This article is based on an official press release from Applied Aerospace & Defense.

Applied Aerospace & Defense Acquires Vestigo Aerospace to Tackle Space Debris

On February 24, 2026, Applied Aerospace & Defense (Applied) announced the acquisitions of Vestigo Aerospace, a specialist in space debris mitigation technologies. The transaction integrates Vestigo’s proprietary Spinnaker® deorbit systems into Applied’s broader portfolio, positioning the company to address increasingly stringent regulatory requirements for satellite disposal.

The acquisition marks a significant step in the industrialization of space sustainability. By bringing Vestigo’s passive deorbiting hardware in-house, Applied aims to offer a streamlined solution for satellite operators facing the Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC) “5-Year Rule,” which mandates the removal of satellites from Low Earth Orbit (LEO) within five years of mission completion.

Integrating Passive Deorbit Technology

At the core of this acquisition is Vestigo’s Spinnaker® product line. According to the company’s announcement, these systems utilize large drag sails to passively deorbit satellites at the end of their operational lives. Unlike active deorbiting methods that require thrusters and fuel reserves, the Spinnaker® system deploys a sail that increases atmospheric drag, accelerating the satellite’s orbital decay until it burns up in the Earth’s atmosphere.

Technical Capabilities

Data provided in the announcement highlights the versatility of the Spinnaker® technology. The systems are designed to handle a wide range of hardware, from small satellites to launch vehicle stages weighing up to 1,000 kg. The technology is effective at altitudes up to 800 km for compliance with the 5-year deorbit timeline, and up to 1,000 km for the traditional 25-year standard.

Because the system does not rely on propulsion, it offers a critical compliance pathway for satellites that lack onboard engines, allowing operators to meet legal requirements without sacrificing payload mass or fuel capacity.

Strategic Rationale and Leadership

The deal underscores a broader trend of consolidation within the space supply chain. Applied Aerospace & Defense, formed in December 2025 through the merger of Applied Aerospace and PCX Aerosystems, has been aggressively expanding its capabilities. This acquisition follows the March 2025 purchase of NeXolve, a manufacturer of polymer films and sunshields.

Vestigo founder Dr. David Spencer, a former mission manager at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), will join Applied as the Vice President of Deployable Systems. In the press statement, Dr. Spencer emphasized the scalability of the combined entity:

“We are proud to join the Applied team and look forward to accelerating the evolution of Spinnaker® as a proactive and scalable solution for deorbit compliance.”

The integration is described as a natural progression for both firms; Vestigo had previously utilized Applied as a supplier for the advanced thin-film polymer materials and deployable booms used in its sails.

AirPro News Analysis

This acquisition signals a shift in the space industry from discussing sustainability as a theoretical goal to treating it as a hardware requirement. The regulatory pressure from the FCC and the FAA is forcing operators to “check the box” on disposal plans before launch licenses are granted. By acquiring Vestigo, Applied is positioning itself not just as a component manufacturer, but as a regulatory compliance partner.

Furthermore, the move illustrates the influence of private equity in the space sector. Backed by Greenbriar Equity Group, Applied is building a vertically integrated platform capable of delivering end-to-end subsystems. This strategy likely aims to capture value from the thousands of satellites projected to launch, and eventually deorbit, in the coming decade.

Sources

• Applied Aerospace & Defense

FAA Greenlights SpaceX Starship Operations at Kennedy Space Center

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has officially cleared the environmental review process for SpaceX to operate its massive Starship-Super Heavy launch vehicle from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center (KSC). According to reporting by Florida Today, the decision allows the aerospace company to proceed with plans for up to 44 launches annually from the historic Launch Complex 39A (LC-39A).

This regulatory milestone, formalized in a Record of Decision (ROD) signed in late January 2026, marks a critical shift for the Starship program. While development and testing have primarily centered on the company’s Starbase facility in Texas, this approval paves the way for operational missions from Florida’s Space Coast. These missions are essential for NASA’s Artemis program, which relies on Starship to return astronauts to the lunar surface.

However, the approval comes with significant conditions. The FAA has mandated strict protocols to mitigate the impact of sonic booms, noise, and airspace closures on local communities and wildlife.

Operational Scope and Infrastructure

The FAA’s decision permits a high cadence of operations at LC-39A, a pad previously used for Apollo and Space Shuttle missions. As detailed in the environmental review, SpaceX is authorized to conduct:

• 44 annual launches of the Starship-Super Heavy vehicle.
• 44 annual landings of the Super Heavy booster back at the launch site.
• 44 annual landings of the Starship upper stage, either at the launch site or in the Atlantic Ocean.

To support these operations, SpaceX is finalizing massive infrastructure upgrades at the pad. These include a dedicated launch mount, a “Mechazilla” catch tower designed to recover returning boosters mid-air, and extensive propellant storage farms. According to the research data, initial launches from Florida are expected later in 2026, pending the completion of construction and the issuance of specific vehicle operator licenses for each mission.

AirPro News analysis

The authorization for 44 launches per year represents a significant scaling of operations. For context, this cadence would rival the current frequency of Falcon 9 launches from some individual pads. This suggests that SpaceX intends to rapidly transition Starship from an experimental vehicle to a workhorse for heavy lift and orbital refueling, which are prerequisites for their Mars colonization ambitions.

Community and Environmental Impacts

The introduction of the world’s largest rocket to the Space Coast brings distinct environmental challenges. Florida Today highlights that the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) identified noise and sonic booms as primary concerns for residents in Titusville, Cape Canaveral, and Merritt Island.

Sonic Booms and Noise Levels

Unlike the Falcon 9, the Super Heavy booster creates a sonic boom upon its return to the launch site. The FAA report notes that launch noise could exceed 90 decibels (dB) in nearby communities. This level of noise is sufficient to interfere with conversation and cause “behavioral awakening”, waking residents from sleep.

With up to half of the approved operations potentially occurring between 10:00 PM and 7:00 AM, the potential for sleep disturbance has been a focal point of local concern. In response to the anticipated vibrations and shockwaves, the Cape Canaveral City Council has reportedly discussed seeking state and federal grants to reinforce local infrastructure.

Airspace and Wildlife

Beyond noise, the launches will require regulations lasting between 40 minutes and two hours. This could disrupt commercial aviation routes over Florida and the Atlantic. The FAA has stated it will work to optimize trajectory planning to minimize these delays.

Wildlife protection is also a major component of the approval. The operations pose risks to protected species such as sea turtles, Florida scrub-jays, and the North Atlantic right whale. The FAA has mandated several mitigation strategies:

• Lighting controls to prevent disorienting nesting sea turtles.
• Seasonal restrictions on offshore landings during right whale migration periods.
• Mandatory observers on recovery vessels to prevent marine life collisions.

Stakeholder Reactions

The approval has elicited mixed reactions from stakeholders. SpaceX and CEO Elon Musk view the Florida launch site as vital for achieving multi-planetary life, with Musk previously emphasizing that high-cadence operations are necessary to build a city on Mars.

Conversely, local residents have expressed apprehension regarding property damage and the “startle effect” of sonic booms. According to the source report, some community members have voiced a preference for keeping the testing phase in Texas. Environmental groups have also criticized the decision, arguing that the mitigation measures may not go far enough to protect the sensitive Indian River Lagoon ecosystem.

“Residents in Titusville, Cape Canaveral, Merritt Island, and Cocoa Beach may experience these elevated noise levels.”

, Summary of FAA findings via Florida Today

Frequently Asked Questions

When will the first Starship launch from Florida happen?

Initial launches are expected later in 2026. This timeline depends on the successful completion of pad infrastructure at LC-39A and the issuance of specific launch licenses.

How loud will the launches be?

The FAA estimates noise levels could exceed 90 dB in nearby communities. The return of the Super Heavy booster will also generate a sonic boom, which is a new phenomenon for local residents accustomed to Falcon 9 landings.

Will this affect my flight?

Potentially. Launches will require airspace closures ranging from 40 minutes to two hours. The FAA intends to manage these closures to minimize disruption to commercial air travel.

Sources

• Florida Today

This article is based on an official press release from NASA/JPL.

NASA’s Perseverance Rover Gains “GPS-Like” Autonomy with Major Software Upgrade

NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) has successfully deployed a transformative software update to the Perseverance rover, effectively solving one of the most persistent challenges in planetary exploration: autonomous localization. The new capability, known as “Mars Global Localization,” allows the rover to determine its precise coordinates on the Red Planet without human intervention, utilizing a method comparable to an onboard GPS.

According to the official announcement from JPL, the system was first successfully employed during regular mission operations on February 2, 2026, with a subsequent confirmation on February 16. The technology enables the rover to match its ground-level view with orbital maps, pinpointing its location to within 10 inches (25 centimeters). This development marks a significant shift from previous navigation methods, which relied heavily on Earth-based teams to correct navigation errors that accumulated during long drives.

Solving the “Drift” Problem

Prior to this update, Mars rovers navigated primarily using “visual odometry.” As described in technical specifications released by NASA, this method involves tracking movement by comparing frame-to-frame changes in images as the rover’s wheels turn. While effective for short distances, visual odometry suffers from “drift”, tiny calculation errors that accumulate over time. Over a long drive, a rover might estimate its position to be significantly different from its actual physical location.

When uncertainty levels became too high under the old system, the rover was forced to stop and wait, often for more than 24 hours, while engineers on Earth analyzed the data to provide a manual position fix. Mars Global Localization eliminates this bottleneck by allowing Perseverance to “reset” its position autonomously.

How Mars Global Localization Works

The new system mimics the way a human hiker might use a map and compass to reorient themselves. The process involves three distinct steps:

• Image Capture: The rover halts and rotates its mast to capture a 360-degree panoramic view of the terrain using its navigation cameras (Navcams).
• Map Matching: An onboard algorithm flattens these images into a top-down “orthomosaic” view. It then compares this view against high-resolution orbital imagery stored in the rover’s memory, which was originally captured by the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter.
• Position Fix: By identifying matching landmarks, such as crater rims, rock formations, and dune fields, the rover calculates its absolute coordinates relative to the global map.

Vandi Verma, Chief Engineer of Robotics Operations at JPL, emphasized the operational impact of this upgrade in the press statement:

“This is kind of like giving the rover GPS. Now it can determine its own location on Mars. It means the rover will be able to drive for much longer distances autonomously, so we’ll explore more of the planet and get more science.”

Repurposing Ingenuity’s “Brain”

A critical component of this breakthrough lies in the hardware used to process the complex image matching algorithms. The rover’s main computer, while radiation-hardened and incredibly durable, is built on 1990s-era architecture that lacks the processing speed required for rapid image analysis.

To bypass this limitation, JPL engineers repurposed the Helicopter Base Station (HBS). This secondary computer was originally installed solely to communicate with the Ingenuity Mars Helicopter. With Ingenuity now retired, the HBS, which utilizes a commercial-grade smartphone processor (Snapdragon class), was available for new tasks.

According to JPL data, this processor is approximately 100 times faster than the rover’s main CPU. This speed allows the Mars Global Localization system to perform the complex map-matching process in roughly two minutes, a task that would be impossible for the main computer to handle efficiently during a drive.

AirPro News Analysis: The Shift to Commercial Silicon

The successful deployment of Mars Global Localization on the Helicopter Base Station highlights a growing trend in aerospace engineering: the integration of commercial-off-the-shelf (COTS) technology in deep space missions. Traditionally, space agencies have prioritized radiation-hardened processors that are extremely reliable but technologically outdated by the time they launch.

The performance of the HBS suggests that future missions may increasingly adopt a hybrid architecture. By pairing a “survival” computer (radiation-hardened) with a “performance” computer (modern commercial silicon), agencies can unlock advanced autonomy capabilities, such as AI-driven route planning and real-time image processing, without sacrificing the mission’s fundamental safety. This architecture could prove essential for the next generation of lunar and Martian robotics, where autonomy will be a requirement rather than a luxury.

Current Operations and Future Outlook

Perseverance is currently traversing the “Mala Mala” region on the rim of Jezero Crater, a geologically diverse area where precise navigation is critical. The terrain is challenging, and the ability to drive confidently without waiting for Earth-based localization cycles is expected to accelerate the pace of scientific discovery.

This update serves as the capstone to a series of autonomy improvements, following the AutoNav update in 2021 and the introduction of AI route planning in late 2025. By combining obstacle avoidance, intelligent path selection, and now absolute self-localization, Perseverance has achieved a level of independence previously unseen in planetary rovers.

“Imagine you’re all alone, driving along in a rocky, unforgiving desert with no roads, no map, no GPS, and no more than one phone call a day… That’s what Perseverance has been experiencing… until now,” said Verma.

Sources

• NASA/JPL News Release