SpaceTech News Roundup – W/C 02.11.26

AST SpaceMobile to Build Own 20-Ton Rocket to Deploy BlueBird Satellites in Low Earth Orbit Using Miranda Engines from Firefly Aerospace

The rocket, named Blacklift, will be custom-built by AST SpaceMobile and designed for reusability, enabling up to five BlueBird satellites per launch starting in late 2028. As part of this announcement, AST SpaceMobile has signed an agreement with Firefly to deliver engines for the first three Blacklift rockets, provide engineering services over a three-year period, and will acquire the perpetual license to manufacture the Miranda and vacuum-variant Vira engines. AST SpaceMobile will produce this technology at a new engine manufacturing facility in the United States.

Pentagon backs LeoLabs radar expansion with $150 million loan commitment

LeoLabs has secured a conditional $150 million loan commitment from the Pentagon’s Office of Strategic Capital to expand production and deployment of its space-tracking radar systems.

OHB and Astroscale Sign Agreement to Strengthen International Cooperation on Space Security

OHB SE and Astroscale Holdings Inc. have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to explore cooperation on capabilities that protect critical infrastructure in space, strengthening industrial ties between Germany, the United Kingdom and Japan. Announced Wednesday 28th October 2026 at the German Embassy in Tokyo during the German-Japanese industrial collaboration event, the agreement brings together the companies’ complementary expertise across in-orbit servicing, assembly and manufacturing (ISAM), space domain awareness and related space security applications. It provides a framework to explore joint opportunities that support secure and sustainable operations in orbit.

PiLogic Receives SpaceWERX's AIS Challenge Phase I Award; Supports Two Additional Awardee Teams

PiLogic has won a prime Phase I award under SpaceWERX's Adaptive and Intelligent Space (AIS) Challenge, a U.S. Space Force STTR program aimed at making satellite operations more autonomous and resilient. Starcloud is subcontracting to PiLogic on the effort, hosting the demonstration on its ground-based FlatSat and, later, on-orbit aboard Starcloud-1.

Building a ‘highway to the moon and back’ with Winnie Lai

In this episode, SpaceNews’ Mike Gruss speaks with Winnie Lai, CEO of Auriga Space. They talk about how electromagnetic launch technology that “catapults” small launch vehicles could cut down on fuel costs. She describes a “paradigm shift” through new technology that could enable new operations in space through low-cost, targeted missions, and what that means for Golden Dome missile defense interceptors.

Voyager Awarded $35M Contract to Manage NASA HUNCH

Voyager Technologies was awarded a new contract to manage NASA’s High school students United with NASA to Create Hardware (HUNCH) program for the next five years at a value of $35M, extending the management role Voyager has held since 2021. HUNCH provides high school students with hands-on experience designing and fabricating hardware used by NASA, with a facility in Webster, Texas, and a new location at Voyager’s facility in Long Beach, California. To date, HUNCH has engaged more than 24,000 students from more than 1,700 schools in 46 states.