Expedition Space: Space Launch, Events, News

by Sandra Erwin WASHINGTON — The U.S. Army last week announced plans to explore new uses of satellites and other space technology in support of soldiers on the ground. This is a clear sign that the demand for space-based capabilities is growing across the U.S. military, said Gen. David Thompson, vice chief of space operations of the U.S. Space Force. All the military services are looking at ways to use space to their advantage, Thompson said in an interview with SpaceNews. “Part of this is a recognition of how critical space capabilities and information from space is going to be to the fight,” he said of the Army’s announcement that it plans to invest in space systems. The Space Force was spun out the Air Force in 2019 to give the military a dedicated branch focused on space. It is responsible for defending U.S. satellites that foreign adversaries could target in a future conflict, and the Space Force supports the U.S. military at large with technologies like GPS navigation, s...

by Jason Rainbow TAMPA, Fla. — SpaceX is seeking regulatory permission to connect moving vehicles to its rapidly expanding Starlink constellation, branching the broadband network out of fixed homes and offices. The company is asking the FCC for authorization similar to the blanket license it already has for up to a million end-user customer Earth stations. David Goldman, SpaceX’s director of satellite policy, said in a regulatory filing that its Earth Stations in Motion (ESIM) equipment is “electrically identical to its previously authorized consumer user terminals but have mountings that allow them to be installed on vehicles, vessels and aircraft, which are suitable for those environments.” SpaceX recently told the FCC it has more than 10,000 Starlink users in the United States and abroad, after launching more than 1,100 high-speed internet satellites. The possibility of diversifying into more markets will raise eyebrows in the satellite mobility industry, as Elon Musk’s laun...