cape Canaveral SFS, FL, USA (17:21 UTC) New Glenn will carry 48 Amazon Leo (formerly Project Kuiper) broadband internet satellites to low Earth orbit. Amazon’s planned 3,276-satellite constellation aims to deliver high-speed, low-latency connectivity to underserved and remote areas worldwide, deploying satellites across three orbital layers between 590 and 630 km altitude. New Glenn features a reusable first stage and a 45,000 kg LEO lift capacity.

June 5

• China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation Long March 8:
  • Unknown Payload from Commercial LC-1, Wenchang Space Launch Site, People’s Republic of China (05:00 UTC) Details to be determined, likely SpaceSail Polar Orbit LEO communication satellites. The Long March 8 is capable of delivering up to 8,100 kg to LEO and up to 5,000 kg to a 700 km sun-synchronous orbit, based on Long March 7 heritage with a liquid hydrogen upper stage.

June 8

• Agency for Defense Development South Korean ADD Solid-Fuel SLV:

  • Demo Flight from ADD Offshore Launch Platform, Sea Launch (05:00 UTC) A demonstration flight of South Korea’s Agency for Defense Development solid-fuel space launch vehicle, targeting low Earth orbit.

• SpaceX Falcon 9 Block 5:

  • Starlink Group 10-35 from Space Launch Complex 40, Cape Canaveral SFS, FL, USA (10:07 UTC) A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket will launch 29 Starlink V2 Mini Optimized satellites into low Earth orbit. Watch Live

June 10

• Indian Space Research Organization GSLV Mk II:
  • GISAT-1A (EOS-05) from Satish Dhawan Space Centre Second Launch Pad, Satish Dhawan Space Centre, India (TBD) GISAT-1A (GEO Imaging Satellite) is an Indian Earth observation satellite that will operate from geostationary orbit to enable continuous monitoring of the Indian subcontinent and rapid response to natural hazards and disasters. The GSLV Mk II is India’s largest operational launch vehicle, featuring an indigenously developed cryogenic upper stage and a liftoff mass of 401 tonnes.

Schedule Changes

• Atlas V 551 | Amazon Leo (LA-07): Status updated from Go for Launch to Launch Successful — removed from upcoming manifest.
• Falcon 9 Block 5 | Starlink Group 10-53: Status updated from Go for Launch to Launch Successful — removed from upcoming manifest.

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