"We're talking about deploying 100 cubesats on a protect-and-defend mission for less than £100 million."

"We're talking about deploying 100 cubesats on a protect-and-defend mission for less than £100 million."

"We're talking about deploying 100 cubesats on a protect-and-defend mission for less than £100 million."

The U.K. startup Shield Space is racing to apply the lessons of drone warfare in Ukraine to develop swarms of up to 100 autonomous, satellite-defending cubesats.

The U.K. startup Shield Space is racing to apply the lessons of drone warfare in Ukraine to develop swarms of up to 100 autonomous, satellite-defending cubesats.

In May 2026, four Russian military satellites came close to ICEYE-X36, a private synthetic aperture radar satellite widely believed to be providing battlefield intelligence for Ukraine, in an apparently aggressive and risky "grey zone" maneuver that spooked many in the space industry. Close enough to jam or interfere with the satellite's signal, blind it with a laser, fire a metal dart at it or, simply, force it to maneuver and burn fuel, the satellites' seemingly intimidatory behavior has increased the West's desire to develop defensive technology for satellites. In October 2026, it was reported that one of those same four Russian satellites passed within 500 meters (1,650 feet) of the same ICEYE satellite. Now, U.K. startup Shield Space is racing to apply the lessons of drone warfare in Ukraine to develop swarms of up to 100 very small, low-cost, attritable drone-like autonomous spacecraft called cubesats. Released by a car-sized carrier in Earth orbit, these microwave-sized spacecraft will act as interceptors to protect Western satellites, and their deployment will mark a next step in the evolution of orbital warfare. Shield Space says that these space drones will use "effectors" like lasers or microwaves, or "kinetic standoff" techniques, to defend Western satellites...

The Canadian Space Agency (CSA) wants companies to develop three priority technologies: a small telescope for CubeSats, camera electronics for the proposed CASTOR space telescope and a radar module for a planned snow-monitoring satellite.

When a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket took off from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, Fla., on Oct. 20, it carried with it the usual mix of micro-satellites and cubesats built by a wide range of companies looking to catch a ride into orbit, and also a capsule with, among other things, a reverse osmosis desalinator, survival gear, and emergency medical equipment—a test of a capability that could one day get critical supplies to U.S. forces around the globe. The post AFRL Moves Cargo Through Space with SpaceX Demonstration appeared first on Air & Space Forces Magazine.

How do CubeSats work? Discover the modular design, avionics, propulsion, and electronics that power these shoebox-sized mini satellites in orbit.

Two student-built CubeSats launched to the International Space Station on October 13, 2026, to test open-source spacecraft technology and amateur radio communications.