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DTN 183: EU signs mutual space defense pact

Plus: 2026 Nobel Prize winners, Anduril's new shipyard, Hawkeye turns RF sensors toward orbital targets, Bridge Neurotech emerges from stealth with ultrasound BCI, the first fully implanted cochlear implant reaches patients, Star Catcher's power beaming demo reaches orbit, and more.

09 Oct 2026 — 7 min read

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EU deepens collective space security with mutual defense pact

“For the first time, the 27 member states of the European Union (EU) officially have given approval for a collective response — via political, economic or even military means — to threats against any one nation's satellites and related terrestrial infrastructure, under a recent decision by the group's ruling Council of Ministers.

The key tenet of the multifaceted Sept. 23 Council Decision 2026/2195 is a green light for joint action, according to several US and European analysts.

‘This framework aims to do the same thing as the recent US disclosure of on-orbit space control weapons: deterring space threats,’ said Clayton Swope, deputy director of the Center for Strategic and International Studies' Aerospace Security Project. ‘Europe is looking at space threats as a collective threat, not just as a threat to one nation. Accordingly, it's prepared to respond as Europe rather than just as one country.’" (via Breaking Defense)

Protostar during final assembly. Image: Star Catcher

“Last fall, Star Catcher beamed power down a runway in Florida. Now, the company wants to try the same thing between two spacecraft moving at roughly 27,000 km/h.

The company announced that its prototype power node—dubbed Protostar—is prepped for SpaceX's Transporter-18 launch, launching NET Oct. 1.

Protostar will attempt to beam power between two untethered spacecraft for the first time—a critical step to scale Star Catcher's orbital energy-infrastructure ambitions. The team aims to get an operational grid in orbit by the end of the decade.

"This is our first time sending a prototype of our full core tech stack into space—testing this on orbit is success in and of itself," Star Catcher cofounder and CEO Andrew Rush told Payload via email.” (via Payload)"