Launch Industry Updates: SpaceX turns down military work as Spain sets 2027 target
A NASA safety panel suggests Starship may require 22 refueling stops for lunar missions, while PLD Space confirms its Miura 5 rocket is nearing its first flight.
By Ivan Dvorak ·
22 refueling stops. That is the number a NASA safety panel cited when evaluating SpaceX's Starship vehicle for lunar landing support, a figure that indicates the immense logistical complexity of the mission architecture.
The safety assessment emerged on Thursday, the same day the US Space Force reportedly received a refusal from SpaceX for three separate military launch contracts. In the latest edition of the Rocket Report, published on October 23, the company was described as telling the military branch "thanks, but no thanks" to the offers.
While the American launch market saw these developments, Spanish startup PLD Space announced that its Miura 5 rocket is approaching final integration. The company, which reports to Aviation Week, now targets a first launch before mid-2027. This small-lift vehicle is due to make its inaugural flight next year.
PLD Space has built three Miura 5 vehicles. CEO Raúl Torres stated in an October 19 program update that the two vehicles not designated for the inaugural flight are intended to qualify key system elements. Torres noted that manufacturing all three allowed his teams to work continuously across production and integration stages.
"Manufacturing these three vehicles has allowed our teams to work continuously across different stages of production and integration, applying the lessons learned from each qualification campaign directly to the launch vehicle," Torres said. One Miura 5 second stage is fully integrated and is currently at PLD's Teruel test facility.
This stage is undergoing a qualification campaign that includes a wet dress rehearsal and a static hot-fire test. The testing allows for system-level evaluation under representative operating conditions. Meanwhile, in Canada, startup Reaction Dynamics is seeking to raise $350 million. The funding would support an expansion of its workforce from 68 employees to more than 350, according to spaceQ.
Reaction Dynamics is developing a small-lift rocket called Aurora, which it aims to reach orbit with in 2028. The company has also outlined plans for a medium-lift vehicle named Borealis, which is targeted to debut by 2031.
