About
Everything that mattered in space this week—not everything that happened.
Solward is an independent weekly briefing for people who care about space but can’t follow every mission update, paper, launch delay, contract, and policy decision as it happens. Every Monday we bring the previous seven days into focus — and tell you what to watch in the week ahead.
We’re not a firehose of links and we’re not a breaking-news wire. The goal is a precise, highly visual, human-edited read that takes about seven minutes and leaves you genuinely oriented: the three developments that mattered most, why each matters, what changed since last week, what launched, and what’s scheduled next.
Solward is written and edited by Chris Santangelo. It is independent and does not imply affiliation with NASA, ESA, SpaceX, or any other organization.
What you can expect
- Lead with what happened, then why it matters. Confirmed facts are separated from targets, projections, and analysis.
- Exact dates and named sources. Important claims link back to a primary source whenever one exists.
- Honest about uncertainty. A launch target is never presented as a guaranteed date. Confidence labels say exactly how solid a claim is.
- Corrections on the record. When we get something wrong, we fix it visibly and keep the history.
Who it’s for
Solward is written for curious, informed non-experts — readers who care about space but don’t have time to follow it daily:
- People fascinated by space but unable to follow daily developments
- Technology and science professionals
- Space enthusiasts who want more substance than social-media headlines
- Students and educators
- Investors and founders who want limited commercial-space coverage without an industry-only publication
Knowledgeable enthusiasts are served with links to primary sources and technical details in expandable sections on the website.
How it ships
- Publication day
- Monday
- Send time
- 7:00–8:00 a.m. Eastern
- Editorial cutoff
- Sunday 7:00 p.m. Eastern
- Length
- 1,400–1,800 words · ~7–9 min read
Launch dates move constantly, so the email pairs with a live Launch Window page that stays current between issues.
Every issue, in order
Five sections anchor every issue so you always know where to look; the rest run as the week’s news warrants.
- Mission Control. The three most important stories, each followed by “Why it matters”.core
- The Delta. What changed, slipped, launched, failed, or was corrected since last week.core
- Launch Log. Completed launches and major mission events from the previous seven days.core
- Launch Window. Important launches and milestones expected during the coming week.core
- Deep Field. The week’s most interesting astronomy or planetary-science discovery.core
- Orbital Economy. Funding, contracts, companies, satellites, and infrastructure.
- Policy Vector. Government, regulation, budgets, defense, and international cooperation.
- Solar Watch. Space weather, aurora potential, and meaningful solar activity.
- One Remarkable Image. A credited image with a concise explanation.
- Final Transmission. One question, poll, recommendation, or unusual fact.
Read more about how we work in our editorial standards.
Start your week oriented.
Get Solward's weekly space briefing every Monday. Unsubscribe at any time.