E34 - Weekly Recap: Weapons in Orbit, Money on the Table — September 19, 2026

This week's recap: NASA's $5.92 billion Commercial Crew total after a new SpaceX award, a slipping Starship launch date, Boeing's Starliner comeback, the Pentagon's first public admission of orbital weapons, Rocket Lab's near-$2 billion Iridium raise, and new moves in Earth observation, GEO surveillance, and space-domain-awareness software — plus the interstate fight over the new US Space Academy.

NASA Awards SpaceX Three Crew Flights to Space Station — NASAStarship's Upcoming Missions: Waiting on Orbit, Building Toward the Cape — NASASpaceFlight.comAfter Being Sidelined, Boeing's Starliner to Get Starring Role — Ars TechnicaFor the First Time, the US Military Confirms It Has Deployed Weapons in Orbit...