Policy

Space industry coverage tagged Policy from Outer Space Today.

• NASA and USDA Sign Agreement to Expand Satellite Data for American Farmers

  October 27, 2026

  NASA and the Department of Agriculture signed a memorandum of understanding on Saturday to cooperate on Earth-observation and geospatial analytics aimed at improving the data available to American farmers and ranchers. The agreement marks the second MoU the space agency has signed this month to boost collaboration among government agencies. NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman and Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins signed the MoU at the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa, the latest stop on

• DIA Warns China and Russia Building "Formidable" Counterspace Arsenals

  October 27, 2026

  China, Russia, Iran, and North Korea are developing, testing, and deploying space capabilities in ways that threaten the security of all space systems, according to a Defense Intelligence Agency assessment. The report states that China and Russia in particular are building a spectrum of offensive capabilities ranging from kinetic destruction to jamming and cyber operations that could degrade or destroy the space services of other countries. The assessment frames the four actors as exhibiting be

• U.S. Intelligence Warns China Could Deploy Orbital Directed-Energy Weapons by Late This Decade

  October 27, 2026

  China could field space-based directed-energy weapons by the end of the decade, the U.S. Defense Intelligence Agency said in a new assessment released October 26. The agency also warned that Russia is developing an expanding arsenal of weapons capable of attacking satellites in orbit. The assessment identifies two distinct threats to systems operating in space. One centers on China's potential to deploy directed-energy weapons in orbit within the current decade. The other concerns Russia's ongo

• AST SpaceMobile Wins Anatel Spectrum Clearance for Brazil Direct-to-Cellular Push

  October 26, 2026

  AST SpaceMobile has secured approval from Brazilian regulator Anatel to use S-band spectrum and the 700 MHz band on a secondary basis, clearing a key regulatory hurdle for its direct-to-device satellite service in the country. The company also announced agreements with four regional operators and plans for ground infrastructure in Brazil, advancing its expansion into a major market. The authorization addresses the gating requirement for direct-to-cellular satellite service, where spectrum acces

• NASA Rewrites Science Mission Competition Rules to Cut Costs and Timelines

  October 26, 2026

  NASA is overhauling how it selects and develops science missions under a new framework called Competition Model 2.0, designed to reduce costs, streamline competition and get spacecraft into orbit faster. The changes, announced October 21 by Science Mission Directorate Associate Administrator Nicky Fox, could significantly reshape how scientists, universities, NASA centers and commercial companies compete for future missions. The reforms, directed by NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman, respond to

• Musk Warns Russia Could Strike Starlink Satellites If Network Used for Offensive Operations

  October 26, 2026

  Elon Musk has warned that Russia could target Starlink satellites with anti-satellite weapons if the network is used to conduct offensive military strikes, cautioning that such attacks could scatter dangerous debris across low Earth orbit. He argued that the threat of retaliation is a central reason Starlink should remain a civilian system rather than a direct participant in offensive military operations. Musk made the comments in a post on X on October 25, responding to a discussion about Russ

• US Space Command Blocks New Zealand From Detailing Auckland Space-Tracking Hub's Role in Iran War

  October 25, 2026

  US Space Command has barred the New Zealand Defence Force from releasing details about the activities of an Auckland-based space-watching hub that has directly supported combat operations in the Iran war. The hub is one of three global centres in a Pentagon-funded network that is the single biggest collector of monitoring data on commercial rocket, satellite and debris movements for US forces. The NZDF told RNZ on Tuesday it was not authorised to release the information, citing advice from US S

• Space Force Grants SpaceX Enhanced Access to Military Orbital Tracking Catalog

  October 25, 2026

  The US Space Force has given SpaceX access to the military's most precise collision tracking data, marking the first time a commercial company has received enhanced access to US Space Command's secure High Accuracy Catalog. The arrangement grants SpaceX an advantage over competitors offering similar space traffic services and has prompted national security concerns among industry observers. The move follows a period of upheaval at the government's nascent space traffic control program, the Traf

• NASA Invokes Apollo Urgency in Push for Lunar Base and Crewed Landing Within Two Years

  October 24, 2026

  NASA is moving quickly on plans to build a lunar base and return astronauts to the Moon's surface in as little as two years, framing the effort around the urgency of the Apollo era. The stated two-year horizon for both a crewed landing and surface infrastructure marks an aggressive posture for the agency's lunar ambitions. The push connects to NASA's broader goals for the Moon, which extend beyond a single landing to the establishment of a permanent base. The explicit Apollo framing signals a s

• NASA Chief Declares a "New Space Race" With China, Urges Apollo-Era Urgency

  October 24, 2026

  NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman warned Friday that the United States is locked in a "new space race" with China and must recapture the urgency of the Apollo era to return astronauts to the moon first. Speaking during an Artemis update at Kennedy Space Center in Merritt Island, Florida, he described the competition as far closer than the Cold War contest that produced the first lunar landings. Isaacman said China launched its first astronaut in 2003 and has since assembled a broad portfolio of

• NASA Langley Shares Atmospheric Data With Virginia to Strengthen Energy Planning

  October 23, 2026

  NASA's Langley Research Center has signed a Space Act Agreement with the Virginia Department of Energy to provide solar, meteorological, and future weather risk datasets for the state's energy system modeling and planning. The partnership, announced at a ceremony Friday, aims to support long-term energy security across the Commonwealth. Under the agreement, NASA Langley will apply its expertise in atmospheric sciences to assist Virginia Energy with resiliency studies, resource analysis, and lon

• Russian Satellite Shadows US-Registered Spacecraft Linked to Ukraine, Prompting Washington Warning

  October 23, 2026

  Washington accused Moscow at the United Nations on Wednesday of deliberately maneuvering a Russian military satellite with an undisclosed mission dangerously close to a US-registered satellite believed to supply imagery to Ukraine. US officials condemned the behavior as consistent with on-orbit weapons operations and vowed to defend American interests in space. The Russian satellite, Cosmos 2612, spent more than two weeks maneuvering toward ICEYE-X36, a radar satellite operated by the American