Expedition Space: Space Launch, Events, News

by Andrew Jones China has experienced an explosion of commercial space companies since 2014, driven by the government opening up the space sector to private capital. According to Chinese publication Future Aerospace, there were 141 registered commercial aerospace companies in China by the end of 2018, in areas including launch, propulsion, satellite manufacturing, payloads and applications and ground stations. And investor enthusiasm for these space companies continues to rise. 2020 saw investment of $933 million (6 billion Chinese yuan) in China’s commercial aerospace sector, more than three times the $296 million in 2019, according to Chinese data platform Tianyancha. A trend is developing toward fewer but larger funding rounds. Major rounds in 2020 were remote sensing firm Changguang Satellite ($375 million), launch companies Landspace ($175 million), iSpace ($173 million) and Galactic Energy ($21.5 million), as well as satellite communications startups Commsat ($38 million) a...

by Jeff Foust WASHINGTON — Canadian space technology company MDA Ltd. filed paperwork March 22 for an initial public offering of stock, raising funding to pay down its debt and invest in new projects. In a filing with Canadian securities regulators, MDA announced its intent to raise $500 million Canadian ($397 million U.S.) in an IPO, valuing the company at more than $2.2 billion. The company’s intent to file for an IPO was first reported last week by The Globe and Mail . MDA became an independent company last April when its sale to a group of investors led by Canadian private equity firm Northern Private Capital, announced in December 2019 , closed. That group paid $1 billion Canadian to Maxar to acquire its historically Canadian business units, best known for the Radarsat series of synthetic aperture radar (SAR) satellites and the Canadarm robotic arms used on the space shuttle and International Space Station. In its preliminary prospectus, MDA said it would use $340 million of...