← T-Minus: Space-Cyber Briefing
T-Minus: Space-Cyber Briefing
NASA inches closer to an FY2026 budget.
00:25:57
NASA inches closer to an FY2026 budget. Eutelsat taps MaiaSpace for future launches. Isar targets January 21 for its second launch from Andøya. And more.
Loading summary
Transcript15 lines
- [00:00]
A
Foreign you're listening to the N2K space network.
- [00:10]
B
Most environments trust far more than they should, and attackers know it. ThreatLocker solves that by enforcing default deny at the point of execution. With threat locker allow listing, you stop unknown executables cold. With ring fencing, you control how trusted applications behave. And with threatlocker DAC defense against configurations, you get real assurance that your environment is free of misconfigurations and clear visibility into whether you meet compliance standards. ThreatLocker is the simplest way to enforce zero trust principles without the operational pain. It's powerful protection that gives CISOs real visibility, real control, and real peace of mind. ThreatLocker makes zero trust attainable even for small security teams. So see why thousands of organizations choose ThreatLocker to minimize alert fatigue, stop ransomware at the source, and regain control over their environments. Schedule your demo@threatlocker.com N2K today.
- [01:20]
A
Today is January 16th, 2026. Maria I'm Maria Varmazes and this is T minus T minus 20 seconds. Los Speed Reservoirs. The next Global Positioning System satellite is switching launch vehicles from a ULA Vulcan rocket to a SpaceX Falcon 9. China launched a remote sensing satellite for Algeria On a long March 2c ROC Isar Aerospace is targeting its second flight and qualification mission from the company's dedicated launch complex at Andoya Space in Norway from January 21. Utelsat has signed a deal with French space startup Maya Space for future launches of its LEO satellites. The fiscal year 2026 NASA NOAA appropriations bill clears the zero, And it's Friday, so that can only mean one thing here on T minus. Our colleagues@nasaspaceflight.com will be sharing the latest space traffic report with us later in the show, wrapping up the launch news from the last seven days and taking a look at what's to come in the week ahead. Congratulations, my friends. You made it to the end of another workweek. Pat yourself on the back and let's dive into today's intel briefing, shall we? First up, the U.S. senate has passed a second minibus of three fiscal year 2026 appropriations bills. That includes the Commerce Justice Science bill, which funds NASA and noaa. It is a minor victory for funding the federal agencies for the rest of this fiscal year and as they are still to be signed by President Trump into law. But if they are passed, it will be at levels much closer to fiscal year 2025 than to the deep cuts that were proposed by the Trump administration. The Senate bill approved significant science funding for NASA, the National Science foundation and the national oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, well above what the White House had sought. The National Science foundation will receive $8.75 billion for research efforts, including in quantum information science, artificial intelligence and other areas. The Senate rejected nearly all of Trump's cuts to NASA. The president had sought a $6 billion cut from the $24.9 billion budget, but the Senate voted for a much smaller cut, appropriating 24.44 billion in all. If and it is still an if. If this bill is enacted, it would mean departments and agencies in six of the 12 appropriations bills, which would be set for the rest of fiscal year 2026. The other six departments and agencies, however, including Defense, remain under consideration and we will of course keep you posted on all further updates. Eutelsat has signed a deal with French space startup Maya Space for future launches of its low earth orbit satellites. Maya Space is a subsidiary of Europe's largest rocket maker, Ariane Group, and has been contracted for a multi launch deal set to start in 2027. Maya Space was founded in 2022 and expects to begin commercial operations this year. They're developing a partially reusable mini launcher that would make it the first of its kind in Europe. No details were shared about the financial contract value with Eutelsat and staying in Europe, Isar Aerospace is targeting its second flight and qualification mission from the company's dedicated launch complex at Endoya Space in Norway. The launch is scheduled for no earlier than 21 January, with the launch window opening at 9pm Central European Time, subject to weather, safety and range clearance. Daniel Metzler, who is the CEO and co founder of Isar Aerospace, says that this qualification flight is a deliberate step towards delivering sovereign access to space for Europe and allied nations. Just 10 months after proving that launch vehicles can be designed, built and launched from continental European soil, we are ready to fly again and we will bring you updates on that launch when it happens. Let's head on over to China now and China is on a roll this week with launches On Thursday they launched a remote sensing satellite for Algeria. The spacecraft lifted off from the Jutuan Satellite Launch center in northwest China on a Long March 2C rocket. The Alsat 3A satellite was then placed into its preset orbit. Alsat 3A was developed by China Academy of Space Technology under the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation and will be used for land planning and disaster prevention and mitigation. The launch is part of the Algeria Remote Sensing Satellite System program, which is a joint project between China Great Wall Industry Corporation, which is a subsidiary of CASC and the Algerian Space Agency. The program was agreed to in July 2023 and includes two optical remote sensing satellites, ground systems, training and related support services and the next Global Positioning System satellite is reportedly switching launch vehicles from a United Launch Alliance Vulcan rocket to a SpaceX Falcon 9. SpaceX could launch the GPS 3 Space Vehicle 09 within the next few weeks and the spacecraft is entering the final stages of pre flight preparations right now. But we gotta say it's not actually bad news for ULA as they will instead launch the third of the next generation of Global Positioning system satellites. The GPS 3 follow on SV13 satellite was originally scheduled to launch on a Falcon Heavy but will now fly on Vulcan. According to a US Space Force spokesperson, SV09 and SV13 were traded between ULA and SpaceX to get capability to orbit as soon as possible for the same reason as the prior swap which resulted in the last GPs launch in May 2025. The trade results in an overall net cost savings to the government and again demonstrates our sustained commitment to moving at speed to deliver combat credible capabilities on orbit to meet warfighter needs. That switcheroo sounds like a win win to us. And that wraps up Today's intel briefing. N2K senior producer Alice Carruth joins us now with a look at the other stories that are making today's headlines.
- [08:24]
C
Happy Friday, Maria. We've included two additional links in today's selected reading section of our show notes. They cover the news that Nigeria has granted satellite permits to Beatles Sat Satellio and Amazon's Kuiper and ast's announcement that they've been awarded a prime contract position on the U.S. missile Defense Agency's shield program.
- [08:44]
A
And Alice, I hear we're going to be hearing more from you this weekend. Tell the crew what you're up to.
- [08:49]
C
Yes, I'm joining the NSF live stream of the Artemis II SLS rollout starting at 7am Eastern tomorrow, Saturday, January 17th. So if you're looking for some company while you marvel at the crawler in operation, you can join me on the NASASpaceflight YouTube channel.
- [09:04]
A
And two quick programming notes for you listeners. This Monday, January 19th is Martin Luther King Jr. Day here in the United States and it is a holiday, so we will not be publishing our daily intel briefing that day. Instead we will be sharing a special edition episode for you. It's my interview with Dave DeWalt, founder and CEO of security technology investment firm NightDragon. So if you want to hear what VCs are focusing on in the current security and space technology landscape. This is the chat for you. That's Monday. Don't miss it. And our second programming note for you is about tomorrow's Saturday show. Be sure to check your podcast feed for T Minus Deep Space. That's because it's our special edition Saturday show where we share an in depth interview and and dive a bit deeper into fascinating topics with brilliant guests. And on T Minus Deep Space tomorrow we have Zach Cassis joining me to talk about his new paper on his years long research into using readily available signals from commercial LEO satellites as a resilient TNT alternative to gps. Paper just won an IEEE award in fact and it is is a really fascinating idea. You will want to hear about his findings for yourself. That is on T Minus Deep Space tomorrow. Don't miss it.
- [10:51]
B
The world moves fast. Your workday even faster. Pitching products, drafting reports, analyzing data Microsoft 365 Copilot is your AI assistant for work built into Word, Excel, PowerPoint and other Microsoft 365 apps you use, helping you quickly write, analyze, create and summarize so you can cut through clutter and clear a path to your best work. Learn more@Microsoft.com M365 copilot.
- [11:22]
A
I'll hand you over now to NASASpaceflight.com for the space Traffic Report.
- [11:30]
C
I'm Alicia Siegel for NSF and this is your weekly Space Traffic Report for T Minus Space starting off the week. On January 9, SpaceX launched a Starlink mission from Florida. Falcon 9 lifted off from Space Launch Complex 40 at 21:41 UTC with 29 Starlink V2 mini satell in its fairing. SpaceX used booster B1069 for this mission, which successfully touched down on the deck of droneship, a shortfall of Gravitas, becoming the fourth booster to complete 29 missions on the other side of the country, Falcon 9 launched NASA's Pandora satellite on January 11. Pandora is a small space telescope on a mission to study exoplanet atmospheres. These distant planets are hard to observe directly, but if everything aligns just right, they pass or transit in front of their own star from the perspective of our telescopes, which slightly dims the star's light. What's the planet's atmosphere, if it has one, will also interact with the starlight to slightly alter its spectrum. Pandora will be studying this effect to help scientists determine the planet's makeup. The telescope is set to study at least 20 planets during its one year mission. Pandora was joined on this flight by 39 small satellites for SpaceX's Twilight mission under the company's smallsat rideshare program. Lifting off from Vandenberg on Sunday at 1344 Universal Time, booster B1097 carried the bunch on its fifth flight, it touched down successfully on landing zone 4, just a stone's thr from where it took off. We also had a launch from India this week, but unfortunately this marked the year's first failed mission. So what happened? The Indian Space Research Organization launched its PSLV rocket on January 12, lifting off from the Satish Dvan Space center at 4:48 UTC. It carried an Earth Observation satellite for India's Defense Research and Development Organization, as well as 15 rideshare payloads, all destined for sun synchronous orbit. The first phases of flight went as planned, but late in its burn the rocket's solid third stage lost attitude control, while the fourth stage did separate and ignite successfully, it was unable to correct for the situation, resulting in the end of this mission and its payloads. Rather saliently, this mission was PSLV's return to flight after the previous mission in May of last year also experienced a failure during its third stage burn. It's too early to tell whether the two failures are related, but having two rockets fail in a similar manner, it's not a good look. Surprisingly, it seems that one payload did survive the the Kidd re entry capsule from Spanish company Orbital Paradigm. This was the company's first reentry mission and it seems to have separated from the rocket and survived re entry despite it being much more intense than planned, and it splashed down in the Indian Ocean. Unfortunately, the company didn't get any customer data back and therefore still declared the mission as failed. Later that day, SpaceX launched another Starlink mission from Florida, lifting off from SLC 40 at 21:08 Universal Time on January Twelf, this mission added 29 more Starlink V2 mini satellites to the Constellation. The booster for this mission was B1078 on its 25th flight, which ended with a successful touchdown on the deck of Just read the instructions. China also had its first launch of the year this week, and it started off 2026 with a Changjung 6A launching from Taiwan on January 13. Lifting off at 14:16 Universal Time, the satellite lofted a military remote sensing satellite into low Earth orbit. There's something very unusual about this one, though. The orbit is highly retrograde, so against the direction of our planet's rotation, this requires much more propellant than a normal prograde orbit, so they must have a very specific purpose for this satellite however, without more information, all we can do is speculate. Just over an hour Later, a Changzhong 8A lifted off from the commercial site of China's Wencheng Spaceport. This one was much less mysterious though, as it launched a batch of nine satellites for China's state owned Guo Wang Internet Constellation, also known as SA. The constellation is ultimately planned to grow to 13,000 satellites, but it needs many more launches before it gets even close. The next day we had another Starlink mission lifting off from Cape Canaveral with 29 Starlink V2 mini satellites in its fairing. Falcon 9 took off from SLC 40 on January 14th at 1808 UTC. It was Booster B1085's 13th flight, which ended with a successful landing on droneship, a shortfall of Gravitas with the three Starlink launches this week, SpaceX added 87 satellites to the Constellation, bringing the total number launched to 10,955. Of those, 1,453 have returned back to Earth, and 8,262 are now in their operational orbit. We also had the return of Crew 11 from the International Space Station this week. You've probably heard that NASA expedited this process after one of the four astronauts had a medical issue, and although the situation was stable, the agency wanted to get the astronaut back on the ground sooner to provide better care in a fully equipped medical facility. In the days following the announcement, the crew began to prepare for their return, which started with crew Dragon Endeavor undocking from the station at 2220 UTC on January 14th. On that day, Crew 11 Commander Zena Cardman, pilot Mike Fink, and mission specialists Kimia Yui and Oleg Platinov donned their spacesuits, entered Dragon Endeavor, closed the hatch and departed the station. They didn't leave the ISS unattended, though, as the soil MS.28 crew who arrived in November remained on board the orbital outpost. The trio, composed of Commander Sergei Kud Sverchkov, flight engineer Sergei Makev, and flight engineer Chris Williams, will keep the station running until the next crew arrives. A few days before leaving the station, Mike Fink handed over command of the station to Sergei Kud Sverchkov, and all station crew members were present during the ceremony broadcast live from the station. All in all, the return seemed very normal. After all, this wasn't an emergency return during which the astronauts can evacuate the station and be on their way home in just a few hours. Instead, NASA and SpaceX executed the normal procedures just a few weeks earlier than planned. So after orbiting Earth for about nine hours, Endeavour performed its deorbit burn, reoriented for reentry, jettisoned its trunk and began reentry. The capsule made it successfully through the anticipated blackout period, during which plasma buildup inhibits communications, and not too not long after, Dragon and its crew softly splashed down under parachute. Once fished out of the Pacific by SpaceX's recovery vessel, Shannon teams helped the astronauts out of their spacecraft, after which they boarded a helicopter to make their way back to dry land. From there, the procedures were slightly different, as the astronauts would normally return to Houston immediately. Instead, NASA decided to have them stay at a hospital near San Diego for the night before returning to Houston. Back In China, a Changzhong 2C took to the skies above the Zhouchuan Satellite Launch center to carry an Earth observation satellite into sun synchronous orbit. The satellite was built in China for the Algeria Space Agency. To launch it, the rocket ignited its engines and lifted off at 4:01 universal time on January 15th. Later that day we had the launch of galactic energy series 1s lifting off at 2010 UTC. This is the SEA launched variant of the series 1, so it launched from the DEFU 15001 barge stationed in China's CO. Going into next week we'll have the first flight of Galactic Energy's Series 2 rocket, which is a larger and improved version of Series 1. The launch is scheduled for January 17th. Lifting off from Jochuan. SpaceX is planning to launch three missions next week. One batch of Starshield satellites for the US National Reconnaissance Office will lift off from Vandenberg in California on January 17th. This is a return to launch site mission, so prepare for sonic booms if you're in the area. SpaceX's other two scheduled missions are of course Starlink missions, one from either coast. Next week we might also see Blue Origin launch its suborbital NS38 mission on New Shepard Rocket Lab is planning to launch its first flight of the year, named the Cosmos will see you now with the window for the mission opening on January 21st. This mission is set to launch from the company's own launch complex in New Zealand. Over in Europe, we might see the second flight of ISAR's Spectrum rocket launching from Andoya in Norway. The window for this mission opens on January 20. China is planning to return the damaged Shenzhou 20 capsule from the Tiangong Space Station. Its crew left the station last year aboard the Shenzhou 21 capsule to avoid risk after their own capsule was damaged by space debris. The Shenzhou 20 capsule will now return without crew with landing under parachutes scheduled for January 19. Now, there is always a chance that schedules will change and more launches might appear throughout the week. To stay up to date, we recommend checking our next spaceflight app and website for the latest on all space traffic events. I'm Alicia Siegel for nsf and that's your weekly space traffic report. Now back to T minus Space.
- [20:26]
A
We'll be right back. Well, the holidays have come and gone once again, but if you've forgotten to get that special someone in your life a gift. Well, Mint Mobile is extending their holiday offer of half off unlimited wireless. So here's the idea. You get it now, you call it an early present for next year. What do you have to lose?
- [20:47]
B
Give it a try@mintmobile.com Switch limited time.
- [20:51]
A
50% off regular price for new customers. Upfront payment required $45 for three months, $90 for six months or $180 for 12 month plan tap and fees. Extra speeds may slow after 50 gigabytes per month when network is busy see terms. Welcome back. Today is the 2026 National Appreciate a Dragon Day. Say what again? Truly, there is a National day for everything. Friday, January 16th is an annual observance encouraging people to celebrate dragons in mythology, fantasy and culture through activities like reading dragon themed books, sharing stories, or enjoying dragon art and media. And longtime T minus listeners have probably gathered by now that I am, how shall we say it politely, a giant nerd. So I really don't need much encouragement to appreciate a dragon. If anything, dragon appreciation and geekery is the background radiation of my entire life. But it's a space show, Maria, and dragons aren't real. So unless you're talking about a Dragon capsule of the SpaceX variety, and goodness me, you guessed it. So today on this National Appreciate a Dragon Day, let's take a T minus moment and appreciate the SpaceX Dragon capsule, shall we? Let's do it. The very first dragon capsule, the Dragon 1, was a cargo capsule that made its maiden launch and flight back in 2010. It was developed specifically for International Space Station resupply services and was notable then and now for its reusability. It and later versions could survive multiple launches and reentries, all while protecting precious cargo aboard. That was, and honestly still is, a huge paradigm shift from the single use cargo capsules that came before it. And that's just the Dragon one. The SpaceX Dragon 2 iteration of the capsule was introduced to the world in 2019. And yes, reusable. Like its predecessor, the Dragon 2 has a cargo variant and a Crew Variant. There are currently five Crew Dragon vehicles which are used for both government and private human spaceflight missions, and those crew Dragons are the Endeavor, the Resilience, the Endurance, the Freedom, and the Grace. All truly lovely names for dragons if you ask me. And that's T minus Brought to you by N2K CyberWire we'd love to know what you think of this podcast. Your feedback ensures we deliver the insights that keep you a step ahead in the rapidly changing space industry. If you like our show, please share a roar and review in your podcast. Apple. Please also fill out the survey in the show notes or send an email to space2k.com we're 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 a nexus for discovery and connection. We bring you the people, the technology and the ideas shaping the future of secure innovation. Learn how@n2k.com N2K Senior Producer is Alice Carruth. Our producer is Liz Stokes. We are mixed by Elliot Piltzman and Trey Hester with original music by Elliot Peltzman. Our Executive Producer is Jennifer Ibin. Peter Kilby is our publisher and I am your host, Maria Varmazis. Thank you for listening. Have a great weekend.
- [24:34]
C
T minus.
- [24:49]
B
If you only attend one cybersecurity conference this year, make it RSAC 2026. It's happening March 23rd through the 26th in San Francisco, bringing together the global security community for four days of expert insights, hands on learning and real innovation. I'll say this plainly, I never miss this conference. The ideas and conversations stay with me all year. Join thousands of practitioners and leaders tackling today's toughest challenges and shaping what comes next. Register today@rsaconference.com cyberwire26 I'll see you in San Francisco.