The Air Force has not determined when it might allow reused hardware instead of brand-new Falcon 9 Block 5 rockets. SpaceNews.com

A Rocket Lab Electron rocket successfully launched a group of cubesats Dec. 16 on a mission funded by NASA as the company looks ahead to more frequent launches in the next year. SpaceNews.com

The NASA Advisory Council has recommended that NASA review its existing planetary protection guidelines to balance the needs of science and exploration, an effort that could set the stage for a similar revision at the international level. SpaceNews.com

While some question whether Virgin Galactic’s latest SpaceShipTwo test flight actually went into space, a number of government officials and industry organizations have few doubts that it did. SpaceNews.com

Business Finland, a Finnish trade and economic development agency, awarded a 10 million Euro ($11.36 million) grant to radar satellite operator ICEYE. SpaceNews.com

With a first flight to the edge of space under the company’s belt, Virgin Galactic founder Richard Branson believes commercial flights of SpaceShipTwo could begin some time next year. SpaceNews.com

A DARPA team will “inventory the DoD space-based command-and-control capabilities, identify critical gaps, deficiencies and inefficiencies in our existing architectures." SpaceNews.com

Greg Wyler, OneWeb’s founder, said the company will need only 600 satellites or so instead of 900 after ground tests of the first satellites demonstrated better than expected performance. SpaceNews.com

The first GPS 3, known as SV01, is the first of an entirely new design of GPS satellite that has three times better accuracy and up to eight times improved anti-jamming capabilities, according to Lockheed Martin. SpaceNews.com

The U.S. Air Force’s first GPS 3 satellite was encapsulated within a SpaceX payload fairing at Astrotech Space Operations on Dec. 7 in preparation for a Dec. 18 launch at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida. SpaceNews.com

Once lawmakers have a chance to review the proposal, said Shanahan, he will be “happy to take the red pen out." SpaceNews.com

Virgin Galactic achieved a long-awaited milestone Dec. 13 when its SpaceShipTwo suborbital vehicle performed its longest test flight to date, exceeding one altitude often used as the boundary of space. SpaceNews.com

The telecommunications company COMSAT, which supplies services to the U.S. government, has signed a deal with Intelsat to market FlexAir to U.S. government aviation users and coalition partners. SpaceNews.com

A test flight more than a decade in the making is scheduled to take place Dec. 13 as Virgin Galactic’s SpaceShipTwo suborbital vehicle is set to make its highest and fastest flight to date, one that, if all goes well, will take it beyond one boundary of space. SpaceNews.com

The shift was mandated by Congress in Section 1601(a) of the Fiscal Year 2018 National Defense Authorization Act. SpaceNews.com

This year’s satcom workshop comes amid major questions about the Pentagon’s plans — or lack thereof — to buy more satellite communications services from the private sector. SpaceNews.com

Members of the C-Band Alliance have stipulated that they will only buy U.S.-built satellites to replace any capacity lost through the transfer of some C-band spectrum to cellular operators for 5G, a move that could position their plan more favorably with the White House and Congress. SpaceNews.com

Harris Corp.’s first small satellite, a six-unit cubesat, is fully operational, receiving commands and transmitting information to the satellite operations center in Palm Bay, Florida. SpaceNews.com

Arianespace’s final launch of the year is scheduled for Dec. 18 at 11:37 a.m. Eastern. The company will launch a French military Earth observation satellite called CSO-1 on a Europeanized Soyuz rocket from Sinnamary, French Guiana. SpaceNews.com

Nearly a year after the release of the latest decadal survey for the field, the head of NASA’s Earth science program says the agency is making good progress in implementing its recommendations. SpaceNews.com