Today: 11 November 2025
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Marcin Frąckiewicz

CEO of TS2 Space and founder of TS2.tech. Expert in satellites, telecommunications, and emerging technologies, covering trends in space, AI, and connectivity.

Sky‑Spectacle Alert: 15 U.S. States Could See the Northern Lights Tonight—Everything You Must Know Before You Look Up

Sky‑Spectacle Alert: 15 U.S. States Could See the Northern Lights Tonight—Everything You Must Know Before You Look Up

The 24–25 June 2025 event is forecast to reach G1–G2 geomagnetic storming with a peak Kp of 5.67. NOAA SWPC’s 3‑Day Forecast issued on 24 June projects storming for 25–26 June. Up to 14–15 states could see auroras, from Alaska and Washington to New York and South Dakota. A large equatorial coronal hole rotated into the Earth-facing solar disk on 22–23 June, driving a 500 km/s solar wind. This fast solar wind is expected to reach Earth about 2–3 days later, triggering G1–G2 storming. Aurora Viewline maps place the southern visibility limit through northern Oregon, Idaho, South Dakota, Wisconsin, Michigan,
24 June 2025
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Trump’s High‑Wire Act: NATO Shockwaves, Middle‑East Firestorm, and a Congress on Edge—What the June 24, 2025 Frenzy Really Means for America and the World

Trump’s High‑Wire Act: NATO Shockwaves, Middle‑East Firestorm, and a Congress on Edge—What the June 24, 2025 Frenzy Really Means for America and the World

On June 24, 2025, President Donald Trump arrived in The Hague demanding all 32 NATO allies commit 5% of their GDP to defense. Spain and Slovakia sought carve-outs, exposing cracks despite a one-page summit communiqué praised by NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte. From Air Force One, Trump phoned Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Iranian intermediaries via Qatar to secure a cease-fire pledge minutes before landing. Trump ordered U.S. B-2 strikes on Iranian nuclear sites. Within hours, Iran and Israel fired new missiles, prompting Trump to lash out at Israel for unloading right after agreeing. U.S. refueling tankers and the carrier
24 June 2025
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Space Race 2.0: A Shoebox‑Sized Quantum Satellite Blasts Off—Can It Make Hackers Obsolete?

Space Race 2.0: A Shoebox‑Sized Quantum Satellite Blasts Off—Can It Make Hackers Obsolete?

QUICK³ is a 3U CubeSat weighing 4 kg, led by Germany’s Technical University of Munich, and it launched on 23 June 2025 aboard SpaceX’s Transporter‑14 from Vandenberg SFB. It carries the first true single-photon source flown, a laser-pumped hexagonal boron nitride chip on a 10 × 10 × 15 cm photonic chip. True single photons are expected to raise secret-key rates 10–100× over weak-laser systems. The pump laser is a 698 nm diode module, 45 × 80 × 20 mm, weighing 200 g. QUICK³ uses a 3U CubeSat bus with a 4 kg mass budget and rideshare compatibility, with launch
24 June 2025
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“Unhackable from Orbit!” – How a 4 kg CubeSat Just Kicked‑Off the Race for a Global Quantum‑Secure Internet

“Unhackable from Orbit!” – How a 4 kg CubeSat Just Kicked‑Off the Race for a Global Quantum‑Secure Internet

On 23 June 2025 at 07:18 UTC, the Falcon 9 lifted the QUICK³ nano-satellite into a 550 km sun-synchronous orbit from Vandenberg Space Force Base during SpaceX’s Transporter-14 rideshare, with payload separation confirmed nine minutes after launch. The QUICK³ spacecraft weighs 4 kg and is a 3-U CubeSat (10 × 10 × 30 cm) with a primary experiment window of 6 minutes per 97-minute orbit. QUICK³ aims to bypass fiber-based quantum key distribution limits by sending true single photons through near-vacuum upper atmosphere to enable intercontinental quantum-secure links. A hexagonal-boron-nitride colour centre single-photon source emits at 650–700 nm, paired with
24 June 2025
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Umbrella in Orbit: ESA’s BIOMASS Satellite Lifts Earth’s Green Veil, Revealing Hidden Carbon Stores and Jaw‑Dropping First Images

Umbrella in Orbit: ESA’s BIOMASS Satellite Lifts Earth’s Green Veil, Revealing Hidden Carbon Stores and Jaw‑Dropping First Images

BIOMASS uses a fully polarimetric P-band SAR with a 70 cm wavelength to pierce through canopies and measure woody trunks where most forest carbon is stored. The 12-meter deployable reflector, shaped like an umbrella and built by L3Harris, directs radar pulses back to the sensor. The 1.25-tonne spacecraft was launched on 29 April 2025 aboard a Vega-C rocket from Kourou into a 666 km sun-synchronous orbit (flight VV26). The gold-colored reflector unfurled in orbit on 7 May 2025, marking a key commissioning milestone. First images show colour-coded maps of the Amazon, Indonesia, and the bedrock of the Sahara. By combining
24 June 2025
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Starlink’s Sky‑High Cell Service—How T‑Mobile’s October Data Launch Could Obliterate Dead Zones and Rewrite Mobile Internet Forever

Starlink’s Sky‑High Cell Service—How T‑Mobile’s October Data Launch Could Obliterate Dead Zones and Rewrite Mobile Internet Forever

On 1 October 2025, T-Mobile and SpaceX will enable third‑party app data for a curated list of apps (WhatsApp, X, Google, Apple, AccuWeather, AllTrails) after the commercial SMS/MMS debut on 23 July 2025. SpaceX has placed more than 650 direct‑to‑cell satellites in orbit, with 657 currently operational forming the initial U.S. mesh. U.S. coverage now spans about 500,000 square miles, with capacity projected to double by 2026 as more satellites with 2 GHz payloads launch. The FCC approved the service in November 2024 as a “public‑interest benefit” and said it can support 911 access in remote areas while deferring higher
24 June 2025
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Space Superpower Play: How ICEYE’s Radar Satellites Are Turbo-Charging NATO’s ‘Aquila’ Constellation – and Why It Could Change Intelligence Forever

Space Superpower Play: How ICEYE’s Radar Satellites Are Turbo-Charging NATO’s ‘Aquila’ Constellation – and Why It Could Change Intelligence Forever

NATO Allied Command Operations signed a multiyear agreement to receive 24/7 SAR imagery from ICEYE and feed it into the APSS Aquila constellation, announced on 24 June 2025. ICEYE’s 54-satellite Synthetic Aperture Radar fleet can be tasked within eight hours, and in some cases within one hour, for sea- and land-tracking. ICEYE satellites deliver 25 cm ground resolution and have revisit intervals under three hours at mid-latitudes. APSS Aquila pairs ICEYE’s 25 cm SAR with Planet Labs SkySat optical data at 50 cm RGB and supports sub-daily tasking. Contract value was not disclosed, but analysts estimate it is in the
24 June 2025
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Shocking Showdown: How Iran Is Trying to Snuff Out Elon Musk’s Starlink—and Why Tens of Thousands of Dishes Keep Beaming Freedom Back

Shocking Showdown: How Iran Is Trying to Snuff Out Elon Musk’s Starlink—and Why Tens of Thousands of Dishes Keep Beaming Freedom Back

On 23 June 2025, Iran’s Ministry of Communications warned that owning or installing a Starlink terminal is a punishable offense and asked the ITU to compel SpaceX to deactivate unauthorized devices inside Iran. Following Israel’s Operation Rising Lion on 13 June, Iran’s internet blackout peaked with connectivity falling by 97 percent. In 2021 Iran filed its first Starlink complaint at the ITU, launching the dispute over SpaceX’s operation. In October 2023 the ITU Radio Regulations Board ruled in Iran’s favor and ordered Starlink to obey Iranian licensing laws. In March 2024 the ITU RRB reiterated the demand after objections from
24 June 2025
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Iran’s Internet Access Exposed: From Aging ADSL to an Underground Starlink Revolution

Iran’s Internet Access Exposed: From Aging ADSL to an Underground Starlink Revolution

Iran aims to connect 20 million premises with fiber by the end of 2025 under the National Fiber Optic Plan, but rollout is behind schedule. As of early 2024, Iran had 73.1 million internet users (81.7% penetration) and 146.5 million mobile connections, indicating widespread multi-SIM use. Median download speeds were about 15 Mbps on fixed broadband and 37 Mbps on mobile as of May 2024, with mobile often outperforming ADSL. Iran’s 4G coverage is broad (around 90% device coverage), while 5G is in its infancy (about 29% coverage in 2023) with up to 4,000 5G base stations projected by March
24 June 2025
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Must-Know Satellite Tech Events in 2025–2026: Launches, Conferences, and Game-Changing Dates

Must-Know Satellite Tech Events in 2025–2026: Launches, Conferences, and Game-Changing Dates

The Space Symposium will host its 40th edition on April 7–10, 2025 in Colorado Springs, with the 41st edition scheduled for April 13–16, 2026. SATELLITE Conference & GovSatCom will be held in Washington, DC in 2025 March 11–13 and in 2026 March 23–26. The IAC 2025 will take place in Sydney from September 29 to October 3 with the 76th edition themed “Space: Transit to a New Era,” and IAC 2026 is planned for October 5–9 in Antalya. The 39th SmallSat Conference is scheduled for August 11–13, 2025 in Salt Lake City, Utah, with 2026 dates typically in late August
24 June 2025
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You Won’t Believe China’s New ‘Mosquito Drone’—How Insect-Sized Spies Could Rewrite Warfare (and Your Privacy) Forever

You Won’t Believe China’s New ‘Mosquito Drone’—How Insect-Sized Spies Could Rewrite Warfare (and Your Privacy) Forever

On 20 June 2025 CCTV aired footage from the National University of Defence Technology showing student Liang Hexiang balancing a micro-robot the size of a mosquito between his fingers. The insect-sized drone uses flapping leaf-shaped wings and hair-thin legs to hover, perch and crawl inside buildings for information reconnaissance on the battlefield. Analysts describe the device as part of China’s PLA modernization drive, pushing covert surveillance to a new extreme. Its dimensions are about 1.3 cm long and it weighs less than 0.3 g. It has three carbon-fiber legs with a 0.1 mm diameter that double as landing gear and
24 June 2025
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Starlink Goes Dark-Busting in Iran: How Elon Musk’s Satellite Beams Shattered Tehran’s Internet Blackout and Triggered a Global Free-Speech Showdown

Starlink Goes Dark-Busting in Iran: How Elon Musk’s Satellite Beams Shattered Tehran’s Internet Blackout and Triggered a Global Free-Speech Showdown

On 13–14 June 2025 Israeli strikes hit Iranian nuclear and missile sites, driving Iran’s internet speeds below 15% of normal per NetBlocks, and within about 24 hours SpaceX activated Starlink in Iran with Elon Musk posting “The beams are on.” Starlink operates 6,300-plus satellites at roughly 550 km altitude, making Iran unable to sever fiber backhaul or submarine cables to block the service. An estimated 20,000 dishes were already scattered across Iran before the crisis due to underground smuggling networks. Recent direct-to-device tests let ordinary phones send SOS messages through Starlink even without a dish. Iranian state media warned citizens
24 June 2025
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