Tomorrow.io
May 18 — Weather intelligence provider Tomorrow.io added **$35 million** to its DeepSky funding round, bringing the total to **$210 million** to accelerate development of a next-generation constellation for gathering atmospheric data.
SPACEHAUS · Commercial space intelligence
Space Industry Weekly Briefing — 2026-05-18
Commercial space news and intelligence for the week ending 2026-05-18.
Week ending
Funding Rounds & Investment Activity
Zenk Space
May 18 — Chinese launch startup Zenk Space secured **180 million yuan (~$26 million)** ahead of the planned **June debut** of its Zhihang-1 kerolox rocket, the company's first orbital launch attempt.
Anduril
May 18 — Defense technology company Anduril announced a **$5 billion Series H** funding round as it scales to meet the demands of evolving modern warfare. The round supports expansion of autonomous systems and defense capabilities.
Contracts, Awards & Government Activity
U.S. Space Force / TraCSS Program
May 18 — A House appropriations bill would reverse plans by the administration to stop development of TraCSS, a civil space traffic management system, restoring funding for the program.
BAE Systems / Anduril UK
May 18 — The British Army selected four companies including BAE Systems and Anduril UK to develop autonomous loyal wingman drones for its Apache fleet under the **£10 million** Project NYX programme.
Lockheed Martin
May 18 — The U.S. government announced on April 21 that Lockheed Martin will design and deliver a new containerized launcher for the upcoming extended PAC-3 MSE missiles, including a containerized control module providing 360-degree guidance with three working examples to be produced.
Mergers, Acquisitions & Partnerships
U-Space
May 18 — U-Space selected Skynopy to support multiple missions, expanding its operational capabilities through this strategic partnership.
Rooverse
May 18 — Rooverse and Lonestar announced a partnership to protect authentic human data in space, combining their capabilities in data verification and lunar data storage.
Launch Activity & Mission Milestones
SpaceX
May 17 — A SpaceX Dragon cargo spacecraft successfully delivered **6,500 pounds** of science and supplies to the International Space Station on Sunday, May 17, 2026.
NASA
May 17 — NASA is deep into processing and planning for Artemis III, a pivotal crewed mission, with a key Human Landing System (HLS) test in development. The mission represents a critical milestone in returning humans to the Moon.
Industry Context
Commercial Space Federation
May 18 — A new CSF report projects up to **7,000+ satellites** will be launched annually by the mid-2030s, highlighting significant challenges with U.S. launch infrastructure capacity to support this growth.
SpaceX / Starlink
May 18 — Scientists warn that SpaceX Starlink and other satellite megaconstellations are creating an 'unregulated geoengineering experiment,' with concerns that high-altitude air pollution from millions of planned satellites could alter Earth's climate.
Additional Updates
Potomac Database Systems
May 18 — Potomac Database Systems unveiled plans to amass lunar data through its Source platform, positioning the company to support future lunar exploration and commercial activities.
SpaceX / Starlink
May 17 — Uganda officially granted SpaceX Starlink a license to operate within the country after previously blocking its services, expanding Starlink's footprint in East Africa.