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Ordering a new space policy.
Host Maria Varmazis and producer Ethan Cook sit down to discuss how the US has begun to shift its focus regarding space operations through a series of recent Executive Orders. They look at how the Trump administration has set an ambitious space agenda and is looking to grow the commercial space sector.
Subscribe and listen to the conversation now.
How EOs are changing America's space sector.
This week on T-Minus: Space-Cyber Briefing: we dive deeper into several key Executive Orders (EOs) that look to reignite America's space goals by setting ambitious goals and growing the space marketplace.
Does this newsletter spark questions for you? Write to us at space@n2k.com to guide how we’ll continue to explore space Executive Orders in future podcast episodes and newsletter issues.
The new national agenda.
While America has never fully taken its eye off the space sector, the aggressive investment and ambitious goals set during the 1960s and 1970s have not been replicated at the same scale during much of the modern era. However, since taking office, the Trump administration has increasingly pushed for a more aggressive space policy, using Executive Orders (EOs) to establish its agenda and accelerate development across the sector.
Perhaps the most critical of these EOs is EO 14369, or the Ensuring American Space Superiority order. While it was not the first space-related order issued by this administration, it provides a broad outline of its vision and goals for American space development, national security, and commercial activity.
Within the EO, the administration established a series of major goals. These include:
- Establishing a permanent lunar base by 2030.
- Developing next-generation missile defense technologies by 2028.
- Creating a “responsive and adaptive” national security space architecture through accelerated acquisition reform and integrated commercial space capabilities.
- Increasing private-sector investment and strengthening commercial pathways for space development.
Importantly, the EO does not look to accomplish these goals solely through federal programs. Instead, it places significant emphasis on partnerships with private industry, calling for greater commercial participation in areas ranging from space transportation and infrastructure to national security capabilities.
Expanding the space marketplace.
If EO 14369 establishes the administration’s broader vision for American space development, EO 14335, or the Enabling Competition in the Commercial Space Industry order, focuses more directly on expanding the commercial sector needed to achieve those goals. Through the order, the administration has sought to reduce regulatory barriers and encourage greater competition and investment across the space industry.
One of the order’s primary areas of focus is launch and reentry. The administration has directed the Department of Transportation and the Federal Aviation Administration to identify and remove unnecessary regulatory barriers affecting commercial launch and reentry activities. This process includes streamlining licensing and permitting processes, reducing duplicative reviews, and exploring ways to accelerate environmental reviews associated with spaceports and launch activities.
Additionally, the order looks to direct the Commerce Department to establish a process for authorizing "novel space activities” that do not currently fit nearly into existing regulatory frameworks. Each of these efforts will become increasingly important as companies pursue a variety of space related activities such as in-space servicing, manufacturing, transportation, and other critical operations.
Taken together, EO 14369 and EO 14335 outline an approach that places significant emphasis on expanding the scale, speed, and commercial participation of the American space sector. The administration wants more spacecraft, more frequent launches, greater commercial involvement, and eventually a larger American presence beyond low Earth orbit.
This week’s space-cyber headlines.
The news stories we’re reading and thinking about this week.
The new EU Space Threat Response Architecture explained.
- The EU has expanded its Space Threat Response Architecture to cover a broader range of threats, including cyberattacks, espionage, supply-chain disruptions, ground-station attacks, satellite interfaces, and other threats to EU or member-state space capabilities.
- The framework creates a more coordinated response mechanism allowing the EU to combine technical threat assessments with diplomatic, political, and restrictive measures.
- Listen to Maria’s coverage on the CyberWire Daily.
September 28, 2026 | Source: European Union External Union
New White Paper Published: Impacts of New Cyber Regulations on the SATCOM Ecosystem.
- This white paper highlights how cybersecurity is evolving into a strategic enabler for resilient and trustworthy space services.
- The paper found that Europe is moving towards stronger governance-driven cybersecurity regulation and that cybersecurity needs to be integrated into the beginning of space projects.
October 7, 2026 | Source: Cybersecurity Makerspace
Margaret Hamilton, computing pioneer who led software development for the Apollo program, dies at 90.
- Margaret Hamilton, a leading computer scientist at MIT’s Instrumentation Lab during NASA’s Apollo program, has died at the age of 90.
- Hamilton was instrumental in establishing software engineering as a dedicated discipline and she was awarded the 2016 Presidential Medal of Freedom.
October 7, 2026 | Source: MIT News