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If there is a common thread running through this edition, it is that the space sector continues to grow faster than many of the systems that support it. In Washington, lawmakers are advancing satellite licensing reforms, the Space Force is working to better integrate commercial capabilities into national security missions, and new SBIR opportunities signal continued demand for emerging technologies. Across the Atlantic, Europe is exploring ways to increase launch capacity and strengthen sovereign space capabilities to meet rising demand.
All this and more in this edition of Akin’s Space Law, Regulation and Policy Update.
In the White House/Executive Branch
Articles and Quotes
Trump Signs Order to Create a U.S. Space Academy (Reuters)
On August 28, President Donald Trump signed a Proclamation establishing a U.S. Space Academy, envisioned as a military and civilian institution modeled on existing U.S. service academies to train future leaders for the space sector. An eight-member commission led by National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Administrator Jared Isaacman will advise the president on establishing the academy, which the order says will develop leaders prepared to advance U.S. interests in space. President Trump said a location for the academy will be selected “very shortly,” but details regarding its campus, academic programs, admissions and staffing have not yet been determined. Funding for the institution will require congressional approval. The initiative is intended to expand recruitment and training of future astronauts, engineers, scientists and other space professionals as the United States pursues its Artemis lunar exploration program and other space priorities. The proposal also comes as the Space Force faces workforce shortages, with a 2025 government watchdog report finding that its workforce was 25% below the level required by Congress.
Space Force Struggling to Integrate Commercial Space Data (Breaking Defense)
The U.S. Space Force is facing challenges integrating commercial space technology, products and data into routine operations despite increased efforts to acquire private-sector capabilities. Col. Tim Trimailo, head of Space Systems Command’s Commercial Space Office (COSMO), identified requirements, classification and operational integration as three primary barriers and called for stronger coordination between acquisition personnel and operators. A Government Accountability Office (GAO) report similarly found hesitancy among Space Force organizations to use commercial space data because of concerns about licensing costs, usage restrictions and longterm access. GAO also found that some of these issues could have been addressed through an existing interagency commercial data working group, but relevant Space Force officials were not participating, and awareness of the group was limited. The service is pursuing greater integration through initiatives including Mission Deltas and U.S. Space Command’s Apollo Insight exercises, which bring together operators, acquisition personnel and commercial providers to test capabilities and develop operational concepts.
New Round of Space Force SBIR Projects Focus on Mission Needs (SpaceNews)
The Space Force is using its latest Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) solicitations to pursue technologies closer to operational deployment, with four opportunities focused on onorbit logistics, satellite self-protection, cyber defense and artificial intelligence (AI) for missile warning and tracking. Three of the four are Direct-to-Phase 2 solicitations, allowing companies with sufficiently mature technologies to bypass initial feasibility studies, with awards ranging up to $3 million. The opportunities include a $20 million On-Orbit Space Logistics Challenge supporting technologies for spacecraft refueling, repair, resupply and repositioning; compact sensors that could allow military satellites to detect and characterize nearby objects; and cyber defenses for satellites and supporting ground infrastructure. A separate Phase 1 solicitation offers up to $150,000 for studies examining the use of AI and machine learning to improve missile detection, warning, tracking, and reporting across multiple orbital regimes. Proposals open September 23 and close October 21.
Pentagon Issues Contracts to Boost Manufacturing Capacity for Space Systems (Air & Space Forces Magazine)
The Pentagon is investing in expanded manufacturing capacity for the space industrial base as the Space Force prepares to operate significantly larger satellite constellations. Through the Defense Innovation Unit’s (DIU) Adaptive Space Manufacturing and Integration Scale project, the department awarded agreements in July and August to demonstrate commercial manufacturing technologies capable of increasing production of satellite communications equipment, propulsion systems and structural hardware. Separately, the Pentagon announced a $11.4 million Defense Production Act (DPA) investment on September 1 to qualify a space-based radio-frequency amplifier and increase its production rate, with the goal of reducing schedule, cost and performance risks for government satellite programs. The investments come as the Space Force’s five-year budget projection includes “thousands” of satellites across missions including moving target indication, data transport, missile warning and space domain awareness. Space Force officials have said meeting anticipated demand will require substantial increases in industrial production capacity, while Air Force leadership is considering multiyear procurement contracts to provide manufacturers with more predictable long-term demand.
Federal Agency Space News
Federal Communications Commission
FCC Seeks Comment on Spectrum Access for Space Launch Activities (August 25, 2026)
Government Accountability Office
National Security Space: DoD Has Opportunities to Improve Its Use of Commercial Data and Related Services (August 27, 2026)
National Aeronautics and Space Administration
NASA Welcomes Türkiye as Newest Artemis Accords Signatory (August 31, 2026)
NASA Deep Space Network’s New Goldstone Antenna Goes Online (August 25, 2026)
Artemis II Crew Receives Congressional Space Medal of Honor (August 28, 2026)
Office of Space Commerce
OSC Co-Hosts Space Supply Chain Forum, Gathers Industry Perspectives (September 3, 2026)
U.S. Department of War
DoW Invests $11.4 Million to Enhance Manufacturing of W-Band Traveling-Wave Tube Amplifiers and Modernized Space Traveling-Wave Tube Amplifiers (September 1, 2026)
U.S. Space Force
DAF Announces Additional Guidance Implementing Changes in Response to SECWAR Memorandums (August 31, 2026)
The White House
Establishing the United States Space Academy (August 28, 2026)
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