12 March 2000

Satcoms

Andrew Antennas Africa Bound
Andrew Corporation has shipped three of its new 6.5 m dual reflector Earth Station Antennas to GS Telecom, a leading wireless and satellite systems integrator in West Africa.

GS Telecom is installing a frame relay network in Nigeria and across Africa and also plans to offer a Wholesale Internet service. The Andrew antennas are being used to provide VSAT links between major towns and cities in Ghana and Nigeria.

The 6.5 m dual-reflector earth station antennas supply excellent performance for high-density data, voice communications networks and broadcast applications. Their dual-reflector Gregorian optical systems give high gain and closely controlled pattern characteristics. The antennas shipped to GS Telecom have standard C-band capabilities and include several labour-saving features such as variable speed motors and enhanced APC300 step track controllers for reducing field installation time and costs. Each ESA has a self-aligning main reflector eliminating the need for field alignment.

The Andrew 6.5 m dual reflector ESA is the only antenna in its class that does not need a FCC waiver for routine C-band licensing. Andrew 6.5 m ESAs are compliant with the following industry transmission standards: FCC 25.209 specifications from 1- to 180-degrees at C- and Ku-bands; Brasilsat, ASIASAT, EUTELSAT, APSTAR, and INTELSAT F-2 at C-band and E-3 at Ku-band.

The 6.5 m ESA's steel pedestal ground mount assembly is hot-dipped galvanised for extended product life. Stainless steel hardware provides maximum resistance against corrosion. The antenna has a guaranteed wind survival factor of up to 200 km/hr in any operational position.

ATC Expands CNN Uplinks
ATC Teleports Inc has announced that it has entered into a two year agreement with Cable News Network (CNN), a division of Time Warner, for occasional-use broadcast uplink service from ATC Teleports facilities in the New York, San Francisco and Washington, DC areas.

Under this agreement, ATC Teleports will provide domestic and international uplinking services for CNN's news gathering requirements in the New York, San Francisco and Washington, DC areas. The broadcasts will be backhauled via satellite to CNN's facilities in Atlanta, Georgia.

ATC Teleports Inc is a leading provider of US domestic and international satellite services. ATC Teleports now owns and operates approximately 160 antennas accessing most major satellite systems from locations in Arizona, California (under construction), New Jersey, Massachusetts, Texas, Virginia and Washington.

Boatracs Exclusive Distributor of Netverk's MarStar Software in North America
Boatracs, a business unit of Advanced Remote Communication Solutions (ARCOMS), has been named the exclusive North American distributor of Netverk's MarStar software.

MarStar is an intelligent communications interface that enables PCs or LANs in mobile and remote locations to connect with other computer networks and software applications through various satellites and mobile network systems, as well as the Internet. MarStar was specifically developed for maritime use over systems such as Inmarsat-A, B/HSD, C, M, and Mini-M.

Netverk develops communication solutions that move data in any low-bandwidth environment over satellite, cellular, and Internet networks. Boatracs is a leader in comprehensive marine satellite communications and software solutions for the maritime industry, providing fully integrated solutions through its network of hardware, software, and communication services.

MarStar features:

• Offers extensive savings on communication costs through integration of industry standard e-mail software and through the use of proprietary compression and communication protocols
• Facilitates bi-directional transmission of Microsoft Word, Excel, Access, data files, and EDI messages
• Allows MAPI-compliant e-mail with attachments to be sent across store-and-forward packet data systems, such as Inmarsat-C and Qualcomm OmniTracs
• Provides intelligent, least-cost routing for maximum cost savings
• Initiates full transmission recovery from point of disruption
• Allows full duplex data transmission for maximum bandwidth utilisation over Inmarsat-A, Inmarsat-B/HSD, Inmarsat-M, Inmarsat Mini-M, GSM, cellular, and modem
• Offers high-speed-data (Inmarsat-B) at 64kb/s
• Operates with Microsoft Windows 95, Windows 98, and Windows NT
• Facilitates a flexible and open architecture, which can be expanded
• Provides multi-user configuration with support for 22 languages, including Arabic, Chinese, Greek, Korean, and Russian

ARCOMS' products and services include customised software applications; cost-effective satellite communications solutions; near real-time vessel tracking; bandwidth-efficient, multimedia satellite networks; e-mail technology; state-of-the-art, real-time video compression products; multiplexing equipment; and video monitoring services. ARCOMS' client base includes users within the government, transportation, military, marine, telecommunications, and commercial markets.

Freightliner and XM Satellite Radio Team Up
Freightliner Corporation and XM Satellite Radio, have announced a preliminary agreement to jointly develop new, integrated wireless information and entertainment services that will be compatible with Freightliner's Truck Productivity Computer.

XM will partner with leading wireless communications companies to develop new wireless solutions for the trucking market and will work with its strategic partners to incorporate their products and services in an integrated solution for commercial vehicles. XM Satellite Radio's strategic partners include DIRECTV, DIRECTPC and American Mobile.

In addition, Freightliner will distribute, market and merchandise XM Satellite Radio through its fleet-owner relationships, its extensive dealer organisation and Freightliner's network of 160 "TravelCenters of America" retail outlets. Freightliner will begin to offer XM radios in its new model Freightliner, Sterling, American LaFrance trucks and Thomas Built buses beginning in 2001.

Freightliner Corporation, headquartered in Portland, Oregon, is the leading heavy truck manufacturer in North America. Freightliner produces and markets Class 3-8 vehicles under the Freightliner, Sterling, American LaFrance and Thomas Built Buses nameplates. The company's TravelCenters of America is the largest network of full-service travel centres in the country, serving professional drivers and motorists alike, with over 160 facilities in 40 states.

XM Satellite Radio Inc is developing a new band of radio. Starting the first half of 2001, XM Radio will beam up to 100 channels of digital-quality music, news, sports, talk and children's programming directly from its two powerful satellites to vehicle, home and portable XM-Ready radios coast-to-coast for a monthly subscription fee of US$ 9.95.

Intellicom and Tricom Partner for Latin American Two-way Satellite Internet Service
SoftNet's Intellicom Inc, a leading provider of two-way satellite-based Internet services for Internet service providers (ISPs), telecommunications carriers and corporations, has announced a strategic alliance with Tricom, a leading integrated communications service provider in the Dominican Republic.

The agreement enables Tricom to distribute Intellicom's products and services to private companies to establish corporate Intranets and also offer high-speed wireless Internet services via Intellicom's two-way satellite technology to the Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, Nicaragua, Honduras, Panama, El Salvador, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Colombia, Venezuela, U.S. Virgin Islands and other countries in the Caribbean and Central American regions.

Intellicom's satellite technology provides a powerful alternative to the existing landline infrastructures in the Caribbean and Central and South America. The primary companies that will benefit from Tricom's high-speed, cost-efficient services are ISPs, educational institutions, multiple dwelling units (MDUs) and large single site or multi-site businesses such as banks, insurance companies and hotels.

Intellicom's state-of-the-art content caching technology and comprehensive family of value-add Internet services, including e-mail, network news groups, user authentication and Web hosting, will enable Tricom to offer its Internet users outstanding services and performance. Moreover, by caching frequently accessed content, such as popular major news web sites at Tricom's network operations centres, the two companies will combine their capabilities to deliver fast and efficient end-user access to a fast array of information available on the Internet.

Tricom is a full-service telecommunications provider in the Dominican Republic, and a facilities-based long distance carrier in the United States. Tricom commenced operations in 1992 and has since expanded to offer international and domestic long distance, local telephony, analogue cellular and PCS, paging and Internet services. Tricom is the fastest growing company in the fastest growing sector of Latin America's fastest growing economy and serves selected areas in the Eastern United States and many destinations in the Pan-Caribbean region. Tricom's network is 100% digital and utilises cutting edge technology. The company operates one of the world's largest CDMA-Wireless Local Loop networks.

Intellicom, a wholly owned subsidiary of SoftNet Systems Inc, combines Internet services with sophisticated two-way satellite technology to deliver complete end-to-end solutions for ISPs, schools, government institutions and businesses. Since 1995, Intellicom has provided two-way satellite Internet access using proprietary technologies. Intellicom utilises state-of-the-art wireless technologies, broadband delivery, data-push, caching and multicasting services to build the Invisible Internet and provide the only viable total solution for interactive, on demand, multimedia content delivery. Intellicom's satellite-based Internet access caching products provide service providers, businesses and consumers with fast access to information and efficient utilisation of existing network capacity.

Internet Partnership for Asia
oCen Communications Inc., a leading business-to-business Internet Communication Services Provider (ICSP) connecting consumers, carriers and corporate customers in the U.S. and Asian markets, has entered a strategic partnership with Hong Kong-based China Digital-Broadband satNet (CSN), formerly XinYu Aero Space Satellite Applications Ltd.

Under the terms of this agreement, oCen has agreed to provide IP-based communication services to CSN's customers throughout Asia and CSN to make available its global Satellite broad-brand infrastructure for oCen to deliver its services.

Designed, built and managed by CSN, their global broadband IP satellite network, the first of its kind will be capable of carrying oCen's CommPortal traffic. CommPortal, to be released later this year, is expected to comprise of instant messaging, PC-based text and voice chat, Web conferencing and unified messaging.

China Broadband Digital satNet (formerly XinYu Aero Space Satellite Applications Ltd.), founded in 1999 is based in Hong Kong. In conjunction with The International Satellite Organization, CDS has built a global satellite network supporting IP covering the earth, excluding the north and south poles. The company's shareholders include China Aerospace, Golden Tripod (Holdings) Limited; the investment arm of Xin Hua News Agency, SINOSAT, and China Overseas Development Agency.

Founded in 1997, oCen Communications is a leading business-to-business Internet Communication Services Provider (ICSP) focused on the North American and Asian markets. A privately held company with headquarters in Los Angeles, oCen is funded by Hong Kong's New World Group, China's Anderson Group, Taiwan's Pacific Group, investment firm Barings Private Equity Partners and other influential partners.

oCen has built one of the largest managed IP networks in U.S.-Asia dedicated for Internet telephony and other real time and enhanced IP communications services. With this state-of-art IP network, oCen develops and markets high quality, innovative communications services to its customers -- consumers, carriers and corporations -- in U.S. and Asia

More Satellite Alarms for New Mexico
American Millennium Corporation Inc has announced that it has recently completed installation of additional satellite monitoring systems (SAM) in the San Juan Basin under the control of Walsh Engineering Inc. The systems were installed on natural gas well compressors operated by Walsh on remote sites in the San Juan Basin, New Mexico.

AMCI is a licensed value-added reseller for Orbcomm USA LP. Orbcomm provides two-way monitoring, tracking and messaging services through the world's first commercial low-Earth orbit satellite-based data communications system.

Satellite Services Bill Ready for Signature
The US Congress has approved a bill to amend the Communications Satellite Act of 1962. The Senate passed the measure on March 2nd and the House cleared the bill on Thursday, March 9. The legislation will now be sent to President Clinton for signature.

Upon enactment, the legislation, known as the ORBIT Act (Open-market Reorganization for the Betterment of International Telecommunications Act), repeals the Satellite Act's restrictions on the ownership of Comsat stock, thereby satisfying an essential condition to Comsat's merger with Lockheed Martin Corporation.

The Act also establishes an April 1, 2001 deadline for the privatisation of Intelsat, as well as criteria for determining whether the privatisation of Intelsat, Inmarsat and New Skies Satellites are "pro-competitive." These criteria include the requirement that each entity conduct an initial public offering within certain time frames and prescribes other specific conditions by which privatisation will be measured.

The Act provides that, if the actual privatisation of INTELSAT, Inmarsat or New Skies are not consistent with these criteria, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) must, subject to various exceptions, limit or deny use of these systems until the conditions are satisfied.

The ORBIT Act further provides that, during the transition to privatisation, Intelsat, Inmarsat, and New Skies may not expand into "additional services." However, unlike the bill that previously passed the House, the definition of additional services does not include any services (such as Internet or high-speed data services) that are currently being provided. Thus, the new legislation will not disrupt the provision of existing services.

The ORBIT Act also permits "Level 3" (contractual) direct access to INTELSAT upon enactment, but does not allow "Level 4" (investment) direct access. Thus, Comsat (or, after the merger, its successor, Lockheed Martin) will remain the sole US investor in Intelsat until privatisation. The bill also includes specific language protecting the integrity of Comsat's contracts.

Finally, the Act limits prospectively Comsat's immunity from suit in its capacity as the US Signatory to those actions taken pursuant to instructions of the U.S. government, and includes appropriate liability safeguards in those instances.

Tachyon and mPower3 Team to Create High-Performance Global Agricultural Extranet
Tachyon Inc and mPower3 Inc have joined together to market Tachyon's high-speed, two-way, satellite-delivered Internet access, Tachyon.net, with mPower3 integrated agricultural data systems. The combination will provide a powerful global agricultural extranet capable of linking growers, farmers, suppliers and their markets through mPower3 information resources.

This alliance will offer broadband Internet access, intranets and extranets to rural areas where high-speed traditional landlines and cable modems are often not an option or cannot adequately support needed service levels. The joint marketing agreement calls for the installation of 500 Tachyon Access Points (TAPs) in 2000 and 4,500 the following year in the United States and the United Kingdom.

mPower3 was the first company to bring comprehensive Internet-based information technology services to agriculture. mPower3 helps growers optimise profitability and decision-making in production, marketing and risk management, and bring added value to the food chain by providing tracking and crop information capabilities.

The speed and quality of Internet links have become critical factors in agriculture. High-speed telephone links such as DSL and T1 are nearly impossible to get outside of metropolitan areas. Until Tachyon, satellite-delivered Internet service has been one-way, with data downloads moving quickly, but the response limited by dial-up connections that often remain slow.

Tachyon's two-way, high-performance satellite Internet access has enormous implications for many industries as extranets become the most efficient way to communicate with suppliers, distributors and other components that make up today's businesses.

Military Space

Titan Wins US Navy Contract
The Titan Corporation has been awarded a contract by the US Navy's Space and Naval Warfare (SPAWAR) Systems Center for research, design and development support for electromagnetic systems for the Navy and other government agencies. The systems and subsystems include satellite, surface communication, surveillance, navigation, meteorology, electronic warfare, and other systems that either transmit or receive electromagnetic radiation.

The contract has a potential value of US$ 29 million and includes two one-year options. Work will be performed by
Titan's wholly-owned defense information subsidiary Eldyne in San Diego, California, and is expected to be completed by February 2005, including options.

Science

Bristol Aerospace to Supply Canadian Science Satellite
John Manley, Minister of Industry and Minister responsible for the Canadian Space Agency, has announced two contracts totalling $13 million for Bristol Aerospace of Winnipeg, Manitoba, a Magellan company, to build an all-Canadian science satellite. SCISAT-1, Canada's first science satellite since 1971, will study ozone depletion in the atmosphere. It is scheduled for launch in 2002.

Said Minister Manley: "SCISAT-1 will improve our understanding of the chemical processes involved in the depletion of the ozone layer, with particular emphasis on the processes occurring over Canada and the Arctic."

The ozone research to be undertaken by the SCISAT-1 mission will be headed by Dr. Peter Bernath of the University of Waterloo. ABB Bomem of Quebec City is developing the scientific instrument for the mission.

Funding for SCISAT-1 is provided under Canada's Space Program. The Canadian Space Agency is the federal government agency responsible for implementing all activities of the Canadian Space Program.

Bristol has contributed to space science research for over 30 years. It is a world leader in the manufacturing of sounding rockets and has produced more than 130 payloads for rocket and space shuttle missions.

Extension for Galileo Mission
NASA plans to extend Galileo's mission exploring Jupiter and its moons to the end of 2000, when Galileo may embark on a joint scientific expedition with another solar system explorer, the Saturn-bound Cassini spacecraft.

During this new extension, called the Galileo Millennium Mission, planners hope to include three high-priority scientific observations in 2000:

Galileo would team with Cassini for simultaneous observations of the Jupiter system and its magnetic environment from two vantage points. Cassini will visit Jupiter's neighbourhood in December 2000. Jupiter's powerful gravity will be used to "slingshot" Cassini toward Saturn.

Galileo will perform two additional flybys of Jupiter's moon Ganymede, the largest moon in the solar system, on May 20 and December 28. Scientists hope these flybys will tell us more about Ganymede's geologic history, including the highest resolution pictures ever taken of this icy world.

Galileo's original two-year mission ended in December 1997, and a two-year extension called the Galileo Europa Mission, ended on January 31, 2000.

Galileo mission planners are currently exploring various options for the mission's eventual conclusion, including possible further encounters with Io and another Jovian moon, Callisto. Planners are looking into a possible impact with Io or Jupiter for a mission finale, with other options are also being considered. They are trying to avoid an impact with Europa because recent evidence suggests there may be a liquid ocean beneath its icy crust, raising the possibility that life could exist there.

Future ESA Science Projects Short Listed
Six proposals, ranging from a visit to the Asteroid Belt to amazingly sensitive gyroscopes, will undergo close examination during the next six months, as the European Space Agency's science advisors move towards the selection of flexi-missions for launch between 2005 and 2009. Science working groups and the Space Science Advisory Committee have chosen them from 50 ideas submitted in response to a call for proposals last October.

ESA's science programme introduced flexi-missions in 1997, to achieve greater flexibility. They replace the medium-scale projects, of which Huygens (Titan lander) and Integral (gamma-ray astronomy) are current examples. The aim is to have two Flexi-missions for the price of one medium mission. Mars Express, already under construction for launch in 2003, is the first Flexi-mission, or F1. Now under consideration are F2 and F3, each with a cost to ESA of no more than 176 million euros at 1999 prices.

The front-runner for one of these slots is European participation with NASA in the Next Generation Space Telescope, successor to the NASA-ESA Hubble Space Telescope. Although a formal decision will not be taken until later this year, much European effort has already gone into preparing for this NGST project, due for launch in 2008. That intensifies the competition for the other slot.

The six shortlisted proposals are:

STORMS, a scheme to use three spacecraft to investigate a source of big trouble for technological systems, after solar eruptions. The "ring current" of energetic charged particles circulates around the equator at altitudes of several times the Earth's radius, and when its intensity varies during solar storms it causes magnetic perturbations at the Earth's surface. Three identical spacecraft, orbiting out to 50,000 kilometres and equally spaced around the equator, could clear up several remaining mysteries of the ring current -- and also provide real-time monitoring of magnetic storms.

SOLAR ORBITER would fly on an extended orbit taking it at intervals to within about 30 million kilometres of the Sun -- much closer than the innermost planet, Mercury. At its closest approach the spacecraft would round the Sun at roughly the same rate as the Sun itself rotates, so that it should seem to hover over one region. Besides giving unprecedented close-up views of the solar surface and atmosphere, the orbiter would directly sense the related behaviour of the solar wind and energetic particles in the Sun's vicinity. With the passage of time the orbit would slant at an increasing angle to the Sun's equator.

MASTER would adapt the Mars Express spacecraft for a flyby of Mars and especially a flyby of large asteroids in the Main Belt beyond Mars. Like Mars Express, MASTER would be able to drop a lander on the Red Planet, but instead of going into orbit around Mars it would use the planet's gravity to assist it onwards to the Asteroid Belt. There it would examine one or more asteroids with instruments developed for ESA's Rosetta comet mission and SMART-1 lunar mission. The proposers offer alternative scenarios and target asteroids for launches in 2005, 2007 and 2009.

Two proposals concern fundamental physics, which is a new theme in ESA's science programme. There will be a short-term selection between these two proposals, so that only one will go for the full assessment study. In both cases they would use techniques studied by ESA for other possible fundamental physics projects (STEP, MiniSTEP and LISA) to create a force-free environment for experiments. Effects of atmospheric resistance or the pressure of sunlight on the spacecraft are cancelled by automatically controlled thrusters.

HYPER would test new kinds of atomic gyroscopes and motion sensors of unprecedented precision, exploiting the quantum effect that makes even whole atoms behave as if they were waves instead of particles. Such sensors promise to be as revolutionary as atomic clocks in timekeeping. An atomic gyro, operating in space with a technique called ultra-cold atom interferometry, could in theory be 100 billion times more sensitive than existing optical gyros that use light instead of atoms.

CASIMIR would probe the fundamental nature of empty space. Quantum theory implies that even a perfect vacuum is not really empty but seethes with short-lived particles and forces. Half a century ago, the Dutch physicist Hendrik Casimir predicted that this hidden nature of the vacuum should reveal itself by a novel force between two metal plates. The proposal is to measure the Casimir force between superconducting surfaces a hundredth of a millimetre apart, a million times more accurately than has been done on the ground.

EDDINGTON would take up a station far from the Earth and use a 1-metre telescope with a wide field of view to examine stars for oscillations and passing planets. Oscillations due to sound waves have already revealed many features of the Sun's interior, allowing astrophysicists to check their theories about how stars work, in the nearest case. Now astronomers are beginning to use the same method in other stars, and EDDINGTON would apply it to 50,000 stars of many different kinds. It would also check 700,000 stars for the presence of planets, revealed by a dip in the brightness of a star when a planet passes in front of it.

Goresat Returns
A scientific task force of the National Research Council (NRC) of the National Academy of Sciences released a report today validating the strong scientific merit of the Triana mission, also known as "Goresat" after its principal supporter, Vice President Al Gore.

Triana, the first deep space Earth-observing mission, will provide a continuous view of the entire sunlit face of the rotating Earth. Triana will be placed at Lagrangian point 1 to allow one of the instruments aboard, called "GoreCam" by critics, to permanently deliver a view of the sun-light half of the Earth. These images will be put on the Internet in order to encourage environmental consciousness and educational programs.

The rigorous and analytical examination of Triana's scientific merits, conducted by a group of the USA's most distinguished scientists, was requested by members of the US Congress to evaluate the mission's objectives and to review Triana's contributions to the nation's science priorities for climate and environmental studies. The report concluded that Triana is a strong and scientifically vital and feasible mission that will contribute unique data on Earth's climate systems.

The NRC panel reported that the financial costs of the Triana mission are reasonable and that the program should move forward quickly.

NASA Contract for SSTL
SSTL at the Surrey Space Centre (UK) has been awarded a US$ 120,000, 100-day study contract following on from the successful selection of the Company's 350 kg mini-satellite platform for NASA's RAPID II catalogue.

The Magnetospheric Multiscale (MMS) Mission Study has been initiated to investigate the range of suitable concepts for a five-spacecraft mission to investigate the Earth's magnetosphere.

Planned for launch in 2005, the MMS mission entails the use of formation flying and two Lunar swing-bys (utilising the Moon's gravity to alter the orbital path of the satellite) to change the orbit plane of the five-spacecraft "cluster" during the two-year mission lifetime.

The mission will open new frontiers in understanding the Earth's magnetic field interaction with solar radiation. A direct consequence will be to define why some violent solar processes are particularly damaging to both spacecraft and terrestrial assets, such as power lines.

SSTL is one of three companies awarded study contracts by NASA, and the only one selected outside the USA. Following evaluation of the outputs of all of three studies, NASA will determine which company should be awarded a follow-on study contract to investigate the mission in more detail.

SpaceDev and University of Arizona Collaborate on Deep Space Camera
SpaceDev Inc has finalised an agreement whereby the University of Arizona's Lunar and Planetary Laboratory will furnish SpaceDev with a multi-band imaging camera designed and built by Peter Smith.

The camera, funded by the University, will be capable of taking high quality still photographs, and of collecting multi-band scientific data designed to help scientists understand the composition of the surface of the planetary body being photographed during SpaceDev's deep space mission.

SpaceDev intends to fly the camera on one of its planned commercial deep space missions, with the current target being
a near earth asteroid.

In return for providing a ride for the camera at no charge to the University of Arizona, SpaceDev will receive exclusive rights to offer for sale the camera's photos and scientific data. It is hoped this revenue will pay for the ride and produce a profit by making the unique photos available as Internet content, and by providing valuable scientific data at a cost far less than the cost of data from similar government missions.

SpaceDev offers low-cost commercial missions and spacecraft for lunar orbiters, Mars orbiters and probe carriers, and asteroid rendezvous and landers for sale as turnkey, fixed price, commercial products, a first for the space industry. Also a first, SpaceDev offers fixed-price package delivery for science instruments and technology demonstrations into earth orbit, deep space and to other planetary bodies. SpaceDev designs and sells small, low-cost Earth-orbiting commercial or research satellites. SpaceDev has recently designed inexpensive orbital transfer vehicles, and secondary payload micro-kick motors for the Air Force. SpaceDev has acquired hybrid sounding rocket, motor, and launch vehicle designs, and intellectual property rights produced by the former American Rocket Co (AMROC).

Manned Space

Damaged Antenna on Shuttle Atlantis
A Ku band communications dish on the shuttle Atlantis was damaged during launch preparations is a hanger at the Kennedy Space Centre last Sunday (March 5). Atlantis was due to be launched in mid April to visit the International Space Station.

The 1 m graphite-epoxy dish was being rotated inside the shuttle's payload bay when it hit a stationary (and unmanned) "cherry-picker" bridge crane used by workers for access. It is not yet known how this occurred.

The antenna is mounted inside the shuttle's payload bay where it is stowed prior to launch. In flight, the dish is used for TV and data transmissions to Earth. It is also used by a rendezvous radar during Atlantis' approach and departure from the space station.

NASA has decided to delay Atlantis' departure from the hanger, which was scheduled for Monday, and to replace the dish.

Launch Vehicles

Beal Tests Powerful Engine
Beal Aerospace has successfully tested one of the most powerful liquid-propellant rocket engines ever built. This was the third firing of the engine.

Beal's BA-810 engine was fired for 21 seconds at Beal's test facility in McGregor, Texas. The engine uses kerosene fuel and hydrogen peroxide oxidiser and has a vacuum rated thrust of up to 3.6 million Newtons.

The BA-810 is the third most powerful liquid-propellant engine ever built. Both the F-1 engine (Saturn 5) and the RD-170 (Energia) generate about twice the thrust of the BA-810.

The engine will be used in the second stage of the BA-2 three-stage, heavy-lift expendable launcher that Beal Aerospace is developing. The BA-2 will be able to place 6,000 kg into geostationary orbit and 17,000 kg into LEO. The inaugural launch is planned for 2002 but, as yet, Beal has not finalised the location of the launch site.

The engine is remarkable on a number of counts:

• It is the second largest liquid engine ever built, the largest being the F-1 engines used in the Saturn 5 launcher.
• It has the largest thrust chamber ever made from carbon-fibre filament. The space-flight version of the chamber will be 7.9 m in length and 6.1 m in diameter at its exit nozzle.
• It is the largest hydrogen peroxide-propelled engine ever built. Hydrogen peroxide is stored and handled at ambient temperature, rather than cryogenic temperatures like other propellants.
• It is the largest engine ever built by a private programme with no ties or funding by the government.

Environmental concerns and other factors have caused Beal Aerospace to drop plans to build a launcher manufacturing plant on St Croix, US Virgin Islands. Beal had hoped to build its BA-2 rocket there. The company is now searching for a new coastal site for the plant. Florida has already offered US$ 10 million in tax incentive grants to lure Beal. The US$ 122 million plant would employ 300 people.

Beal intends to construct a temporary launch facility at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station for the BA-2 with the first launch there slated for 2002.

Launches

ICO - Launch Failure
The launch of bankrupt ICO's first satellite, ICO F-1 has ended in failure following problems with the third stage of the Sea Launch Zenit rocket.

The Zenit apparently had a "less than nominal" third stage burn and both the satellite and third stage are believed to have re-entered over the South Pacific only 2 hours after launch.

The satellite, which was built by Hughes Space and Communications, was being launched into a 45° inclination, 10,390 km altitude orbit from Sea Launch's Odyssey platform located at 154° W longitude on the equator, some 200 nautical miles east of Christmas Island in the Pacific Ocean.

This was the third launch of a Zenit-3SL rocket from a Sea Launch's Odyssey platform and the second commercial launch. Sea Launch has a further 18 launches on its current manifest.

The suspect third stage of the Zenit-3SL is a Block DM upper stage manufactured by RSC Energia of Moscow.

Multispectral Thermal Imager (MTI)

Launched: 12 March 2000
Site: Vandenberg Air Force Base
Launcher: Taurus
Orbit: sun synchronous, apogee: 601 km, perigee: 565 km: inclination: 97.4°
International Number: 2000-13A
Name: Multispectral Thermal Imager (MTI)
Owner: US Department of Energy (DOE)

The Multispectral Thermal Imager (MTI) satellite carries a sophisticated telescope that collects images of the Earth, during the day and at night, in 15 spectral bands ranging from visible to long-wave infrared. The imaging instrument was designed and built by a government/industry team led by Sandia National Laboratories and was calibrated in a special facility at Los Alamos National Laboratory. It gives the MTI satellite the ability to "see" reflected and thermally radiated electromagnetic waves not visible to the human eye with performance parameters previously achievable only in laboratory settings.

Business

BankNet Acquires Majority Interest in Dynamics I-T
BankNet Kft has acquired a majority interest (30,400,000 shares) in Dynamic I-T Inc. The consideration for the sale was the acquisition of Banknet Kft, a Hungarian broadband service provider as a wholly owned subsidiary and US$ 800,000 in capital, US$ 200,000 paid in, and US$ 600,000 to be paid over nine months.

The newly structured Dynamic I-T will include two divisions. The first Division is BankNet. The other is the Distance Education division.

BankNet is an internet and telecommunications service provider to corporate clients based in Central and Eastern Europe. It holds licenses for satellite communication, optic cables, microwave systems, frame relays, ATMs and hubs located in more than 600 sites. BankNet also provides Infonet data services for over 70 multinational corporate Intranets. Through this association with Infonet, which recently had successful IPO, BankNet's clients have access to Value Added Networking, messaging and X400 services that are available in as many as 175 countries encompassing 90% of the world's population.

BankNet is a leader in the fast-growing area of providing internet access where satellite links are the only practical means of connecting to the internet, which is the case in many emerging countries.

End of Iridium Looms
Iridium has secured a US$ 3 million cash injection from its investors to keep it going until March 17 and to continue its search for a new backer with deep pockets.

On Monday, the US Bankruptcy Court in Manhattan approved an interim finance plan and ruled that Iridium must find new backers to either buy it or rescue it from bankruptcy by March 15.

Last week, Eagle River Investment Group, which manages cell phone billionaire Craig McCaw's investments, decided not to continue with plans to purchase Iridium but instead, to focus on ICO and Teledesic.

Motorola, which has an 18% shareholding in Iridium, and operates the system has refused to invest more and will close down the network on March 17. Motorola is reported to have sent a letter to all of its subscribers in the USA stating that unless additional financing is received by March 16, service will not be offered after 11.59 pm on March 16.

Iridium is also using the time it has left to prepare plans to de-orbit its fleet of LEO satellites. If there is no rescue, Iridium will begin implementing its plan immediately, though it will take several months to complete de-orbiting.

The Manhattan court hearing also authorised the sale of furniture, fittings and equipment at Iridium's Washington HQ - value estimated at US$ 200,000.

The next court hearing is scheduled for March 17 where Iridium will present its de-orbiting plan and a budget for the liquidation of its assets.

On declaring bankruptcy last August, Iridium had debts of some US$ 4.4 billion and currently has about 50,000 subscribers.

Public Offering for MirCorp
Amsterdam based MirCorp, the recently formed company which is rescuing the abandoned Mir space station, is reported to be going to sell shares to the public next year.

The company's plan is to use Mir to offer commercial organisations access to space, for advertising and as an expensive venue for rich tourists. The cash raised in the public offering will be used to finance the plans.

MirCorp has not stated how much cash it intends to raise by the offering, but industry estimates are as high as US$ 800 million. MirCorp claims to have already invested some US$ 200 million in the station, though much of this is probably in hardware.

Radyne Comstream Files for NASDAQ Listing
Radyne ComStream has filed its application for listing on the NASDAQ National Market System (NMS).

"Listing on Nasdaq is obviously in the interest of our shareholders and should provide us with greater exposure to the Wall Street community of investors, market makers and broker-dealers," said Bob Fitting, Radyne ComStream's president and chief executive officer. "The NASDAQ NMS listing should bring more liquidity, visibility and interest in our stock than we have experienced in the past."

Radyne ComStream designs, manufactures, and markets satellite Internet-infrastructure equipment as well as satellite broadband modems, multicasting receivers, converters and ancillary products for digital TV, data and telephone services.

Products and Services

750 W TWTA From CPI
CPI Announces A 750W KU-Band TWT Amplifier

CPI Satcom Division has announced the release of a 750W compact TWT Amplifier operating across the 12.75 to 14.5 GHz frequency range. This amplifier, model VZU-6997AB features high reliability and efficiency in a compact package, ideal for transportable and fixed earth station applications where space and prime power are at a premium.

CPI Satcom Division manufactures and supplies high power amplifiers and networks for satellite communication uplink applications. As an industry leader, CPI has shipped over 14,500 amplifiers to 156 countries worldwide.

New SatAlarm Product from American Millennium Corporation
American Millennium Corporation Inc has announced a new version of SatAlarm product.

"The new SatAlarm features include web-based software, thereby eliminating the need for the customer to install or maintain any software," according to Bruce Bacon, AMCI's V.P. and Chief Technology Officer.

AMCI is provides Orbcomm-based value-added solutions to oil and gas producers and pipeline companies among other applications.

Satellite Tool Kit for Linux
Analytical Graphics Inc, producer of the industry-leading Satellite Tool Kit (STK) software suite, has announced that the next release of the STK will include a Linux version. STK version 4.1.1 and its add-on modules will run on any Linux release compatible with Red Hat Linux version 6.0. STK 4.1.1 is scheduled to be available in April 2000.

The STK software suite is currently available on Windows 95, 98, 2000 and NT, as well as all the leading UNIX-based analysis platforms. STK is available free of charge to all aerospace professionals.

AGI provides commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) analysis and visualisation software solutions for the aerospace industry through its core product Satellite Tool Kit (STK) and a series of specialized STK add-on modules. STK supports end-to-end aerospace systems from mission planning through operations.

Basic applications include calculating and visualising a vehicle's position and attitude, determining acquisition times, and analysing the vehicle's field of view. The core functions of STK can be extended with a wide range of add-on modules from AGI that address specialised analysis needs, such as detailed communication link analysis, collision analysis, coverage analysis, manoeuvre planning, orbit determination, and real-time visualisation.

People

Changes at Infonet
Infonet Services Corp, a leading provider of global communications services for multinationals, has announced two senior staff changes.

Ken Felderstein has been promoted to Vice President of Business Development. Reporting to Bob Baskerville, Vice President of Program and Business Management, Felderstein will be responsible for investments, acquisitions and partnerships in companies whose products and services provide a strategic component of Infonet's future products and services.

Morgan Molthrop has been appointed Director of Investor Relations. Reporting to Akbar H. Firdosy, Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, Molthrop will be the central liaison for all communications between Infonet, its investors and Wall Street.

Infonet Services Corp is a world leader in providing global communications services to multinational enterprises. Infonet provides Internet, intranet, ATM, remote access, electronic commerce services and integrated voice/data solutions, plus a full suite of messaging and collaborative products and services.

Infonet's services are supported locally in more than 60 countries and territories around the world. The World Network from Infonet is accessible terrestrially or via satellite worldwide.

Max Benton Retires
AEC-Able Engineering Company Inc announced the retirement of Max D. Benton P.E. Benton who co-founded ABLE in 1975 with Robert F. Crawford and Dave Coleman, and served as president for the last 22 years. He will continue to serve the company in an advisory manner.

Benton was involved in the space industry for 35 years, dedicated to creating specialised lightweight and deployable structures for spacecraft. For Benton and ABLE, career highlights include the magnetometer boom for the Galileo Interplanetary Probe and, most recently, the Shuttle Radar Topography Mission mast -- the longest structure to deploy in space. Benton and partner William Robbins hold the patents for the FASTmast technology that will be used on the eight International Space Station solar array masts.

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