Observable Space
Jun 1 — Observable Space closed a **$90 million Series A** funding round to scale its lasercom platform. The round coincides with a **$94 million U.S. Space Force contract** for optical communications capabilities.
SPACEHAUS · Commercial space intelligence
Space Industry Weekly Briefing — 2026-06-01
Commercial space news and intelligence for the week ending 2026-06-01.
Week ending
Funding Rounds & Investment Activity
Unastella
Jun 1 — Seoul-based rocket startup Unastella raised **$24 million** to develop its own launch vehicles and engines. The company previously launched from home and is now expanding its capabilities.
Iceye
Jun 1 — Business Finland approved a **$33 million grant** to Iceye for expanded radar satellite production and R&D into optical and RF monitoring capabilities.
Contracts, Awards & Government Activity
Rocket Lab
Jun 1 — Rocket Lab passed the System Requirements Review for the Space Development Agency's TRKT3 missile-defense constellation, advancing development of the tracking satellite program.
Xona
Jun 1 — Xona entered an R&D collaboration to strengthen the resilience of Canada's timing infrastructure, focusing on positioning, navigation, and timing (PNT) capabilities.
Mergers, Acquisitions & Partnerships
Marble Imaging
Jun 1 — German Earth observation company Marble Imaging expanded into Asia with a Memorandum of Understanding in Taiwan and an EO partnership in Japan, advancing its regional market strategy.
Launch Activity & Mission Milestones
CASC / Shanghai Spacecom Satellite Technology (Qianfan)
Jun 1 — China conducted a surprise launch of the **Long March 12B** rocket on its debut flight, successfully delivering Qianfan constellation satellites to orbit from Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center.
May 30 — China launched test direct-to-device satellites for multiple broadband projects using a **Long March 2D** rocket, advancing several competing satellite internet initiatives.
Blue Origin
Jun 1 — Blue Origin's **New Glenn** rocket failure worsened the already constrained launch market, with significant implications for customers awaiting heavy-lift capacity. NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman addressed the setback and its impact on moon mission timelines.
May 28 — An explosion during a New Glenn prelaunch test at Cape Canaveral prompted an emergency response. Officials declared the range **"fully mission capable"** shortly after, allowing other launch operations to continue.
SSC Space / Esrange Space Center
May 28 — SSC Space launched **SubOrbital Express-5** from Esrange Space Center in northern Sweden, carrying **twelve scientific experiments** from organizations across nine countries studying physical, biological, and medical processes in microgravity.
Industry Context
U.S. Government / Spaceport Infrastructure
Jun 1 — Spaceport facility bonds became law, fundamentally changing space infrastructure finance by creating new financing mechanisms for commercial spaceport development and expansion.
Additional Updates
Telespazio
May 29 — Telespazio completed an Earth-Moon-Earth (EME) communications demonstration, successfully bouncing radio signals off the Moon's surface across a **384,000 kilometer** path each way using a repurposed geostationary-focused dish.