Operators of satellite constellations are constantly forced to move their satellites because of encounters with other spacecraft and pieces of space junk. And, thanks to SpaceX's Starlink satellites, the number of such dangerous approaches will continue to grow, according to estimates based on available data.

Late last month, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) awarded astronautic launches services provider Space Exploration Technologies Corp. (SpaceX) a $178 million contract to launch a science mission to Jupiter's ice-covered moon Europa. This mission was originally intended to fly on The Boeing Company's Space Launch System, a rocket built exclusively for NASA's Artemis program. However, the agency had started to caution since early last year that if it chose to proceed with the SLS, cost overruns worth billions would accompany the decision.

Following the conclusion of World War II in the 1940s, worldwide superpowers started developing rocket propulsion technologies in aircraft, ultimately leading to supersonic planes like the North American X-15 and the first Race for Space. Currently, a new rivalry is brewing among private businesses seeking to expand outside our borders.

Jeff Bezos' space company is offering to cover billions of dollars in costs for a contract with NASA to take astronauts to the moon. Blue Origin said it would cover up to $2 billion in operating costs for the first two years of production of a moon lander, waiving payments for the first two years if NASA awards the company the project. The company is also offering to develop and launch a pathfinder mission at its own costs, as well as work with NASA on a fixed-price contract, which would free NASA from any cost overages.

Yesterday, Jeff Bezos — the founder and CEO of Amazon, and, not incidentally, Blue Origin — took a ride into space along with three other people inside the capsule of a New Shepard rocket.

Working with the United Nations, scientists hope to establish standards for satellite ‘megaconstellations’ and reduce disruption of astronomical observations.

Last week, CEO Elon Musk wrote on Twitter that the company plans to build an engine known as “Raptor 2.” This would be a more powerful version of the Raptor engine, currently being used for the under-development Starship vehicle.

SpaceX is unlikely to meet its July deadline for performing the first ever orbital flight of its Mars-bound Starship rocket, according to reports. Elon Musk’s space firm said earlier this year that the milestone launch would take place “by July”, in order to keep up with a rigorous testing schedule aimed at achieving the technology billionaire’s ambition of reaching Mars this decade.

SpaceX has deployed reused Falcon 9 rockets numerous times for commercial missions, but so far, it has been limited to all-new boosters for national security contracts. However, the Pentagon has signed off on its first SpaceX mission using a reused rocket, with a GPS III satellite launch set to take place on Thursday, June 17th, CNBC has reported.

Every billionaire needs something to spend their fortunes on. For Howard Hughes, it was the Spruce Goose; for Roman Abramovich, it’s Chelsea FC. And for the current crop of tech moguls, it’s space. Jeff Bezos has led the charge. He founded his company, Blue Origin, in 2000, after a conversation with his friend, the science fiction author Neal Stephenson. And in July, 21 years later, the investment will pay off...

SpaceX launched thousands of tiny sea creatures to the International Space Station on Thursday, along with a plaque-fighting toothpaste experiment and powerful solar panels. The 7,300-pound (3,300-kilogram) shipment — which also includes fresh lemons, onions, avocados and cherry tomatoes for the station’s seven astronauts — should arrive Saturday.

As part of last week's federal budget rollout, a process during which the White House proposes funding levels for fiscal year 2022, the US Air Force released its "justification book" to compare its current request to past budget data. The 462-page book contains a lot of information about how the Air Force spends its approximately $200 billion budget.

For months, NASA had strongly suggested that it would select two companies for the next phase of its Human Landing System (HLS) program. Just as with the commercial cargo and crew programs, agency officials said, having two companies develop and demonstrate lunar landers would provide redundancy and ensure NASA was getting the best deal.

The platform is intended to be used as a launch and landing platform for the SpaceX Starship, a spacecraft that Musk intends to send to Mars.

The University of Manchester is leading a multi-million pound project to launch a satellite as part of a forthcoming SpaceX mission this coming summer.

SpaceX’s Starlink deployment could face a new hurdle, with satellite operator Viasat petitioning the FCC to stop Elon Musk’s company from expanding its internet-beaming constellation. Viasat, itself a satellite internet provider, has accused Starlink of being a potential environmental nightmare, as SpaceX targets more than 4,400 satellites in total.

Photos taken near SpaceX’s testing facilities in South Texas show the construction of what appears to be the company’s first flightworthy Super Heavy booster prototype, Teslarati reports. The massive 230 foot structure, dubbed BN3, is designed to lift the space company’s Starship spacecraft into orbit.

NASA and Houston-based Axiom Space have signed a "mission order" setting the stage for four civilians to visit the International Space Station early next year, the first fully commercial flight to the orbiting lab complex, agency managers said Monday.

Bezos tried to hire Gwynne Shotwell to run Blue Origin in 2016. By as early as the fall of 2016, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos had already started to worry deeply about the progress—or lack thereof—being made by his rocket company, Blue Origin.

Less than six months after high-altitude flight testing began, SpaceX has successfully landed a full-size Starship prototype in one piece, giving the company its first real opportunity to inspect a flown vehicle with flaps, a nose, and three Raptor engines.