The Daily Broadcast: NorthStar Signs Kepler Deal, EVA-99 Begins, PLD Raises €108M

NorthStar Pairs Optical Sensors with Kepler Satellites

Two Canadian companies have teamed up to expand space-based tracking of objects in orbit. NorthStar Earth & Space will place optical sensors on satellites operated by Kepler Communications, the companies announced on August 27. The agreement lets NorthStar get its next-generation space domain awareness sensors into orbit faster than building and launching dedicated spacecraft would allow.

NorthStar sells space domain awareness — tracking and identifying satellites, debris and other objects in orbit — to defence and commercial customers. Until now, its original four sensors flew on satellites built and operated by Spire Global starting in 2024. That arrangement ran into trouble: one satellite failed in orbit, and the other three never met the image-quality standard NorthStar expected. NorthStar won an injunction to keep Spire from shutting the satellites down, then took the dispute to the International Chamber of Commerce.

In late July, an ICC panel ruled against NorthStar’s claim and awarded Spire roughly US$12 million on a counterclaim. NorthStar had sought nearly US$46 million. The company maintains the Framework Agreement between the two firms has never been terminated and that it remains entitled to four replacement satellites under that contract.

The new Kepler partnership sidesteps the Spire dispute entirely, giving NorthStar a fresh path to orbit for its sensors and a Canadian-only supply chain for its growing defence customer base.

EVA-99 Begins at the International Space Station

Astronauts Sophie Adenot of ESA and Jessica Meir of NASA pose for their official crew at the Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas. | Source: NASA

NASA astronaut Jessica Meir and ESA astronaut Sophie Adenot exited the International Space Station’s Quest airlock today at approximately 8:30 a.m. EDT for a spacewalk lasting about six and a half hours. The outing is the 284th at the orbital outpost since 1998, Meir’s seventh and Adenot’s third.

The crew’s primary task is replacing a retroreflector on the forward port of the station’s Harmony module — a navigational aid that supports spacecraft rendezvous and docking operations. They will also install jumper cables for the station’s data-relay systems, prepare the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer’s radiator for future maintenance, and swap out a high-definition camera on the station’s truss.

Adenot serves as spacewalk crew member 1, wearing a suit with red stripes. Meir is crew member 2 in an unmarked suit.

PLD Space Extends Series C to €288 Million

PLD Space has added €108 million to its Series C funding round, bringing the total to €288 million as it prepares for the debut of its Miura 5 rocket. | Source: European Spaceflight

Spanish launch provider PLD Space announced today it has secured an additional €108 million in funding, extending its Series C round to €288 million. The tranche is led by Mitsubishi Electric Corporation, which also led the initial €180 million Series C closed in early March.

The announcement comes less than a week after the European Space Agency awarded PLD Space a €158.9 million contract under its European Launcher Challenge. The new capital will support industrialisation of the Miura 5 rocket — including production and test capacity — as well as construction of launch infrastructure and the company’s transition to commercial operations.

“This new milestone, which continues the Series C round initiated earlier this year, reinforces our ability to execute PLD Space’s transition into a global provider of commercial launch services, while maintaining rigorous operational and financial discipline,” said PLD Space executive president Ezequiel Sánchez. The company is preparing for Miura 5’s inaugural flight later this year.

Citations

“NorthStar and Kepler agree to host space sensors on satellites” — https://spaceq.ca/northstar-and-kepler-agree-to-host-space-sensors-on-satellites/
“ESA, NASA Astronauts Suit Up for Navigation, Science Maintenance Spacewalk” — https://www.nasa.gov/blogs/spacestation/2026/09/01/esa-nasa-astronauts-suit-up-for-navigation-science-maintenance-spacewalk/
“Expedition 75 is Go for Tuesday’s Navigation and Science Maintenance Spacewalk” — https://www.nasa.gov/blogs/spacestation/2026/08/31/expedition-75-is-go-for-tuesdays-navigation-and-science-maintenance-spacewalk/
“PLD Space Adds €108 million to Series C Funding Round” — https://europeanspaceflight.com/pld-space-adds-e108-million-to-series-c-funding-round/

Starlink Group 15-23

Provider: SpaceX
Date: September 2, 2026
Time: 7:46 AM UTC
Vehicle: Falcon 9

A batch of 27 satellites for the Starlink mega-constellation – SpaceX’s project for space-based Internet communication system.

Owl Around The World (StriX Launch 11)

Provider: Rocket Lab
Date: September 2, 2026
Time: 11:00 AM UTC
Vehicle: Electron

Synthetic aperture radar satellite for Japanese Earth imaging company Synspective.

GISAT-1A (EOS-05)

Provider: Indian Space Research Organization
Date: September 3, 2026
Time: 9:25 PM UTC
Vehicle: GSLV Mk II

GISAT-1A (GEO Imaging Satellite) is an Indian earth observing satellite operating from geostationary orbit to facilitate continuous observation of Indian sub-continent, quick monitoring of natural hazards and disaster.

EOS-05/GISAT-1A will replace EOS-03/GISAT-1 lost in launch failure in 2021.

Onward and Upward

Provider: Isar Aerospace
Date: September 4, 2026
Time: 8:00 PM UTC
Vehicle: Spectrum

Second test flight of the Isar Spectrum launch vehicle. This launch will carry 5 cubesats and 1 non-separable experiment as part of European Space Agency (ESA)’s “Boost!” program:

* CyBEEsat (TU Berlin)
* TriSat-S (University of Maribor)
* Platform 6 (EnduroSat)
* FramSat-1 (NTNU)
* SpaceTeamSat1 (TU Wien Space Team)
* Let It Go (Dcubed, non-separable experiment)