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>AST SpaceMobile is a Texas-based, publicly traded company building very large satellites to provide direct-to-cell communications on Earth. But it has been having trouble finding rides to space. So on Friday, AST announced that it is developing a medium-lift rocket, named Blacklift, which will have the capacity to lift 20 metric tons to low-Earth orbit. Oh, and the company said it would start launching commercially in late 2028. >AST is not the only company making fantastical claims of late. A firm called Cowboy Space said in October it was building a large rocket named Big Iron (full creditβ€”that’s an excellent name) to launch orbital data centers. It also claimed its large rocket would make its first flight in 2028. >Sure thing, y’all. >If AST already has agreements covering the deployment of more than 100 BlueBird satellites by the end of 2028, what precisely is Blacklift supposed to accomplish? Do you spend several billion dollars to develop a rocket you don’t actually need? https://arstechnica.com/space/2026/11/ast-spacemobile-is-so-desperate-for-launch-theyre-building-their-own-rocket/ get their asses, berger⏱ 14m↩