Rafael Mentges
@mentges.bsky.social
Space Economist. Interested in European Integration, industrial policy, innovation, strategic sovereignty, and of course things like launchers, SatCom, EO ... I have another profile focused more on my old interests: Macro, monetary policy and banking.
"firms behave like profit maximizers" and other hot takes
SpaceX's satellite ambitions squeeze out rivals reliant on its rockets
SpaceX is increasingly reserving space on its rockets to launch its own Starlink satellites, crowding out rival space companies that have long depended on Elon Musk's company to get their payloads int...
reuters.com
How fast is the universe expanding? The Nancy Grace Roman Telescope can help find an answer. 🧪 🔭
NASA’s Roman telescope could help solve this cosmic mystery
aerospaceamerica.aiaa.org
Autonomous aircraft, hypersonic weapons and high-energy lasers are among six priorities of Australia's new 10-year defence strategy. #Auspol
minister.defence.gov.au
Agree completely with @mentges.bsky.social here. Starlink is a game changer for so many reasons. Economic, military, governance (and the obvious tech/engineering advances). It's just such a shame about the person masterminding it all.
Rafael Mentges@mentges.bsky.social · yesterdayHughes’ Chapter 11 filing underscores a broader structural shift: #Starlink is not merely expanding satellite broadband. It is making large parts of the traditional GEO internet market obsolete through faster, lower-latency connectivity at competitive prices. #SatCom
Hughes’ Chapter 11 filing underscores a broader structural shift: #Starlink is not merely expanding satellite broadband. It is making large parts of the traditional GEO internet market obsolete through faster, lower-latency connectivity at competitive prices. #SatCom
Hughes files for bankruptcy after GEO business loses ground to Starlink
EchoStar’s Hughes geostationary satellite broadband business has filed for bankruptcy in the United States after years of mounting competition from SpaceX’s Starlink constellation.
spacenews.com
ICYMI: Copernicus monthly Climate Bulletin, June 2026: - June 2026 was the second-warmest June globally. - Western Europe experienced its warmest June on record. - Sea surface temperature over the extra-polar ocean was the highest on record for June. ...
Climate Bulletins
climate.copernicus.eu
Italy-led EU mission intercepts shadow fleet tanker in Mediterranean
Italy-led EU mission intercepts shadow fleet tanker in Mediterranean
On Sunday the Italian Navy intercepted the Toa Payoh a tanker sailing under the flag of Cameroon
dlvr.it
"In my lifetime satellite imagery latency will be measured in frames per second." Joe Morrison, Umbra Space Opinions? :)
In my lifetime satellite imagery latency will be measured in frames per second | Joe Morrison
In my lifetime satellite imagery latency will be measured in frames per second
linkedin.com
Earth and space are no longer separate domains. Space junk should be managed as a more-than-planetary interconnected system extending from the spacecraft cemetery at the bottom of the ocean, through the atmosphere, to all Earth and lunar orbits. 🧪 🔭 #SpaceJunk
13,000 tonnes of space junk clutters Earth orbit. Here’s how it could be cleaned up
Properly addressing the problem of space requires work across three fronts: technology, policy and philosophy.
theconversation.com
Chinese startup raises funds for space situational awareness constellation, joining commercial SSA rush
Chinese startup raises funds for space situational awareness constellation, joining commercial SSA rush
A Beijing-based startup has secured around $14 million to build a satellite constellation for tracking orbital objects, adding to China’s growing SSA sector.
spacenews.com
My latest for SpaceNews: ESA has published a call for studies examining the feasibility of repurposing its Lunar Link Gateway hardware as a standalone communications satellite. spacenews.com/esa-opens-ca...
ESA opens call to repurpose Gateway communications module
ESA opens call to repurpose Gateway communications module
spacenews.com
La compétitivité, seul chemin pour une Europe spatiale souveraine Par Gilles Rabin
La compétitivité, seul chemin pour une Europe spatiale souveraine - Revue Politique et Parlementaire
Le bon vieux temps du spatial, avec ses acteurs nationaux auxquels on distribuait tour à tour les contrats pour ne pas privilégier l’un ou l’autre, est révolu.
revuepolitique.fr
An the EU should stand with Canada. But I don't expect much from our side. It is really disappointing how the EU is not able to coordinate a response to Trump's tariffs with our main allies and friends all over the world.
The Guardian@theguardian.com · last wk.Trump has singled out us Canadians for special treatment in his tariff war – there is no choice but to get nasty | Matt Gurney
There are over 10, 000 Starlink satellites in Low Earth Orbit - those of every other nation and company are around 5, 000. 🧪 🔭 #SpaceJunk
Starlink satellites: Facts, tracking and impact on astronomy
Are Starlink satellites a grand innovation or an astronomical menace?
space.com
Super interesting piece. Another case were expectations (or anticipation) have real effects. "these behaviours can lead to a self-fulfilling prophecy in which people choose not to enter a profession, leading to labour shortages or higher costs, “thereby intensifying firms’ incentives to automate”."
If you think your profession is dying, it could soon be gone
Younger workers once foresaw the demise of horse-drawn carriages — but anticipating obsolescence can be self-fulfilling
giftarticle.ft.com
Someone on LinkedIn argued that the EU’s decision to restrict the release of Copernicus imagery following a US request undermines European sovereignty. I think the argument is worth discussing, although I am not fully convinced by the way sovereignty is being defined here. 2/9
“Following a request from the US.” I don’t know what this is, but it’s certainly not European sovereignty. What’s the point of investing billions in sovereign European infrastructure if we’re going… ...
“Following a request from the US.” I don’t know what this is, but it’s certainly not European sovereignty. What’s the point of investing billions in sovereign European infrastructure if we’re going t...
linkedin.com
The EU has ordered a 24-hour delay in the release of some Copernicus imagery following a request from the US. I think this is a mistake and will only strengthen non-EU actors, especially Chinese EO companies.
EU delays release of Copernicus imagery over Gulf of Oman
EU delays release of Copernicus imagery over Gulf of Oman
spacenews.com
“China’s vision of providing … leadership while defending free trade … rings hollow if it fails to tackle its homegrown problems, and continues to count on the rest of the world to keep its own economy afloat. China’s future depends on its leaders acting decisively. And soon.” By Eswar Prasad
China needs a new growth model
This matters for Beijing’s sake and for the rest of the world economy
ft.com
"The Seoul-listed shares of SK Hynix have now fallen about 45 per cent since hitting a record high above Won3mn ($2,041) in June, wiping about $570bn off its market value and marking one of the world’s steepest declines over the period, second only to SpaceX."
AI stock sell-off deepens as investors dump chipmakers
SK Hynix and Samsung shares tumble, pushing South Korea’s Kospi down more than 10%
giftarticle.ft.com
🚀🚀Job Alert🚀🚀 In meinem Team ist eine Stelle frei. Ich würde mich über eine weitere Volkswirtin bzw. einen Volkswirt freuen, aber auch andere Profile sind angesprochen. Unfortunately, German language seems to be mandatory (not my choice).
Compute in space is hard because of radiation and temperature variatons. Could this be a game changer? "Intel has spent the past several years quietly developing a processor for satellites ... The processor is designed for resilient, high-power performance in space." #ODC
Intel debuts new chip for space computing
Intel debuts new chip for space computing
spacenews.com
went to a robot training facility last week where they're using brain wave sensors on humans operating robots to figure out how to make physical AI models better techcrunch.com/2026/07/26/a...
Are brain waves the next unlock for physical AI? | TechCrunch
Forget YouTube videos — frontier physical AI models need multiple camera angles, dense annotation, and, soon, brain wave readings.
techcrunch.com
🚨🚨Important reminder 🚨🚨 Megaconstellations (even without those ridiculous 1mn data center satellites) might have catastrophic consequences for all of us here on Earth.
Space datacenters proposed by Musk and Bezos ‘catastrophic’ for planet, experts warn
New US petition demands review of plans from tech companies amid fears of environmental destruction
theguardian.com
"For a vehicle intended to fly again, “not exploding” is not the final objective, but it is an extremely useful intermediate condition." 😂 And yes, I sometimes forget that non-space people don't know this: We are not going to Mars anytime soon. For thousands of unresolved problems.
STARSHIP FLOATED. MARS IS NEXT. APPARENTLY.
It is summer. The news cycle is thin, editors are hungry, and Mars is available.
linkedin.com
Via BBC - NASA's Dr Nicola Fox praises rise of women in science bbc.com/news/article...
Nasa boss from Hitchin praises rise of women in science
Dr Nicola Fox says she was one of four women on her science course at university in the 1991.
bbc.com
Interesting piece by Richard Baldwin on Globalisation. www.linkedin.com/pulse/chines...
Chinese Exports Hid Manufacturing's Deglobalisation.
China's rising export share masked the rest of the world's decline. By Richard Baldwin, Professor of International Economics, IMD Business School, Lausanne.
linkedin.com
That guy is mentally unstable and is throwing one tantrum after the other. The arguably two most powerful people in the US right now are completely nuts.
Ron Filipkowski@ronfilipkowski.bsky.social · last wk.Elon has been melting down and raging nonstop since his interview with The Economist and Chef Andres is one of the best and kindest humans on planet earth.
Elon has been melting down and raging nonstop since his interview with The Economist and Chef Andres is one of the best and kindest humans on planet earth.
🚀🚀Job Alert🚀🚀 In meinem Team ist eine Stelle frei. Ich würde mich über eine weitere Volkswirtin bzw. einen Volkswirt freuen, aber auch andere Profile sind angesprochen. Unfortunately, German language seems to be mandatory (not my choice).
