Mike Gruss
Editor-in-Chief, Sightline Media
Mike Gruss is a veteran defense reporter and Editor-in-Chief of Sightline Media Group, which includes Army Times, Air Force Times, Dense News, Military Times and Navy Times. From 2013 to 2016, Mike served as a Senior Staff Writer for SpaceNews covering national security space programs and military space policy in the U.S. Congress. Mike earned a bachelor's degree in English and American Studies from Miami University and has previously wrote for the Journal Gazette in Fort Wayne, Indiana and the Virginian-Pilot in Virginia before joining SpaceNews. Prior to joining Sightline in 2017, he was a senior editor of FedTech magazine covering technology in federal government. You can see Mike's latest project on Twitter.
Articles by: Mike Gruss
US Missile Defense Successfully Shoots Down ICBM in First Live-Fire Test of Its Kind
By Mike Gruss published 31 May 17
The Missile Defense Agency's ground-based defense system successfully intercepted an intercontinental ballistic missile during the first live-fire test of its kind Tuesday (May 30), the agency said.
US, China Will Meet This Year to Talk Space Debris
By Mike Gruss published 23 September 16
A senior U.S. State Department official said China and the United States plan to hold a second set of talks later this year to discuss how their militaries operate in space.
Jeff Bezos to Donate Heinlein Prize Winnings to Student Group
The U.S. Air Force's Next Launch Contract Up for Bid? An Experimental Satellite
By Mike Gruss published 23 August 16
The U.S. Air Force released a draft solicitation that sets up a competition between SpaceX and United Launch Alliance to launch a multipurpose experimental satellite in late 2018.
Jeff Bezos, Neil deGrasse Tyson Join Pentagon's Innovation Advisory Board
By Mike Gruss published 9 August 16
Jeff Bezos, the founder of commercial space company Blue Origin, and celebrity astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson are joining the Pentagon's Defense Innovation Advisory Board.
US Air Force Blames Power Failure for Loss of DMSP-F19 Weather Satellite
US Air Force's Next Space Surveillance System on Target for 2021
By Mike Gruss published 28 July 16
The Air Force said July 22 it still plans to launch the next Space Based Space Surveillance (SBSS) system in 2021.
US Air Force Expands Space Warfare Training
U.S. Air Force Space Command has released a new white paper that formally outlines Gen. John Hyten's plan to train satellite operators to fight through a war in space.
DigitalGlobe Says WorldView-2 Satellite Operational After 'Debris Causing Event'
The US Navy's Newest Satellite Suffers Glitch Following Launch
National Reconnaissance Office Discloses Previously Unannounced SpaceX Launch Contract
SpaceX is scheduled to launch a payload for the National Reconnaissance Office in March 2017 from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida, a spokeswoman for the intelligence agency said.
Why DARPA Is Pursuing the Reusable Military XS-1 Spaceplane
SpaceX Wins $83 Million Air Force Contract to Launch GPS Satellite in 2018
By Mike Gruss published 29 April 16
DMSP-19 Weather Satellite Dead After Air Force Ends Recovery Effort
By Mike Gruss published 29 March 16
The Air Force has stopped trying to recover a two-year-old weather satellite after operators lost the ability to command the spacecraft last month, an Air Force spokesman said March 24.
Air Force Says DMSP-19 Weather Satellite Is 'About Dead'
The head of Air Force Space Command told lawmakers March 15 that a two-year-old weather satellite is "about dead" and that the Air Force does not expect the satellite to return to operations.
Draft Bill Proposes Wide-Ranging Space Policy Changes
By Mike Gruss, Jeff Foust published 10 March 16
Aerojet Rocketdyne, ULA Win Air Force Propulsion Contracts
By Mike Gruss published 7 March 16
USAF Weather Woes Grow as DMSP-19 Satellite Stops Obeying Orders
NOAA satellite operators unexpectedly lost the ability to command one of the Air Force's primary weather satellites on Feb. 11.
Reusable Military Spaceplane Tops DARPA's Budget Request, Again
By Mike Gruss published 25 February 16
For the second consecutive year, the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency's top-funded space program is an experimental spaceplane that could fly 10 times in 10 days.
GAO: Missile Defense Agency Is Using 'High Risk' Approach for Additional Interceptors
US Missile Defense Agency Claims Success in Non-Intercept Test
By Mike Gruss published 9 February 16
Carter: Pentagon Budget Will Do 'Even More' for Space Protection
The White House's 2017 budget request will build on the Pentagon's $5.5 billion effort to protect national security satellites, Defense Secretary Ashton Carter said Feb. 2.
US Air Force Pushes Back Experimental Missile Warning Satellite
By Mike Gruss published 19 January 16
The U.S. Air Force expects to launch an experimental missile-warning satellite in 2018 or 2019, about two years later than the timeline service officials used last January.
U.S. Official: China Turned to Debris-free ASAT Tests Following 2007 Outcry
US Air Force Awards More Rocket Research Contracts
By Mike Gruss published 30 December 15
The service awards $3.1 million to Orbital ATK, $6 million to Aerojet Rocketdyne and $5.4 million to Northrop Grumman.