🚀 Space and Defense #27

Happy Monday 👋

This week in the defense and space sector, SpaceX successfully launched the SpainSat NG I communications satellite for Spain. Blue Origin achieved a significant milestone with its first successful mega-rocket launch. The European Space Agency awarded Thales Alenia Space a nearly $900M contract to develop a lunar lander. Planet Labs secured a $230M contract to build a constellation of Pelican satellites for a commercial partner. France ordered $624M of air defense systems, while BlackSky Technology earned a $100M defense contract. L3Harris was awarded a $300M U.S. Army contract, and Castelion raised $100M to develop hypersonic strike weapons.

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🧑‍🚀 Space Launches & Propulsion

🛰️ SpaceX Launches Spanish Military Satellite. SpaceX successfully launched the SpainSat NG I communications satellite for the Spanish satellite operator Hisdesat from Cape Canaveral, Florida.

🚀 Blue Origin's successful mega-rocket launch. Jeff Bezos' space company Blue Origin successfully launched its mega-rocket into orbit on its first attempt, marking a significant milestone.

📡 Rocket Lab Launches IoT Satellites. Rocket Lab successfully launched a batch of IoT satellites called 'IoT 4 You and Me (Kinéis 16)' into orbit.

🌌 Space Innovation & Emerging Technologies

🌕 Europe Awards Major Lunar Lander Contract. The European Space Agency awarded a nearly $900M contract to Thales Alenia Space to develop and deliver the Lunar Descent Element for the Argonaut cargo lander, which is planned for missions to the Moon starting in the 2030s.

🛰️ Planet Labs Secures $230M Contract for Pelican Satellites. Planet Labs, a satellite company, announced a $230M deal with an unnamed Asia-Pacific commercial partner to build and deliver a constellation of Pelican satellites.

🌎 Virgin Galactic Partners with Redwire for Suborbital Research. Virgin Galactic, a space tourism company partnered with Redwire, an aerospace firm, to develop payload racks for conducting experiments on Virgin Galactic's Delta-class suborbital spaceplane that is currently under development.

🛡️ National Space and Defense

🛩️ France Orders $624M in Air Defense Systems. The French Directorate General for Armaments ordered new air defense and counter-drone systems worth $624M.

☄️ Estonia to Host European Space Cybersecurity Hub. The European Space Agency (ESA) partnered with the Estonian Space Office to establish a state-of-the-art space cyber range to enhance the security and accessibility of Europe's space technology.

🛰️ India Launches Navigation Satellite. India successfully launched a new navigation satellite into orbit using a domestically developed rocket, boosting its space capabilities.

🚁 Drones and Defense Systems

💰 BlackSky Secures $100M Defense Contract. BlackSky Technology Inc., a company listed on the NYSE secured a seven-year contract worth over $100M from a long-term strategic partner in the international defense industry.

🪖 L3Harris Awarded $300M U.S. Army Contract. The U.S. Army awarded L3Harris Technologies a nearly $300M contract for a resilient communications program.

🛡️ Elbit Systems Secures $80M Deal for F-16I Protection Suite. Elbit Systems, an Israeli defense company, secured an $80M contract with Israel to develop and install an advanced airborne self-protection suite on Israel's F-16I fighter jet fleet.

🛠️ Skills and Workforce

With reskilling and upskilling playing a key role in closing workforce gaps, HolonIQ is now tracking these impactful initiatives shaping the space industry. Read on for this week’s insights, and discover more in HolonIQ's latest Skills newsletter.

✨ Durham University has launched the $6.1M Space Research Centre (SPARC) to support North East England’s space industry and promote sustainable space exploration. Bringing together experts from multiple disciplines, SPARC aims to advance science, business, and space law while developing a skilled workforce. As an ESA Lab, Durham gains access to technical expertise, funding, and collaboration opportunities. The university’s Centre for Advanced Instrumentation contributes to major space projects, partnering with agencies such as the UK Space Agency, ESA, and NASA.

HolonIQ has launched the Green Skills Map, an open-source framework initiated to catalog, evaluate, and contextualize the components of the rapidly expanding field of green jobs. This comprehensive taxonomy will serve as a resource for understanding the full spectrum and complexity of green skills required across various sectors, thereby enabling a cohesive approach toward achieving net zero and decarbonizing the global economy. Green Skills Map spans 11 areas, 54 sub-areas, and 243 green skills clusters. A snippet of the map covering four areas has been included above. Explore the full map on greenskills.org.

💰 Space Deals

🛡️ Weapons Startup Castelion Raises $100M in Series A. Castelion, a defense manufacturer, raised $100M in a Series A funding round to develop long-range hypersonic strike weapons.

🚀 Spaceium Raises $6.3M to Build In-Space Refueling Network. Spaceium, a space technology company secured $6.3M in an oversubscribed seed funding round led by Initialized Capital to build an in-space refueling network.

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