US Space Force Selects Vendors for Spacecraft Procurement, Ursa Major Contracts, and Artemis II Updates

USSF Spacecraft Procurement

• 🎯 The USSF Space Systems Command has selected 12 vendors for a $237 million spacecraft procurement through the Space Test Experiment Platform (STEP) 2.0.
• 🗓️ This multi-award indefinite delivery, indefinite quantity contract establishes a 10-year ceiling of $237 million to bolster spacecraft procurement for science and technology experiments.
• 🚀 The first STEP 2.0 order is slated to begin in January 2026.

Propulsion and Spacecraft Development

• ⚡ Ursa Major has been awarded a $28.5 million contract by the US Air Force Research Lab for responsive space, hypersonic, and on-orbit propulsion.
• 💡 This contract will involve maturing advanced liquid rocket engines and culminate in a flight demonstration using their Draper engine for hypersonic applications.
• 🛰️ Lockheed Martin has completed the assembly and testing of NASA's Orion Artemis II spacecraft, transferring it to NASA's exploration ground systems team for final preparations.

Artemis II and International Collaboration

• 🌕 NASA and the Korea Aerospace Administration (KASA) have agreed for KASA to fly a CubeSat on the Artemis II mission.
• 🔬 The CubeSat will measure space radiation using a dosimeter designed to mimic human tissue, aiding research for human presence on the moon and Mars.

Polish Space Agency Leadership and Other News

• 🇵🇱 Dr. Marta Ava Vakovich has been appointed the new president of the Polish Space Agency, following the abrupt dismissal of her predecessor.
• ⚠️ The previous president was reportedly removed due to failures in warning the government about a SpaceX Falcon 9 upper stage re-entry and a subsequent cybersecurity incident.
• 🔭 NASA's SPHEREx telescope has begun its science mission, mapping the entire sky in 102 infrared colors to study the universe's past and search for life's building blocks.

Space Traffic Report Highlights

• 🚀 Multiple launches occurred, including Falcon 9 rockets carrying Starlink satellites, a Long March 5B with Guangwang internet satellites, and an Atlas V for Amazon's Project Kuiper.
• 💥 Firefly Aerospace's Alpha rocket experienced a launch failure on its sixth flight, with the rocket and payload falling into the Pacific Ocean.
• 🇨🇳 The Shenzhou 19 crew returned to Earth after a 182-day stay on the Tiangong space station, completing numerous experiments and spacewalks.
• 🧑‍🚀 NASA astronauts conducted a spacewalk to relocate a communications antenna and install a mounting bracket for a future solar array on the ISS.