Europe must support its startups
If Europe is serious about defence, it needs to redirect money towards its most creative and agile companies, and away from bloated legacy contractors.
In The Next Web, Dr. Robert Brüll, CEO of FibreCoat, argues that the conflicts of the future will not be won by those with the largest armies, but by those with the best technology, the quickest decision-making, and the most adaptable systems:
‘The United States has long understood a simple truth: war is won not by size alone, but by speed and creativity. Indeed, innovation has always been crucial in conflict. Armour made knights safe until the crossbow came along. High walls protected cities until cannons emerged. Trenches were made obsolete by fast-moving mechanised forces. The lesson: a military that cannot innovate is one that falls behind.
Yet Europe remains stuck with an outdated model of defence procurement – one that favours a handful of bloated contractors doing the same old thing over the fresh ideas of startups and entrepreneurs. Against a backdrop of serious geopolitical unrest and diplomatic realignment, this must change. …
Nowhere is the cost of our complacency clearer than in Ukraine. There, war has been reshaped by innovation. Small, nimble startups have built the inexpensive drones that are taking out enemy tanks worth millions. Engineers fresh out of university are programming weapons that would have been unthinkable a decade ago. This is the nature of modern warfare: high-tech, decentralised, and led by those who can iterate and adapt the fastest. …
Europe needs to rethink its defence industrial strategy from the ground up – and then get moving.’
Sky News reports that Kayrros, the world leader in energy and environmental intelligence, has revealed a 70-acre, methane-spewing 'garbage mountain of Delhi', where nearby residents are being 'slowly poisoned':
‘This trash mount is more than 200 feet high and covers an area of almost 70 acres - over 50 football pitches.
Standing at the top of more than 14 million metric tonnes of waste, one gets the size and scale of this man-made disaster. …
Satellite data has revealed that this site is a hotspot for methane emissions - a powerful greenhouse gas that is almost 84 times more potent in warming the atmosphere than carbon dioxide over a 20-year period.’
In a piece for Washington Technology, Jeff Huggins, President of Cailabs, US, argues that undersea cables – vital for global connectivity – are increasingly at risk, and optical communications can help:
‘Advances in satellite communications, including the proliferation of space sensor types, bring capabilities not previously available. One is the ability to track maritime traffic around the globe, and so in and around undersea cables, at a level of detail and at a speed not possible before.
Accurate tracking requires the rapid transmission of data from satellites to the ground. And the problem here is that there are data transmission bottlenecks. Specifically traditional radio-frequency (R.F.) downlink systems are limited to Mbps speeds that struggle to keep up with the Gigabits of data generated every second from the myriad of satellites collecting data from space.
There is a need for low latency – for minimal ‘lag’ – in maritime monitoring that can be significantly improved with the advent of Gbps Optical Ground Stations. This points to the vital supporting role that optical communications has to play.’
In a guest piece for Space News, the European Commission reveals its push for next generation space electronics and critical technologies:
‘The space technology sector has experienced unprecedented growth, driven by innovative breakthroughs, and an intensifying global competition. In response to this, the EU has adopted a multifaceted strategy to bolster its position …
Unlike blue-sky research, these space-focused projects follow a needs-based approach: the Commission identifies specific technological gaps based on the needs of the EU space missions and then collaborates with industry to develop technologies that can be swiftly commercialised. The space research projects are directly managed by the Space Research Unit of the European Commission executive agency HaDEA. Space research and development projects are implemented with the European Commission defining the objectives and the industry determining the approach. This model aims at giving the industry the freedom to select the optimal solution that meets their needs while also delivering commercial benefits.’
The Daily Express US reports that President Trump will personally front up the cash for the stranded NASA astronauts after they were paid just $5 per extra day:
‘Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore splashed down off the Gulf of Florida on Tuesday aboard a SpaceX Dragon capsule after spending 286 days on the International Space Station.
They had been stranded in orbit after the Boeing jet they arrived on developed several malfunctions.
Despite being cut off from their friends and families for months without access to showers or laundry services, Williams and Wilmore received the same $5 daily stipend - $1,430 for the whole trip - afforded to government employees taking a business trip.’
China has been practising satellite-on-satellite ‘dogfights’ in space, MailOnline reports:
‘China has been rehearsing 'dogfighting in space' with satellites, a top American space official has revealed.
Vice Chief of Space Operations at the US Space Force Gen. Michael Guetlein said during the annual McAleese defence programmes conference that the service is 'starting to see our near-peers focusing on practicing dogfighting in space with satellite-on-satellite' operations.
'With our commercial assets, we have observed five different objects in space maneuvering in and out and around each other in synchrony and in control', he said.’
In The Scientific American, cosmologist Paul Sutter says that Musk’s much-discussed trip to Mars isn’t going to happen – and that it could be motivated by self-interest:
‘The stated goals of Mars landings in 2026 and 2028 do not correspond to a comprehensive, articulated plan. It’s simply the next open launch window, when Earth and Mars are in conjunction on the same side of the solar system, and transfers to that planet require the least amount of energy. It’s like announcing a camping trip on your next available weekend, without having purchased any camping supplies. And your car is in the shop. And has exploded. …
The only way we’re going to Mars is by spending a lot of money. Likely, up to trillions of dollars. Perhaps that’s Musk’s real aim—to funnel enormous sums of money away from researchers at NASA and its partners and into his privately-held company without having to answer to shareholders or deliver on promised schedules. A bold enough claim could substantially increase his already vast fortune.
Followers of Musk are used to his audacious, and sometimes incredible, assertions. For example, Tesla drivers are still waiting for their vehicles’ “Full Self Driving” system to achieve “Level 5” autonomy, which was supposed to occur in 2021; meanwhile, the system’s under scrutiny for fatal accidents. But while statements of grand ambition may excite shareholders and fans, they don’t make for sound space progress. If we keep whipsawing between priorities, and allow outlandish, self-interested claims to direct policy, the only place we’ll be going is nowhere.’
In Payload, Argyris Kriezis and Jack Kuhr write that US companies are ‘making a run at Europe’:
‘The surge in European optimism in the past few months stems from an asset allocation shift away from risk-on US businesses, the prospects of a significant bump in defense spending, and a belief that the region will invest in sovereign capabilities as EU countries no longer feel like they can fully rely on the US for support.
Europe’s push for independent space capabilities creates new opportunities for US-based space businesses. In addition to access to large government deals and a burgeoning commercial market, Europe offers a highly skilled workforce at significantly lower labor costs than the US, making it an attractive destination for expansion.’