All posts tagged: Aerospace

Venus Aerospace raises M Series B to build a new kind of rocket engine

Venus Aerospace raises $90M Series B to build a new kind of rocket engine

Published by skeptic

Build a new kind of rocket engine, and the world will beat a path to your door. Or at least that’s how it’s worked out for Venus Aerospace and its Rotating Detonation Rocket Engine (RDRE), an ultra-efficient way to hurl stuff into the sky. The company was founded in 2020 by husband-and-wife duo, CEO Sassie Duggleby and CTO Andrew Duggleby, with the idea of developing clean-flying hypersonic jets for passenger travel. But after successfully demonstrating the engine last year, their plans changed. “What happened when we flew last May is the world looked at us and said, ‘oh my gosh, you have a working RDRE, would you sell us one?’ And that wasn’t what we were expecting,” Sassie Duggleby told TechCrunch. Now, the company is focused on hypersonic weapons development, replacing the solid rocket motors that power many missiles with its own thruster, and high-speed space vehicles that appeal to the military. “Our propulsion architecture combines efficiency, throttling, reusability and manufacturability in a way thatcustomers need for real defense and space missions,” Andrew Duggleby said …

CU Aerospace: Transforming satellite propulsion

CU Aerospace: Transforming satellite propulsion

Published by skeptic

CU Aerospace is committed to developing propulsion and mission optimisation solutions that utilise the newest ideas at a cost-effective price point while maintaining environmentally conscious and safe alternatives As the space industry accelerates towards a future defined by smaller, more agile satellites, propulsion has emerged as a critical enabler of capability, safety, and sustainability in orbit. From collision avoidance and precision manoeuvring to orbital transfers and end-of-life deorbiting, advanced propulsion systems are transforming what small and nanosatellites can achieve. At the forefront of this evolution is CU Aerospace (CUA) – a company that is committed to developing safer, more cost-effective satellite propulsion thrusters using innovative propellant sources. Two of its systems are currently being validated in-orbit as part of the NASA-funded Dual Propulsion Experiment (DUPLEX), marking a significant step toward widespread commercial adoption. To learn more about CU Aerospace’s key values and its latest developments, The Innovation Platform spoke with David Carroll, President of CUA. Can you elaborate on the potential of small and nanosatellite propulsion and outline CU Aerospace’s innovations in this area? In-space …

SpaceX: Why Chinese investors are banned from the biggest IPO in history

SpaceX: Why Chinese investors are banned from the biggest IPO in history

Published by Sam Flores

The biggest initial public offering (IPO) in history will happen without China. Billionaire tycoon Elon Musk’s aerospace and AI conglomerate SpaceX has decided that Chinese and Hong Kong investors will not be able to buy shares in the soon-to-be publicly traded company, which makes its Wall Street debut on Friday. “Mutual funds, private equities, sovereign funds, family offices and high-net-worth individuals from the two jurisdictions will all be blocked from this highly anticipated IPO,” reported the China Daily, a major English-language newspaper owned by the Communist Party of China. In the name of national security First reported by Bloomberg last Friday, the ban on a whole country from buying shares quickly went into effect. Reuters reported that people based in Hong Kong or mainland China trying to sign up to buy shares through the official SpaceX site were treated to an “Error 1009” message. “As far as I can recall, this is one of the first times an entire nation has been so explicitly excluded from an initial public offering,” said Grégoire Kounowski, an investment adviser at …

Could aliens ever visit Earth? An aerospace scientist unpacks the challenges of interstellar spaceflight.

Could aliens ever visit Earth? An aerospace scientist unpacks the challenges of interstellar spaceflight.

Published by Jenni Sidey

This article was originally featured on The Conversation. On May 22, 2026, the Pentagon released a second batch of previously classified photos and videos showing what appear to be unexplained flying objects. These file dumps were the culmination of a process that was set in motion back in July 2023, when a group of government whistleblowers testified before Congress that the U.S. government was secretly in possession of extraterrestrial spacecraft and suspected alien body parts. That congressional hearing marked the beginning of a cultural shift in which UFO reports are increasingly treated as a matter for serious discussion, both within the government and the scientific community. The Pentagon released over 200 previously classified UFO files in May 2026. Image: Department of Defense But is this newfound legitimacy deserved? As an aerospace scientist who studies aircraft and spacecraft design, I approach this question using math, physics and the principles of engineering. To assess the plausibility of alien visitors, it’s necessary to understand the obstacles that an extraterrestrial vessel would need to overcome to reach Earth. The tyranny of distance There is no evidence …

Garden Grove chemical leak: What we know about GKN Aerospace

Garden Grove chemical leak: What we know about GKN Aerospace

Published by Sam Flores

The chemical leak that triggered evacuations across a swath of Orange County on Friday is located at GKN Aerospace, a manufacturing company based in the United Kingdom. A leading aerospace firm The company manufactures landing gears, jet engines and other materials for commercial and military aircraft. GKN Aerospace’s Garden Grove facility, which sits on 15.5 acres on Western Avenue, designs, analyzes, tests and certifies military canopies, cockpit windows and passenger windows, according to its website. The company has been at the site since 2004, according to city documents. “GKN Aerospace manufactures the world-leading F-35 canopy from its Garden Grove facility, as well as transparencies for the Boeing 787 Dreamliner and 737, the Airbus A350, HondaJet and Bombardier C-Series,” the company’s website states. What company is saying A spokesperson for GKN Aerospace told The Times on Friday that they are responding to the situation and working with fire crews and specialized hazardous materials teams. “There are no reports of injuries at this time, and our priority remains the safety of our employees, responders, and the surrounding …

The winners and losers from the UK’s trade deal with the Gulf – POLITICO

The winners and losers from the UK’s trade deal with the Gulf – POLITICO

Published by Sam Flores

Meanwhile, the UAE opted out of environmental commitments in the FTA altogether, leaving those discussions to separate bilateral talks. Human and labor rights campaigners Campaigners have long raised concerns about the Gulf states’ human rights record, with organizations including the Trade Justice Movement, Amnesty International UK, Human Rights Watch urging the prime minister in a joint letter last year to incorporate “strong human rights conditions” before the deal is signed.  Reacting to the details of the deal released on Wednesday, the Trade Justice Movement said it  “looks to be silent” on human and labor rights “in return for minimal economic benefit.”  “By failing to negotiate any enforceable human rights protections within the deal, the U.K. has taken a moral step backwards and undermined the government’s own commitments on democracy, women’s rights and workers’ rights,” said Trade Justice Movement Director Tom Wills. The government has contested that trade agreements are not the forum to directly address human rights issues, while arguing that the deal contains provisions that can contribute to the protection and promotion of human …

UK faces multi-billion pound bill for nationalizing British Steel – POLITICO

UK faces multi-billion pound bill for nationalizing British Steel – POLITICO

Published by Sam Flores

“Ultimately, we have to find a way to do that transformation in Scunthorpe,” Industry Minister Chris McDonald told POLITICO in an interview last December, explaining British Steel “needs to be decarbonized.” McDonald said he’s “been clear that we expect that transformation to be a partnership between government and the private sector.”  Merger push The government is now left holding an asset long past its end of life with little to whet the appetites of potential buyers. With the EU’s carbon border tax and new steel quotas in Brussels factoring into its future commercial appeal, “everything has to align policy-wise to make investment attractive,” said a second steel industry figure.  Many in the steel industry see a way forward to appeal to investors if the government shoulders British Steel’s liabilities and merges the firm with Speciality Steel UK (SSUK), which has arc furnaces, after the government took control of the former Liberty Steel Group as it entered liquidation last year.  “Liberty has got the biggest electric arc furnace at the moment. The aerospace, defense and oil …

Data center cooling is becoming an energy crisis. Aerospace engineering can help us solve it.

Data center cooling is becoming an energy crisis. Aerospace engineering can help us solve it.

Published by Jenni Sidey

You’ve probably noticed the data center drag race unfolding before our eyes. From smaller regional operators to giants like xAI and Meta, key players vie for the right real estate: enough land for massive facilities, proximity to supply chains and infrastructure, and — perhaps most critically — access to reliable power (a lot of it). The scramble has spilled into local, national, and global politics — fueling community resistance and sharpening debates over sustainability. Data centers’ relentless expansion is driven, of course, by the surge in artificial intelligence for three key reasons. First, the chips that power AI require far more electricity than traditional servers. Second, that electricity turns into significant heat, demanding robust cooling systems that consume additional power. And third, AI is proving broadly useful across industries, accelerating adoption and driving sustained demand. As that demand climbs, data centers’ energy consumption is projected to double between now and 2030. As a product engineer who studies and advises on data center design and operational optimization, this is where I reveal the uncomfortable irony: While …

Propelling manufacturing, aerospace and defence innovation through applied research

Propelling manufacturing, aerospace and defence innovation through applied research

Published by skeptic

The Centre for Innovation and Research in Advanced Manufacturing and Materials (CIRAMM) at SAIT is enhancing applied research capacity in aerospace, defence, and manufacturing sectors. At the Southern Alberta Institute of Technology (SAIT) in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, the Centre for Innovation and Research in Advanced Manufacturing and Materials (CIRAMM) is ready to take flight in a city known for its big blue sky. One of the centres in SAIT’s Applied Research and Innovation Services (ARIS) Hub, CIRAMM collaborates with industry partners to support innovative design, simulation, manufacturing and prototyping, materials and processing, material characterisation, and robotics and automation. This applied research team is fostering cutting-edge digital manufacturing technologies and developing novel materials solutions across strategic sectors, including aerospace, defence, construction, energy and manufacturing. As rapidly evolving technologies coincided with a growing need for stronger applied research capacity in manufacturing and materials science, CIRAMM was established in 2020 under Dr Hamid Rajani’s leadership. With more than 15 years of experience in industry and academia, he leads a 20-member research team, delivering a robust portfolio of applied …

Europe ramps up security of satellites – POLITICO

Europe ramps up security of satellites – POLITICO

Published by Sam Flores

For years, satellite infrastructure was treated by policymakers as a technical utility rather than a strategic asset. That changed in 2022, when a cyberattack on the Viasat satellite network coincided with Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.   Satellites have since become popular targets for interference, espionage and disruption. The European Commission in June warned that space was becoming “more contested,” flagging increasing cyberattacks and attempts at electronic interference targeting satellites and ground stations. Germany and the United Kingdom warned earlier this year of the growing threat posed by Russian and Chinese space satellites, which are regularly spotted spying on their satellites.  EU governments are now racing to boost their resilience and reduce reliance on foreign technology, both through regulations like the new Space Act and investments in critical infrastructure. The threat is crystal clear in Greenland, Laurynas Mačiulis, the chief executive officer of Astrolight, said. “The problem today is that around 80 percent of all the [space data] traffic is downlinked to a single location in Svalbard, which is an island shared between different countries, including Russia,” …