General news on the satellite and space industry from around the web
Artist’s rendition of Inmarsat 2 F2. Photo: Airbus Defence and Space [Via Satellite 12-22-2014] The Inmarsat 2 F2 satellite built by Airbus Defence and Space was decommissioned this week after 23.5 years of performance in Geostationary Earth Orbit (GEO). Lasting more than two decades, the satellite took the world record for longevity from a previous…
A satellite gateway in Peru. Photo: Globalstar [Via Satellite 12-22-2014] To upgrade its ground stations around the world, Globalstar has selected Level 3 Communications to supply a fully meshed Multi-Protocol Label Switching (MPLS) network. Globalstar is upgrading its backbone infrastructure, and chose Level 3 Communications for global connectivity and continuity. “By selecting Level 3′s meshed…
Gilat’s high performance broadband IP VSAT. Photo: Gilat. [Via Satellite 12-21-2014] Delnet International Corp., a Philippine communications solutions provider, selected Gilat’s Ku-band SkyEdge 2 VSAT network to enable Philippine Long Distance Telephone (PLDT) to offer an enterprise VSAT connectivity service. PLDT will use a SkyEdge 2 hub that was operated by a subsidiary named Cignal.…
OSS coverage illustration. Photo: Laser Light [Via Satellite 12-21-2014] Laser Light, designer of an all-Optical Satellite System (OSS), and Pacnet Services Asia Pacific, a prominent independent regional communications service provider, have partnered on commercial opportunities for SpaceCable. Laser Light is planning a constellation of eight to 12 Medium Earth Orbiting (MEO) satellites for a global,…
A Sony 4K TV at CES. Photo: John.Karakatsanis [Via Satellite 12-19-2014] The 4K market will begin in earnest in 2016. This is the view of the Michael Inouye, a research analyst at ABI Research who looks in-depth at pay-TV markets around the world. Inouye believes the nascent 4K market will expand and likely by the…
Arianespace’s Dec. 18, 2014 mission with four O3b Networks connectivity satellites. Photo: Arianespace [Via Satellite 12-192014] In its 11th launch of the year, Arianespace successfully took four more satellites in the O3b Networks constellation to orbit. Using the Soyuz rocket from the Guiana Space Center, the flight follows the successful launches of the first eight…
Artist’s view of Galileo Satellites 5 & 6. Photo: ESA/ J Huart [Via Satellite 12-192014] Galileo’s fifth satellite, which was recently salvaged from the wrong orbit to begin navigation testing, has been combined with three of its predecessors to provide its very first position fix. This achievement is particularly significant because the fifth satellite is…
A soldier using an Exelis radio. Photo: Exelis [Via Satellite 12-192014] Exelis and Iridium Communications have successfully demonstrated a new global-reach communications capability for the United States Defense Information Systems Agency’s (DISA) Distributed Tactical Communication System (DTCS). The capability, once deployed, will advance the Department of Defense’s (DOD) critical satellite communications network, bringing secure, reliable…
[Via Satellite 12-192014] Eutelsat-developed GSM Demodulation Tool is now being offered to all members of the Satellite Interference Reduction Group (IRG) including new members joining throughout 2015. The tool, which Eutelsat demonstrated at the recent IRG workshop in London, uses a simple detector unit, a PC and mapping software to locate GSM beacons. In most…
SSPA from Norsat ATOM Series. Photo: Norsat [Via Satellite 12-192014] Norsat International has received an approximately $430,000 order for its Atom series Block Upconverter (BUC) products from a large international defense electronics company. This represents the second largest single order for the Atom series. Norsat said it has worked closely with this customer since the…