Satnews Publishers wishes all a Merry Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa or other celebratory event — Happy Holidays as we welcome 2022. In celebration of the holidays, the Satnews offices will be closed from December 20 through January 2nd, returning on Monday, January 3rd, 2022.
Archives for December 2021
The SmallSat Symposium Returns… Bigger + Better Than Ever…
The SmallSat Symposium Silicon Valley 2022 will be in session from February 8 through 10, with the event workshops occurring on February 7. The SmallSat Symposium will, once again, be conducted at Silicon Valley’s Computer History Museum. Realize — 97 percent of all launched satellites are smallsats — that is a massive and profound shift […]
SpaceX Launches Two Missions In Less Than 16 Hours
On December 18 at 4:41 a.m., PST, a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launched 52 Starlink satellites to LEO from Space Launch Complex 4 East (SLC-4E) at Vandenberg Space Force Base in California. This competed the first eleventh launch and landing of an orbital class rocket booster. The Falcon 9 first stage booster had previously launched […]
C3S’ RadCube Successfully Commissioned
The commissioning phase of the C3S RadCube 3U CubeSat has been successfully completed — the platform developed by C3S has been operating since its launch on August 17, 2021, and RadCube has performed flawlessly under the extreme conditions of the space environment. After launch, the solar panels opened and the electrical power system properly charged […]
Satellite Vu Contracts SSTL To Build Their First Thermal Data Collecting Smallsat
Satellite Vu has formally signed a contract with Surrey Satellite Technology Ltd. (SSTL) to build the firm’s first satellite, which is scheduled to be launched into LEO in Q4 2022. The satellite will collect thermal data day and night of both the natural and the built environment at any location on the planet. The full […]
Forrester’s Digest: An Unusual Move For SpaceX / Virgin Orbit Investments / Intelsat Creditor Settlements
Elon Musk’s SpaceX is scheduled to launch 52 of its Starlink craft into circular orbits today (December 17th). This is an unusual move from Musk’s team — this launch is designed to fill gaps in the constellation’s existing coverage. The launch will take place from SpaceX’s facility at the Vandenberg Air Force Base in California […]
SENER in Poland Contracted By Airbus For OneSat Space Mechanisms
SENER in Poland, a company of SENER Aeroespacial, will manufacture, assemble and test the ejection mechanism for Airbus’ fully commercial OneSat mission. Under the contract with Airbus, SENER in Poland will manufacture, assemble and test the following mechanism models: DM (the development model), QM (the qualification model) and then the flight models (FM). The Ejection […]
MDA’s + ICEYE’s CHORUS Agreement For SAR EO Support
MDA Ltd. (TSX:MDA) and ICEYE have entered into an agreement for ICEYE to supply an X-band Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) spacecraft for CHORUS, MDA’s next generation commercial Earth Observation (EO) mission. A collaborative multi-sensor constellation, CHORUS brings together diverse and unique imagery and data sources, changing how and when we see the world by providing […]
First Commercial Lunar Distance Communications Network Validated In Space
Working together, Intuitive Machines (IM) and Goonhilly Earth Station (GES) Ltd. recently integrated GES’s newly commissioned deep space antenna (GHY-6) into IM’s Lunar Telemetry and Tracking Network (LTN). The LTN will provide near-continuous coverage during the company’s IM-1 mission to the Moon in early 2022. The validation concluded with the complete system ‘live-sky’ test receiving […]
HerdDogg’s StarDogg Direct-to-Satellite Connects Remote Herds
HerdDogg®, a precision-livestock IoT leader, announces the availability of StarDogg™, HerdDogg’s satellite-connected DoggBone® reader. StarDogg addresses the needs of ranchers operating on remote ranchland by providing a direct-to-satellite connection to the Animal Traceability Platform®. Designed for ranchland where there is no cellular connection, StarDogg enables ranchers to keep a close eye on the location and […]