1st Commercial Nuclear-Powered Satellite Set For Launch Aboard SpaceX Rocket

 by Mrigakshi Dixit via Interesting Engineering,

Miami-based City Labs is all set to launch the world's first commercial nuclear-powered satellite into orbit.

NanoTritium battery Citi Labs

Solar panels have some challenges. When a satellite slips into the shadow of the Earth, hits a permanently dark lunar crater, or drifts into deep space, its solar arrays become useless. Batteries can step in, but they eventually die.

City Labs thinks nuclear energy could solve this persistent problem. On July 7, the company announced that its BOHR (Betavoltaic Orbital High-Reliability) satellite had secured a launch slot on a SpaceX Transporter-17 rideshare mission.

According to reports, SpaceX has scheduled the launch of its Transporter-17 rideshare mission for Tuesday, July 7, at 3:10 a.m. ET. The launch will mark a massive historic milestone. BOHR will be the first-ever nuclear CubeSat to enter orbit.

"This is a historic step for commercial nuclear power in space," said Peter Cabauy, CEO of City Labs. "BOHR demonstrates that safe, compact, and regulatory-approved nuclear power systems are ready for routine commercial deployment. This capability enables persistent, always-on payload operations that are not constrained by sunlight or battery life."

Secures FAA approval

Engineered for safe handling, transportation, and integration into standard commercial launch environments, City Labs' tritium-based power systems operate at extremely low radiation levels.

BOHR's core technology is City Labs' proprietary NanoTritium™ betavoltaic system, which generates continuous power from the natural beta decay of tritium rather than nuclear fission.

Compared to space-bound nuclear reactors, betavoltaic cells operate with no moving parts, no liquid electrolytes, and zero risk of fire or thermal runaway. Furthermore, as the tritium fuel naturally decays, it harmlessly transforms into helium-3, a completely stable and non-radioactive isotope.

This process operates at safe, ultra-low radiation levels suitable for standard commercial handling. In this mission, the nuclear battery will run and validate the primary payload independently, while a solar power system manages the main satellite bus operations.

Getting a nuclear payload onto a commercial rocket isn't easy.

In fact, it requires cutting through some of the toughest regulatory red tape on Earth. BOHR represents the first commercial space mission to successfully navigate the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) pathway for nuclear launch approval, a framework established under National Security Presidential Memorandum-20. The safety analysis was led by City Labs' Kevin Makinson and independently validated by Sandia National Laboratories.

The FAA issued its definitive payload authorization on September 30, 2025.

Advancing space exploration

Backed by the Department of War, NASA, and the Air Force Research Laboratory, the mission arrives at a key time for space exploration.

NASA's Artemis program aims to establish a permanent human presence on the Moon. Therefore, the demand for continuous, light-independent power sources is skyrocketing. It could position this satellite as a pathfinder for future deep-space operations.

"This milestone establishes a new class of spacecraft capabilities, enabling persistent operation of critical subsystems where traditional power systems fall short. This includes deep space, permanently shadowed lunar regions, and long-duration autonomous sensor networks," the company stated in the press release.

As a result, the BOHR mission will serve as a vital pathfinder for future nuclear-powered spacecraft supporting both civil and national security operations. When SpaceX's Falcon 9 lifts off, it will be launching the next era of nuclear-powered space exploration.

https://www.zerohedge.com/technology/worlds-first-commercial-nuclear-powered-satellite-set-launch-aboard-spacex-rocket

US eases export restrictions on UAE

 The United States Department of Commerce's Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) announced on Friday that it will ease export restrictions on the United Arab Emirates, giving the country's government and approved companies easier access to advanced US technology.

The new rules will allow approved UAE recipients to obtain certain military equipment, commercial satellites, and technology used in artificial intelligence, oil and gas production, desalination, and civilian nuclear power without applying for individual export licenses. The department said the changes reflect the countries' "close military and commercial partnership."

The move will also give UAE technology companies Group 42 Holding Ltd and Core42 Technology Projects LLC easier access to advanced computing products used for AI. Several US technology companies operating in the UAE, including Amazon, Apple, Google, Meta, Microsoft, OpenAI, Oracle and xAI, will also be eligible for easier access under the new rules.

https://breakingthenews.net/Article/US-eases-export-restrictions-on-UAE/66676182

Post-Platner Politics: Dems Fight for Wales After Shedding Their Values

 This week, Democrats are fighting to keep Maine after shedding their morals.

The controversy in Maine over Graham Platner was a modern remake of the scene from “A Man for All Seasons” in which Sir Thomas More confronts Richard Rich, a former protege who lied in court to secure his conviction in exchange for being named attorney general of Wales. As Rich passes by, More asks: “For Wales? Why, Richard, it profits a man nothing to give his soul for the whole world … but for Wales!”

For Democrats, they might not even have Wales to show for their “profit.”

Platner withdrew from the race Wednesday night. Even with that decision, Democratic politicians will be wearing the mark of Platner for the rest of their careers after dismissing earlier allegations in their quest to take back power.

Of course, a Platner withdrawal from the Senate race could well prove an upgrade. After all, it is hard not to improve on an alleged Nazi-tattooed, Hamas-praising, veteran-bashing, sex-texting, Communism-embracing accused rapist. However, politicians such as Bernie Sanders, Elizabeth Warren, Sheldon Whitehouse, Ro Khanna, and others will long wallow in a post-Platner party.

These Democrats led the mob against now Justice Bret Kavanaugh, insisting that women had to be believed. Whitehouse said he is “unimpressed” by the allegations from multiple women as “a lot of nothing.” He also reminded voters that one of the alleged victims is a Republican.

Warren was equally undeterred, bouncing on the stage with Platner while proclaiming that he was “My kind of man.” It did not matter that he was accused of rape and other abuse. He would deliver a major committee chair for Warren if they retook power.

As with Swalwell, the establishment moved to destroy Platner only after polls showed him unlikely to beat Sen. Susan Collins. Suddenly, the same pattern emerged. CNN and the Washington Post suddenly ran stories of new allegations just days before the deadline for Platner to voluntarily withdraw. The same candidates and media that downplayed the allegations earlier suddenly became a convention of Claude Rains in claiming to be “shocked, shocked” that yet another woman was raising the same allegations.

For Whitehouse, the new woman had the benefit of being liberal since apparently the alleged rape of Republican women was “seemed like a lot of nothing.”

The media also pushed back that there was no reason for them to have believed the earlier women before the polling changed.

Bulwark’s Michelle Goldberg at least acknowledged her role in the early press pump for Platner while calling for his withdrawal. Gone now is her gushing account in the New York Times of how he proved “nothing like the edgelord caricature I encountered online.”  She added, “Platner is magnetic. Like Obama, he seems to promise a politics that is fundamentally progressive while going beyond debased partisan sniping.”

The Maine Democratic Party has announced that it will choose his replacement. After an anti-establishment election in which Platner won by 72 percent and crushed the sitting governor in fundraising, the Democratic Party announced that “We have repeatedly reiterated to Graham Platner’s team that they have no role in determining our next Democratic nominee for the U.S. Senate.”

For many, it sounds like a Kamala Harris redux by the Democratic establishment, though they will hold a “convention” of 600 people to make the selection. The rhetoric could backfire.

The irony is that these politicians are drawing distinctions that would have been unthinkable just months ago. Ro Khanna insisted, after withdrawing his support and appearing at a rally for Platner, “I’ve been very clear that sexual assault or violence against women is a red line.”

The problem is that women had previously accused him of such violence, but Khanna endorsed him anyway. The goalpost moved higher and higher for women, where rape (involving a liberal woman) was now the red line for Democratic politicians.

The actual red line appeared to be polling that showed that Platner could not deliver his side of the Faustian bargain. He could not deliver Maine. Suddenly, again, women had to be believed and the party had to choose his replacement.

The greatest irony would be Maine Secretary of State Shenna Bellows, who attracted national attention by pushing an unconstitutional effort to block Trump from the presidential ballot. Her disregard for constitutional values would be highly appealing to many in the party who want to take over the Supreme Court by packing it with an instant liberal majority.

Bellows previously campaigned on her unconstitutional actions as the ultimate “win-by-any-means” Democrat. After being roundly defeated in a run for governor (garnering only 20 percent of the vote), she could now run in the general without having run a true primary campaign.

Of course, Bellows also campaigned with Platner despite the earlier allegations but insisted that he should step aside for her.

It is all part of achieving real power. Just ask Richard Rich. Of course, it may profit these politicians nothing to give their souls for the whole world, but they may not even get Maine in the bargain.

Jonathan Turley is a law professor and the New York Times best-selling author of “Rage and the Republic: The Unfinished Story of the American Revolution.”

https://jonathanturley.org/2026/07/09/post-platner-politics-the-democrats-fight-for-wales-after-shedding-their-values/

UAE Oil Output Hits All-Time High, Doubling Pre-Crisis Levels

 Confirming reports from earlier this week, the latest estimates from the International Energy Agency signaled that the United Arab Emirates (UAE), which unexpectedly quit OPEC earlier this year in a shock move that threatened the cohesion of OPEC, produced 4.1 million barrels per day (bpd) of crude oil in June, its highest output ever.

The UAE’s crude oil production jumped from 3.3 million bpd in May to 4.1 million bpd in June after the country left OPEC effective May 1, started raising output, and managed to sneak a lot of exports out of the Middle East even as the Strait of Hormuz was mostly blockaded for the first half of June.

The crude oil production in June, at 4.1 million bpd, was the highest ever on record for the UAE, nearly double the output in March 2026 at the start of the Hormuz crisis. The production level also topped the previous record of 4 million bpd from the spring of 2020 when the OPEC+ producers were fighting for market share in a brief price war during peak Covid, according to OilPrice.com

The UAE has sought to adapt to the closure of the Strait of Hormuz by sneaking tankers in dark mode through the Strait and increasingly offering to sell many of its crude grades for loading offshore Fujairah and at Sohar in Oman, outside the Strait.

Moreover, the Abu Dhabi national oil company ADNOC accelerated plans to have a new pipeline operational in 2027 that would double its oil export capacity through Fujairah, which sits outside the Strait of Hormuz.

ADNOC plans to build a new project, the West-East 1 Pipeline, which is expected to become operational next year and double the UAE’s energy giant’s export capacity through the Emirate of Fujairah to meet global demand for energy supplies.

The national oil company also plans to plans to award as much as $55 billion (200 billion UAE dirhams) on upstream and downstream projects over the next two years. The announcement of accelerated growth came days after the UAE said it would quit OPEC effective May 1 to pursue its national interests.

https://www.zerohedge.com/markets/uae-oil-output-hits-all-time-high-doubling-pre-crisis-levels

Kraken to introduce AI-powered trading

 Cryptocurrency exchange Payward, Inc., widely known as Kraken, is preparing to relaunch its app with a focus on agentic trading, allowing artificial intelligence agents to monitor markets, identify investment opportunities, and execute trades in real time, CNBC reported on Friday.

During setup, users will provide information about their financial objectives, investment preferences, and willingness to take risks. The AI will then suggest a portfolio for their approval and provide tailored market updates, news, and investment ideas.

"In this new world, there's an opportunity for everyday people to become high-frequency traders and do so using plain English by just talking to their well-informed best friend," Chief Data Officer at Kraken Kamo Asatryan said. Robinhood CEO Vlad Tenev recently said AI agents will soon be able to rival human traders' skills and give everyday investors access to capabilities previously available mainly to institutional firms.

https://breakingthenews.net/Article/Kraken-to-introduce-AI-powered-trading/66675769

Trump: We'll continue talks with Iran upon their request

 United States President Donald Trump announced on Friday that peace negotiations between Washington and Tehran will continue, but stressed that the ceasefire is "over."

"The Islamic Republic of Iran has asked us to continue 'talks.' We have agreed to do so, but the United States has stated to them, in no uncertain terms, that the Cease Fire is OVER," Trump underscored in a post on Truth Social.

Previously, media reports suggested that the US president's administration is maintaining contact with Tehran regarding peace talks to reach a diplomatic resolution, despite the recent exchange of fire.

https://breakingthenews.net/Article/Trump:-We'll-continue-talks-with-Iran-upon-their-request/66675597

Sanofi snags FDA thumbs up for Sarclisa as 1st cancer drug delivered by on-body injector

 Sanofi has scored FDA approval for its subcutaneous version of Sarclisa, giving the multiple myeloma treatment a potential boost in its competition with Johnson & Johnson’s powerhouse Darzalex. 

Sanofi’s new formulation, which is dubbed Sarclisa Escena, now becomes the first subcutaneous anticancer drug that can be administered manually or by an on-body injector (OBI). The endorsement for Sarclisa Escena applies to each of the indications for which its intravenous (IV) formulation is approved. 

The endorsement was backed by multiple trials, including the phase 3 Iraklia study, which was the first to use an OBI in dosing multiple myeloma patients and showed that Sarclisa Escena reduced treatment time and produced similar efficacy and safety compared to the drug's IV formulation.

Sarclisa Escena administered via an OBI in combination with Bristol Myer’s Squibb’s Pomalyst and the corticosteroid dexamethasone (Pd) yielded a 71.1% objective response rate (ORR), compared to 70.5% with Sarclisa IV-Pd, establishing non-inferiority in adult patients with relapsed or refractory multiple myeloma who have received at least one prior line of treatment.

Sarclisa Escena is delivered by Enable Injections’ CirCLIQ’ hands-free automated device. The Cincinnati-based company gained its first FDA approval three years ago for its enFuse OBI to administer Apellis Pharmaceuticals’ paroxysmal nocturnal hemoglobinuria drug Empaveli. The device employs a retractable 30g needle that is shorter and thinner compared to the needles commonly used for large-volume injections, Sanofi said.

Introduction of the OBI option “represents a significant advancement in multiple myeloma care,” Donna Catamero, the Associate Director, Myeloma Research at Mount Sinai Phillips School of Nursing, said in a release. 

“For nurses and physicians treating patients with multiple myeloma, this automated system has the potential to meaningfully reduce administrative burden, simplifying how therapy is delivered and giving healthcare teams more capacity to focus on their patients,” Catamero added.

The innovation also gives Sanofi a better chance to vie with J&J. While Sarclisa and Darzalex are from the same CD38 drug class, Darzalex reached the market five years earlier (2015), and gained a nod for its subcutaneous version, Darzalex Faspro, in 2020. 

Darzalex rung up sales of $14.4 billion in 2025, which were up 23%, while Sanofi reported sales of Sarclisa at 588 euros ($700 million), good for an increase of 28%.

“Sarclisa is the cornerstone of our oncology franchise and we have always been confident in it being widely adopted as a potential best-in-class therapy,” Manuela Buxo, EVP and Sanofi’s Head of Specialty Care, said in a statement.

Sarclisa is approved in three indications, including first-line use in patients who are not eligible for stem cell transplant. In this indication, Sarclisa is added to J&J and Takeda’s Velcade, plus Bristol Myers Squibb’s Revlimid and the corticosteroid dextamethasone. 

Sarclisa was originally approved in combination with Pd for patients who had received at least two prior therapies, including Revlimid and a protease inhibitor such as Velcade. It also was endorsed for second-line use with Amgen’s Kyprolis and dextamethasone.

The FDA was originally scheduled to decide on the new version of Sarclisa by April 22 before pushing back the date by three months. In June, Europe signed off on subcutaneous Sarclisa, making it the first anticancer therapy that could be delivered by an OBI in the bloc. 

https://www.fiercepharma.com/pharma/sanofi-gains-fda-thumbs-sarclisa-1st-cancer-drug-be-delivered-body-injector