A Cold War-era U.S. spy satellite designated USA-32, part of the classified FARRAH program and launched in 1988, unexpectedly fragmented into debris in low-Earth orbit on September 13, 2026. The satellite was designed to intercept Soviet radar emissions, but the cause of its breakup remains unknown. The U.S. Space Force is monitoring the resulting debris field, with no immediate threats identified to other spacecraft.
Starfish Space, founded in 2019 by former Blue Origin engineers Trevor Bennett and Austin Link, is launching its first Otter spacecraft this fall to address orbital debris and satellite management. The spacecraft will conduct NASA-funded inspection missions of defunct satellites in orbit, with NASA paying $15 million for the demonstration mission called SSPICY.