Apex
Jun 5 — Apex raised **$200 million** at a valuation of **$2.3 billion**, marking a significant funding milestone for the satellite bus manufacturer as it scales production of its Aries platform.
SPACEHAUS · Commercial space intelligence
Space Industry Weekly Briefing — 2026-06-05
Commercial space news and intelligence for the week ending 2026-06-05.
Week ending
Funding Rounds & Investment Activity
Axiom Space
Jun 5 — Axiom Space added more than **$175 million** to its ongoing funding round, supporting development of its commercial space station and expanding international operations.
Jun 5 — Axiom Space established a Swiss subsidiary to anchor its European engagement and facilitate collaboration with European space stakeholders.
SpaceX
Jun 5 — SpaceX is preparing to go public with shares priced at **$135** each, yielding a valuation of **$1.77 trillion** and making it the 7th-most valuable American company.
Contracts, Awards & Government Activity
Planet Labs
Jun 4 — The National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA) awarded Planet Labs a **$22 million** option on its Luno B contract to provide AI-enabled data analytics for maritime domain awareness for U.S. Combatant Commands.
Pilot Photonics
Jun 4 — Pilot Photonics secured a **€1 million** contract from the European Space Agency (ESA) to advance integrated photonics technology for space applications.
Viasat
Jun 4 — Viasat secured a contract from Lockheed Martin to provide communications systems for NOAA's next-generation aircraft, supporting advanced environmental monitoring capabilities.
U.S. Space Force
Jun 4 — The House Armed Services Committee's NDAA markup challenges the Space Force on satellite programs, signaling potential changes to procurement strategy and program oversight.
Mergers, Acquisitions & Partnerships
Eutelsat
Jun 4 — Eutelsat signed a partnership with Tototheo Global to deliver LEO connectivity services to the maritime sector, expanding its presence in commercial maritime communications.
SES
Jun 4 — SES partnered with Viva to launch multi-orbit in-flight connectivity services, combining GEO and MEO capacity for enhanced aviation connectivity solutions.
Infinite Orbits
Jun 4 — Infinite Orbits tapped Open Cosmos to build two satellites named 'Tom & Jerry' for a rendezvous, maneuvering, and inspection mission in LEO demonstrating on-orbit servicing capabilities.
Mbryonics
Jun 4 — Mbryonics signed an MoU with NTT to collaborate on building a high-speed optical communications backbone infrastructure for space, leveraging photonics technology.
KSAT
Jun 4 — KSAT and iQPS expanded their strategic alliance to accelerate deployment of iQPS's high-frequency SAR constellation through enhanced ground station services.
Southern Launch
Jun 5 — Southern Launch and SpaceWorks reached an agreement to conduct orbital re-entries to the Koonibba Test Range, supporting development of return and recovery technologies.
Launch Activity & Mission Milestones
China National Space Administration
Jun 5 — China's Qianfan constellation reached **200 satellites** on orbit following successful Long March 8 and Long March 6A launches, advancing the country's mega-constellation ambitions.
SpaceX
Jun 4 — SpaceX launched back-to-back Starlink missions from both coasts **19 hours apart**, deploying more than **50** satellites from California and Florida to expand its constellation.
NASA
Jun 4 — NASA officially ended the MAVEN mission after **11 years** at Mars when the orbiter stopped communicating in December 2025. The spacecraft will crash into Mars within the next 100 years.
Unseenlabs
Jun 5 — Unseenlabs' BRO-22 satellite will be the first foreign commercial satellite to launch aboard Japan's H3 launch vehicle, marking international expansion of the H3 manifest.
Industry Context
NASA
Jun 4 — NASA head urged Blue Origin to find a new launcher for its moon landers to meet Artemis mission deadlines after a New Glenn testing explosion destroyed the rocket and damaged Launch Complex 36 one week prior.
Canadian Space Agency
Jun 4 — Canada and ESA are both responding to NASA's sidelining of Lunar Gateway, with Canada having already decided on its strategic approach to maintain human spaceflight engagement.
Seraphim Space
Jun 4 — Seraphim, the only publicly traded space index fund, reported a record **31% jump** in portfolio value in the three months ending March 31, 2026, reflecting strong commercial space sector performance.
Additional Updates
The Exploration Company
Jun 5 — The Exploration Company completed a drop test of its Nyx capsule in the Mojave Desert on May 19, verifying the deployment sequence from drogue to main parachutes during the landing phase.
Jun 4 — The Exploration Company revealed it is developing a reusable heavy-lift rocket powered by its Storm engines, according to an update on its website, though no official public statements have been made.
AstroForge
Jun 4 — AstroForge completed assembly of its DeepSpace-2 spacecraft, the company's asteroid mining demonstration mission designed to rendezvous with and characterize a near-Earth asteroid.
Kaman Precision Products
Jun 4 — Kaman Precision Products deployed advanced magnetic sensors for next-generation launch propulsion systems, supporting enhanced monitoring and control capabilities for launch vehicles.