# SpaceNexus Daily, Wednesday, October 21, 2026: Falcon 9 and Ceres-1S launches recorded as successes

> Launch Library 2 records a Falcon 9 Bandwagon 5 launch and a Ceres-1S launch as successes; Payload Space reports SpaceX revenue of about $14.6B for its latest quarter.

- Canonical page: https://spacenexus.us/briefing/2026-10-21
- This Markdown version: https://spacenexus.us/briefing/2026-10-21.md
- Data as of: published 2026-10-21 06:07 UTC; records from 2026-10-20 06:00 UTC to 2026-10-21 06:00 UTC
- How the numbers are made: https://spacenexus.us/methodology#ai-content

## About this edition

- AI-generated briefing, AI voice. This briefing is AI-generated: an AI model wrote the script from SpaceNexus records and the sources listed, two independent AI passes checked every claim against those records and the web, and an AI voice reads it. No sponsor, advertiser or partner has any part in it.
- How it was checked: All 33 claims in the script were checked one by one against the SpaceNexus records listed below, by two independent AI fact-checkers that did not write it, one of them also searching the web; every number, date and time was matched to the records by code. It publishes only if every claim passes.

## Transcript

This is SpaceNexus Daily, for Wednesday, October 21, 2026.

### Space stocks and money

In the trading session of Tuesday, October 20, the SpaceNexus Pure-Play Index of space stocks fell 1.9 percent, with 7 companies up and 28 down. The largest gain was NorthStar Earth & Space, up 3.5 percent, and the largest decline was Telesat, down 9 percent. OXG Space raised $1.79 million, INR 170 million as stated, according to Indian Startup News. Guoyu Xingchen raised an undisclosed amount in a Series A round, according to Future Phecda (未来宇航). TradingView reported that AAC Clyde Space named Jonatan Forsberg Interim CFO.

Sources: [SpaceNexus Pure-Play Index (Yahoo Finance daily close)](https://spacenexus.us/markets-daily); [SpaceNexus Pure-Play Index (Yahoo Finance daily close)](https://spacenexus.us/company-profiles/northstar-earth-space); [SpaceNexus Pure-Play Index (Yahoo Finance daily close)](https://spacenexus.us/company-profiles/telesat); [Indian Startup News](https://indianstartupnews.com/funding/bengaluru-spacetech-startup-oxg-space-raises-rs-17-crore-to-build-satellite-connectivity-network-in-orbit-12685294); [Future Phecda (未来宇航)](https://www.futurephecda.com/news/125027); [Future Phecda (未来宇航)](https://www.futurephecda.com/news/125024); [TradingView](https://news.google.com/rss/articles/CBMixAFBVV95cUxPQmo2RDN3MzNvMmYwUFhUZmdJaEdqNTlkOElTTlcxaVhxU1V1NHpJVzg3cDhTVFV0Mk1CSm1VNm5ERnBndXhBaEh2M2hMY0VyaDY4clhHSWs1eGFweWtxbFZUNm80czZ0OGxRc1B6R0lIMlZMZy1RcGlYNUFaS1Q0VjFLWVY2bUZPc25CVzFoRmxiTEpQZnV3Q0VaRXZZZFF0LURZdTlpLUVKWXVvSTVsV205d2loYjZjNTM2aGZLLWlLU010?oc=5); [Fierce Network](https://news.google.com/rss/articles/CBMilAFBVV95cUxNRUNWYVd0SVhpVmhDZHBnRWhIUF9YU0xtLUtBUXZUNkpaNzZpZ3B0ODhnemNUcWtjOEhPanpONkNrMFAwOFNCZ3JWc28yREJ6Tmlkd2U5TzFmUGpxbUJQWG0tblVrYTBvWWpJb1JicFpYN2RleGtPSGtMQjJNODd5c2c2OEpaSDB2TXBjQ1B6eXRkTzVv?oc=5)

### Two launches recorded

Launch Library 2 records two launches as successes. Falcon 9 Block 5 lifted off with Bandwagon 5 from Cape Canaveral SFS on October 20. Ceres-1S lifted off with Xiguang-4 01 from Haiyang Oriental Spaceport on October 21.

Sources: [Launch Library 2](https://spacenexus.us/launch/cmva1ff9t018f13ojpmu85gud); [Launch Library 2](https://spacenexus.us/launch/cmt21aooc05z01173u9gga61m)

### SpaceX third-quarter results

Payload Space reported that SpaceX had ~$14.6B in revenue and net income of $4.4B in its first full quarter as a public company.

Sources: [Payload Space](https://payloadspace.com/spacexs-ai-revenue-leads-q3-earnings/)

### Starship Flight 15 simulation

Teslarati SpaceX reported that SpaceX played a new Starship Flight 15 simulation showing the ship caught by tower chopsticks. The outlet's headline says SpaceX plans to catch Starship next month.

Sources: [Teslarati SpaceX](https://www.teslarati.com/spacex-starship-tower-catch-flight-15/)

### Reaction Dynamics unveils Borealis

SpaceQ reported that Reaction Dynamics wants to put six tonnes in low Earth orbit by 2031 with Borealis, a rocket it unveiled this week. The company also plans to raise $350 million and grow its staff from 68 to more than 350.

Sources: [SpaceQ](https://spaceq.ca/reaction-dynamics-borealis-six-tonne-2031/)

### Launches ahead

Falcon 9 Block 5 is scheduled to launch Starlink Group 15-15 from Vandenberg SFB no earlier than 23:02:41 UTC on October 21. Rocket Lab's Electron is scheduled to launch three HawkEye 360 satellites from New Zealand no earlier than 07:00 UTC on October 22.

Sources: [Launch Library 2](https://spacenexus.us/launch/cmv5e8m6f18jj3p0m8clsyxwl); [Launch Library 2](https://spacenexus.us/launch/cmogcfc9cu4ad10zhnz3ogzuu)

Full details and sources are at spacenexus.us.


## Sources

- [SpaceNexus Pure-Play Index (SpaceNexus Pure-Play Index (Yahoo Finance daily close))](https://spacenexus.us/markets-daily)
- [NorthStar Earth & Space (NSTR) (SpaceNexus Pure-Play Index (Yahoo Finance daily close))](https://spacenexus.us/company-profiles/northstar-earth-space)
- [Telesat (TSAT) (SpaceNexus Pure-Play Index (Yahoo Finance daily close))](https://spacenexus.us/company-profiles/telesat)
- [OXG Space funding (Indian Startup News)](https://indianstartupnews.com/funding/bengaluru-spacetech-startup-oxg-space-raises-rs-17-crore-to-build-satellite-connectivity-network-in-orbit-12685294)
- [Guoyu Xingchen funding (Future Phecda (未来宇航))](https://www.futurephecda.com/news/125027)
- [Huanxin Yilian funding (Future Phecda (未来宇航))](https://www.futurephecda.com/news/125024)
- [Jonatan Forsberg, AAC Clyde Space (TradingView)](https://news.google.com/rss/articles/CBMixAFBVV95cUxPQmo2RDN3MzNvMmYwUFhUZmdJaEdqNTlkOElTTlcxaVhxU1V1NHpJVzg3cDhTVFV0Mk1CSm1VNm5ERnBndXhBaEh2M2hMY0VyaDY4clhHSWs1eGFweWtxbFZUNm80czZ0OGxRc1B6R0lIMlZMZy1RcGlYNUFaS1Q0VjFLWVY2bUZPc25CVzFoRmxiTEpQZnV3Q0VaRXZZZFF0LURZdTlpLUVKWXVvSTVsV205d2loYjZjNTM2aGZLLWlLU010?oc=5)
- [Derek Peterson, AST SpaceMobile (Fierce Network)](https://news.google.com/rss/articles/CBMilAFBVV95cUxNRUNWYVd0SVhpVmhDZHBnRWhIUF9YU0xtLUtBUXZUNkpaNzZpZ3B0ODhnemNUcWtjOEhPanpONkNrMFAwOFNCZ3JWc28yREJ6Tmlkd2U5TzFmUGpxbUJQWG0tblVrYTBvWWpJb1JicFpYN2RleGtPSGtMQjJNODd5c2c2OEpaSDB2TXBjQ1B6eXRkTzVv?oc=5)
- [Ceres-1S | Xiguang-4 01 (Launch Library 2)](https://spacenexus.us/launch/cmva1ff9t018f13ojpmu85gud)
- [Falcon 9 Block 5 | Bandwagon 5 (Dedicated Mid-Inclination Rideshare) (Launch Library 2)](https://spacenexus.us/launch/cmt21aooc05z01173u9gga61m)
- [SpaceX’s AI Revenue Leads Q3 Earnings (Payload Space)](https://payloadspace.com/spacexs-ai-revenue-leads-q3-earnings/)
- [SpaceX showcases exactly how it plans to catch Starship next month (Teslarati SpaceX)](https://www.teslarati.com/spacex-starship-tower-catch-flight-15/)
- [Reaction Dynamics sets 2031 target for six-tonne Borealis rocket (SpaceQ)](https://spaceq.ca/reaction-dynamics-borealis-six-tonne-2031/)
- [Falcon 9 Block 5 | Starlink Group 15-15 (Launch Library 2)](https://spacenexus.us/launch/cmv5e8m6f18jj3p0m8clsyxwl)
- [Electron | We're Not Hawking Around (3x HawkEye 360) (Launch Library 2)](https://spacenexus.us/launch/cmogcfc9cu4ad10zhnz3ogzuu)

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