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RUAG Space Packs Product Into Galileo NavSats That Are Set To Launch This Week

On Thursday, December 2 (CET), another two Galileo navigation satellites will be launched by Arianespace from Kourou in French Guiana aboard a Soyuz rocket. This will raise the number of Galileo satellites in orbit from currently 26 to 28. All OHB System-built Galileo satellites use products from RUAG Space.

RUAG Space supplied the onboard computer that controls and monitors the payload of the Galileo satellites and many other subsystems. The computer also monitors the satellite status, such as temperature, to ensure that the satellites are fully functional. Furthermore, RUAG Space delivered the mission antenna for the Galileo satellites. The antenna is used to upload mission data for the onboard signal generators.

Once on-orbit, the Galileo satellites are protected from the 400 degrees Celsius temperature-differences it would experience on their hot sun-facing side and cold space-looking side by a thermal insulation from RUAG Space. This highly efficient insulation consists of several layers of metal-evaporated polyimide film. The sun is also the main power source of the satellites in orbit. To optimally align the solar array panels towards the sun rotating drive mechanisms are necessary. RUAG Space produced these mechanisms for the Galileo satellites.

The European Galileo satellites will be sent to space via a Soyuz rocket. The dispenser from RUAG Space is a supporting structure that will hold the twin satellites firmly in place under the Soyuz fairing during launch. Some four hours into flight at an altitude of 23000 km., the dispenser will deploy the satellites into orbit by firing a pyrotechnic separation system. A distancing system ensures their release in opposing directions from the dispenser.

The dispenser has a structural mass of 150 kg. and carries and separates two Galileo satellites – each one weighing 700 kg. – into orbit. Since around 40 years RUAG Space develops and produces separation systems at its site in Linköping, Sweden. Dispenser systems from RUAG Space are especially suitable for spacecraft constellations, where a large number of spacecrafts need to be placed in orbit in a short time frame.

The European Navigation System Galileo is created by the European Union through the European Space Agency (ESA) and operated by the European Union Agency for the Space Program. Galileo is a civil satellite navigation system that provides global positioning, navigation and timing. With at least four satellites constantly visible to the user, positioning becomes much more accurate than with previous systems, down to a meter.

The Galileo system also provides a new global search and rescue service, which will be used for locating distressed people, such as a person lost in the desert. RUAG Space contributes electronics to this Galileo search and rescue service. When Galileo search and rescue is in full operation, the time to detect a person who has disappeared at sea or in the mountains will be shortened from three hours to just ten minutes after activating an emergency transmitter.

“We have played an important role in building the European Galileo navigation system from day one,” said Luis De León Chardel, Executive Vice President at RUAG Space, which supplied a range of mission critical mechanical, thermal and electronics products to the satellite builder OHB System AG in Bremen, Germany.
“This data is used to improve the satellite’s position, which is essential for everyone to have good positioning data for your phone, car or clock,” said Anders Linder, Head of the global satellites business of RUAG Space.

NASA’s Double Asteroid DART Mission Launched By SpaceX

Photo of the SpaceX Falcon 9 launch of NASA’s DART mission from Vandenberg Space Force Base. Image is courtesy of the company.

NASA’s Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART), the world’s first full-scale mission to test technology for defending Earth against potential asteroid or comet hazards, launched on Wednesday, November 24, at 1:21 a.m., EST, on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Space Launch Complex 4 East at Vandenberg Space Force Base in California. This was the third flight for this Falcon 9’s first stage booster, which previously supported launch of Sentinel-6 Michael Freilich and a Starlink mission.

Just one part of NASA’s larger planetary defense strategy, DART – built and managed by the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory (APL) in Laurel, Maryland – will impact a known asteroid that is not a threat to Earth. Its goal is to slightly change the asteroid’s motion in a way that can be accurately measured using ground-based telescopes.

DART will show that a spacecraft can autonomously navigate to a target asteroid and intentionally collide with it – a method of deflection called kinetic impact. The test will provide important data to help better prepare for an asteroid that might pose an impact hazard to Earth, should one ever be discovered.

DART’s one-way trip is to the Didymos asteroid system, which comprises a pair of asteroids. DART’s target is the moonlet, Dimorphos, which is approximately 530 feet (160 meters) in diameter. The moonlet orbits Didymos, which is approximately 2,560 feet (780 meters) in diameter. As Dimorphos orbits Didymos at much a slower relative speed than the pair orbits the Sun, the result of DART’s kinetic impact within the binary system can be measured much more easily than a change in the orbit of a single asteroid around the Sun.

LICIACube, a cubesat riding with DART and provided by the Italian Space Agency (ASI), will be released prior to DART’s impact to capture images of the impact and the resulting cloud of ejected matter. Roughly four years after DART’s impact, the European Space Agency’s Hera project will conduct detailed surveys of both asteroids, with particular focus on the crater left by DART’s collision and a precise determination of Dimorphos’ mass.

At 2:17 a.m., DART separated from the second stage of the rocket. Minutes later, mission operators received the first spacecraft telemetry data and started the process of orienting the spacecraft to a safe position for deploying its solar arrays. About two hours later, the spacecraft completed the successful unfurling of its two, 28-foot-long, roll-out solar arrays. They will power both the spacecraft and NASA’s Evolutionary Xenon Thruster – Commercial ion engine, one of several technologies being tested on DART for future application on space missions.

Glenn engineers assemble a NASA Evolutionary Xenon Thruster (NEXT) for testing. NEXT is a next generation propulsion system that could revolutionize science missions are sent deeper into the solar system. The thruster will use xenon gas and electrical power to drive future spacecraft.

The spacecraft will intercept the Didymos system between Sept. 26 and Oct. 1, 2022, intentionally slamming into Dimorphos at roughly 4 miles per second (6 kilometers per second). Scientists estimate the kinetic impact will shorten Dimorphos’ orbit around Didymos by several minutes. Researchers will precisely measure that change using telescopes on Earth. Their results will validate and improve scientific computer models critical to predicting the effectiveness of the kinetic impact as a reliable method for asteroid deflection.

DART’s single instrument, the Didymos Reconnaissance and Asteroid Camera for Optical navigation (DRACO), will turn on a week from now and provide first images from the spacecraft. DART will continue to travel just outside of Earth’s orbit around the Sun for the next 10 months until Didymos and Dimorphos will be a relatively close 6.8 million miles (11 million kilometers) from Earth.

A sophisticated guidance, navigation, and control system, working together with algorithms called Small-body Maneuvering Autonomous Real Time Navigation (SMART Nav), will enable the DART spacecraft to identify and distinguish between the two asteroids. The system will then direct the spacecraft toward Dimorphos. This process will all occur within roughly an hour of impact.

“DART is turning science fiction into science fact and is a testament to NASA’s proactivity and innovation for the benefit of all,” said NASA Administrator Bill Nelson. “In addition to all the ways NASA studies our universe and our home planet, we’re also working to protect that home, and this test will help prove out one viable way to protect our planet from a hazardous asteroid should one ever be discovered that is headed toward Earth.”
“At its core, DART is a mission of preparedness, and it is also a mission of unity,” said Thomas Zurbuchen, associate administrator for the Science Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters in Washington. “This international collaboration involves DART, ASI’s LICIACube, and ESA’s Hera investigations and science teams, which will follow up on this groundbreaking space mission."
“We have not yet found any significant asteroid impact threat to Earth, but we continue to search for that sizable population we know is still to be found. Our goal is to find any possible impact, years to decades in advance, so it can be deflected with a capability like DART that is possible with the technology we currently have,” said Lindley Johnson, planetary defense officer at NASA Headquarters. “DART is one aspect of NASA’s work to prepare Earth should we ever be faced with an asteroid hazard. In tandem with this test, we are preparing the Near-Earth Object Surveyor Mission, an space-based infrared telescope scheduled for launch later this decade and designed to expedite our ability to discover and characterize the potentially hazardous asteroids and comets that come within 30 million miles of Earth’s orbit.”
“It is an indescribable feeling to see something you’ve been involved with since the ‘words on paper’ stage become real and launched into space,” said Andy Cheng, one of the DART investigation leads at Johns Hopkins APL and the individual who came up with the idea of DART. “This is just the end of the first act, and the DART investigation and engineering teams have much work to do over the next year preparing for the main event ─ DART’s kinetic impact on Dimorphos. But tonight we celebrate!”

Johns Hopkins APL manages the DART mission for NASA’s Planetary Defense Coordination Office as a project of the agency’s Planetary Missions Program Office. NASA provides support for the mission from several centers, including the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California, Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, Johnson Space Center in Houston, Glenn Research Center in Cleveland, and Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia. The launch is managed by NASA’s Launch Services Program, based at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. SpaceX is the launch services provider for the DART mission.

Maritime Launch Services First Payload Services Provider Is Nanoracks — Spaceport Nova Scotia Is ‘Unveiled’

Maritime Launch Services spaceport location in Canso, Nova Scotia, Canada.

Maritime Launch Services, the owner of Canada’s first commercial spaceport, has announced that Nanoracks, a Voyager Space company and a leading, commercial, payload provider to the International Space Station (ISS), will serve as the company’s first client when Spaceport Nova Scotia’s operations go live in 2023. For this first mission, Nanoracks will deploy customer smallsats and host spacecraft technology demonstrations.

Nanoracks is currently engaged with Canada’s smallsat efforts. The company provides satellite deployment services from the ISS for the Canadian Space Agency’s Canadian CubeSat Project (CCP).

In addition to signing a contract with Nanoracks, Maritime Launch signed a  Letter of Intent (LoI) to launch with Nova Scotia-based GALAXIA Mission Systems, an aerospace company that will deploy smallsats aboard Spaceport Nova Scotia’s first flight. GALAXIA’s founder, Arad Gharagozli, is the former founder and president of Dalhousie University’s Space Systems Lab, which is funded by the Canadian Space Agency.

Maritime Launch unveiled preliminary designs for its Launch Control Centre (LCC), which is a facility on site that will manage all launch activities, including the deployment and initial control of satellites launched from Spaceport Nova Scotia. Designed by Architecture49, the LCC includes a visitor and educational center to showcase ​Nova Scotia’s diverse culture and environment and will provide a space accessible to students to discover the science of space and explore career opportunities in the sector.

The LCC will welcome students, tourists, and community members to learn about space, opportunities in STEM related education, and the exciting advancements within the aerospace sector. Interpretive planners and exhibit designers, AldrichPears Associates, will be developing the visitor center experience in collaboration with the local communities and the architectural team.

Construction and operation of Spaceport Nova Scotia will be sourced directly from a regional supply chain. As Canada’s first Spaceport advances toward full construction, Maritime Launch will be a significant contributor to economic recovery, as the province and region emerge from the COVID-19 pandemic.

“The team at Nanoracks is excited to partner with Maritime Launch to accelerate the growing space ecosystem in Canada,” said Jeffrey Manber, President of International and Space Stations, Voyager Space, and Co-Founder of Nanoracks. “Spaceport Nova Scotia represents a globally competitive location for launch, while the Cyclone-4M is a descendant of perhaps the most reliable launch vehicle ever built. Our work with CSA has shown us the breadth of expertise and interest across the country. This mission with Maritime Launch will provide an opportunity for Canadian companies and universities to access orbit onboard a domestic launch vehicle, developing key technologies while showing the value of international partnerships.”
“This announcement is an important step for Canada’s future in the growing commercial space sector in Canada. We are incredibly proud to be collaborating with Nanoracks, an innovative company with over a decade of experience in the commercial space sector,” said Steve Matier, President and CEO of Maritime Launch. “For Canada’s first launch to space, we could not have selected a better partner. Nanoracks is a champion for the Canadian space sector and has an ongoing relationship with the Canadian Space Agency to deploy Canadian satellites. We are thrilled that the Government of Canada, Province of Nova Scotia, and the Municipality of the District of Guysborough are here with us to mark this occasion, and we are grateful for their continued commitment to support the commercial aerospace sector.”

At the event, Maritime Launch was pleased to welcome the Honorable Sean Fraser, Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship, and the Honorable François-Philippe Champagne, Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry, who brought remarks on behalf of the Government of Canada.

“Canada's space sector is giving entrepreneurs, creators, engineers, scientists, and researchers the opportunity to make incredible advancements in science and technology and be part of the growing global space economy,” said Minister Champagne. “I congratulate the collaboration and innovation that has gone into making this announcement a reality today. This commercial launch venture will inspire young people to look to careers in STEM, while offering economic opportunities in Nova Scotia, Canada, and in Ukraine. The results of these efforts will help put Canada at the forefront of space innovation while creating the good jobs of tomorrow.”
Lisa Campbell, President of the Canadian Space Agency, and Chairman Volodymyr Taftai, Head of Ukraine’s State Space Agency, shared remarks and leaders from Yuzhmash and Yuzhnoye State Design Office (SDO) were in attendance.

The Cyclone-4M launch vehicle (pictured to the right), which will be the first launch from Spaceport Nova Scotia, is developed by Yuzhnoye SDO and manufactured by Yuzhmash, both of Dnipro, Ukraine. These companies are proven leaders in the aerospace industry with more than 65 years of experience, with 877 successful launches to date.

SpaceQ has posted on Twitter a view of the Spaceport Nova Scotia launch site at this direct link...

Maritime Launch is a Canadian-owned commercial aerospace company based in Nova Scotia. Maritime Launch is developing Spaceport Nova Scotia, a launch site that will provide satellite delivery services to clients in support of the growing commercial space transportation industry over a wide range of inclinations. The development of this facility will allow the Cyclone-4M and other prospective launch vehicles to place their satellites into low-earth orbit, building to a launch tempo of eight launches per year. This will be the first commercial orbital launch complex in Canada. Maritime Launch’s suppliers, Yuzhnoye and Yuzhmash, are the developers of the Cyclone-4M payload delivery system and they are proven leaders in the aerospace industry with over 65 years of experience with 877 successful launches to date.

Space Systems Command’s STP-3 Satellites Now Encapsulated Aboard ULA’s Atlas V 551 Launch Vehicle At Cape Canaveral AFS

Space Systems Command’s Space Test Program (STP)-3 integrated payload stack, containing STPSat-6 and EELV ESPA, or LDPE-1 space vehicles, were encapsulated on November 20 in preparation for mating with ULA’s  Atlas V 551 launch vehicle Nov. 22 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. Photo is courtesy United Launch Alliance.

Space Systems Command’s Space Test Program (STP)-3 integrated payload stack, which contains the STP Satellite (STPSat)-6 and the Long Duration Propulsive Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicle (EELV) Secondary Payload Adapter (ESPA), or  LDPE-1 space vehicles, has been encapsulated and mated with United Launch Alliance’s Atlas V 551 launch vehicle at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station.

SSC’s STP-6 satellite arriving at Astrotech Space Operations in Florida.

STPSat-6 and LDPE-1 are co-manifested on the STP-3 mission which is scheduled to launch no earlier than December 5 from Space Launch Complex (SLC)-41 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. The two-hour launch window will open at 4:04 a.m., Eastern, (1:04 a.m. Pacific).

The STP-3 payload is hoisted aboard the Atlas V launch vehicle at the Vertical Integration Facility (VIF) at Cape Canaveral AFS. Photo is courtesy of United Launch Alliance.

With mating completed, the team will perform final electrical and functional testing as an integrated stack and put the vehicles in their final physical flight configuration in preparation for mobile launch platform roll to the launch pad. 

STPSat-6 advances warfighting capabilities by delivering operational nuclear detonation detection capabilities and demonstrating new space technologies in the areas of space domain awareness, weather, and laser communications. These updated capabilities proactively combat near peer threats by improving and expediting the intelligence provided to the warfighter.

LDPE-1 is the rideshare spacecraft on STP-3 and is the first mission in the LDPE series to launch. The LDPE program provides modular, flexible features that, when combined with available launch opportunities, create a “freight train to space” for experiments and prototypes in geosynchronous Earth orbit. By rapidly placing multiple, diverse experimental payloads into this valuable orbit, LDPE provides critical data to inform future Space Force programs. More specifically, LDPE-1 hosts payloads that will advance technology concerning communications, space weather sensing, and space domain awareness.

The Space Test Program manages the development of the STPSat-6 satellite and is responsible for the integration of nine payloads. SSC’s Rapid Prototyping Division manages the LDPE program with a matrixed LDPE-1 team composed of Los Angeles Air Force Base and Kirtland Air Force Base personnel. Northrop Grumman is the primary spacecraft contractor for STPSat-6 and LDPE-1.

Space Systems Command, headquartered at Los Angeles Air Force Base in El Segundo, California, is a U.S. Space Force field command responsible for developing and acquiring lethal and resilient space capabilities for warfighters by rapidly identifying, prototyping, fielding and sustaining innovative, space-based solutions to meet the demands of the National Defense Strategy. SSC’s functions include developmental testing, production, launch, on-orbit checkout, and maintenance of USSF space systems, as well as and oversight of USSF science and technology activities.

Astra’s Rocket 3.3’s Fourth Launch Attempt Is Successful From Kodiak Island, Alaska

Astra Space, Inc. (“Astra”) (Nasdaq: ASTR) successfully completed their first, commercial, orbital launch for the United States Space Force (USSF) on November 19, 2021, PST. The launch, STP-27AD2, was conducted from Astra’s Kodiak Spaceport, located at the Pacific Spaceport Complex in Kodiak, Alaska.

Astra’s launch system successfully demonstrated the orbital placement of a test payload to an inclination of 86.0 degrees at an altitude of 500 km. The payload achieved an orbital velocity of 7.61 kilometers per second in 8 minutes and 47 seconds.

The United States Space Force contracted this launch through a Defense Innovation Unit Other Transaction Agreement.

Astra was founded in 2016 to launch a new generation of space services enabled by large constellations of smallsats in LEO. The team set out to design a rocket that could be mass produced like an automobile, and a launch system that could deliver payloads into orbit from spaceports everywhere, inspired by the opportunity to provide daily access to space. In just five years, Astra successfully “learned its way” to orbit, launch by launch, increasing capabilities, decreasing costs and increasing operational efficiencies with each iteration.

“Reaching orbit is a historic milestone for Astra,” said Chris Kemp, Founder, Chairman and CEO of Astra. “We can now focus on delivering for our customers and scaling up rocket production and launch cadence.”
“We owe this success to our incredible team and the culture we’ve built at Astra,” said Adam London, Co-Founder and CTO of Astra. “I’m humbled by their courage and commitment to keep building, launching, learning, and iterating until we succeeded.”

Astra’s mission is to improve life on Earth from space by creating a healthier and more connected planet. Today, Astra offers the lowest cost-per-launch dedicated orbital launch service of any operational launch provider in the world. Astra delivered its first commercial payload into Earth orbit in 2021, making it the fastest company in history to reach this milestone, just five years after it was founded in 2016. Astra (NASDAQ: ASTR) was the first space launch company to be publicly traded on Nasdaq.

Strategic Agreement Signed By Voyager Space + Space Micro

Voyager Space Inc. (Voyager) is intending to acquire a majority stake in Space Micro, an innovative engineering-driven business focused on advancing high-performance satellite communications (SATCOM), digital and electro-optical systems with more than 2.7 million hours of space flight heritage.

Space Micro developed the world’s highest data rate Laser Communications Terminal in orbit. As part of the agreement, Voyager intends to provide strategic operations support to help advance Space Micro’s technology throughput to civil, commercial and defense customers.

Founded in 2002, Space Micro delivers best-in-class satellite technology to the growing commercial market. Space Micro delivered its first computer and image-processing subsystem in space within the first four years as an organization, then went on to develop its first advanced Software Defined Radios for NASA’s Interface Region Imaging Spectrograph (IRIS), Lunar Atmosphere Dust and Environment Explorer (LADEE) and The Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS).

The company now has multiple active contracts with NASA, including the development of real-time data sorting inference processing units (IPUs) for Earth Observation (EO) missions and for providing X-band transponders for two lunar missions selected under the Artemis program. Space Micro also has a long history in providing critical technology for the U.S. Department of Defense, including Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) space payloads, laser secure communications terminals, and digital RF-to-optical and optical-to-RF signal converters.

Space Micro’s customers include NASA, the U.S. Space Force (USSF), U.S. Air Force (USAF), Space Systems Command (SSC), U.S. Special Operations Command (SOCOM), Space IL (recipient of the Google X-Prize Moonshot Award), the German Space Agency, and many more. Most recently, Space Micro was awarded a contract to deliver ten NanocomTM Software Defined Radios (SDRs) via Lockheed Martin in support of the Space Development Agency’s Tranche 0 satellite constellation.

This announcement rounds out nearly two years of immense growth for Voyager Space, following most recently the acquisition of Valley Tech Systems.

“For almost two decades Space Micro has developed game-changing technologies and provided trusted high-performance satellite communications systems,” said Space Micro Co-Founder and Chairman, David Strobel. “Today marks a huge step in our growth trajectory. The satellite constellation market stands at the tipping point of explosive expansion and now, with the Voyager team and operational functions by our side, we will be prepared to scale our technologies to meet these market needs.”
“Expanding our already rapidly-growing laser and optical communications systems is a top priority going forward,” said Space Micro Co-Founder and CEO, David Czajkowski. “We have an unbeatable record of zero in-orbit failures since our first launch, and that’s a record we seek to maintain as we continue to grow these critical, high-demand satellite technologies.”
“Space Micro is a perfect addition to Voyager’s growing NewSpace portfolio of entrepreneurs and technology capabilities,” said Matthew Kuta, President and COO of Voyager Space. “What Space Micro has accomplished on their own is outstanding - and they have a diverse customer base to prove it. Now in partnership with Voyager, Space Micro will have the opportunity to expand its technology footprint and remain at the forefront of innovation for advanced satellite and communications systems.”

NanoAvionics Preparing To Launch Their 5th Rideshare Mission Via Exolaunch Aboard The SpaceX Transporter-4 Mission

NanoAvionics MP42 smallsat platform. Image is courtesy of the company.

NanoAvionics has announced their latest satellite rideshare mission “MP42” is to be launched aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 with payloads from OQ Technology and Veoware.

NanoAvionics MP42 bus prototype assembly. Photo is courtesy of the company.

Using the prototype of its new MP42 smallsat bus, this is the fifth shared satellite mission by NanoAvionics, which has been one of the firsts companies in the smallsat industry to successfully kickstart and continue such a commercial program. The launch of NanoAvionics’ satellite has been booked for the SpaceX Transporter-4 mission, planned for 2022.

The MP42 is also the company’s largest built satellite and the first commercially available modular microsat bus in the industry. It has the same modularity for hard- and software and mission operations infrastructure as NanoAvionics’ nanosatellites. It will be deployed into LEO via a launch agreement with NanoAvionics’ launch partner Exolaunch, a German company providing launch, deployment and in-space transportation services. Exolaunch will also supply its CarboNIX separation ring to dock the MP42 to the SpaceX port aboard the Falcon 9 rocket.

The MP42 bus is part of NanoAvionics new range of microsats. It was developed by the company to meet the growing customer demand for hosting more sophisticated payloads like larger cameras for Earth Observation (EO) or power-hungry devices for high data throughput and complex communications missions. The MP42 is capable of accommodating payloads in the range of 50 kg. and all its subsystems were tested with 20kRad biased radiation dose and board level Single Event Effects (SEE) tested under 200 MeV Proton Beam, ensuring at least five years of lifetime in LEO.

Among other customer payloads aboard the MP42, NanoAvionics will integrate a second ‘cell tower in space,’ dubbed “Tiger-3,” for OQ Technology’s 5G IoT/M2M communication constellation. The smallsat will also host Veoware’s RW500 fully integrated reaction wheel for high performance satellite attitude control with next-generation high torque / low power technology. As a default in its new microsat range, NanoAvionics introduced its upgraded payload controller to maximize data-exchange and support payload operations. The new range of microsat products will also include AI reinforced on-board payload data processing, maximized data exchange rates, and the possibility to implement customer software blocks similarly as in mobile phone application cases.

OQ Technology’s third mission follows the successful launch of its Tiger-2 satellite in June this year, which performed very well during tests. Using the satellite, the company also tested its user terminal in harsh conditions and managed to achieve even indoor reach with no external antennas.

OQ’s ‘cell-tower in space’ technology aims to provide real-time global connectivity with ultra-reliable low latency communication (URLLC) and massive machine type communications (mMTC), compatible with the global 3GPP standard, for applications in rural and remote areas, particularly in industries such as oil, gas, logistics, mining and defence. The company has recently revealed its patents portfolio for 5G IoT cellular communication over satellites and aims to provide global coverage from north pole to south pole.

Veoware will run various on-orbit tests with its RW500 high-torque reaction wheel. The reaction wheel is designed to offer high torque for low volume and low power consumption, with the greatest agility for satellites around 50 kg, and for missions with a minimum of five years lifetime. Other technological features include low magnetic residual, very high radiation shielding, redundant windings, firmware upgrades in space and regenerative braking.

Vytenis J. Buzas, co-founder and CEO of NanoAvionics, said, “With the MP42 platform as the latest addition to our product range of small satellites, we are enabling organizations to enter and benefit from the space market in the microsat segment.  Previously, their use was constrained due to higher cost, lack of modularity, mechanical restraints and suitable mission operations. Our rideshare missions and shared satellite services have proven to be very beneficial to many NewSpace companies. They allowed them to quickly and cost efficiently demonstrate their technologies in orbit, and add further satellites to their constellations.”
Omar Qaise, founder and CEO of OQ Technology, said, “After our successful Tiger-1 and Tiger-2 missions, we are now accelerating the deployment of our satellite network to have global ‘cell tower in space’ coverage for 5G IoT applications. Tiger-3 will provide better access and more capacity to interested customers, and will soon be followed by more missions.”

Rocket Factory Augsburg Agrees To Launch Lunar Research Service’s Smallsat

Lunar Research Service (LRS) and Rocket Factory Augsburg AG (RFA) have agreed on a launch service contract.

RFA will fly a research mission of Ukraine-based LRS with its RFA ONE micro launcher into LEO. The flight, which will take place at the close of 2022 from Andøya, Norway, will be the maiden flight of the German-developed launch vehicle.

Lunar Research Service will use the results of the mission to improve its ground-orbit communications and test a solar concentrator that will be used in the upcoming lunar mission. Among the features of the mission are proprietary satellite design and a developed in-house deployment system.

“Ride-sharing opportunities let new space companies quickly prove their technologies to customers as well as to investors. At the same time, our customers can significantly reduce their time-to-market. By helping startups, research labs and scientists at the earliest stages of their development, we form a solid foundation for long-term partnership during their technology testing,” said Dmytro Khmara, CEO of Lunar Research Service.
"We are very happy to sign with LRS as a customer on our first launch. The contract is a demonstration of our attractive rideshare service pricing. We are honored by the trust from LRS to embark on our maiden launch and are looking forward to its joint preparation. We can hardly wait and are eager to fly customers into orbit," says Jörn Spurmann, Chief Commercial Officer of RFA,” said Jörn Spurmann, Chief Commercial Officer of RFA.

NASA Awards Smallsat Science Challenge Prizes To Startup Companies

NASA has awarded $90,000 each to seven entrepreneurial startup companies under the agency’s Entrepreneur’s Challenge program. The awards will advance new technology concepts ranging from novel materials with properties not found in nature to innovative technologies that will enable smallsat science missions.

The following companies were selected as winners of the Entrepreneur’s Challenge:

  • Morpheus Space of Los Angeles, California
  • Multiscale Systems of Worcester, Massachusetts
  • Nebula Compute of San Diego
  • California Niobium Microsystems of Dayton, Ohio
  • OAM Photonics of San Diego, California
  • Resilient Computing of Bozeman, Montana
  • Zephyr Computing of Oakland, California

NASA partnered with Starburst Aerospace in San Francisco, California, to launch the Entrepreneur’s Challenge, which aims to engage U.S.-based entrepreneurs. The program seeks fresh ideas in technology that could advance the agency’s science goals to explore and understand the solar system and beyond. The challenge also seeks to increase the number of entrepreneurial companies participating in the agency’s technology portfolio.

The technical focus areas for the 2021 Entrepreneur’s Challenge were:

  • SmallSat technologies including advanced sensors, high-speed electronic systems, and the capability to autonomously recognize science phenomena in space and respond as needed
  • Sensors made of metamaterials – manufactured materials with properties not found in nature – to detect and observe their surroundings at dramatically reduced size, weight, power, and cost
  • Instruments to detect biomarkers or that can determine evidence of habitability on ocean worlds

Administered by NASA’s Science Mission Directorate, the competition was conducted in two rounds. In the first, companies nationwide submitted 44 submissions. A NASA judging panel selected 10 companies from the three focus areas to each receive a $10,000 award. In the second, the participants refined their concepts, developed detailed white papers, and gave presentations to the same panel of judges. The panel selected seven of the companies from two of the focus areas to receive an additional $80,000 in prize funding.

“We face audacious technical challenges to accomplish our NASA science goals,” said Florence Tan, acting Science Mission Directorate chief technologist at NASA Headquarters in Washington. “Entrepreneurs can bring a diversity of groundbreaking ideas, concepts, and innovations that are relevant to our science goals. We want to invest in breakthrough technologies that will lead to revolutionary science discoveries. This program is a wonderful way to keep those ideas coming into our technology development programs.”

SES Orders Two ASTRA Satellites From Thales Alenia Space

SES has ordered two geostationary (GEO) Ku-band satellites for its prime orbital slot at 19.2 degrees East to maintain the premium services it provides to its European video customers and to capture new opportunities in the region.

These two replacement satellites – ASTRA 1P and ASTRA 1Q – will be built by Thales Alenia Space, a joint venture between Thales (67%) and Leonardo (33%), and are expected to launch in 2024.

ASTRA 1P, a classic wide-beam satellite, will support SES’s prime TV neighborhood and enable content owners, private and public broadcasters across Germany, France and Spain to continue broadcasting satellite TV channels in the highest-picture quality in the most cost-efficient manner.

ASTRA 1Q, a next-generation digital satellite with both wide beams and high-throughput spot beams, will be able to support direct-to-home (DTH) operations like ASTRA 1P. In addition, the fully flexible ASTRA 1Q is customizable on orbit and can be deployed easily to other orbital positions, enabling SES to serve the dynamic needs of its video and data customers well into the future.

The current satellites operating at SES’s prime orbital neighborhood of 19.2 degrees East serve an unparalleled 118 million households or over 43 percent of all European TV homes. Specifically the majority of satellite homes in Germany, France and Spain are being served by the ASTRA satellites. The number of TV homes receiving HD content from these satellites has increased almost 30 percent over the past five years.

The procurement of the two satellites was already incorporated within SES’s existing Capital Expenditure outlook for 2021-2025 and is fully compliant with the company’s financial policy.

“Our prime TV neighborhood at 19.2 degrees East is one of our most valuable assets and has been key to enabling renowned European broadcasters to grow their TV audiences in the last 30 years. These two satellites will have the resiliency, reliability and redundancy that our video customers need, and will be able to deliver continued premium services well into 2040,” said Steve Collar, CEO of SES. “Additionally, thanks to advanced satellite technology, we will be future-proofing our investment and injecting a high degree of flexibility into ASTRA 1Q to ensure we are meeting the evolving needs of all the markets we serve.”
“This contract reflects the ability of Thales Alenia Space to match complementary customer’s needs for both capacity and flexibility. We are proud to offer to SES our full electric Spacebus NEO flight proven product line to answer Astra 1P mission as well as our innovative software defined solution Space Inspire, allowing Astra 1Q the full in-orbit flexibility requested to serve the dynamic of the evolving market,” said Hervé Derrey, CEO of Thales Alenia Space.