19 March 2000

Satcoms

Alcatel Satellites for AirTV's Aeronautical TV System
Alcatel Space has signed a contract with Jersey-based AirTV Holdings Ltd to build a satellite system for the global live television broadcasting network dedicated to the commercial and private aviation markets. The contract amount was not disclosed.

In parallel, the two companies signed a Memorandum of Agreement, which calls for Alcatel Space's operating arm, Spacecom, to become one of the strategic partners of AirTV in the first round of financing to be announced later this year. AirTV expects its world-wide service to commence in the year 2003.

For the contract, prime contractor Alcatel Space, has completed the system design and is responsible for the turnkey delivery of the overall space segment, including the following elements:

• four high-power S-band geostationary satellites delivered in orbit, the comprehensive ground control segment for the satellites, including satellite control centres, and telemetry, tracking & command (TT&C) stations,
• several uplink stations to transmit programming to aircraft.

Based on the Spacebus platform, the satellites will provide seamless, global coverage (over the oceans as well as over the Earth's landmass) of up to forty live television channels and up to 300 audio channels providing multi-language programming. AirTV antennas are to be manufactured by BAE Systems Canada, the leading manufacturer of aircraft satellite communication antennas.

The four AirTV satellites will each include four very high power S-band transponders, for which amplification will be realised by several travelling wave tube amplifiers (TWTA's) assembled in a parallel configuration. The satellites, for which the individual launch mass will be approximately 3800 kg, will each supply 8 kW of power for an operational lifetime of 12 years.

Clinton Signs Satellite Bill
President Clinton has signed the Satellite Bill, which is intended to begin privatising the world's communications satellite network and give US companies direct access. Unfortunately Intelsat and Inmarsat, the two main satellite organisations affected by the legislation, are already well on the way to privatising themselves without US interference.

The bill will allow telephone companies to bypass the Comsat satellite network and get direct access to Intelsat. It also will allow Comsat to merge with Lockheed Martin Corp, a major defence contractor.

The legislation was necessary for Lockheed Martin Corp to complete its proposed deal with Comsat. The defence contractor purchased 49% of Comsat last year, but could not acquire the rest of the company because of current Comsat ownership limits written into a 1962 law.

Intelsat, in particular, has taken exception to some of the provisions of the Satellite Bill and is actively investigating moving its new privatised headquarters out of the USA to effectively insulate it from US legislation. It is also considering the extreme measure of ejecting the USA from the organisation.

CSX Locomotives Use Orbcomm
CSX Transportation Inc is planning to equip approximately 2,800 locomotives with the PINPOINT Locomotive Tracking System offered by GE Harris Railway Electronics LLC. Orbcomm is the satellite communications provider for the PINPOINT system. CSXT is already using the PINPOINT system to track a portion of its locomotive fleet and plans to install the system on the remainder of its fleet by mid-year.

Following an extensive search of tracking systems last year, CSXT selected the GE Harris PINPOINT system to improve locomotive utilisation and decrease operating costs. CSXT found that using the PINPOINT system with Orbcomm's Web- based satellite communication services resulted in a significant increase in locomotive utilisation and miles traveled per locomotive. The PINPOINT system enables railroads to determine each locomotive's position within approximately 100 meters. The PINPOINT system also provides fuel-level status and several other on-board data reporting features critical to locomotive operations.

CSXT provides rail transportation and distribution services over a 22,700 route-mile network in 23 states and the District of Columbia in the USA as well as Ontario and Quebec, Canada.

GE Harris Railway Electronics is a leading provider of electronics, communications and train control technology for the global railroad industry.

DTT Consulting's Internet Via Satellite Report
DTT Consulting has published its third annual Internet via Satellite Report. It shows that the market for satellite-based Internet services has grown by 314% over the last year and by 858% over the last two years.

Internet via Satellite 2000 provides the most thorough market research on the size, structure and direction of IP services using satellites. These services include ISP and backbone links, satellite caching and Usenet, one-way hybrid and multicasting services and the new generation of low cost two-way IP VSATs.

Over 11% of the world's ISPs now use a satellite link to connect to Internet backbone. An increasing number are using satellite caching and multicasting services to improve performance and contain costs. Many are now looking to use two-way satellite terminals to provide high-speed Internet access to their corporate end-users, thus by-passing telcos and allowing them to keep control of their networks.

The Internet via Satellite 2000 Report is 427 pages long. It includes 121 charts and tables providing statistics and summary management information on market size and structure. It details all the known satellite links between ISPs and backbone. The report provides details of 338 key industry suppliers including satellite operators, service providers, companies offering hybrid access and multicasting and equipment and software vendors. It also identifies the majority of ISPs using satellite communications.

The printed report is available for £695 (or US$1,195) plus £110 (US$175) for each additional copy. For subscribers to the paper report an electronic copy of the report is also available on diskette for an additional £110 (US$175).

For further information contact: DTT Consulting, tel: +44 1962 877850, fax: +44 1962 624094; e-mail: [email protected]

Globalstar Offers Incentives to Ex-Iridium Customers
Globalstar USA has announced that several of its distributors are offering Globalstar phone rebates for Iridium customers whose service has been discontinued following the collapse of the company.

• GMPCS, a Globalstar USA reseller, has designed two incentives to convert Iridium customers. The first plan offers a US$ 295 trade-in rebate toward the purchase of a new Globalstar phone. The second plan offers a US$ 495 trade-in rebate toward the purchase of a new Globalstar phone with a car kit.
• Norsat, a Globalstar USA reseller, is offering a US$ 300 rebate toward Globalstar equipment to all Iridium subscribers.
• ICC Public Communication Systems Inc, a Globalstar USA agent, is offering two plans to convert Iridium customers. The first plan offers a US$ 500 rebate with activation of the Beyond Borders Plan 100 and copy of last Iridium bill. The second plan offers a US$ 300 rebate with activation of the Beyond Basic Plan and copy of last Iridium bill.

ICTI Completes Digiturk Earth Stations
Innovative Communications Technologies Inc (ICTI), a subsidiary of Advanced Remote Communication Solutions (ARCOMS), has finalised the implementation of four digital earth stations for DigiTurk, Turkey's new Direct-to-Home (DTH) television operator.

The digital earth stations will provide subscribers with 50 digital broadcast television channels, with data services to be offered in the near future. Financial details were not disclosed.

Officials at ICTI said that the service, which is scheduled to launch in the second quarter of 2000, will provide video broadcast-based digital satellite services to Turkish speakers in Turkey and the surrounding area.

ICTI provided a complete turnkey solution, including design, integration, testing, installation and commissioning of four, 4.5-meter, digital earth stations in Istanbul. The earth stations will transmit digital television signals via Eutelsat.

ICTI is a leader in the design and implementation of multimedia satellite networks and proprietary technologies for clients within the commercial, government, and military markets requiring links with multiple remote locations.

Iridium's Last Days
After a frantic attempt to find a last minute buyer after cell phone billionaire Craig McCaw decided against rescuing the company, Iridium has finally run out of time.

Services to Iridium's 55,000 subscribers were withdraw from midnight Friday, though it has been reported that some subscribers, particularly in the USA will still have partial service for some weeks. Subscribers of a few resellers such as Nippon Iridium will have their handset price refunded, but for the vast majority of subscribers there will be little or no compensation.

Iridium is now progressing with plans to de-orbit its constellation of 66 operational satellites as well as a further 25 spare and defunct satellites. The spacecraft will be commanded to burn their hydrazine thrusters, lowering their orbits so they burn up harmlessly in the atmosphere. Motorola expect that it will take up to nine months to rewrite software and to begin the orbit lowering manoeuvres, and up to two years before all of the satellites have been removed from orbit.

The consensus of opinion amongst analysts is that Iridium failed because their management got it wrong. When Motorola first announced the project in 1991 the concept was revolutionary and triggered much speculation that the technological hurdles were simply too great. This proved not to be the case. The real problems were market based. In 1991 the telecommunications world was very different to that found today. Cell phones were used by a few businessmen and were becoming a fashion accessory for the wealthy (and wannabe wealthy) in the West. Eastern Europe was opening up with its lack of adequate telecoms infrastructure and communications in most of Asia and Africa was a hit and miss affair outside very large cities. Then the cell phone explosion happened. Iridium intended marketing its services to the hordes of businessmen visiting and working in out of the way places, but suddenly these places were served by terrestrial cellular networks and Iridium's market evaporated. This was not helped by an initial price tag of US$ 3,000 for a phone which looked like a brick and weighed about as much as one, and which could not be used inside buildings or cars. In the end Iridium could not raise enough revenue to pay the interest on the huge loans needed to establish its US$ 5 billion network.

NetSat Express Signs for Telstar 12 Transponders
NetSat Express Inc, a provider of Internet services via satellite and a subsidiary of Globecomm Systems Inc has announced an agreement with Loral Skynet for the use of multiple 54 MHz transponders on the Telstar 12 satellite.

Under the terms of the contract, NetSat Express acquires access to multiple 54 MHz transponders on the Telstar 12 satellite over the next nine months. This enables NetSat Express to continue to expand its high-speed Internet Access Services and provides a direct connection to the US Internet backbone for ISPs in Europe, the Middle East and South America.

NetSat Express offers ISPs and other enterprises around the world Internet access and related services.

Orbcomm de Mexico Receives Licence
Mexico's regulatory authority, the Secretaria de Comunicaciones y Transportes (SCT) has awarded Orbcomm de Mexico, an exclusive operating license to deliver Orbcomm satellite communication services to Mexico.

The Monterrey-based company plans to immediately market Orbcomm services in a wide range of industries, including Mexico's oil and gas, transportation, heavy equipment, utility, chemical and intermodal shipping industries.

Orbcomm de Mexico, which is owned by Proeza S.A. de C.V., has been an Orbcomm international licensee since 1998. The company also plans to market Orbcomm services to Central America -- including Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua and Belize -- after government approval is issued in each country.

Qualcomm Globalstar Modems for Norsat Data Terminal
Norsat International Inc has announced an agreement with Qualcomm Incorporated to incorporate Qualcomm's Globalstar Packet Data Modem in the digital data terminal Norsat is developing for narrowband applications.

Under the agreement, QUALCOMM will provide its Globalstar Packet Data Modems (GSP1620) for integration into Norsat's narrowband terminals. Using the QUALCOMM Globalstar Packet Data Modem as a core communications component, Norsat will design and integrate the necessary interface circuits and external housings as required for each application.

In December 1999, Norsat announced plans to distribute Globalstar USA satellite-based telephony services, as well as a new narrowband data service based on a proprietary terminal that will enable remote locations to send operations and transaction data for financial, monitoring, diagnostic, and other purposes, and to receive information in response. The potential customer base includes a broad range of industries with widely scattered operating locations. Norsat initially expects to target natural resource, retail, transportation, and utility companies.

Samsung Expands Network with International Datacasting's FlexRoute
International Datacasting Corporation (IDC) has announced that its authorised representative in Korea, Samsung Corporation, has placed a follow-on order for FlexRoute digital audio equipment and software systems to expand an existing classified satellite network.

This order increases the network by approximately 260 sites and marks the initiation of the second phase of the network's expansion throughout Korea.

FlexRoute, IDC's premier digital audio distribution system, allows Networks to broadcast digital audio and data via satellite at rates of 64 to 256 kb/s. The system consists of multiplexers, audio encoders, modulators, network control computers and satellite receivers. FlexRoute is in use worldwide by radio networks and various other content providers such as Radiopolis, Radio Free Europe, Voice of America, Clear Channel, Deutsche Telekom and the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.

Skybridge Receives Operating Licence
SkyBridge LP has received a license in France to deploy its 80 low-earth orbiting (LEO) satellite constellation with associated ground segment and provide broadband access to the Internet and other multimedia services.

The license was granted on February 9 by Mr. Christian Pierret, Secretary of State for Industry, upon recommendation of the French regulatory authority, ART (Autorité de Régulation des Télécommunications).

This decision comes after a consensus was reached at the World Radiocommunication Conference Preparatory Meeting on the technical rules allowing LEO systems to operate in the Ku-band (10-18 GHz). The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) is expected to confirm the guidelines at the upcoming World Radiocommunication Conference (WRC-2000), to be held in Istanbul in May 2000.

SkyBridge will provide telecom operators and service providers with broadband capacities, enabling them to offer business and residential users, rural and urban access to high-speed, highly interactive multimedia services anywhere.

US$ 10 Million Amazonian Contract for Comtech
Comtech Telecommunications Corp's Florida based subsidiary, Comtech Systems Inc, has been awarded a contract valued at more that US$ 10 million by a major US corporation to provide a satellite communications network in the Amazon region of Brazil.

The Comtech network will be part of Brazil's countrywide surveillance and air traffic control system supplying data and voice traffic to and from remote areas.

Comtech Systems Inc has the prime system responsibility to supply a hub satellite earth station and a number of fixed remote and transportable satellite earth terminals. Delivery is to begin in June 2000 and continue for approximately two years.

Comtech's Antenna Systems Inc, based in Florida, will supply 2.4m flyaway antennas for use by the system's transportable satellite earth terminals.

Comtech Communications Corp, based in Arizona will provide redundant CSAT Transceivers and C-Band Up and Down Converters. As part of its execution of this project, as the systems contractor and integrator, the Comtech Systems operating unit will also supply a system-wide digital router network and a network monitoring and control system to monitor remote sites from the hub satellite earth station.

Alcatel Brazil will provide field support services for the installation and acceptance testing in Brazil.

Using Cell Phones on Cruise Ships - By Satellite
Maritime Telecommunications Network (MTN), a subsidiary of American Tower's ATC Teleports Inc will provide the satellite communications network for a new service developed and patented by BT A&M, BT's satellite communications division.

This new service, known as "Cruise Connect", will enable passengers and staff on cruise ships to make and receive calls from their cell phones while at sea.

Using the new service, has solved the problem of passenger vessels cruising beyond the reach of cellular signals. Passengers and staff can make and receive calls on their cell phones in exactly the same way as they would on land. Discrete "mini" cellular stations are installed on the vessels themselves. These stations are linked, via the MTN satellite communications network, to a mobile switching centre within the land based cellular network.

In addition to providing global cell phone coverage while aboard the ship by using MTN's ShipNet technology, an IP broadcast network with a continuous full-time data link, "Cruise Connect" gives passengers and staff the added benefit of being directly contacted on their normal cellular number with the flexibility of the call charges appearing on their regular cellular bill.

The service will be compatible with future mainstream cellular developments such as GPRS and UMTS, which will provide even more flexibility by allowing mobile Internet access.

Maritime Telecommunications Network (MTN) provides C band voice, fax, data and Internet communications to the cruise industry, the US Navy, and to offshore oil and gas platforms around the world. MTN also provides ship-to-shore live video and radio broadcast capabilities in C or Ku band. Through its earth station in Holmdel, New Jersey., it also offers international satellite voice, data and Internet services.

Earth Observation

ERS-1 Mission Ends
After nine years of service, over three times its planned lifetime, the ERS-1 mission was ended on Friday 10 March by a failure in the on board attitude control system.

Since its launch on 17 July 1991, ESA's first sun-synchronous polar-orbiting mission, has acquired more than 1.5 million individual Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) scenes. ERS-1 SAR images, together with the data from other instruments on board, were delivered to a worldwide community of some 4000 users in science and applications. Surface winds derived from the scatterometer and altimeter have been supplied to meteorological services worldwide since 1991. The duration of the mission has also meant that scientists have already observed several El Niño phenomena through combined observations of surface currents, topography, temperatures and winds. The measurements of sea surface temperatures, critical to the understanding of climate change, made by the ERS-1 Along-Track Scanning Radiometer are the most accurate ever from space. All these critical measurements are being continued and enhanced by the current ERS-2 mission.

The most exciting results from the ERS-1 mission have been in the field of SAR interferometry, where for the first time precise topographic information could be routinely produced from space data. The ERS-1 and ERS-2 tandem operations demonstrated this technique for various applications and paved the way for the definition of new dedicated SAR interferometry missions.

ERS-2 (launched in 1995) took over the operational services of ERS-1 in 1996. It too has now exceeded its nominal lifetime and remains in excellent condition. Next year Envisat will be launched to continue this series of Earth Observation missions.

Military Space

Space Surveillance Contract for TRW
TRW Inc will upgrade and enhance a US Air Force satellite-tracking system under a potentially US$ 20 million, four-year contract.

The initial US$ 5 million award, known as Deep STARE, from the Air Force's Electronic Systems Center funds design, development and demonstration of a prototype of the upgraded system.

The Ground-Based Electro-Optical Deep Space Surveillance System (GEODSS) tracks satellites orbiting at altitudes above 35,000 km, beyond the range of most radars. It reports information about the position of US and foreign satellites back to the Air Force and US Space Commands.

GEODSS consists of an Optical Command, Control, and Communications Facility at Edwards Air Force Base, California, that serves as a collection point for information from powerful electro-optical sensors, or telescopes. The telescopes are located at White Sands Missile Range, New Mexico; Diego Garcia, British Indian Ocean Territory; and Maui, Hawaii.

TRW is teamed with Sarnoff Corporation and Raytheon on Deep STARE, Deep Space Surveillance Technology Advancement & Replacement for Ebsicons. Sarnoff will develop a camera subsystem for the prototype based on state-of-the-art Charge Coupled Device technology, which enables the sensors to see dimmer objects. Raytheon will develop a replacement Mount Control System to accurately point the telescope. TRW will upgrade the existing image processing software and integrate all of the subsystems into a working prototype.

When the prototype is successfully completed, the Air Force can exercise options to upgrade and enhance operational sites.

TRW is also working on other Air Force command and control projects in Colorado Springs. In February, a TRW-led team was selected by the US Air Force to compete in the final stage of the Integrated Space Command and Control (ISC2) contract, a program valued at more than US$ 1.8 billion over 15 years. Designed to modernise the command and control systems at the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) and U.S. Air Force Space Command in Colorado Springs, Colorado, ISC2 will integrate approximately 40 air, space, and missile defense command and control systems into one integrated architecture, providing commanders at Space Command and NORAD with a common, global battlefield picture based on shared, real-time data.

Science

Mars Panel Findings Leaked
An independent panel investigating NASA's Mars exploration program following recent problems is reported to be going to recommend major changes that will schedule delays and hike costs.

The report of the Mars Program Independent Assessment Team will not be released until the end of this month, leaks are already provided details of the panel's recommendations.

Those recommendations will reportedly include:

• cancelling the 2001 lander mission and using its hardware on future missions;
• delaying the first return mission for the return of Martian rock and soil samples to the Earth from 2008 until at least 2010;
• including more "micromissions", some of which would be dedicated to building a communications and navigation network around the planet, other micromissions would perform focused scientific observations.

The revised program, including spacecraft modifications to make missions more robust, would cost an additional US$ 500 million to the US$ 1 billion overall cost of the Mars exploration program.

NASA Selects Gamma Ray Burst Monitor for GLAST Mission
NASA has selected the Gamma-Ray Burst Monitor (GBM) to be flown on the Gamma Ray Large Area Space Telescope (GLAST) mission, planned for launch in 2005. This instrument will complement the primary instrument, the GLAST Large Area Telescope Flight Investigation.

GLAST will explore the most energetic and violent events in a quest for the ultimate sources of energy in the Universe. Objects explored will include distant galaxies fuelled by super massive black holes at their centre, neutron stars and individual black holes that are the remnants of stars that have ended their life with an explosion (supernova), and many other stars at the extremes of mass and energy.

The GLAST mission also will explore the very high-energy component of gamma-ray bursts, which are one of the greatest mysteries of astrophysics. The Gamma-Ray Burst Monitor, in conjunction with the primary telescope, will provide the broadest energy coverage ever available on a single spacecraft for gamma-ray burst studies. Based on the results of previous missions, this energy coverage will provide crucial information for determining the nature of these illusive objects.

NEAR Probe Renamed
NASA's NEAR satellite currently orbiting asteroid 433 Eros will be renamed to honour Dr Eugene Shoemaker, a legendary geologist who influenced decades of research on the role of asteroids and comets in shaping the planets who died in 1997. The Near Earth Asteroid Rendezvous (NEAR) spacecraft, will now be known as NEAR Shoemaker.

With his wife and research partner, Carolyn, Shoemaker was part of the leading comet discovery team of the past century, perhaps most famous for finding the comet (Shoemaker-Levy 9) that broke up and collided with Jupiter in 1994.

He was an expert on craters and the impacts that caused them. Shoemaker's work on the nature and origin of Meteor Crater in Arizona in the 1960s laid the foundation for research on craters throughout the solar system. He also established the lunar geological time scale that allowed researchers to date the features on the moon's surface.

Manned Space

Honeywell Memory for Space Station
Honeywell has announced today that its Space Systems business has been contracted by Boeing, Huntington Beach, California, to upgrade International Space Station Multiplexers/Demultiplexers (MDMs) with new versatile flash memory technology that provides rapid storage and retrieval of data as well as a significant increase in storage capacity.

Under the agreement, which is valued at US$ 9.4 million, Honeywell will provide Boeing with 20 Solid State Mass Memory Units (SSMMUs), which are scheduled for delivery in 2001.

Honeywell's SSMMUs will interface with the International Space Station's host computer via a Small Computer Systems Interface (SCSI) with all transmitted data being stored in Honeywell's state-of-the-art flash memory components. The memory design incorporates Error Detection And Correction (EDAC) technology to ensure data transmitted to the host is accurate. The design also incorporates a wear-levelling algorithm to extend the useful life of the SSMMU. For instance, when continuously writing data at a maximum SCSI transfer rate in the 1-Gigabyte configuration, the useful life exceeds 25 years.

Using solid state units for data storage eliminates the time delays of access, latency and seek associated with other types of nonvolatile storage. The electronic unit also provides the user with greater flexibility as it is expandable from 500 Megabytes to 10 Gigabytes.

The new technology requires little or no modification and has been designed for ground and human space applications. Testing has confirmed that the SSMMU devices are radiation tolerant and therefore well suited for space environments. Replacement of the current mass storage device will be performed on-orbit by astronaut crews.

No Acting on Mir
Plans to fly a Russian actor on the next mission to the Mir space station have fallen through because of lack of money.

Actor Vladimir Steklov was to have made a film provisionally titled "The Last Journey" about a renegade cosmonaut who insisted on remaining in orbit in Mir. Also involved in the film were producer John Daly and Russian director Yuri Kara.

The film makers apparently made a down payment for the actor's training and flight, but are reported to have defaulted on payment for the pre-flight training. Russian space officials subsequently withdrew the actor from the April flight to Mir.

On April 4 cosmonauts Zalyotin and Kaleri will blast off on a 45 days mission to Mir in which they will evaluate whether the space station is suitable for continued habitation and commercial exploitation.

Russia Can Support Mir and ISS This Year
After a couple of months of criticising Russia's decision to reactivate Mir because of its impact on International Space Station operations, NASA has now decided that Russia can support the operation of both space stations this year.

The Russian authorities have convinced NASA managers that enough Soyuz and Progress vehicles are available to support the International Space Station and the reactivation of the Mir station this year, together with adequate ground resources to control two inhabited stations simultaneously.

NASA now believe that Russia has the capability to support a 45 day mission, starting in April, to review whether Mir can be re-inhabited and used for commercial operations, as well as having enough available hardware and resources to dock the Zvezda Service Module to the ISS in October.

The Russian Space Agency has based this support plan on the assumption that Mir will be deorbited after the 45 day mission. RSC Energia, on the other hand, which is responsible for operating Mir, is currently hoping to continue using Mir commercially once the 45 day mission has confirmed that the mothballed space station is still viable.

Russian Space Station Safety Violations
The US Government Accounting Office has identified major safety violations in the Russian modules for the International Space Station in a testimony to the US House of Representatives Space and Aeronautical Subcommittee.

The testimony highlighted four areas in which the Russian modules, violate NASA safety standards:

The main violation is with regard to the high levels of noise in the Russian modules. Fans and motors create high levels of noise which are way above allowable levels defined by the US Occupational Safety and Health Administration. The noise is so loud that normal conversation is impossible and warning tones could also be masked during emergencies. Doctors are also concerned that the noise level is high enough to disrupt the crew's sleep or cause permanent hearing loss.

Other concerns include:

• the lack of adequate shielding to protect the modules from impacts with space debris;
• verifying that the windows in the modules are strong enough to withstand the space environment during decades of exposure to radiation, vacuum and erosion by minute particles;
• the operation of critical equipment during an emergency if modules are depressurised.

NASA is reported to be ready to issue waivers to cover these noncompliances. Because of the political pressure to launch the next Russian module in July, there is little possibility that the noncompliances will cause delays. Instead, NASA will accept Russian promises to fix the problems at some later time.

Technology

Custom Linux for Chinese Aerospace Corporation
TurboLinux Inc, the high performance Linux company, has announced a sales and technology agreement to develop a customised version of TurboLinux called "Space Linux" for the China Aerospace Corporation.

The "Space Linux" customised version of TurboLinux will be used in selected government projects in the aerospace industry as soon as the third quarter of 2000, government officials said.

Under the agreement, TurboLinux developers and China's leading systems integration firm, Huadi, will customise the open source TurboLinux Linux distribution for eventual deployment throughout the 280,000-employee China Aerospace Corporation.

Founded in 1992, TurboLinux is the world's fastest-growing Linux company with investment backing from more than 20 global hardware, software and services companies, including BEA, Compaq, Dell, Intel, Fujitsu Support and Services, NEC, Novell, SCO and Toshiba. A market leader in Linux software clustering solutions and Linux internationalisation, the company's high-performance consumer and business Linux products run on Intel, Alpha and PowerPC workstation and server platforms and are supported globally by IBM, Hewlett-Packard and SCO.

ESA Backs Airships to Complement Satellite and Terrestrial Systems
The European Space Agency, together with DaimlerChrysler Aerospace of Germany, Lindstrand Balloons Ltd of the United Kingdom and the Technical University of Delft in the Netherlands, have completed a first assessment of a concept for High-Altitude Long-Endurance (HALE) aerostatic craft, positioned in the stratosphere at about 20 km altitude - in a region of space where no aircraft or satellites fly - and with an operational lifetime ranging from months to years.

HALEs are large helium-filled powered airships with an aerodynamic "cigar" shape about 220 m in length and 55 m in diameter, carrying payloads of up to 1000 kg or so. Unlike Zeppelins, which they closely resemble from the outside, HALEs do not need a rigid overall internal structure. With modern flexible hull materials, helium-tight and UV-resistant, their design can rely on pressurisation to impart the necessary stiffness to the airship body. Only local rigid reinforcements for the engine and payload attachment are necessary.

HALEs are equipped with an engine for mobility and stable positioning against stratospheric winds. The altitude of 20 km is high enough to give local or regional coverage of about 100 km in diameter and also offers the advantage of minimum wind speeds. Solar cells covering the upper, sun-oriented parts of the airship skin gather energy at daytime to power a high-efficiency electric engine, which drives a large propeller, and feed energy into a storage and conversion system, from which it is drawn for night-time propulsion and operation of the vehicle.

Earth observation is a domain where HALEs can play an important role in permanent or ad-hoc services such as environmental monitoring or disaster management. After detection of a problem identified via a satellite system, a HALE airship could, after arrival on the scene, provide detailed, up-to-date and round-the-clock information. These airships could be used - for instance - to guide rescue operations in the event of a flood or earthquake, when local telephone connections, including ground-net based mobiles, fail and rapid local observations of the disaster area are vital.

In telecommunications, various applications can be envisaged. Located above a densely populated area, HALE airships could support future mobile multimedia services (voice, Internet, radio and TV broadcast) without the need for a network of antennas and ground-based relay stations. Remote meter reading (gas, water and electricity) is another possibility. Quick local observation and information could also make for more efficient traffic management.

ESA's interest in HALEs is due to their relevance to a broad range of space technologies such as thin-film solar cells, inflatable technology, telecommunication equipment, astronomical instruments and various subsystems such as power management and distribution, steerable antennas, Earth observation sensors and radar imagers. Lightweight design, another typical area of space expertise, is particularly important to the development of HALE airships. Also Industry is interested: Considerable effort is currently being put into assessing HALE's business potential and market access while additional companies and institutions are considering to join the team and discussing their possible roles in the development and commercial exploitation.

Launch Vehicles

Sea Launch Zenit Failure
Further information is now available following the failure of the Sea Launch Zenit last Sunday which destroyed the first of twelve ICO personal phone satellites.

After a perfect lift off from the Odyssey platform in the Pacific Ocean near Christmas Island the Zenit 3SL failed 467 seconds into flight. Telemetry problems developed during the firing of the second stage and continued following third stage separation. Sea Launch officials believe the rocket drifted off course while the second stage fired, and was destroyed by either the automated self-destruct systems on the booster or from aerodynamic forces. The Block DM upper stage and the ICO satellite are thought to have crashed into the Pacific Ocean some two hours later 4,300 km southeast of the launch site.

ICO had fully insured the satellite to cover the cost of construction and relaunch. ICO, which only requires ten operational satellites out of its planned constellation of twelve for global service, are hopeful that the loss will have little impact on their business plan.

Launches

Express 6A

Launched: 12 March 2000
Site: Baikonur, Kazakhstan
Launcher: Proton
Orbit: GEO 80° E
International Number: 2000-013A
Name: Express 6A
Owner: Russian Satellite Communications Company (RSCC)
Contractor: bus, NPO-PM; payload, Alcatel Space Industries

Express 6A is the first of a pair of new communications satellites for Intersputnik. The second Express, 3A, will be launched in June.

Each Express satellite carries 12 C band and 5 Ku band high power transponders.

Launch Schedule

March 20: Cluster-2 on a Starsem Soyuz/Fregat from Baikonur, Kazakhstan
March 21: AsiaStar and Insat 3B on an Ariane 5 from Kourou, French Guiana
March: Sirius on a Proton/Block DM from Baikonur, Kazakhstan
March 25: Imager for Magnetopause-to-Aurora Global Exploration (IMAGE) on a Delta 2 from Vandenberg Air Force Base, California
March 29: Ekspress 6A (was Ekspress A2) on a Proton from Baikonur, Kazakhstan
Late March: experimental satellite on a Eurockot Rokot from Plesetsk, Russia.
April 3: Mir 28 crew on a Soyuz TM from Baikonur, Kazakhstan
April 5: Eutelsat Sesat on a Proton from Baikonur, Kazakhstan
April 9: DSP Payload on a Titan 4B from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida
April 13: ISS flight 2A on the Shuttle Atlantis (STS-101) from Kennedy Space Center, Florida
April 14: Eutelsat W4 on an Atlas 3 from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida
April 15: TSX-5 on a Pegasus XL from Vandenberg Air Force Base, California
April 18: Galaxy 4R on an Ariane 42L from Kourou, French Guiana
April: Gorizont 33 on a Proton from Baikonur, Kazakhstan
May 2: GOES L on an Atlas 2AS from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida
May: Echostar 6 on an Atlas
May 23: Astra 2B and GE-7 on an Ariane 5 from Kourou, French Guiana
June: Ekran on a Proton from Baikonur, Kazakhstan
June: Altair on a Proton from Baikonur, Kazakhstan
June 20: Ekspress 3A (was Ekspress A3) on a Proton from Baikonur, Kazakhstan
Late June: Ekspress A3 on a Proton from Baikonur, Kazakhstan
Early July: NSS-6 (provisional) on an Ariane 42L from Kourou, French Guiana
July 6: Europe*Star 1 on an Ariane from Kourou, French Guiana
July: Zvezda Service Module (ISS flight 1R) on a Proton from Baikonur, Kazakhstan
Late July: Eurasiasat 1 and L-Star 1 on an Ariane 5 from Kourou, French Guiana
End July: PAS-1R on an Ariane from Kourou, French Guiana
Mid August: Brasilsat B4 and Nilesat 102 on an Ariane 44LP from Kourou, French Guiana
August: Tempo 1 on an Atlas

Delayed: EROS on a Start-1 from Plesetsk, Russia
Delayed: High Energy Transient Explorer (HETE-2) on a Pegasus XL from Kwajalein Missile Range, Pacific Ocean
Delayed: MLV-11 on an Atlas 2AS from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida

Cancelled: Iridium on a Rokot from Pleetsk, Russia

Business

Alcoa Inc Buys Rocket Manufacturer
Alcoa Inc, the world's largest aluminium company, is buy aerospace industry supplier Cordant Technologies Inc in a US$ .9 billion deal, including assumption of debt.

Cordant is composed of three market-leading business groups that employ about 17,000 workers at some 58 facilities in the United States, Canada, France, the United Kingdom and Japan that generate US$ 2.5 billion in annual revenues. One of the groups is Thiokol Propulsion, a supplier of solid rocket propulsion systems for space launch vehicles.

Cox Sells Flextech Stake
Cox Communications Inc has sold its 13% interest in Flextech plc through a private placement with institutional investors.

Proceeds from the sale will total approximately US$ 520 million. Merrill Lynch International was the sole bookrunner for the sale.

In 1992 and 1993, Cox became one of the original investors in the cable programming services, UK Gold and UK Living. In 1997, Flextech purchased both channels, at which time Cox assumed a 13% interest. Cox Communications serves approximately 6 million customers.

Dish Network Acquires Kelly Broadcasting
EchoStar Communications Corporation has announced the acquisition of Kelly Broadcasting Systems Inc, based in New Jersey, further solidifying the position of EchoStar as the leading television provider of international and foreign-language programming in the United States.

Michael Kelly, president and owner of KBS, will be named senior vice president of International Programming and Operations at EchoStar.

EchoStar will issue approximately 255,000 shares of Dish Class A common stock and pay US$ 3.5 million in cash for 100 % ownership of KBS.

KBS offers programming from Greece, Brazil, Holland, India, Egypt and other Middle Eastern countries.

Microsoft and Measat
Microsoft Corp has bought an undisclosed stake in the privately owned Malaysian satellite TV network, MEASAT Broadcast Network Systems.

MEASAT has broadcast and Internet operations in Asia which are marketed under the Astro brand. Its satellite footprint covers most of Asia from Australia to India. Industry analysts believe the tie up will give Microsoft access to a large potential market for its interactive television products.

MEASAT broadcasts 28 television channels and 13 radio channels, much of which is in Chinese languages, Tamil and Malay. MEASAT has nearly 400,000 subscribers in Malaysia.

TCI Satellite Finalises Liberty Media Investment
TCI Satellite Entertainment Inc has closed on a transaction with Liberty Media Corporation in which Liberty Media purchased shares of cumulative preferred stock in TSAT in exchange for Liberty Media's economic interest in 5,084,745 shares of Sprint Corporation PCS common stock, valued at US$ 300 million.

Liberty Media received 150 million shares of TSAT Series A 12% Cumulative Preferred Stock ("Series A Stock") and 150 million shares of TSAT Series B 8% Cumulative Convertible Voting Preferred Stock ("Series B Stock" and together with the Series A Stock, the "Preferred Stock"). The Preferred Stock is senior to all other classes and series of capital stock of the Company. The Series A Stock does not have voting rights. The holders of the Series B stock have voting rights representing 85.014% of the voting power of TSAT and will vote together with the holders of all other classes or series of voting stock of the Company, except as required by law.

Liberty Media and TSAT also formed a joint venture named Liberty Satellite LLC to hold and manage interests in entities engaged globally in the distribution of internet data and other content via satellite and related businesses. Liberty Media contributed interests in XM Satellite Radio Holdings Inc, iSKY Inc, Astrolink International LLC and Sky Latin America satellite businesses in exchange for a 89.41% interest in the joint venture. TSAT contributed its interest in JATO Communications Corp. and General Motors Class H Common Stock in exchange for a 10.59% interest in the joint venture. TSAT will manage the affairs of Liberty Satellite LLC.

In a related transaction, TSAT paid Liberty Media US$ 60 million in the form of an unsecured promissory note in exchange for a 14.12% interest in a limited liability company with holdings in Astrolink International LLC. The remaining 85.88% of the limited liability company is held by Liberty Satellite LLC. Astrolink plans to launch geostationary satellites to provide two way broadband communications to consumers and businesses.

People

Andrew Corp Promotes Alan Haase
Andrew Corporation has promoted Alan Haase to Group President, Communication Products.

In this role, Mr. Haase has worldwide responsibility for the company's terrestrial microwave, satellite, ValuLine, and government antenna product lines as well as waveguide, pressurisation and communications shelters products.

Karol Bobko Joins Spacehab
Karol "Bo" Bobko has joined the Spacehab's Johnson Engineering organisation as Vice President for Product Development.

Bobko will be responsible for all hardware development at Spacehab, serving commercial and government customers as well as Spacehab-funded development projects.

New VP at Norsat
Norsat International Inc, a provider of satellite ground station components and systems, has announced that Lindsay E. Ryerson has re-joined the company as Vice President, Norsat Narrowband Networks.

Prior to rejoining Norsat, Ryerson had remained with Aurora Distributing, an operating unit divested by Norsat in 1998, to oversee Aurora's transition to its new ownership.

In his newly-created position, Ryerson will manage the marketing of Globalstar USA satellite telephones and airtime and the development of Norsat's new line of low data rate terminals to be based on Qualcomm's CDMA technology and the Globalstar satellite constellation.

Teledyne Technologies Names New Chief Technology Officer
Teledyne Technologies Inc has announced the appointment of Robert J. Steenberge as Chief Technology Officer.

In this newly created position, Steenberge will co-ordinate Teledyne's strategic thrust to significantly expand its base of products and services for rapidly growing broadband communication applications.

Teledyne Technologies currently develops and manufactures components and subsystems used in wireless, satellite and fibre optic communications equipment. These products include monolithic microwave integrated circuits (MMICs), travelling wave tubes, microwave filters and fibre optic transmitters and receivers.

TRW Promotes Darryl Fraser to VP Communications
TRW Inc has named Darryl Fraser as Vice President of Communications for its US$ 6 billion TRW Aerospace and Information Systems business.

In this new role, Fraser will direct internal, marketing and strategic communications and media and community relations for TRW's aerospace and information systems businesses.