Andrew Parsonson
@AndrewParsonson
Contributor to SpaceNews and Payload.
For queries, email andrewp@europeanspaceflight.com
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ESA's response. It reads a little like they're tired of Isaacman publicly discussing these things while negotiations are still underway.
ESA has confirmed delays to the Ariane 6 launch schedule following reports that a turbopump anomaly was discovered during ground testing.
ESA has confirmed that the proposed Ariane 6 Block 3 evolution, including the ICARUS lightweight upper stage, has been shelved. A spokesperson for the agency explained that there is “no programme need or justification” for the evolution at this time.
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Rocket Lab has established a German subsidiary to provide sovereign satellite manufacturing capacity to meet growing European demand.
Career diplomat Mario Cospito has been appointed as the extraordinary commissioner of the Italian Space Agency.
Development of Europe’s IRIS2 secure communications service has reached a key milestone, allowing the programme to move forward with implementation with more money and more satellites.
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Three Italian Space Agency board members have resigned to clear the way for the appointment of an extraordinary commissioner.
CNES is targeting 2028 for an initial hot-fire test of a subscale prototype of a future reusable high-thrust rocket engine.
German financial filings reveal that ArianeGroup secured a €42 million contract from Blue Origin in 2023. In this week’s newsletter, I follow the paper trail to uncover what the European launch company was providing Jeff Bezos' rocket company.
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ESA astronaut Sophie Adenot has completed a third test of the EuroSuit prototype aboard the ISS. There has still been no confirmation from CNES or its project partners.
ArianeGroup has opted to keep MaiaSpace operating after a €37.5 million loss in 2025 pushed the launch startup’s shareholders’ equity into negative territory.
Spain has offered up to €1 billion in support if the Thirty Meter Telescope is moved from its planned home in Hawaii to La Palma in the Canary Islands.
ArianeGroup completed a wet dress rehearsal of the Themis reusable booster demonstrator on 23 July at the Esrange Space Center in Sweden.
MaiaSpace has dropped plans for a suborbital test flight and is moving ahead with an inaugural orbital launch attempt in the second half of 2027.
My latest for SpaceNews: ESA has published a call for studies examining the feasibility of repurposing its Lunar Link Gateway hardware as a standalone communications satellite.
Ah, not great news. Here’s hoping they can still make next month’s launch window.
After a successful week of testing RFA ONE on the pad for the first time, we encountered an issue with the vehicle that requires further investigation. We have made the decision to de-stack the vehicle in order to investigate. We will provide further updates as soon as confirmed information is available.
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Germany is considering a dedicated launch facility for its armed forces to guarantee access to space for future national security missions.
ESA DG Josef Aschbacher has announced that the Cebreros deep-space ground station in Spain has been cleared to return to service as of today after the threat of nearby wildfires.
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ESA has awarded ispace-Europe a €65 million contract to complete development of the MAGPIE rover and deliver it to the Moon in 2029.
My latest for SpaceNews. The EU has decided to delay the release of some Sentinel-1 and Sentinel-2 imagery over the Gulf of Oman by 24 hours. The decision was made following a request from the US.
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