20 April 2008
Satcoms
Com Dev Awarded
Follow-on Order For Commercial Satellite
iDirect, Ericsson-Oman Team To Bring Cost
Efficient GSM Backhaul Solution To Market
Orbcomm Announces Further Latin American
Expansion
Broadcast
B-SAT Awards Lockheed Martin Contract For
BSAT-3b Satellite
DISH Network
Expands Local High Definition Markets
LTV World Available In All Europe
MTG Launches Viasat Ukraine Satellite Pay-TV
Platform
ORF Starts HDTV Channel On
Astra
SES Americom Certifies
Harmonic's IP-Based Compression Solutions For Encoding of IP-Prime Local
Channels
SES Astra Supports Satellite
Broadcast Of UEFA EURO 2008
Tokyo
Broadcasting System Selects NTT Electronics' AVC/H.264 Products For HD SNG
Video Encoding For All Affiliates
Earth Observation
Contract Signed For ESA's Sentinel-3 Earth
Observation Satellite
GMES Sentinel-2
Satellite Contract Signed
New Atlases
Use NASA Data To Chart Ocean Winds
Thales Alenia Space Wins Euro 305 M Sentinel-3
Contract
Military
Space
BAE Systems Develops Anti-Jamming GPS
Receivers
Lockheed Martin Delivers
Key Ground Software For Nation's Space-Based Missile Warning System
New Satellite Provides More Power, Better
Warfighter Support
Raytheon Wins US$
61 Million Contract For Global Positioning Receivers
Astrophysics
Gravity Wave "Smoking Gun"
Fizzles, According To Case Western Reserve University Physics
Researchers
Astronomy
Paranal Receives New
Mirror
Stars
Astronomers Discovered The Coldest Brown Dwarf
Star Ever Observed
Stellar Birth In
The Galactic Wilderness
Black
Holes
Milky Way's Giant Black Hole Awoke From Slumber
300 Years Ago
Sun
Solar Flares Set The Sun
Quaking
Moon
NASA Lunar Science Institute Opens
Today
New NASA Moon Mission Begins
Integration Of Science Instruments
Mars
From Mars To The Earth: Studying Ice Beneath
The Surface
Mars Radar Opens Up A
Planet's Third Dimension
Saturn
Cassini's Grand Tour Of Saturn
Extended
NASA Extends Cassini's Grand
Tour Of Saturn
Meteors
Geologists Discover New Way Of Estimating Size
And Frequency Of Meteorite Impacts
Extra-Solar Planets
Astronomers 'Listen' To An
Exoplanet-Host Star And Find Its Birthplace
New Rocky Planet Found In Constellation
Leo
Manned
Space
Missions To Mars: GSI Will Investigate
Radiation Risks For Astronauts
NASA
Awards Space Station Water Contract To Hamilton Sundstrand
NASA Completes First Full-Scale Motor Test For
Orion Spacecraft
Space Radiation May
Cause Prolonged Cellular Damage To Astronauts
Technology Transfer
NASA Contract Results In X-ray
Calorimeter Breakthrough
Launch Services
Orbital Awarded US$ 40 Million Contract By U.S.
Air Force For Three Minotaur Space Launch Vehicles To Support Operationally
Responsive Space Programs
Launch Services - C/NOFS
C/NOFS Satellite Built By
General Dynamics Successfully Launched From Reagan Test Site
Orbital Successfully Launches Pegasus Rocket
Carrying U.S. Air Force's C/NOFS Satellite
Launch Services - GIOVE B
GIOVE-B Is Mated With The
Fregat Upper Stage For Starsem's April 27 Soyuz Launch
Launch Services - ICO G1
ICO Launches New Era In Mobile
Television
Lockheed Martin
Successfully Launches ICO G1 Mobile Interactive Media Spacecraft
Pratt
& Whitney Rocketdyne, RD Amross Successfully Power Atlas V Launch To
Deliver Commercial Communications Satellite Into Orbit
Space Systems/Loral Built Satellite
Successfully Launched
United Launch
Alliance Launches Heaviest Commercial Satellite For Atlas V
Launch Services - Star One C2, Vinasat-1
Arianespace Completes
Final Assembly Of Its Second Ariane 5 For 2008
It's A "Go" For Arianespace's Second Ariane 5
Mission Of 2008
Star One C2
Telecommunication Satellite Is Ready For Launch
Lockheed Martin-Built Vinasat-1 Satellite Ready
To Be Launched For Vietnam Posts And Telecommunications
Group
Launch Services -
Worldview 2
Boeing Awarded Launch Services Contract For 2nd
WorldView Satellite
DigitalGlobe Taps
Boeing Launch Services To Launch WorldView-2
In Orbit
Sun Java Real-Time System Selected For Space
Surveillance Radar
Launches
ICO G1
Communications/Navigation Outage Forecasting
System (C/NOFS)
Launch Schedule
Reports
Ten Emerging Countries Primed For Impressive
Growth Of DTH Services
Business
DirecTV To Purchase Installation Fulfillment
Services Company 180 Connect Inc. To Gain Control Of A Significant Portion Of
The DirecTV Installation Network
The
Spaceconnection To Acquire Canadian Reseller 5DTV
Products and Services
DISH Network Announces New Suite
Of Digital Media Solutions
Norsat
Introduces High Stability Wideband LNBS & BDCs At NAB
2008
Events
Top Space Agencies To Take Part In Europe's
'Spaceops 2008'
People
Recruitment And Assignment Of Directors At
ESA
Satcoms
Com Dev Awarded Follow-on
Order For Commercial Satellite
(14 April 2008) Com Dev International
Ltd., a leading manufacturer of space hardware subsystems, today announced that
it has been awarded an Authorization to Proceed (ATP) valued at US$1.2 million
to provide passive microwave components for a major commercial
satellite.
iDirect, Ericsson-Oman Team To
Bring Cost Efficient GSM Backhaul Solution To Market
(15 April 2008)
iDirect, Inc. (iDirect), a company of VT Systems Inc (VT Systems) and a world
leader in satellite-based IP communications technology, announced today that
its intelligent platform has been tested and certified to be fully
interoperable with Ericsson's Abis over IP GSM satellite backhaul
solution.
Orbcomm Announces Further Latin
American Expansion
(15 April 2008) Orbcomm, a leading global
satellite data communications company focused on providing two way
Machine-to-Machine (M2M) communications, today announced further expansion of
its Latin American presence with the issuance of new regulatory approval by the
government of Peru and an agreement to exclusively manage the marketing and
sales efforts in Brazil and Argentina.
Broadcast
B-SAT Awards Lockheed Martin Contract For BSAT-3b
Satellite
(15 April 2008) Lockheed Martin has been awarded a
contract by the Broadcasting Satellite System Corporation (B-SAT) of Japan to
build its next geostationary telecommunications satellite.
DISH Network Expands Local High Definition
Markets
(14 April 2008) DISH Network, the nation's third largest
pay-TV provider and the leader in digital television, today announced the
addition of four high definition (HD) local markets: Cleveland -- Akron
(Canton), Ohio; Milwaukee, Wisc.; Richmond -- Petersburg, Va.; and Tampa -- St.
Petersburg (Sarasota), Fl.
LTV World
Available In All Europe
(15 April 2008) SES Sirius AB, an SES Astra
company, announced today that the Lithuanian free-to-air public channel LTV
World can be received by all cable networks in Europe via the Sirius 4
satellite.
MTG Launches Viasat Ukraine
Satellite Pay-TV Platform
(16 April 2008) Modern Times Group MTG AB
(publ.), the international entertainment broadcasting group, today announced
that the Viasat Ukraine DTH satellite platform will be launched on Monday 21
April.
ORF Starts HDTV Channel On
Astra
(17 April 2008) SES Astra, an SES company, today announced the
launch of ORF HD on Astra.
SES Americom
Certifies Harmonic's IP-Based Compression Solutions For Encoding of IP-Prime
Local Channels
(14 April 2008) Harmonic Inc. today announced that
SES Americom has certified the use of the DiviCom Electra 7000 high definition
(HD) MPEG-4 AVC (H.264) encoders and the Ion AVC standard definition (SD)
encoders for compression of local channels in the IP-Prime IPTV distribution
platform.
SES Astra Supports Satellite
Broadcast Of UEFA EURO 2008
(15 April 2008) SES Astra, an SES
company, will serve as a major hub for the content delivery and distribution of
the UEFA EURO 2008 hosted in Austria and Switzerland in June.
Tokyo Broadcasting System Selects NTT Electronics'
AVC/H.264 Products For HD SNG Video Encoding For All Affiliates
(14
April 2008) NTT Electronics Corporation (NTT Electronics), developer of
numerous high-quality broadcasting codec devices used throughout the world,
will provide its AVC/H.264 encoder (HVE9100) and decoder (HVD9100) to Tokyo
Broadcasting System, Inc. (TBS), one of the largest broadcasting networks in
Japan.
Earth
Observation
Contract Signed For ESA's Sentinel-3 Earth
Observation Satellite
(14 April 2008) The European Space Agency and
Thales Alenia Space today signed a Euro 305 million contract to provide the
first Sentinel-3 earth observation satellite, devoted to oceanography and
land-vegetation monitoring, as part of the European GMES programme.
GMES Sentinel-2 Satellite Contract
Signed
(17 April 2008) The European Space Agency and Astrium today
signed a Euro 195 million contract to provide the first Sentinel-2 earth
observation satellite, devoted to monitoring the land environment, as part of
the European GMES programme.
New Atlases
Use NASA Data To Chart Ocean Winds
(17 April 2008) Several new
atlases of ocean wind patterns around the globe, based on data from NASA's
QuikScat satellite, are benefiting a wide range of users, from those who sail
the seas to those responsible for managing their precious resources.
Thales Alenia Space Wins Euro 305 M Sentinel-3
Contract
(14 April 2008) Thales Alenia Space announced that it has
signed a 305 million Euro contract with the European Space Agency (ESA) to
supply the Sentinel-3 Earth observation satellite for the Global Monitoring for
Environment and Security (GMES) program.
Military Space
BAE Systems Develops Anti-Jamming GPS
Receivers
(17 April 2008) BAE Systems has developed a satellite
navigation receiver system that provides uninterrupted operation of the Global
Positioning System for air, land, and sea platforms and applications.
Lockheed Martin Delivers Key Ground Software For
Nation's Space-Based Missile Warning System
(16 April 2008) The
Lockheed Martin team developing the Space-Based Infrared System (SBIRS) has
successfully delivered two key blocks of ground software integral to supporting
the program's geosynchronous orbit (GEO) and highly elliptical orbit (HEO)
constellation.
New Satellite Provides More
Power, Better Warfighter Support
(17 April 2008) The Wideband Global
SATCOM, or WGS, satellite is the first of six satellites that will take over
long-haul communications from the legacy constellation, the Defense Satellite
Communications System, called DSCS.
Raytheon Wins US$ 61 Million Contract For Global
Positioning Receivers
(16 April 2008) Raytheon Company has won a US$
61 million U.S. Air Force contract to complete the development and
certification of next-generation global positioning
receivers.
Astrophysics
Gravity Wave "Smoking Gun" Fizzles, According To
Case Western Reserve University Physics Researchers
(15 April 2008)
A team of researchers from Case Western Reserve University has found that
gravitational radiation--widely expected to provide "smoking gun" proof for a
theory of the early universe known as "inflation"--can be produced by another
mechanism.
Astronomy
Paranal Receives New Mirror
(16 April
2008) A 4.1-metre diameter primary mirror, a vital part of the world's newest
and fastest survey telescope, VISTA (the Visible and Infrared Survey Telescope
for Astronomy) has been delivered to its new mountaintop home at Cerro Paranal,
Chile.
Stars
Astronomers Discovered
The Coldest Brown Dwarf Star Ever Observed
(11 April 2008) An
international team of astronomers has discovered the coldest brown dwarf star
ever observed.
Stellar Birth In The
Galactic Wilderness
(16 April 2008) A new image from NASA's Galaxy
Evolution Explorer shows baby stars sprouting in the backwoods of a galaxy -- a
relatively desolate region of space more than 100,000 light-years from the
galaxy's bustling centre.
Black
Holes
Milky Way's Giant Black Hole Awoke From Slumber 300
Years Ago
(15 April 2008) A team of Japanese astronomers using ESA's
XMM-Newton, along with NASA and Japanese X-ray satellites, has discovered that
our galaxy's central black hole let loose a powerful flare three centuries
ago.
Sun
Solar Flares Set The Sun
Quaking
(18 April 2008) Data from the ESA/NASA spacecraft SOHO shows
clearly that powerful starquakes ripple around the Sun in the wake of mighty
solar flares that explode above its surface.
Moon
NASA Lunar Science Institute Opens
Today
(11 April 2008) Thirty-eight years ago, NASA launched the
Apollo 13 mission to the moon.
New NASA
Moon Mission Begins Integration Of Science Instruments
(16 April
2008) Several instruments that will help NASA characterise the moon's surface
have been installed on the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter, or
LRO.
Mars
From Mars To The Earth: Studying Ice Beneath The
Surface
(17 April 2008) A technique being used by the European Space
Agency at Mars could prove invaluable for studying the stability of Antarctic
ice sheets here on Earth.
Mars Radar Opens
Up A Planet's Third Dimension
(17 April 2008) ESA's Mars Express
radar sounder, MARSIS, has looked beneath the martian surface and opened up the
third dimension for planetary exploration.
Saturn
Cassini's Grand Tour Of Saturn
Extended
(15 April 2008) The operations of the Cassini spacecraft,
part of the international NASA/ ESA/ ASI Cassini-Huygens mission, have been
extended by NASA by two years. The historic mission's stunning discoveries and
images have revolutionised our knowledge of Saturn and its moons.
NASA
Extends Cassini's Grand Tour Of Saturn
(15 April 2008) NASA is
extending the international Cassini-Huygens mission by two years. The historic
spacecraft's stunning discoveries and images have revolutionised our knowledge
of Saturn and its moons.
Meteors
Geologists Discover New Way Of Estimating Size And
Frequency Of Meteorite Impacts
(11 April 2008) Scientists have
developed a new way of determining the size and frequency of meteorites that
have collided with Earth.
Extra-Solar Planets
Astronomers 'Listen' To An
Exoplanet-Host Star And Find Its Birthplace
(15 April 2008) By
studying in great detail the 'ringing' of a planet-harbouring star, a team of
astronomers using ESO's 3.6-m telescope have shown that it must have drifted
away from the metal-rich Hyades cluster.
New Rocky Planet Found In Constellation
Leo
(11 April 2008) Spanish and UCL (University College London)
scientists have discovered a possible terrestrial-type planet orbiting a star
in the constellation of Leo.
Manned Space
Missions To Mars: GSI Will Investigate Radiation
Risks For Astronauts
(16 April 2008) The European Space Agency (ESA)
has chosen the GSI accelerator facility to assess radiation risks that
astronauts will be exposed to on a Mars mission.
NASA Awards Space Station Water Contract To Hamilton
Sundstrand
(15 April 2008) NASA has awarded a sole-source contract
to Hamilton Sundstrand Space Systems International Inc., Windsor Locks, Conn.,
for water production services aboard the International Space Station.
NASA Completes First Full-Scale Motor Test For Orion
Spacecraft
(15 April 2008) NASA has completed the first full-scale
rocket motor test for the Constellation Program's Orion spacecraft, a test of a
solid rocket that will be used to jettison the craft's launch abort
system.
Space Radiation May Cause Prolonged
Cellular Damage To Astronauts
(15 April 2008) With major
implications for long-duration space travel, a study from the Lombardi
Comprehensive Cancer Center at Georgetown University Medical Center
demonstrates that the high-energy radiation found in space may lead to
premature ageing and prolonged oxidative stress in cells.
Technology Transfer
NASA Contract Results In X-ray
Calorimeter Breakthrough
(14 April 2008) Sunovia Energy
Technologies, Inc. and EPIR Technologies, Inc. are pleased to announce the
award of a Phase II Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) contract to EPIR
from NASA which continues to advance the companies strategy to commercialise
synergistic cadmium-telluride based technologies and manufacturing processes
for solar, infrared and X-ray within the renewable energy, night vision,
medical and scientific markets.
Launch Services
Orbital Awarded US$ 40 Million Contract By U.S. Air
Force For Three Minotaur Space Launch Vehicles To Support Operationally
Responsive Space Programs
(15 April 2008) Orbital Sciences
Corporation announced today that the U.S. Air Force Space and Missiles Systems
Center (SMC) has ordered three additional Minotaur space launch vehicles in
support of the new Operationally Responsive Space (ORS)
office.
Launch Services -
C/NOFS
C/NOFS Satellite Built By General Dynamics
Successfully Launched From Reagan Test Site
(16 April 2008) The
Communication/Navigation Outage Forecasting System (C/NOFS) satellite, designed
and built by General Dynamics Advanced Information Systems, was successfully
launched today from the U.S. Army's Reagan Test Site in the Kwajalein Atoll,
Republic of the Marshall Islands.
Orbital
Successfully Launches Pegasus Rocket Carrying U.S. Air Force's C/NOFS
Satellite
(16 April 2008) Orbital Sciences Corporation announced
today that its Pegasus space launch vehicle successfully launched the U.S. Air
Force's Communications/Navigation Outage Forecasting System (C/NOFS) satellite
into its intended low-Earth orbit.
Launch Services - GIOVE B
GIOVE-B Is Mated With The Fregat
Upper Stage For Starsem's April 27 Soyuz Launch
(15 April 2008)
Preparations for the next Soyuz mission by Arianespace's Starsem affiliate
moved into a new phase with this week's integration of the European GIOVE-B
navigation satellite on its Fregat upper stage.
Launch Services - ICO G1
ICO Launches New Era In Mobile
Television
(14 April 2008) ICO Global Communications (Holdings)
Limited (ICO) announced today that it has successfully launched its North
American geosynchronous satellite, ICO G1.
Lockheed Martin Successfully Launches ICO G1 Mobile
Interactive Media Spacecraft
(14 April 2008) Lockheed Martin
successfully delivered a telecommunications satellite into orbit this afternoon
aboard an Atlas V rocket manufactured by United Launch Alliance.
Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne, RD Amross
Successfully Power Atlas V Launch To Deliver Commercial Communications
Satellite Into Orbit
(15 April 2008) Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne
and RD Amross, LLC successfully powered the launch yesterday of an Atlas V
rocket on a mission to deliver a commercial communications satellite into
orbit.
Space Systems/Loral Built Satellite
Successfully Launched
(15 April 2008) Space Systems/Loral (SS/L), a
subsidiary of Loral Space & Communications, and the world's leading
provider of high-power commercial satellites, today announced that the
satellite that it built for ICO Global Communications (Holdings) Limited was
successfully launched aboard an Atlas V rocket from Cape Canaveral,
Florida.
United Launch Alliance Launches
Heaviest Commercial Satellite For Atlas V
(14 April 2008) A United
Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket successfully launched the ICO-G1 satellite at
4:12 p.m. EDT, today.
Launch
Services - Star One C2, Vinasat-1
Arianespace Completes Final
Assembly Of Its Second Ariane 5 For 2008
(15 April 2008) The
heavy-lift Ariane 5 ECA for Arianespace's April 18 dual-payload mission is now
complete at Europe's Spaceport, following the installation of its upper
satellite passenger, Star One C2.
It's A
"Go" For Arianespace's Second Ariane 5 Mission Of 2008
(16 April
2008) The second Ariane 5 flight of 2008 was given a green light for its April
18 lift-off following today's launch readiness review at the Spaceport in
French Guiana.
Star One C2
Telecommunication Satellite Is Ready For Launch
(16 April 2008) Star
One C2, the second of the "C-series" telecommunication satellites, designed and
built by Thales Alenia Space, is now ready for launch at the Kourou launch
site, in French Guiana.
Lockheed
Martin-Built Vinasat-1 Satellite Ready To Be Launched For Vietnam Posts And
Telecommunications Group
(16 April 2008) The Vinasat-1
communications satellite, designed and built by Lockheed Martin for Vietnam
Posts and Telecommunications Group (VNPT) of Vietnam, is ready for launch on
April 18 aboard an Ariane 5-ECA launch vehicle provided by
Arianespace.
Launch Services -
Worldview 2
Boeing Awarded Launch Services Contract For 2nd
WorldView Satellite
(16 April 2008) The Boeing Company, through its
commercial launch business, Boeing Launch Services, has been awarded a contract
to launch DigitalGlobe's second WorldView Earth-imaging satellite on a Delta II
launch vehicle.
DigitalGlobe Taps Boeing
Launch Services To Launch WorldView-2
(16 April 2008) DigitalGlobe,
provider of high-resolution commercial satellite imagery and geospatial
information products, today announced that it has chosen Boeing Launch Services
for the launch of WorldView-2, DigitalGlobe's third remote-sensing
satellite.
In
Orbit
Sun Java Real-Time System Selected For Space
Surveillance Radar
(14 April 2008) Sun Microsystems, Inc., today
announced that ITT Corporation has selected the Sun Java Real-Time System 2.0
(Java RTS) and the Solaris 10 Operating System (OS) as the software development
platform for its Eglin Control and Signal Processing Upgrade (CSPU)
program.
Launches
ICO G1
Communications/Navigation Outage Forecasting System
(C/NOFS)
Launch Schedule
Reports
Ten Emerging Countries Primed For Impressive Growth
Of DTH Services
(15 April 2008) NSR today released its newest market
survey and forecast report: "Direct-to-Home (DTH) Satellite Services: An
Analysis of Ten Emerging DTH Markets."
Business
DirecTV To Purchase Installation Fulfillment
Services Company 180 Connect Inc. To Gain Control Of A Significant Portion Of
The DirecTV Installation Network
(18 April 2008) 180 Connect Inc.,
one of North America's largest providers of installation, integration and
fulfillment services to the home entertainment, communication, and home
integration service industries, has signed a definitive merger agreement with
DirecTV, the nation's leading satellite television service.
The Spaceconnection To Acquire Canadian Reseller
5DTV
(14 April 2008) The Spaceconnection is pleased to announce that
it has reached agreement, subject to certain closing conditions, to acquire the
Occasional Use (OU) satellite space segment services business of 5DTV, Canada's
largest provider of such services.
Products and Services
DISH Network Announces New Suite
Of Digital Media Solutions
(14 April 2008) DISH Network Corporation,
the nation's third largest pay-TV provider, today announced that it is
extending its business solutions services to provide digital signage platforms
for clients to address a variety of communications needs.
Norsat Introduces High Stability Wideband LNBS &
BDCs At NAB 2008
(15 April 2008) Norsat International Inc.
("Norsat"), a leading provider of intelligent satellite solutions, announced
product additions to its line of phase lock loop (PLL) low noise block
down-converters (LNB) and external reference block down-converters (BDC) at the
NAB 2008 tradeshow, the world's largest electronic media
show.
Events
Top Space Agencies To
Take Part In Europe's 'Spaceops 2008'
(17 April 2008) The world's
leading conference focused on space operations, 'SpaceOps 2008,' takes place
12-16 May in Heidelberg, Germany.
People
Recruitment And Assignment Of Directors At
ESA
(16 April 2008) Meeting in restricted session yesterday at ESA's
Head Office in Paris, the Council of the European Space Agency appointed the
new Directors that will assist the Director General in the coming years,
following a process of selection that started in November 2007.
