Rocket Lab to Acquire Iridium, Blue Origin Traces New Glenn Blast to BE-4 Oxygen Valve, SpaceX Freezes Rideshare Bookings Past 2028

Iridium Communications disclosed in an employee FAQ filed with the SEC that it has signed a definitive agreement to be acquired by Rocket Lab, with shareholders receiving $27 in cash plus a collared number of Rocket Lab shares at an exchange ratio between 0.24 and 0.40, and closing expected in mid-2027 after regulatory and shareholder approvals. The combination moves Rocket Lab from space-infrastructure supplier into network operator, pairing Electron and Neutron launch with Iridium global L-band services spanning communications, Internet of Things, direct-to-device and resilient positioning, navigation and timing.

Blue Origin has identified the cause of the May 28 New Glenn pad explosion. CEO Dave Limp said the anomaly originated at the main oxygen valve on one of the seven BE-4 engines that power the first stage, confirmed through hardware recovery and hot-fire testing. Blue Origin is making small valve modifications that can be retrofitted to existing engines, with updated hardware due by the end of August as it works toward a return to flight before year-end while repairing Launch Complex 36. United Launch Alliance also flies BE-4s on Vulcan, making the fix relevant beyond New Glenn.

SpaceX has stopped accepting new bookings for Transporter and Bandwagon rideshare missions beyond late 2028, citing a fully booked Falcon 9 manifest. Existing manifest keeps flying through 2028, but the freeze reshapes economics for small satellite operators who have relied on roughly $7,000-per-kilogram rideshare pricing that Electron and Alpha cannot match. The move lands the same day the first tranche of SpaceX insider shares comes free of lockup, with more than 911 million shares becoming eligible for trading and the stock already about 50% off its June high after Tuesday's disclosure that capital expenditures ran more than twice revenue.