This Week in Space Tech #23

Welcome to This Week in Space Tech, covering Jan 19 to Jan 25, 2026. Here are the developments that mattered across launch, policy, and space startups. ## Launches and flight activity SpaceX flew its first West Coast Starlink mission of 2026 on Jan 21, sending 25 satellites into a polar low Earth orbit from Vandenberg and keeping its constellation buildout on a steady, factory-like pace. Rocket Lab opened its 2026 launch campaign on Jan 22, deploying two satellites for Open Cosmos and reinforcing its niche as the reliable “small payload, precise orbit” workhorse. ## Launch hardware and the reality of development Rocket Lab’s Neutron program took a hit on Jan 21 when a main-stage fuel tank ruptured during a hydrostatic pressure test, a setback that pushes schedule confidence further out and underscores how medium-lift development remains a brutal engineering grind even for experienced teams. ## Space sustainability and on-orbit services The Space Development Agency awarded Starfish Space a $52.5 million deal announced on Jan 21 for “disposal as a service,” a concrete step toward treating end-of-life satellite removal as a procured capability rather than a best-effort promise. ## Startup capital and commercialization Swiss satellite maker SWISSto12 announced a €73 million raise on Jan 21 to advance its compact HummingSat platform, signaling continued investor appetite for differentiated satellite manufacturing rather than pure software plays. Japan’s Interstellar Technologies disclosed a major Series F round on Jan 19 to expand its launch and satellite business, highlighting how national ecosystems outside the US are now producing late-stage fundraising rounds that can finance hardware at scale. ## Europe’s consolidation and strategic positioning On Jan 20, The Exploration Company and Orbex said they entered exclusive discussions after signing a non-binding letter of intent, a potential tie-up that would blend cargo ambitions with a European launch pathway at a moment when regional autonomy is back in fashion. ## Market pulse and investor narrative Seraphim Space published its latest outlook on Jan 19 projecting space-tech investment growth in 2026, arguing that defense-linked demand and launch capacity expansion are becoming the sector’s most durable tailwinds.