10 June 2007
Satcoms
Astrium Wins Hispasat
Contract to Build Amazonas-2 Satellite
Globecomm Systems Awarded US$ 16.1 Million Contract
from a Leading Provider of Telecommunications Services in Asia for Next
Generation Media Processing Centre
Globecomm
Systems to Provide Wireless Phone Services to 200 Rural Villages Throughout
Alaska
Rockwell Collins and ARINC Sign
Agreement for Broadband Offering
Satellite
Communications for Security Support at G8 Summit
Broadcast
DirecTV
to Launch New Starz HD Channels
OpenTV
Selected By Astro to Launch PlayJam Channel
Russian News Channel Russia Today Now Available Free
To Air In The Nordic
Earth
Observation
Envisat Captures First Image Of Sargassum From
Space
ESA's Water Mission Instrument Passes
Test Programme
Navigation
SiRFDiRect Location Technology Delivers Portable
Navigation Breakthrough
Military Space
Boeing Completes Critical Wideband Global SATCOM
Satellite Tests
Boeing Demonstrates
Integrated Voice, Data and Video Services with TSAT Tests
DataPath Awarded GSA Schedule Contract to Provide
Satellite Communications Solutions to Government Agencies
DRS Technologies Successfully Demonstrates X-band
Satellite Communications-on-the-Move Capability During Naval Exercise
Lockheed Martin Awarded Contract From Air Force Space
and Missile Systems Center
Lockheed Martin
Completes Significant System Design Milestone on TMOS Program
Lockheed Martin Team Delivers Key Software for Ground
Component of Space-Based Missile Warning System
Raytheon Wins Navy Multiband Terminal
Contract
Astrophysics
A New Look at Abandoned Math Model May Help Search
For Gravitational Waves
Astronomy
Com Dev Begins Production on Cdn$ 39 Million Contract
for NASA's Successor to the Hubble
National
Radio Astronomy Observatory Teams With NASA Gamma-Ray
Satellite
Galaxies
Running Rings Around the
Galaxy
Black
Holes
RIT Study Predicts How Fast a Black Hole Can Be
Booted from a Galaxy
Quasars
Hobby-Eberly Telescope Helps Astronomers Learn
Secrets of One of Universe's Most Distant Objects
Venus
CU-Boulder Space Scientists Gear Up for Mercury
Mission Flyby of Venus
NASA Spacecraft Ready
For Science-Rich Encounter with Venus
Venus
Express and Messenger to Look at Venus in Tandem
NASA Messenger Completes Second Flyby of
Venus
Asteroids
Sancho Study in the CDF
On the Edge of Space
JP Aerospace: Ads, Ping Pong
Balls, Coffee and Cutting Edge Development
Manned Space
International Space Station Status Report:
SS07-31
NASA Issues Proposal Request For
Ares I Avionics Unit
NASA's Shuttle
Atlantis Begins Mission To The Space Station
NASA Updates Shuttle Target Launch Date For Hubble
Mission
Spacehab Positioned to Support NASA
Plan to Maximise ISS Utilisation
Third Pair
Of Massive Lockheed Martin Solar Arrays To Be Launched To International Space
Station
Technology
AeroAstro Completes Preliminary Design Review for
STP-SIV Spacecraft
NASA Selects IBM for
Next-Generation Supercomputer Applications
NASA Shuttle Engine Upgrades Improve Safety and
Reliability
Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne
Engines Use New Performance Monitors on Shuttle Launch
SSTL Geostationary Mini-satellite Platform Milestone
Completed
Technology
Transfer
NASA Technology Helps Detect and Treat Heart Disease
and Strokes
Launch
Services
Boeing Launches Italian Earth Observation
Satellite
Spacehab Subsidiary Signs New
Contracts Totalling US$ 4.7 Million
Successful Launch of the Italian Earth Observation
COSMO-SkyMed Satellite
TerreStar Files FCC
Application to Modify Its Satellite Launch Milestone
In Orbit
Thales Alenia Space to Provide S-band TTC
Transponders for Two of Argentina's Scientific Missions, Saocom and
Aquarius
Launches
Cosmos 2427
COSMO-SkyMed 1
ISS 13A - Shuttle Atlantis (STS-117)
Launch
Schedule
Reports
Competing Modem Technologies Are Not Slowing the
Growth of Broadband Satellite, According to Freesky
Research
Business
ATK Completes the Acquisition of Swales
Aerospace
C2sat Appoints Telemar
Scandinavia as Global Service Partner
FTMSC
Reveals New Brand Name: Vizada
Products and Services
Advantech Launches Premium DVB-RCS
VSAT Mesh Terminal in Industry-first Demonstration
iDirect Introduces Small Form-Factor 'Comms on the
Move' Technology and Global Network Management Solution to Meet Military and
Commercial Needs
iDirect Provides Satellite
Network Operators With A Diversified Bandwidth Delivery Model Through New Group
QoS Functionality
People
Arrowhead Global Solutions Names Michael Shakarji and
Nelson Ward to Senior Posts
DigitalGlobe
Promotes Three Vice Presidents to Key Leadership Posts
Satcoms
Astrium Wins Hispasat
Contract to Build Amazonas-2 Satellite
(6 June 2007) Astrium has
been awarded a contract by Hispasat to design and build Amazonas-2, a powerful
satellite which will increase the capacity offered by Hispasat on their
American position to meet growing market demand.
Globecomm Systems Awarded US$ 16.1 Million Contract
from a Leading Provider of Telecommunications Services in Asia for Next
Generation Media Processing Centre
(8 June 2007) Globecomm Systems
Inc., a global provider of end-to-end value-added satellite-based
communications solutions, announced today that the company has been awarded a
contract valued at US$ 16.1 million from a leading provider of
telecommunications services in Asia to design and install a next generation
media-processing-center (MPC).
Globecomm
Systems to Provide Wireless Phone Services to 200 Rural Villages Throughout
Alaska
(4 June 2007) Globecomm Systems Inc., a global provider of
end-to-end value-added satellite-based communications solutions, announced
today that the company has been awarded a contract valued at US$ 20.7 million
from General Communication Inc., an Alaska-based company providing voice, video
and data communication services to residential, commercial and government
customers, to provide wireless phone services to 200 rural villages throughout
Alaska.
Rockwell Collins and ARINC Sign
Agreement for Broadband Offering
(5 June 2007) Business jet
passengers will soon be better connected than ever with the reintroduction of
Rockwell Collins eXchange broadband connectivity offering, featuring ARINC
SKYLink's highly successful broadband network service.
Satellite Communications for Security Support at G8
Summit
(6 June 2007) An immediate response to urgent communications
needs can be offered by satellite systems in many
situations.
Broadcast
DirecTV to Launch New Starz HD Channels
(4
June 2007) Starz Entertainment announced today that its new High Definition
(HD) premium movie channels will be launched on DirecTV.
OpenTV Selected By Astro to Launch PlayJam
Channel
(5 June 2007) OpenTV Corp., a leading provider of solutions
for the delivery of digital and interactive television, announced that Astro
All Asia Networks plc (Astro), a cross-media operator with direct-to-home
satellite television services in Malaysia and Brunei, has launched PlayJam
Games, a television channel with interactive games supplied by OpenTV's
PlayJam.
Russian News Channel Russia Today
Now Available Free To Air In The Nordic
(7 June 2007) Everyone
interested in developments in Russia and in international news from a Russian
perspective now has the opportunity to keep up to date.
Earth Observation
Envisat Captures First Image Of
Sargassum From Space
(6 June 2007) Sargassum seaweed, famous in
nautical lore for entangling ships in its dense floating vegetation, has been
detected from space for the first time thanks to an instrument aboard ESA's
environmental satellite, Envisat.
ESA's
Water Mission Instrument Passes Test Programme
(8 June 2007) After
successfully undergoing a rigorous three-month testing programme, the
innovative SMOS (Soil Moisture and Ocean Salinity) payload is about to make its
journey from ESA's Test Centre in the Netherlands to France, where it will join
the platform to form the satellite in preparation for launch next
year.
Navigation
SiRFDiRect Location Technology
Delivers Portable Navigation Breakthrough
(5 June 2007) SiRF
Technology Holdings, Inc., a leading provider of GPS-enabled silicon and
premium software location platforms, today introduced its SiRFDiRect
technology, a portable navigation breakthrough that achieves navigation
accuracy and coverage previously available only in costly, permanently
installed in-car systems.
Military
Space
Boeing Completes Critical Wideband Global SATCOM
Satellite Tests
(5 June 2007) The Boeing Company has successfully
completed end-to-end testing of the Wideband Global SATCOM (WGS) payload
command and control system, paving the way for the launch of the first WGS
satellite this summer.
Boeing Demonstrates
Integrated Voice, Data and Video Services with TSAT Tests
(6 June
2007) The Boeing Company has further demonstrated that its Transformational
Satellite Communications System (TSAT) can provide warfighters with rapid
access to integrated voice, data and video services.
DataPath Awarded GSA Schedule Contract to Provide
Satellite Communications Solutions to Government Agencies
(7 June
2007) DataPath, Inc., a provider of satellite and wireless communications
networks around the world, today announced it has been awarded a five-year
General Services Administration (GSA) IT Schedule 70 contract (number
GS-35F-0424T).
DRS Technologies Successfully
Demonstrates X-band Satellite Communications-on-the-Move Capability During
Naval Exercise
(4 June 2007) DRS Technologies, Inc. announced today
that its business unit based in Merrimack, New Hampshire, DRS Codem Systems,
Inc., successfully demonstrated their X-band Satellite
Communications-On-The-Move (COTM) capabilities with an XTAR, LLC satellite
during the U.S. Navy's annual exercise, Trident Warrior.
Lockheed Martin Awarded Contract From Air Force Space
and Missile Systems Center
(6 June 2007) Lockheed Martin was
selected by the Air Force Space Command, Space and Missile Systems Center to
continue providing support and evolutionary growth to the command's premier
weather satellite receiving stations.
Lockheed Martin Completes Significant System Design
Milestone on TMOS Program
(4 June 2007) Lockheed Martin has
completed a successful System Design Review (SDR) of the TSAT Mission
Operations System (TMOS) with the U.S. Air Force.
Lockheed Martin Team Delivers Key Software for Ground
Component of Space-Based Missile Warning System
(5 June 2007) The
Lockheed Martin team developing the Space-Based Infrared System (SBIRS) has
successfully delivered key ground segment software to support the launch of the
program's first geosynchronous (GEO-1) satellite.
Raytheon Wins Navy Multiband Terminal
Contract
(4 June 2007) Raytheon Company has been awarded the U.S.
Navy's Multiband Terminal (NMT) contract, which has a combined value during its
lifetime in excess of US$ 1 billion for development and
production.
Astrophysics
A New Look at Abandoned Math Model May Help Search
For Gravitational Waves
(4 June 2007) A new way of looking at a
previously abandoned mathematical model might help astronomers study and
accurately identify an exotic clan of gravitational waves.
Astronomy
Com Dev Begins Production on Cdn$
39 Million Contract for NASA's Successor to the Hubble
(4 June 2007)
Com Dev International Ltd., Canada's largest manufacturer of space hardware
subsystems, today announced that it has begun the production phase of its work
on the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST).
National Radio Astronomy Observatory Teams With NASA
Gamma-Ray Satellite
(5 June 2007) The National Radio Astronomy
Observatory (NRAO) is teaming with NASA's upcoming Gamma-ray Large Area Space
Telescope (GLAST) to allow astronomers to use both the orbiting facility and
ground-based radio telescopes to maximise their scientific
payoff.
Galaxies
Running Rings Around the Galaxy
(4 June
2007) An astronomer at the California Institute of Technology has discovered
three giant stellar streams arcing high over the Milky Way. Remnants of
cannibalised galaxies and star clusters, the streams are between 13,000 and
130,000 light-years distant from Earth and extend over much of the northern
sky.
Black
Holes
RIT Study Predicts How Fast a Black Hole Can Be
Booted from a Galaxy
(6 June 2007) Scientists have discovered for
the first time just how fast a supermassive black hole can be thrown from a
galaxy when it merges with another black hole.
Quasars
Hobby-Eberly Telescope Helps Astronomers Learn
Secrets of One of Universe's Most Distant Objects
(8 June 2007)
Astronomers have used the 9.2-meter Hobby-Eberly Telescope (HET) at McDonald
Observatory to confirm one of the most distant known objects in the
universe.
Venus
CU-Boulder Space Scientists Gear Up for Mercury
Mission Flyby of Venus
(4 June 2007) University of Colorado at
Boulder researchers will scan Venus during a spacecraft flyby this week using
an US$ 8.7 million instrument they designed and built for NASA's Messenger
Mission, launched in 2004 and speeding toward Mercury.
NASA Spacecraft Ready For Science-Rich Encounter with
Venus
(4 June 2007) NASA's MErcury Surface, Space ENvironment,
GEochemistry, and Ranging (Messenger) spacecraft will make its closest pass to
Venus on Tuesday, June 5.
Venus Express and
Messenger to Look at Venus in Tandem
(4 June 2007) On 6 June this
year, scientists all around the world will be watching with eager eyes as not
one but two spacecraft observe Venus simultaneously.
NASA Messenger Completes Second Flyby of
Venus
(7 June 2007) NASA's MErcury Surface, Space ENvironment,
GEochemistry, and Ranging (Messenger) spacecraft swung by Venus for the second
time early this evening for a gravity assist that shrank the radius of its
orbit around the Sun, pulling it closer to Mercury. At nearly 15,000 miles per
hour, this change in Messenger's velocity is the largest of the
mission.
Asteroids
Sancho Study in the CDF
(7 June 2007)
Engineering and operation specialists working on ESA's Concurrent Design
Facility (CDF) recently finished a study (named the "Sancho" mission study)
targeted to a Near-Earth Object (NEO).
On the Edge of Space
JP Aerospace: Ads, Ping Pong
Balls, Coffee and Cutting Edge Development
(5 June 2007) On
Saturday, June 2, the JP Aerospace team set up shop in the Nevada desert. Two
platforms, Away 32 and Away 33, were carried aloft by balloon. These platforms
were loaded. Each one was performing multiple tests and accomplished multiple
mission objectives.
Manned
Space
International Space Station Status Report:
SS07-31
(6 June 2007) On Wednesday, the Expedition 15 crew completed
the second spacewalk in eight days and continued preparations for space shuttle
Atlantis' arrival at the International Space Station.
NASA Issues Proposal Request For Ares I Avionics
Unit
(6 June 2007) NASA has issued a request for proposal for key
guidance, navigation and control hardware for the new Ares I crew launch
vehicle. The upper stage instrument unit avionics will be used during the Ares
I ascent.
NASA's Shuttle Atlantis Begins
Mission To The Space Station
(8 June 2007) The space shuttle
Atlantis and its seven-member crew lifted off Friday from NASA's Kennedy Space
Center at 7:38 p.m. EDT to continue construction of the International Space
Station.
NASA Updates Shuttle Target Launch
Date For Hubble Mission
(7 June 2007) NASA managers officially are
targeting Sept. 10, 2008, for the launch of the fifth and final space shuttle
servicing mission to the Hubble Space Telescope.
Spacehab Positioned to Support NASA Plan to Maximise
ISS Utilisation
(6 June 2007) Spacehab, Incorporated, a leading
provider of commercial space services, today announced the company's formal
endorsement of NASA's recently released Report to Congress Regarding a Plan for
the International Space Station (ISS) National Laboratory.
Third Pair Of Massive Lockheed Martin Solar Arrays To
Be Launched To International Space Station
(7 June 2007) The third
of four pairs of massive solar arrays and a second Solar Alpha Rotary Joint
(SARJ), built by Lockheed Martin at its Space Systems facility in Sunnyvale,
will be launched aboard the space shuttle Atlantis to the International Space
Station (ISS) as early as June 8, 2007.
Technology
AeroAstro Completes Preliminary
Design Review for STP-SIV Spacecraft
(4 June 2007) AeroAstro, along
with prime contractor Ball Aerospace & Technologies, has successfully
completed the Preliminary Design Review (PDR) for the DoD Space Test Program
Standard Interface Vehicle (STP-SIV) program.
NASA Selects IBM for Next-Generation Supercomputer
Applications
(6 June 2007) On Wednesday, NASA and IBM, Armonk, N.Y.,
announced the agency has selected an IBM System p575+ supercomputer for
evaluating next-generation technology to meet the agency's future
supercomputing requirements.
NASA Shuttle
Engine Upgrades Improve Safety and Reliability
(5 June 2007) A main
engine computer upgrade developed by NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in
Huntsville, Ala., will fly on space shuttle Atlantis during the STS-117
mission, targeted for launch June 8.
Pratt
& Whitney Rocketdyne Engines Use New Performance Monitors on Shuttle
Launch
(8 June 2007) A trio of Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne Space
Shuttle Main Engines (SSME), fitted with new controllers to actively monitor
engine health and performance, powered the launch of the Space Shuttle Atlantis
from NASA's Kennedy Space Center today.
SSTL
Geostationary Mini-satellite Platform Milestone Completed
(5 June
2007) World-leading small satellite manufacturer, Surrey Satellite Technology
Ltd (SSTL), has successfully completed its Baseline Design Review for a
Geostationary Mini-satellite Platform (GMP).
Technology Transfer
NASA Technology Helps Detect and
Treat Heart Disease and Strokes
(6 June 2007) NASA space technology
is helping doctors diagnose and monitor treatments for hardening of the
arteries in its early stages, before it causes heart attacks and
strokes.
Launch
Services
Boeing Launches Italian Earth Observation
Satellite
(8 June 2007) The Boeing Company, through its commercial
launch business, successfully launched the first of four Italian Constellation
of Small Satellites for Mediterranean basin Observation (COSMO) SkyMed
spacecraft June 7 aboard a Delta II rocket.
Spacehab Subsidiary Signs New Contracts Totalling US$
4.7 Million
(7 June 2007) Spacehab, Incorporated, a leading provider
of commercial space services, today announced that its Astrotech Space
Operations subsidiary has been awarded several satellite processing contracts,
in both the commercial and government sectors, for a value of US$ 4.7
million.
Successful Launch of the Italian
Earth Observation COSMO-SkyMed Satellite
(8 June 2007) The first of
the four satellites of the COSMO-SkyMed constellation was launched today from
Vandenberg, California (USA), at 19h35 local time, 04h35 Italian time.
TerreStar Files FCC Application to Modify Its
Satellite Launch Milestone
(8 June 2007) TerreStar Networks Inc.
(TerreStar), a majority owned subsidiary of Motient Corporation (MNCP), today
announced that it has filed a request with the U.S. Federal Communications
Commission (FCC) to extend its satellite launch milestone date outlined in its
authorisation for the launch of its TerreStar-1 satellite.
In Orbit
Thales Alenia Space to Provide
S-band TTC Transponders for Two of Argentina's Scientific Missions, Saocom and
Aquarius
(8 June 2007) Thales Alenia Space, through its subsidiary
Thales Alenia Space España, has been awarded two contracts for the
development and supply of S-band TTC transponders dedicated to Saocom and
Aquarius/SAC-D Earth observation satellites.
Launches
Cosmos 2427
COSMO-SkyMed 1
ISS 13A - Shuttle Atlantis (STS-117)
Launch
Schedule
Reports
Competing Modem Technologies Are Not Slowing the
Growth of Broadband Satellite, According to Freesky Research
(6 June
2007) DVB-RCS, IPoS, and DOCSIS-for- Satellite continue to advance with little
evidence that one will emerge as the dominant satellite modem
technology.
Business
ATK Completes the Acquisition of Swales
Aerospace
(8 June 2007) Alliant Techsystems announced today that it
has completed the acquisition of Swales Aerospace, a premier provider of
satellite components and subsystems, small spacecraft and engineering services
for NASA, Department of Defense and commercial satellite customers.
C2sat Appoints Telemar Scandinavia as Global Service
Partner
(5 June 2007) C2SAT today announced that C2SAT and Telemar
Scandinavia AB have signed a Global Service Level Agreement.
FTMSC Reveals New Brand Name: Vizada
(6
June 2007) France Telecom Mobile Satellite Communications (FTMSC) today
rebrands itself Vizada.
Products
and Services
Advantech Launches Premium DVB-RCS VSAT Mesh Terminal
in Industry-first Demonstration
(5 June 2007) Advantech Satellite
Networks, a wholly owned subsidiary of Advantech AMT Inc, in collaboration with
Hakusan Corporation and JSAT Corporation, has successfully demonstrated the
industry's first DVB-RCS VSAT terminal operating in a mesh topology where each
VSAT terminal relays data via satellite to another terminal.
iDirect Introduces Small Form-Factor 'Comms on the
Move' Technology and Global Network Management Solution to Meet Military and
Commercial Needs
(4 June 2007) iDirect Technologies, a company of VT
Systems Inc, today announced the release of a new set of capabilities that
enables Comms on the Move (COTM) for land vehicles, commuter trains and
yachts.
iDirect Provides Satellite Network
Operators With A Diversified Bandwidth Delivery Model Through New Group QoS
Functionality
(4 June 2007) iDirect Technologies, a company of VT
Systems Inc, and a global provider of satellite-based, broadband communications
solutions, today introduced a new functionality that will enable network
operators to better manage and sell satellite bandwidth.
People
Arrowhead Global Solutions Names Michael Shakarji and
Nelson Ward to Senior Posts
(5 June 2007) Arrowhead Global
Solutions, Inc., a premier provider of integrated communication solutions,
today announced that it has promoted two of its executives to top posts within
the company.
DigitalGlobe Promotes Three
Vice Presidents to Key Leadership Posts
(5 June 2007) DigitalGlobe,
the leading content provider of the world's highest-resolution commercial
satellite imagery and geospatial information products, today announced the
promotion of three vice presidents: Dawn Sienicki, government relations; Mike
McGill, U.S. sales, commercial business unit; and, Barry Clapp, international
sales, commercial business unit.
