Seventy percent of aerospace companies reported increased turnover.

SpaceX experienced a 15% decline in employee ranks following its return-to-office mandate, while Microsoft and Apple saw declines of 5% and 4% respectively.

Forty-eight percent of organizations report lower pay compared to other sectors as a challenge for retention.

A significant portion of the space workforce is aging and approaching retirement age.

Multiple space agencies and organizations are anticipating substantial workforce turnover in the coming years.

Seventy-two percent of space sector roles are reported as difficult or very difficult to recruit for.

The 2022 AIA/AIAA Workforce Study found that 78% of companies reported higher pay in other sectors as a key reason for employee departures.

Organizations report that staff poaching is a significant issue, attributed to 57% of retention problems.

Ninety-five percent of space organizations experience skills-related issues.

Sixty-eight percent of space organizations cite competition from other sectors as their biggest challenge in recruiting staff.

Space Canada is the advocacy group for Canada's space industry.

Space Canada released a 17-page position paper suggesting ways to speed up procurement in the country's space industry.

The position paper was released on a Wednesday.

ESA Director General Josef Aschbacher presented the agency's plan for 2026 during a press conference at ESA HQ in Paris.

A billionaire backer is entering the space-science sector by building private space telescopes.

Viasat's HaloNet Launch Telemetry Data Relay Service aims to provide continuous, global coverage from ascent through early orbit.

Space launch providers have faced intermittent loss of telemetry data when rockets travel out of range of ground stations for decades.

Telemetry data blackouts can last for minutes, leaving critical periods when vehicle health, performance, and safety information go dark.

NASA announced that the return of the ISS long-duration crew, including astronaut Kimiya Yui, has been expedited.

Makoto Suwa will continue training in the United States on the equipment and space experiments he is assigned.

Makoto Suwa passed the astronaut selection exam at the age of 46 in February 2023, making him the oldest person to do so.

The HUNCH program provides high school students with opportunities to design and manufacture hardware used in NASA missions, including those for the ISS.

Once at the ISS, Makoto Suwa will perform maintenance and preservation of facilities, including the Kibo Japanese Experiment Module, as well as conduct experimental missions.

During his training, Makoto Suwa has focused on extravehicular activities, robotic arm operation, physical training, and language studies.

NASA postponed a planned extravehicular activity due to crew health issues, although specific details of the health issues are not disclosed for privacy reasons.

Knowledge gained from supporting ISS operations will directly inform the design, operation, and maintenance of next-generation platforms like Starlab.

The specific spacecraft Makoto Suwa will board is not yet determined, but the damaged Russian Soyuz spacecraft will not be used.

The return date for the Crew-11 astronauts will be determined within a few days.

The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) announced that astronaut Makoto Suwa will stay at the International Space Station (ISS) for about six months starting around 2027.

Makoto Suwa received official astronaut certification in October 2024 and has been training at NASA's Johnson Space Center.

Matt Magania of Voyager stated that HUNCH strengthens the aerospace talent pipeline and produces results that are applicable to actual spaceflight.

JAXA astronaut operations technology unit head Hiroshi Kurukawa stated that they will continue efforts to maximize the utilization of the ISS Kibo module during the long-duration mission.

Makoto Suwa will be flying in space for the first time.

ASTRO GATE president Daisuke Oide explained that the motivation for entering the award was to promote the opportunities for the space industry in Fukushima.

The Fukushima Venture Award 2025 awards business plans that aim to tackle local issues and represent new business challenges in the Fukushima prefecture.

Early return of the ISS long-duration crew marks the first time in the 25-year history of the ISS.

The ISS is scheduled for decommissioning around 2030.

ASTRO GATE Co., Ltd. received the Excellence Award and the Masuyama Tatsuya Award at the Fukushima Venture Award 2025 on January 8, 2026.

Voyager has supported the HUNCH program for the past five years and will provide continued assistance based on previous achievements.

The Crew-11 cohort is composed of Kimiya Yui, Michael Fincke, Zena Cardman, and Oleg Platonov, who have been active on the ISS since August of the previous year.

Voyager Technologies received a contract related to NASA's 'Create Hardware (HUNCH)' program on January 8, 2026.

Jeremy Hansen is an astronaut with the Canadian Space Agency.

The Canadian Space Agency is involved in the Artemis II mission.

Artemis II is a mission involving NASA and international partners.

Kepler Communications has 10 AETHER optical relay satellites scheduled for launch on the SpaceX Twilight rideshare mission this Sunday.

Canada's 'Launch the North' sovereign launch challenge has a fund of $105 million.

The application window for the 'Launch the North' challenge officially closed today.

There are more than a dozen applications for Canada's 'Launch the North' challenge.

NASA initially planned a spacewalk conducted by veteran astronaut Mike Fincke and newer crew member Zena Cardman for the Crew-11 mission.

NASA postponed the planned spacewalk due to a medical issue affecting an astronaut on the ISS.