Seradata's recommended space stories - April 2025

We are cutting through the orbital debris for you. In other words, we're keeping an eye on space news on the web so you don't have to.

Here is our round-up of the most important, and interesting, space news stories of April (space orders can also be found in another post):

Anomalies, delays and failures

Chinese three Dro lunar relay satellite constellation is in place but its rescue was complicatedMystery Russian satellite Cosmos 2553 which is thought to be testing radar detection for possible EM-pulse ASAT weapon, fell into tumbleNASA's Psyche asteroid mission has a propellant line issue affecting electric thrusters

Human space and Space Stations

Soyuz MS-26 brings back ISS astronaut Don Pettit back to Earth with two others on his 70th birthdayShenzhou-19's Chinese astronauts return to Earth as Shenzhou-20 docks with Tiangong space stationBlue Origin launches six-woman crew including singer Katy Perry on suborbital spaceflight but she and the rest of the crew receive a public backlashNASA has decided to extend flying its astronauts on Soyuz missions albeit that they will be fewerThe commercial FRAM2 crew dragon mission carrying first orbiting humans over the poles returns safelyNASA launches supplies to ISS via Cargo Dragon CRS-32Space Science

Chemical signature of life found on extra-solar system planetChina shares its Chang'e 5 moon rocks and dust samplesVast signs three science payloads for Haven-1 space stationSpace Agencies and PoliticsIt is not just US Space Command's HQ that is being fought over by individual US States, so is NASA HQMooted major cuts to NASA science budget draws criticism and worryA formal inauguration ceremony in Cairo, Egypt starts the African Space Agency (AfSA)Space Technology

Companies - including Axiom - are seriously exploring and testing the idea of putting data centres in orbit and on the MoonElon Musk's stainless steel design decision for Starship has led China to copy him for Long March 9 and other rocketsHaving been recovered by chopstick landing, SpaceX'S Super Heavy Booster 14 has a successful stating firing testJAXA thinks about ditching supersonic parachutes for simpler inflatable aeroshells for descent of interplanetary missionsUnited Spaceports offers to build and fly a small sat for you...if you have US$5.5 millionCatching up with the sci-fi: ISS experiment to grow food from cellsDust repellent coating is tested on the Moon's surface via Blue Ghost landerUK firm Pulsar Fusion designs nuclear fusion rocket engineFirefly Aerospace gets US Air Force contract to develop nozzle using new materialLeoLabs unveils mobile tracking radarHonda to test out its fuel cell technology on ISS after being carried there on Dream Chaser flight

Space Exploration

China lays out its long term plans for solar system explorationChina and Russia plan to power lunar base with nuclear power plant

Military Space

US Space Force updates its 'Capstone Doctrine' as it publishes its new

‘warfighting’ guide - here is the guideChina expands its counterspace effort particularly targeting systems like Starlink, while even smaller nations are also exploring space warfighting capabilities, says SWF reportTJS-17 is one of four 'King' sats in GEOWhile questions remain about how Golden Dome defence system will shoot down missiles, L3Harris demonstrates how to detect themBoth US & UK militaries to use suborbital Rocket Lab Electron Haste launches for hypersonic testingMilitary suborbital cargo delivery test flight for Astra Rocket 4Boeing's subsidiary, Millennium Space, is almost doubling its satellite manufacturing capacity to fulfil a backlog of military contracts

Space Companies

Axiom announced its new CEO - so did Rocket Factory Augsburg, but rather quietlyUS Tariffs: European aerospace companies call for retaliation while Iridium protects its supply chainPayload's analysis shows some space companies growing fast but that recession fears maybe slowing sectorGEO and LEO comsat battle is about to restart after FCC decides to reexamine spectrum rules ...as SpaceX uses own Starlink sats to monitor othersAmazon's Kuiper internet constellation is underway via first launch of production satellitesFundraisingAfter the successful launch of its Droid 002 space situational awareness spacecraft Turion Space gets investment from Washington HarbourDefence startup True Anomaly secured US$260 million which it will use to support four space missions over the next 18 monthsSatellite manufacturing startup Apex closed a US$200 million Series C fundraising roundAetherflux, the space solar power startup backed by the likes of actor Jared Leto, raised US$50 million Portal Space raised US$17.5 million in funds as it plans the first launch of its 'solar thermal propulsion' Supernova bus spacecraft in 2026InfinAstro, a Chinese startup providing orbital logistics services, has raised tens of millions of yuan in an angel round of financingM&ASpire Global finally closed the sale of its maritime tracking business to Kpler, a Belgian analytics firm, for US$241 millionLaunch provider Phantom Space has partnered with Ubotica to add on-board AI processing capabilitiesTwo become one: Katalyst Space Technologies acquired Atomos Space - both US startups have been developing in-space servicing and orbital transfer vehiclesCanadian MDA Space revealed plans to buy Israeli satellite chipmaker SatixFy in a $269 million deal

Spaceports

China wants an equatorial launch site and looks to Malaysia

Slingshot Mentions

Slingshot targets international market with sovereign space tracking systemsDoD Taps Slingshot to Track Adversaries on Orbit

Sources include Cision, BBC, CNBC, msn.com, NASA, Orbitaltoday, Payload, phys.org, Politico, scmp.com and SpaceNews with links provided to each story.