Commercial Space Company
Appears in 8 stories · Last updated Nov 11, 2026
U.S. launch and spaceflight operator
The FAA published two proposed rules in the Federal Register on Nov. 9. One clarifies when a rocket operator must abort a flight; the other lets companies show a falling vehicle would break apart enough to avoid multiple deaths on the ground.
Updated 3 hours ago
Launched the mission
On November 7, one of NASA's two ESCAPADE spacecraft skimmed about 1,000 miles above Earth and fired its engine for roughly nine minutes. Two days later, its twin did the same at about 650 miles. Both are now on course for Mars.
Updated 2 days ago
Holds VADR task orders and a CLPS 2 selection
NASA will pay Impulse Space to move cargo most of the way to the Moon. On Nov. 7, 2026, the agency gave the Redondo Beach company two task orders under its Moon Base program, with flights scheduled to begin in 2028.
Updated 4 days ago
Will launch its Blue Moon test lander first for Artemis III; NASA will not commit SLS until it is in orbit, and a full test article has not yet been assembled.
Artemis II returned four astronauts from a trip around the Moon in April 2026, the first crewed lunar flight since Apollo 17 in 1972. On October 23, NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman outlined a faster path to the surface: a 14-day Artemis III test in 2027, then a crewed landing in 2028.
Updated 6 days ago
Competing lander provider for NASA Artemis program
Starship reached orbit for the first time on September 28, 2026, deploying 26 next-generation Starlink satellites. One Raptor 3 engine shut down during the climb, and SpaceX ended the flight early, splashing the ship down in the northern Pacific instead of spending hours in orbit.
Updated Oct 23
As of May 2026: New Glenn grounded by FAA; under investigation for NG-3 upper-stage engine failure
Blue Origin flew a previously used New Glenn booster for the first time on April 19, 2026, becoming the second company ever to reuse an orbital-class rocket stage. The booster, 'Never Tell Me the Odds,' first flew in November 2025 and landed successfully again on the drone ship Jacklyn roughly ten minutes after liftoff from Cape Canaveral. One engine on the expendable upper stage didn't produce enough thrust during its second burn, leaving AST SpaceMobile's BlueBird 7 stranded in an orbit too low for the satellite's electric thrusters to correct.
Updated May 31
As of May 2026: Won $188M for two-rover delivery via Blue Moon Mark 1
NASA awarded $627 million on May 27 to four U.S. companies for the first hardware of a permanent moon base. The contracts cover rovers, crewed terrain vehicles, and drones meant to land on the Moon before astronauts arrive.
Updated May 27
As of May 2026: Operator of New Shepard; using cadence and inclusion to widen the market and narrative
On December 20, 2025, Blue Origin flew New Shepard NS-37—and a line quietly snapped. Michaela "Michi" Benthaus became the first wheelchair user to cross the Kármán line, float free in microgravity, and come home safely.
Updated May 15
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