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WASHINGTON: Europe needs to boost its defence capabilities as the US seeks to focus on countering China, the EU’s defence commissioner said on Monday. President Donald Trump has pushed for increased military burden-sharing with Europe since returning to office earlier this year, with Nato allies agreeing last month to boost their defence spending. “Europe is preparing to take responsibility for its own defence. You asked us to do that, and finally we are moving ahead,” Andrius Kubilius said in a speech in Washington.

The European Space Agency (ESA) has a comprehensive internal system in place to ensure that its collaboration with China will not raise security concerns or be affected by geopolitical changes, according to a senior director interviewed by Asia Times. After the ESA said in January 2023 that it would not send astronauts to China’s Tiangong space station, it continued to work with the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) on two scientific research programs.

ALL.SPACE, a provider of multi-orbit, multi-link SATCOM platforms, has been awarded a €3.42 million contract by the European Space Agency (ESA). The award is for a ‘5G/6G and Sustainable Connectivity’ strategic programme line, under ESA’s Advanced Research in Telecommunications Systems (ARTES), which supports the development of advanced satcom products and service

ESA has published a radar image of the Moon obtained by the JUICE spacecraft. It is interesting because it shows the same area of the surface as the iconic photo taken in 1968. In 2023, ESA launched the JUICE mission, targeting Jupiter’s three largest icy moons: Europa, Callisto, and Ganymede. The spacecraft will study these moons and determine the characteristics of the oceans hidden beneath their surfaces.

The new Third Generation Meteosat (MTG-S1) satellite has successfully reached geostationary orbit and has been handed over to Eumetsat for management. This advanced 'sonder' with the Copernicus Sentinel-4 mission revolutionises atmospheric observation, enabling faster and more accurate forecasts of extreme weather events and air quality monitoring across Europe.

A European satellite, Meteosat Third Generation Sounder (MTG-S1), designed to monitor weather and air quality, has been launched from Florida on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket. The satellite will operate in a geostationary Earth orbit and will undergo a commissioning period of 9-12 months before sending down usable data. This is the ninth flight for the Falcon 9 booster, and the 127th landing for the droneship "Just Read the Instructions."

The European Space Agency announced on 21 July that it had retested a pair of parachutes designed to enable its Rosalind Franklin rover to land safely on the surface of Mars. The ExoMars mission is currently scheduled for launch in 2028.

BRITAIN is leading plans to build a hypersonic plane that could fly on the edge of space and travel from London to New York City in 60 minutes. With a breakthrough design and cutting-edge technology, "The Sabre" will be able to fly at a speed of Mach 5 (4000mph) - which is five times the speed of sound.

The European Space Agency (ESA) has taken a step toward diversifying its access to space. ESA has chosen five rocket companies to pass through to the next round of its competition to encourage and support the development of new launch vehicles. The agency announced on July 7 that it had selected German companies Isar Aerospace and Rocket Factory Augsburg (RFA), Maiaspace from France, Spain's PLD Space and Orbital Express Launch, or Orbex, which is based in the United Kingdom, to proceed to the next stage of its European Launcher Challenge.

Welcome home! Four astronauts have returned to Earth following more than two weeks living aboard the International Space Station (ISS).

Denmark will provide Ukraine's military with European-made satellite communication services as Kyiv continues to fend off Russia's war, the Danish Defense Ministry announced on July 14. The Danish military aid will provide Ukraine with receiver terminals, providing access to satellite-based communications amid Russia's war, the announcement said. "Denmark has now contributed to strengthening Ukraine's satellite-based communications in their defense against Russia. There is a very large potential in space-based solutions that can contribute to both Ukrainian, Danish, and European defense," Danish Defense Minister Troels Lund Poulsen said.

Space42 is an AI-powered space-tech company based in Abu Dhabi and serving more than 150 countries with geospatial and mobility solutions, satellite communications and business intelligence. Its managing director, Karim Sabbagh, has seen the impact of space-tech across sectors, from shipping to border control, and watched its development cycles shorten.