[MUSIC PLAYING] Today is November 19, 2025. I'm Maria Varmazis, and this is T-minus. [MUSIC PLAYING] T-minus. 22nd to LOS, T-dred. Open aboard. Right side. [MUSIC PLAYING] [INAUDIBLE] Five. Spire Global has shipped nine satellites to Vandenberg Space Force Base ahead of their launch aboard SpaceX's upcoming Falcon 9 Twilight mission. Four. Redwire has been awarded a $44 million Phase II contract to advance DARPA's Otter Very Low Earth Orbit mission. Three. Power Bank Corporation is collaborating with Orbit AI to launch the Orbital Cloud. Two. Canada plans to increase its investments in European Space Agency programs by $528.5 million. One. Germany introduces its new space security strategy. [MUSIC PLAYING] Let's go. [MUSIC PLAYING] Happy Wednesday, everybody. Thank you for joining me. Let's dive into today's intelligence briefing, shall we? First up, Germany's foreign and defense ministers presented their new space security strategy to the cabinet earlier today. Their strategy commits to a peaceful rules-based use of space while also pledging to build a space infrastructure that's strong enough to serve as a deterrent. And it focuses on joint projects with allies, expanded satellite networks, and the promotion of, quote, "responsible state behavior" in space. Germany's science minister, Doris A. Barr, also said that they plan to accelerate programs to deal with space debris and how to destroy asteroids threatening Earth. Defense minister Boris Pistorius told reporters in Berlin that the aim is to become more independent and capable of acting in space together with European allies and other NATO member states. The strategy follows the September announcement that the Defense Ministry would invest $40 and a half billion dollars in space projects by 2030. Germany's announcement follows one already published also by France and is expected to be in line with other European nations who are all interested in more sovereign space capabilities. Oh, and we cannot forget Canada. Canada plans to increase its investment in European space agency programs by $528.5 million. This investment represents a 10-fold increase compared to previous contributions. And this announcement was made by Canada's minister of industry who says it is set to advance research and development of Canadian-made space technologies for both civilian and defense purposes. It aims to help build an industrial base that is ready and capable of supporting Canada's commercial, defense, and security needs. Canada's longstanding cooperation with ESA provides Canadian companies with privileged access to the European space market. They say that every dollar awarded to Canadian businesses through ESA contracts generates over $3 in follow-on sales. Canada's ESA investment will provide direct opportunities for the Canadian space sector to increase exports, diversify partnerships, and promote Canada's cutting-edge expertise and space technology in the European market. And speaking of Canada's cutting-edge technology in this third story for you today, Powerbank Corporation is collaborating with Orbit AI to launch the Orbital Cloud, where communications, compute, and verification converge in low-Earth orbit powered by solar energy. The mission leverages satellite technology, high-performance AI compute hardware, blockchain verification systems, and clean energy solutions to demonstrate next generation digital infrastructure in orbit. Orbit AI says it is developing the first decentralized low-Earth orbit network for global connectivity called D-STARLink and D-STARAI, a suite of Orbital AI data centers that are powered by solar arrays and naturally cooled in space. And together, these systems will form the Orbital Cloud, which will be a unified infrastructure layer designed to enable sovereign, censorship-resistant connectivity and in-orbit compute services. And the first launch of a D-STARLink Genesis 1 satellite is expected in December 2025. Moving to the United States now, and Redwire has been awarded a $44 million phase two contract to advance the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agencies, or DARPA's, AUTER, very low-Earth orbit mission. The mission aims to demonstrate the world's first air-breathing spacecraft, and AUTER will develop, demonstrate, and collect on-orbit data for air-breathing electric propulsion technologies that enable operations in very low-Earth orbit, which are altitudes of 90 to 450 kilometers in orbit. In V-LEO, a combination of atmospheric drag and Earth's gravity rapidly decay the altitude of any object, as you might imagine, and the frequent use of propulsion is required to stay in orbit. Superpulsive fuel is usually a finite resource, but AUTER aims to enable extended satellite operations at V-LEO altitudes by harvesting ambient low-density air and ionizing and accelerating the resultant ion flow, thereby using a virtually unlimited supply of propellant, very interesting. The phase two contract provides funding to complete manufacturing and deliver the spacecraft to launch for the mission, which will leverage the design of Redwire's Sabersat platform. And Spire Global has shipped nine satellites designed and built in-house to Vandenberg Space Force Base in California ahead of their launch aboard SpaceX's upcoming Falcon 9 Twilight mission. And the mission includes the company's hyperspectral microwave sounder, also known as the HIMS satellite demonstrator. And HIMS is a compact space-ready sensor built to advance global weather forecasting from space. It's been developed in collaboration with the UK Science and Technology Facilities Council's RAL Space and STAR Dundee Limited. HIMS is designed to capture detailed internal views of the Earth's atmosphere, measuring important atmospheric variables that include temperature, humidity, and precipitation. And it aims to help forecasters better understand how weather systems form and evolve in real time. [MUSIC PLAYING] And that wraps up today's Intel Briefing, my friends. And we have N2K producer Liz Stokes joining us now with a look at the other stories that are making today's headlines. So Liz, what else can we find links to in today's selected reading section of our show notes? Hi, Maria. Loft Orbital has signed a power purchase agreement with Starcatcher. JIGGA has secured 12 million in a Series A funding round. UTELSAT has approved an 828 million euro equity raise. CIDA Space and Lone Star data holdings have kicked off their joint mission with a system requirement review. And Planet and Quantum Systems are partnering on joint satellite and drone monitoring capabilities for European defense customers. Back to you. Thank you, Liz. And regular listeners know that every day at the end of each T-minus episode, I read the names of all of the people who work on this show, people like Liz. And it is a big team effort to get this show published every day. And you, dear listener, play a very important role, too. Because every time you share an episode of T-minus with your colleagues or on social media, that not only helps us grow, but it helps us understand how our work is useful and interesting to you. So if you enjoy T-minus and certainly we really hope that you do, don't keep us hidden. Share our show in your social and professional networks because that helps us grow. And it helps make T-minus even better every day. And thank you for being a part of the T-minus crew. [MUSIC PLAYING] [MUSIC PLAYING] We'll be right back. Welcome back. As I was telling my colleagues this morning in our editorial meeting, it was a long US government shutdown, y'all. And NASA's got quite the backlog of news that it needs to get out there. Listen, NASA needs a minute. And honestly, who can blame them? So here's one kind of from the backlog. And it comes from the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Camera, or LROC. And thanks to its sharp eye, scientists in the last few weeks have spotted a brand new crater about 22 meters wide. And it is fresh enough that it still has bright ejector rays. And remember, when it comes to moon booms, mushroom clouds know, but ejector rays, yes. These clouds likely formed sometime between 2009 and 2012. Brand spanking new on the cosmic scale, really. And isn't the moon getting thwapped by space rocks all the time, I hear you ask? Getting new dents? Why, yes, friends. Yes, it is. And so by tracking fresh craters like this one, researchers get to peel back the metaphorical onion layers on how often the moon is still being bombarded, how quickly its surface fades under space weathering, and how safe future moon landings might be. And this new crater at a mere 22 meters wide, well, let's just appreciate, first of all, that the LROC was able to spot that, because it's pretty dang small. And appropriately, the LROC team is calling this crater a new freckle on the face of the moon. OK, that's definitely cute. And it does have scientific merit, too, as a live record of our solar system's restless environment. So as steadfast and silent as the moon appears to our naked eye from here on Earth, the lunar surface is a lot more dynamic than we can easily see. Even now, rocks are flying in and leaving their mark on the moon. And by studying those impacts, we do get a nice crash course on celestial change. And that is T-minus, brought to you by N2K Cyberwire. We'd love to know what you think of our podcast. Your feedback ensures we deliver the insights that keep you a step ahead in the rapidly changing space industry. If you like the show, please share a rating and review on your podcast app. Please also fill out the survey and the show notes or send an email to space@n2k.com. We are proud that N2K Cyberwire is part of the daily routine of the most influential leaders and operators in the public and private sector. From the Fortune 500 to many of the world's preeminent intelligence and law enforcement agencies. N2K helps space and cybersecurity professionals grow, learn, and stay informed. As the next is for discovery and connection, we bring you the people, the technology, and the ideas shaping the future of secure innovation. Learn how at N2K.com. N2K's senior producer is Alice Carruth. Our producer is Liz Stokes. We are mixed by Elliott Peltzman and Tre Hester with original music by Elliott Peltzman. Our executive producer is Jennifer Eiben. Peter Kilpie is our publisher, and I am your host, Maria Varmazis. Thank you for listening, and we'll see you tomorrow. [MUSIC PLAYING] [MUSIC PLAYING] T-minus. [MUSIC PLAYING] [MUSIC PLAYING] [BLANK_AUDIO]
