In an updated SEC filing, Firefly Aerospace increased its planned Nasdaq IPO range to $41–$43 per share, targeting up to $697 million in proceeds and valuing the company at just over $6 billion. Bankers cited strong demand following Firefly’s successful Blue Ghost lunar landing and recent $176.7 million NASA cargo contract. Extra capital will fund higher Alpha launch cadence and scale production of upgraded landers. The upsized offering signals renewed public-market appetite for well-executing launch providers. 

A New Shepard rocket blasted off from West Texas at 08:30 a.m. ET, carrying crypto entrepreneur Justin Sun and five international tourists to 106 km and back. The 10-minute flight was New Shepard’s 14th crewed mission and its sixth of 2025, pushing the program’s passenger count to 46. Both booster and capsule landed safely, keeping Blue Origin’s human-flight success rate at 100 percent. 

[Update: Due to cumulus cloud presence, the flight was delayed and subsequently set for 11:4m a.m., August 1.]
NASA and SpaceX rolled Dragon Endeavour and its Falcon 9 to Pad 39A overnight and aim to lift four Expedition 73 crew members to the ISS at 12:09 p.m. Eastern. Weather officers give a 90 percent “go” forecast, and the booster is expected to land at Cape Canaveral’s LZ-1 eight minutes after liftoff. This will be the first Dragon to fly a sixth time, reflecting NASA’s growing confidence in deep vehicle reuse. A clean, on-time launch would keep crew-rotation cadence intact and push cumulative Dragon crew-hours above two million. 

Rocket Lab’s (Nasdaq: RKLB) next Electron, “The Harvest Goddess Thrives,” is booked to lift off from Launch Complex 1 in New Zealand during a window that opens 5 Aug UTC. The mission will deploy QPS-SAR-12, the fifth synthetic-aperture-radar satellite Rocket Lab has launched for Japan’s iQPS constellation. Eleven successful flights so far this year keep the company’s 2025 perfect-success record intact. High reliability and dedicated small-sat service continue to attract Earth-observation customers. 

The direct-to-cell operator closed a private placement of seven-year convertible senior notes that lifts its cash reserves above $1.5 billion. The issue carries an effective conversion premium of 100 percent to the stock’s July 24 close and is hedged with capped-call options to keep dilution near 1.5 percent. Management will use the proceeds, plus a follow-on equity sale, to retire $135 million of higher-coupon 2032 notes and accelerate manufacturing of BlueBird Block 2 satellites. The strengthened balance sheet gives AST a clearer runway to launch initial U.S. service in 2026 and positions the company as a serious rival in the emerging direct-to-device market. 

NASA awarded Firefly Aerospace a Commercial Lunar Payload Services task order to deliver two rovers and three science instruments to the Moon’s south-pole region in 2029. The “Blue Ghost Mission 4” stack will pair an Elytra Dark orbital tug with an upgraded Blue Ghost lander, giving NASA multi-year communications relay and days-long surface operations for resource mapping. The win follows Firefly’s successful March landing and indicates the agency’s confidence in competitive commercial logistics. It also sends a positive signal to investors as the company works toward a $5-plus billion Nasdaq IPO later this year. 

SpaceX ignited a single Raptor on Ship 37 at Starbase for a brief static-fire, validating upgrades to the deluge system installed after Flight 8. No pad damage or engine anomalies were reported. Elon Musk said Flight 10 could occur in mid-August once the FAA issues a license modification. Regular full-stack tests will be key to bringing Starship online for lunar cargo runs and high-volume Starlink deployment.