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Space News 5 June 2025 - 21 June 2025

Pentagon’s Space Internet Nightmare: Why the Unified Satellite Network Keeps Stalling

Pentagon’s Space Internet Nightmare: Why the Unified Satellite Network Keeps Stalling

The Pentagon aims to field a software-defined, multi-layer Enterprise SATCOM network that seamlessly routes data across DoD, allied, and commercial satellites in LEO, MEO, and GEO to support Joint All-Domain Command and Control (JADC2). In 2020 the Space Force and DoD CIO committed to the shift, with the SDA launching the National Defense Space Architecture (NDSA), later renamed the Proliferated Warfighter Space Architecture (PWSA), to field hundreds of small satellites as a mesh-layer backbone. Interoperable Hybrid Terminals would allow a single device to talk to any authorized satellite by software, with the Air Force aiming to field its first multi-network
Solar Tempests & Orbital Guardians: The Secret Life of Space-Weather Satellites

Solar Tempests & Orbital Guardians: The Secret Life of Space-Weather Satellites

1859: British astronomer Richard Carrington observed a powerful solar flare, and within a day telegraph systems worldwide went haywire while auroras appeared near the equator—the Carrington Event, the largest geomagnetic storm on record. During the 1957–58 International Geophysical Year, Explorer-1 became the first U.S. satellite to discover the Van Allen radiation belts encircling Earth. SOHO, launched in 1995, sits at the Sun–Earth L1 point and uses the LASCO coronagraph to image CMEs, providing continuous data for 1–3 day storm forecasts and imaging the Sun for over 25 years. ACE (launched 1997) and DSCOVR (launched 2015) operate upstream solar-wind monitors at
20 June 2025
Inside Israel’s Space Power: Satellites, Services, and the Secret Strength of the Israel Space Agency

Inside Israel’s Space Power: Satellites, Services, and the Secret Strength of the Israel Space Agency

On September 19, 1988, Ofek-1 became Israel’s first indigenous satellite, making Israel the eighth nation to orbit its own spacecraft. The Israel Space Agency (ISA) was established in 1983 under physicist Yuval Ne’eman to oversee Israel’s civilian space activities. The Shavit launch vehicle is a 20-meter-tall, three-stage solid-fuel rocket that can loft about 380 kg to a low Earth orbit when launching westward from Palmachim. The VENμS environmental satellite, launched in 2017 and operated through 2023, is a ~265 kg microsatellite built by Israel Aerospace Industries with France’s CNES to monitor vegetation and environmental parameters. AMOS-1, Israel’s first commercial telecom
Inside China’s Space Empire: Satellites, Services, and the Secret Power of CNSA

Inside China’s Space Empire: Satellites, Services, and the Secret Power of CNSA

The China National Space Administration (CNSA) was established in 1993 as China’s civil space authority. By the end of 2024, China operated more than 1,060 active satellites in orbit, a count that has grown more than six-fold since 2015. Chang’e-4 achieved the first landing on the Moon’s far side in 2019. Micius (Mozi), launched in 2016, became the world’s first quantum communications satellite enabling space-based quantum key distribution. BeiDou reached full global coverage with the final BDS-3 satellite launched in June 2020. The Guowang LEO megaconstellation targets about 13,000 satellites, with three batches launched by April 2025 and an initial
Iranian Satellites and Space Agency: Capabilities, Missions, and Strategic Vision

Iranian Satellites and Space Agency: Capabilities, Missions, and Strategic Vision

February 2009: Iran becomes the ninth country to launch an indigenous satellite with its own rocket, sending Omid into orbit on the Safir launcher. Khayyam (2022) is a 600 kg Earth-observation satellite with 1-meter resolution, built with Russian collaboration and launched by a Russian Soyuz to a ~500 km orbit. Noor-1, Iran’s first military satellite, was launched in April 2020 on the Qased rocket into a ~425 km orbit and weighed about 25 kg. Noor-2 (2022) followed Noor-1, about 27 kg, placed in a ~500 km LEO using the Qased launcher and remains in orbit. Noor-3 (2023) is the third
20 June 2025
Space Showdown: How Military Satellites Are Shaping the Ukraine‑Russia War

Space Showdown: How Military Satellites Are Shaping the Ukraine‑Russia War

SpaceX deployed 5,000 Starlink terminals to Ukraine within days of the 2022 invasion, rising to about 15,000 active terminals by June 2022, with Ukraine at one point accounting for roughly 58% of global Starlink traffic. Russia attempted to jam Starlink signals on the battlefield, SpaceX rolled a software update to bypass the jamming, and by 2023–2024 reports noted illicit Starlink terminals in Russian hands that had to be disabled. On February 24, 2022, Russia launched a cyberattack against Viasat’s KA-SAT network that crippled thousands of Ukrainian modems and disrupted satellite links across Europe. In August 2022, Ukraine crowdfunded $20 million
Satellite TV Secrets Unveiled: From Space-Age Origins to the Future of Television

Satellite TV Secrets Unveiled: From Space-Age Origins to the Future of Television

Telstar 1 (NASA) transmitted the first live television signals via satellite in 1962, linking Europe and North America. Syncom 2 became the first geosynchronous satellite in 1963, and Syncom 3 in 1964 broadcast the Tokyo Olympics to the United States. Intelsat I (Early Bird) was launched in 1965 as the world’s first commercial communications satellite carrying regular transoceanic TV service. Astra 1A, launched in 1988, used Ku-band to enable small 90 cm dishes and sparked a European satellite TV boom. In 1979 the FCC ruled that anyone could install a home satellite earth station without a federal license, accelerating consumer
19 June 2025
Spies in the Sky: The Ultimate Guide to Spy Satellites and Their Secrets

Spies in the Sky: The Ultimate Guide to Spy Satellites and Their Secrets

The CORONA (Discoverer) program operated from 1959 to 1972 as the United States’ first photo-reconnaissance satellite program, with Discoverer XIV achieving the first mid-air film recovery in August 1960. KH-11 KENNEN (CRYSTAL), first launched in 1976, introduced electro-optical digital imaging with about 15 cm per-pixel resolution, and a 2019 declassified image from USA-224 reportedly achieved around 10 cm resolution. Lacrosse/Onyx, the US SAR reconnaissance program begun in 1988, used large radar antennas for all-weather imaging and was succeeded by the smaller Topaz (FIA Radar) satellites in the 2010s. The USSR’s Zenit series began in 1961 with over 500 launches using
13,000-Year-Old Alien Satellite? Unraveling the Black Knight Conspiracy Theory

13,000-Year-Old Alien Satellite? Unraveling the Black Knight Conspiracy Theory

The Black Knight legend links Nikola Tesla’s 1899 reports of periodic radio signals from Colorado Springs to the idea of an ancient satellite in Earth orbit. In 1927 Jørgen Hals observed long-delayed echoes, and in 1973 Duncan Lunan claimed a star map pointing to Epsilon Boötes suggesting a 13,000-year-old alien probe, later retracting parts of the interpretation. In 1954 Donald Keyhoe asserted the Air Force had detected two unknown satellites, a claim with little evidence and likely a publicity stunt. In February 1960 the U.S. military detected an unidentified dark object in polar orbit, later identified as Discoverer 8 debris
19 June 2025
Internet Access in Macedonia: From Fiber to the Final Frontier

Internet Access in Macedonia: From Fiber to the Final Frontier

MakTel’s FTTH network passes over 270,000 households and offers up to 1 Gbps on fiber, with DSL available nationwide at about 50–60 Mbps where fiber is not yet present. A1 Macedonia (formerly One.Vip) operates a hybrid cable and fiber network and had 56% of the population with 5G-ready fiber or cable by 2022, with up to 200 Mbps symmetric fiber in bundles. Telekabel runs its own network in 17 cities and has 100% fiber coverage in at least four cities, offering fiber plans around 40 Mbps for MKD 600 per month. By 2022, about 75.6% of Macedonian households had access
Space at Stake: The Boom in Satellite Insurance & Risk Management (2025–2032)

Space at Stake: The Boom in Satellite Insurance & Risk Management (2025–2032)

In 1965 Lloyd’s of London issued the first space insurance policy for an early Intelsat satellite. In 2019 insured losses reached about $788 million against roughly $500 million in premiums, following major failures such as a Vega launch with a ~$414 million loss. The global space insurance market was valued at about $3.6 billion in 2023 and is forecast to reach about $12 billion by 2032, with a CAGR in the 8–11% range. A record 180 orbital launches occurred in 2022, driving launch-insurance demand. In 2024 North America accounted for about $1.7 billion of the market (projected to $3.2 billion
The Space Race for the Internet: Inside the Billion-Dollar Satellite Mega-Constellation Boom

The Space Race for the Internet: Inside the Billion-Dollar Satellite Mega-Constellation Boom

As of mid-2025, Starlink operates about 7,500 active satellites, the largest fleet in history, accounting for more than 60% of all active satellites. Starlink’s next-generation satellites (v2) weigh about 800 kg each, vs 260 kg for v1, and use inter-satellite laser links to route data across continents. Amazon’s Project Kuiper plans 3,236 LEO satellites at roughly 600 km altitude, with more than $10 billion invested, the first 27 operational satellites launched in April 2025, and a target to deploy half the constellation by July 2026. OneWeb completed its Gen1 constellation with 618 of 648 satellites in 1,200 km polar orbits

Stock Market Today

Seagate (STX) stock jumps nearly 6% as Citi hikes target — what to watch next week

Seagate (STX) stock jumps nearly 6% as Citi hikes target — what to watch next week

7 February 2026
Seagate shares rose 5.9% to $429.32 Friday after Citigroup raised its price target to $480 and reiterated a buy rating. The gain ended a two-day slide but left the stock 6.6% below its Feb. 3 high. CEO Dave Mosley sold 20,000 shares on Feb. 2 under a pre-arranged plan, SEC filings show. U.S. jobs and inflation data next week are seen as key tests for tech stocks.
Cummins (CMI) stock price rebounds after earnings whipsaw as investors eye data-center power demand

Cummins (CMI) stock price rebounds after earnings whipsaw as investors eye data-center power demand

7 February 2026
Cummins shares jumped 6.8% to $577.73 Friday, recovering from a nearly 9% post-earnings drop the day before. The company reported Q4 revenue up 1% to $8.54 billion, took a $218 million charge tied to its hydrogen business, and guided for 2026 EBITDA of 17–18% of sales. Demand for data center generators offset weakness in North American truck markets. Analyst reaction was mixed; Truist raised its price target.
Corning stock hits first record close since 2000 as jobs, CPI data loom

Corning stock hits first record close since 2000 as jobs, CPI data loom

7 February 2026
Corning shares surged 8.3% to $122.16 Friday, their highest close since the dot-com era, after Meta agreed to buy up to $6 billion in fiber-optic cables. The stock is up 40% since late 2025, fueled by strong first-quarter guidance and AI data-center demand. Insiders sold shares following the rally, SEC filings show. Investors await next week’s U.S. jobs and inflation data for rate signals.
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