Alloy

Aerospace

Sandia Researchers Develop Faster Method to Evaluate Heat-Shield Materials

Engineers at Sandia National Laboratories have developed a method to more rapidly evaluate heat-shield materials used on hypersonic vehicles. The work was carried out as part of a three-year research project that combined computer modeling, laboratory testing, and flight experiments. Heat shields, formally known as thermal protection systems, are used to protect vehicles from extreme heat and p

Industry News

G20 Critical Minerals Framework Sets Out Path for African Processing and Jobs

Africa holds more than half the world’s cobalt, nearly 48% of its manganese, and roughly a fifth of its natural graphite. It also sits on significant reserves of copper, nickel, lithium, and platinum group metals. Yet most of these minerals leave the continent in raw or semi-processed form, only to return as finished clean energy products made elsewhere. A new framework developed under South Af

Aerospace

General Galactic Plans October Launch to Test Water-Only Satellite Propulsion

Space startup General Galactic is preparing to fly a 500 kg (1,100 lb) satellite powered entirely by water. The company has booked a SpaceX Falcon 9 rideshare slot for October 2026 to carry out the demonstration, called Trinity. General Galactic was co-founded by CEO Halen Mattison, a former SpaceX engineer, and CTO Luke Neise, a Varda Space veteran. Their satellite will carry a single tank of

Aerospace

NASA Funds Hypersonic Flight-Test Studies With Two New Awards

NASA has awarded contracts worth a combined $1.7 million to two companies to study how their existing vehicles could support reusable hypersonic flight testing. The work sits under NASA’s Hypersonic Technology Project, part of the agency’s Advanced Air Vehicles Program. SpaceWorks Enterprises of Atlanta, Georgia, received $500,000 to examine its X-60 platform. Stratolaunch of Mojave, California