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Software

Automating Geometric Inconsistencies in Computer-Aided Design of Aircraft Parts

When aerospace companies build digital models of new aircraft, they often combine computer-aided design (CAD) files for individual parts into a single system....

Briefs

Manned Systems

From Racing Car to Rocket Tank

Carbon fiber has become indispensable in high-performance industries such as automotive engineering and aerospace. It’s lightweight, extremely durable, and can be shaped in almost any way. Start-up Blackwave, founded at the Technical University of Munich, specializes in this versatile composite material. What began with custom components for sports cars and aircraft has evolved into the development of high-pressure tanks for space applications. Read on to learn more.

Briefs

Communications

Glaring Vulnerabilities Discovered in Satellite Communications

With $800 of off-the-shelf equipment and months’ worth of patience, a team of U.S. computer scientists set out to find out how well geostationary satellite communications are encrypted. And what they found was shocking. Read on to find out why.

Briefs

Aerospace

Researchers Discover Record-Setting Heat Conducting Material

A multi-institution research team working at the Advanced Photon Source has discovered a metallic material with the highest thermal conductivity measured among metals. Read on to learn more.

Products

RF & Microwave Electronics

New Products

See the new products, including Samtec's BE71A Bulls Eye® Phase & Amplitude Stable Test Assembly; Curtiss Wright's PacStar 424 Tactical Gateway; Vishay Intertechnology's new space-grade, surface-mount common mode choke designed to provide EMI filtering and noise suppression; Marotta Controls' BPE-35 Propellant Gear Pump; and more.

Application Briefs

Manned Systems

A Reconfigurable Spacecraft for Security and Space Logistics

Ascent spacecraft are designed to support dynamic space operations through advanced maneuverability capabilities, including refueling and high-thrust propulsion, while carrying multiple rideshare payloads. Read on to learn more about them.

Articles

Imaging

Commercial Satellite Manufacturing Scales Up as LEO Demand Drives New Production Lines

Space vehicle and satellite development programs are driving demand for new small- and medium-sized satellites across commercial and defense imaging, data collection, and other space-based applications. Read on to learn more.

Briefs

Photonics/Optics

European Researchers Develop Self-Healing Composite Material for Spacecraft

Healable spacecraft structures could soon be possible thanks to cutting-edge composite technology. Swiss companies CompPair and CSEM, and Belgian company Com&Sens have partnered with the European Space Agency (ESA) to modify their self-healing carbon fiber product for use in space transportation. Read on to learn more.

Application Briefs

Defense

Rapidly Deployable Counter-Threat Space Missions for NATO

EnduroSat, a space infrastructure builder, and Shield Space, a veteran-found UK defense technology company, have entered into a strategic partnership to deliver rapidly deployable counter-threat space missions for NATO and allied defense customers. Read on to learn more.

Articles

Aerospace

Advanced Silicone Materials for Harsh Aerospace Environments

As aerospace and defense systems become more advanced, the demands placed on materials continue to increase. Components must perform reliably under extreme and often overlapping conditions, including thermal cycling, mechanical stress, chemical exposure, and vacuum environments. Read on to learn more.

Application Briefs

Data Acquisition

Solid-State Data Recorders for SDA’s Tranche 3 Tracking Layer Satellites

Mercury Systems was awarded a contract from L3Harris Technologies to provide SSDRs for the U.S. Space Development Agency Tranche 3 Tracking Layer satellite constellation. Read on to learn more.

Briefs

Communications

Space Systems Command Looks Ahead to New Era of GPS Success

The GPS III series is the third generation of the U.S. Space Force’s GPS satellites and consists of ten 5,000-pound satellites manufactured by Lockheed Martin, with the first launched in 2018. Read on to learn more.

Articles

Materials

Polymer vs. Metal Seals: A Comparison In Critical Space Systems

Neither polymer nor metal seals are universally optimal in space applications. Read on to learn why and find out which is superior.

Articles

Manned Systems

Heritage in Motion: Why Legacy Engineering Matters More Than Ever in Today’s UAV Market

The uncrewed aerial vehicle market is advancing at extraordinary speed, reshaping both commercial and defense aviation. Yet this rapid innovation brings with it growing engineering pressure. UAVs are expected to be lighter, more autonomous, more modular, and more adaptable, all while maintaining near-flawless reliability. This is where heritage becomes decisive. Read on to learn more.

Articles

Software

NAWCWD Engineers Turned a Threat Simulator into an Offensive Electronic Attack Weapon

Keith Yuen, a supervisory engineer at Naval Air Warfare Center Weapons Division (NAWCWD) spent years building a jammer designed to defeat America’s own radars. Then the question changed: what if the same system could jam the enemy? The system is Angry Kitten. Read on to learn more about it.

Application Briefs

Photonics/Optics

NEC Completes Design of Japan’s Optical Communication Demonstrator Satellite

NEC Corporation will develop a small technology demonstration satellite to conduct in-orbit verification of key technologies essential for realizing future optical communication satellite constellations, including optical communications, high-speed network routing design, and high-capacity millimeter-wave band communications. The design of the satellite-mounted equipment (payload) for this demonstration has now been completed. Read on to learn more.

Articles

Semiconductors & ICs

Edge Computing Advances Enable Smarter Spacecraft and Satellites in Orbit

As satellites take on more onboard processing — from Earth imaging to autonomy — spacecraft computing designers are pushing for higher performance under tight thermal and radiation constraints. Read on to learn how suppliers are approaching heat removal, radiation mitigation and production-scale space-grade computing for LEO and beyond.

Application Briefs

Unmanned Systems

Northrop Grumman’s AI Revolution in Space Engineering

Teaming with Flexcompute powered by NVIDIA, Northrop Grumman recently created a physics AI model that accurately predicts thruster impingement – a challenging simulation and modeling problem that exists when the exhaust from a spacecraft or rocket will interact or impact other nearby spacecraft or surfaces. Read on to learn more.

Application Briefs

Aerospace

A New Electric Propulsion Satellite Thruster to Meet Demand for New Constellations

Rocket Lab’s new in-house designed and manufactured electric propulsion system, named “Gauss,” features a hall thruster, power processing unit and a propellant management assembly. Read on to learn more.

Application Briefs

Aerospace

Advancing Next Generation Weather Data from Space

PlanetiQ has been awarded a $15 million, 48-month Strategic Funding Increase contract by the U.S. Air Force. Read on to learn more about it.

Podcasts

Semiconductors & ICs

Radiation-Tolerant Microcontrollers for Expanding LEO Satellite Network

On this episode of the Aerospace & Defense Technology podcast, we speak with the CEO of Vorago Technologies, Bernd Lienhard, about how radiation-tolerant and radiation-hardened semiconductor technologies are enabling the next generation of satellite constellations, autonomous defense systems, and resilient space infrastructure. Listen now!

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Aerospace

Ukraine’s New Guided Glide Bomb Reaches Combat Readiness

Ukraine’s first glide bomb, developed by a Brave1 participant, has passed all required tests and is ready for combat use.

INSIDER

Design

A Next Generation Radioisotope Thermoelectric Generator for Deep Space Missions

L3Harris Technologies has finalized the design of a next-generation nuclear-based power source for future NASA deep space missions, marking a crucial...

INSIDER

Materials

Varda Teams with United Therapeutics to Advance In-Orbit Pharmaceutical Processing

Varda Space Industries has launched a new collaboration with United Therapeutics Corporation to explore the use of microgravity to develop improved...

INSIDER

RF & Microwave Electronics

Developing User Terminals for ESA's Optical Communications Network

Kepler Communications, a Canadian satellite telecommunications provider operating the first commercial optical data relay constellation, is leading a group of industry...

INSIDER

Lighting Technology

Light-Powered Propulsion Expands Space Exploration Possibilities

Reaching the nearest star system, Alpha Centauri, would take hundreds of thousands of years using current rocket propulsion technology. Researchers in the J. Mike Walker ’66...

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Semiconductors & ICs

New Report Outlines Challenges and Opportunities for Orbital Data Centers

Space-based data centers would place data processing and storage systems for AI and other computing needs into satellites. This could reduce the land, electricity,...