The Space Force said it may develop a new constellation of domain awareness satellites to detect and track objects in geosynchronous orbit, about 22,000 miles above Earth.

WASHINGTON — The Commerce Department office that licenses commercial remote sensing systems is studying whether it should close a potential loophole in how companies comply with orbital debris mitigation rules.

rue Anomaly is hoping its self-funded Jackal mission will prepare it to deliver to the military a ready-made solution to more efficiently keep an eye on adversaries in orbit.

SpaceX is aiming to launch its massive Starship rocket for the third time as soon as March 14, the company confirmed in a social media post Wednesday. SpaceX is still awaiting regulatory approval from the Federal Aviation Administration for the launch, without which Starship will remain grounded.

After four years of growth amid a steadily rising operational tempo, Space Force leaders say it’s time to improve on what they’ve built. The Space Force is the Pentagon’s hub for organizing, training and equipping the units that provide satellite communications to the joint force, track missile launches, catalog debris that could damage spacecraft, take images of troop movements and wildfires from orbit, and more.

NASA raised the number of its active duty astronauts eligible for missions from 38 to 48 on March 5 with the graduation of its 2021 class of 10 candidates during ceremonies at Johnson Space Center (JSC).

NASA expects to have a better understanding by this summer of potential commercial partnerships to support future Mars science missions. NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory issued a request for proposals Jan. 29 for “commercial service studies” for future robotic Mars mission concepts.

The military is interested in a “rapidly prototyped Global Positioning System navigation satellite with an objective to significantly reduce size, weight, power and cost”. The U.S. Space Force is reviewing ideas from the private sector on how to augment the Global Positioning System constellation with smaller, lower-cost satellites.

A Crew Dragon spacecraft is on its way to the International Space Station with four Americans and Russians on board after a launch March 3. A Falcon 9 lifted off from Launch Complex 39A at 10:53 p.m. Eastern on NASA’s Crew-8 mission. The Crew Dragon spacecraft Endeavour separated from the upper stage 12 minutes after liftoff.

Ronald Birk’s biggest recent achievement was accelerating the deployment of innovative commercial capabilities by building confidence using in-space testbeds and proving grounds.