This Week In Space Industry (10/02/2024)

Greetings Detectives

Welcome to Rocket Roundup, Your favorite space newsletter! This week's in-depth exploration takes us into the dynamic realm of space startups. Our spotlight feature is on Zeno Power - Pioneering Space Power with Radioisotope Innovation, Read it here.

Let's embark on this cosmic journey together! In This Issue:

• Lynk Global Finalizes SPAC Merger Deal

• BlackSky Wins $50M Project To Give Indonesia Eyes in the Sky

• Sierra Space Eyes IPO After Years of Prep

Viasat preparing to start services from hobbled ViaSat-3 satellite

Viasat is preparing to provide Wi-Fi to planes by the end of June using the ViaSat-3 F1 satellite, which suffered an antenna deployment failure last year, resulting in a loss of more than 90% of its 1 terabit per second capacity. Despite the setback, Viasat expects the satellite to operate commercially in the second quarter of 2024, delivering peak speeds of between 200 and 300 megabits per second. The investigation into the issue identified corrective actions, and Viasat has filed a $421 million insurance claim for the hobbled spacecraft, with initial payments already received. (Read More)

Space VCs urge startups to pursue government contracts but stay focused on commercial success

Investors and venture capitalists have advised space technology startups to carefully evaluate the risks and benefits when bidding on Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) government contracts. While the SBIR program provides crucial early funding for young firms, participating in competitive contracts can consume considerable time and resources, potentially diverting companies from focusing on commercialization. Timur Davis, investment director at Munich Re Ventures, emphasized the importance of not becoming overly reliant on SBIRs and cautioned startups to be mindful of "scope creep" and the potential impact on their core product development. (Read More)

Lynk Global Finalizes SPAC Merger Deal

Lynk Global, a direct-to-smartphone satellite communications company, has finalized a merger deal with Slam Corp., a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) led by former professional baseball player Alex Rodriguez. The deal values Lynk at $800 million and aims to raise funds for the company's low Earth orbit satellite constellation. Lynk plans to extend the reach of terrestrial mobile network operators beyond cell towers by deploying satellites that provide intermittent connectivity to remote locations. The merger includes a minimum cash agreement of $110 million, with plans to raise additional funds through a private sale of shares, a Series B funding round, and other avenues. The companies expect to complete the merger in the second half of 2024. (Read More)

Sierra Space Eyes IPO After Years of Prep

Sierra Space Corporation, the company behind the Dream Chaser spaceplane, is reportedly considering an initial public offering (IPO). Sierra Space CEO Tom Vice mentioned that the company is waiting for better market conditions before moving forward with its IPO plans. The company has raised $1.7 billion in capital since being spun out of Sierra Nevada Corp. in 2021. Sierra Space has a valuation of more than $5 billion, and it is known for projects like building the Dream Chaser for NASA, developing inflatable space habitats for Blue Origin's Orbital Reef, and securing a contract from the Space Development Agency for missile defense satellites. (Read More)

Interlune Raises $15.6M

Interlune, a stealth startup led by former Blue Origin executives, has raised $15.6 million in funding. The Seattle-based company, founded in 2020, is focused on in-space resource mining and aims to "harvest natural resources from space to benefit Earth and establish an in-space economy." Interlune's leadership team includes Rob Meyerson, Blue Origin's former president, Gary Lai, Blue Origin's former chief architect, and Indra Hornsby, former EVP at Rocket Lab. The startup received an SBIR Phase I award to develop technology for sorting lunar regolith for oxygen extraction systems and 3D printing on the Moon. (Read More)

BlackSky Wins $50M Project To Give Indonesia Eyes in the Sky

Earth observation and data analytics company BlackSky has secured a $50 million deal to provide satellite imagery services and imaging spacecraft to Indonesia. The multi-year agreement with the Republic of Indonesia involves BlackSky working with Thales Alenia Space to establish a sovereign Earth imaging satellite network that meets the country's national security needs. As part of the deal, Indonesia will have access to BlackSky's high-revisit imagery and analytics and will own two of BlackSky's next-generation Earth observation satellites, with potential for further additions in the future. Thales Alenia Space was selected to deliver a dedicated Earth observation constellation to the Indonesian Ministry of Defense, including radar and optical sensors.(Read More)

AI Startup Synthetaic Closes $15M Series B

Synthetaic, an AI startup focused on analyzing data from space and air sensors, has raised $15 million in a Series B funding round. The investment was led by Lupa Systems and TitletownTech, with participation from IBM Ventures and Booz Allen Hamilton. Synthetaic uses its analytics tool, Rapid Automatic Image Categorization (RAIC), to quickly identify and categorize images from various sources, including satellite imagery, full-motion video, drone photography, and infrared data. The company aims to make its technology available to companies across various industries to unlock insights from visual datasets. (Read More)

• Voyager Space and Palantir Join Forces to Advance National Security Capabilities in Commercial Space

• Space tracking company Slingshot Aerospace has a new CEO

• Japan funding water-based satellite propulsion upgrade

• Space System Command Awards Lockheed Martin $66M Fixed Contract to Design 2 MUOS Satellites

• JPL to lay off 8% of workforce

• India plans to launch a weather satellite next week

DISCLAIMER: (Rocket Roundup is an independent publication and is not affiliated with any government agency or space organization)