News on key developments at SupremeSAT, and general news on the Space and Satellite industry from across the web
SpaceX’s Falcon 9 (left) and ULA’s Atlas 5 (right). Photos: SpaceX, ULA [Via Satellite 04-30-2015] The United States Air Force wants to compete as many as nine national security launches between this year and 2017, and another 25 between 2018 to 2022, according to officials’ testimonies during an April 29 Senate Armed Services Committee hearing…
A Proton rocket. Photo: Khrunichev [Via Satellite 04-30-2015] International Launch Services (ILS) and Dauria Aerospace have signed an agreement to study dual launch opportunities with Dauria’s Atom spacecraft and ILS launch vehicles. Officials from both companies will meet on a regular basis to study the commercial environment and explore mutually beneficial joint initiatives. The partnership…
New Shepard’s developmental test flight. Photo: Blue Origin [Via Satellite 04-30-2015] On April 29, Blue Origin conducted the first developmental test flight of its New Shepard Vertical Takeoff, Vertical Landing (VTVL) space vehicle. New Shepard reached a planned test altitude of 307,000 feet, reaching a speed of Mach 3 using the liquid oxygen, liquid hydrogen…
Nepal after the April 25, 2015 earthquake. Photo: Laxmi Prasad Ngakhusi/UNDP Nepal [Via Satellite 04-30-2015] In response to the 7.9 magnitude earthquake that struck Nepal on April 25, Thaicom has joined the list of satellite industry companies aiding in the aftermath of the natural disaster. The Thai operator has sent satellite equipment and engineers to…
Thuraya XT-PRO. Photo: Thuraya [Via Satellite 04-30-2015] Thuraya announced today the availability of the Thuraya XT-PRO satellite phone, which builds off the Thuraya XT phone with new features and functionality. The new satellite phone leverages the GPS, Glonass, and BeiDou Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS) for improved location accuracy. The Thuraya XT-PRO has a talk-time…
GEE and QEST executives unveil the Global Ku antenna at Airport Interiors Expo in Hamburg, Germany. Photo: GEE [Via Satellite 04-29-2015] Global Eagle Entertainment (GEE) and German antenna developer Quantenelektronische Systeme GmbH (QEST) are teaming up to bring aviation a mechanically steered antenna that will enable global Ku-band connectivity and high speed broadband in-flight. As air…
Tuvalu. Photo: Lily-Anne Homasi DFAT. [Via Satellite 04-29-2015] Asia Broadcast Satellite (ABS) has signed an agreement with Tuvalu Telecommunications Corporation (TTC), the state-owned telecommunications provider for the island nation of Tuvalu, for capacity on the ABS 6 satellite. The five-year agreement provides C-band capacity from the satellite’s A beam for high speed broadband to schools,…
MTN Headquarters. Photo: MTN Communications [Via Satellite 04-29-2015] Emerging Markets Communications has entered a definitive merger agreement with MTN Communications. Together, the combined company would have a customer base of 1,600 vessels and more than 8,000 land-based customer sites in remote locations. The transaction is expected to close by the second quarter of 2015, subject…
MTN Headquarters. Photo: MTN Communications [Via Satellite 04-29-2015] Emerging Markets Communications has entered a definitive merger agreement with MTN Communications. Together, the combined company would have a customer base of 1,600 vessels and more than 8,000 land-based customer sites in remote locations. The transaction is expected to close by the second quarter of 2015, subject…
Ashgabat, Turkmenistan. Photo: Peretz Partensky [Via Satellite 04-29-2015] Human Rights Watch is calling on Turkmenistan to cease from forcing residents to remove privately owned satellite dishes. The independent Nongovernmental Organization (NGO) reports that around the end of March 2015, local housing authorities in the capital city of Ashgabat and its suburbs began ordering residents of…