News on key developments at SupremeSAT, and general news on the Space and Satellite industry from across the web
Planet is set to launch six more SkySat satellites (SkySats 16-21) into Low Earth Orbit this summer, rounding out the fleet of 15 SkySats already in operation. http://www.sat-nd.com/archive/?id=2020051401
Russia’s Meteor-M No.2-2, which was struck by a micrometeoroid in December, has come back online and resumed its normal operations, a Roskosmos spokesman was quoted as saying. http://www.sat-nd.com/archive/?id=2020051402
Intelsat has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in the U.S. in order to restructure its debt. The company said it needs to free up cash in order to start on clearing its C band spectrum in the U.S. for 5G and qualify for the associated transition payments. http://www.sat-nd.com/archive/?id=2020051403
Eutelsat Communications reported revenues for the nine months ending 31 March 2020. http://www.sat-nd.com/archive/?id=2020051404
Preparations at Europe’s Spaceport for Arianespace’s next two missions, to be performed from French Guiana with its lightweight Vega and heavy-lift Ariane 5 launch vehicles, are accelerating, the company said. http://www.sat-nd.com/archive/?id=2020051300
The 45th satellite of the BeiDou Navigation Satellite System (BDS) has started operation in the network after completing in-orbit tests, according to the Satellite Navigation System Management Office. http://www.sat-nd.com/archive/?id=2020051301
Rocket: Kuaizhou-1A (Y6); Payload: Xingyun-2 01, Xingyun-2 02; Date: 12 May 2020, 0116 UTC; Launch site: Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, China. The two smallsats were deployed into Sun-synchronous orbits of approx. 557 km x 572 km x 97,55 degrees. http://www.sat-nd.com/archive/?id=2020051200
The Soyuz-7 rocket for blastoffs from the Sea Launch platform is planned to be equipped with the new Fregat-SBU upper stage, the director-general of the upper stage developer – Lavochkin Research and Production Association – Vladimir Kolmykov was quoted as saying. http://www.sat-nd.com/archive/?id=2020051201
Airbus has won the new satellite communications framework contract for military and civil missions of the European Union and its member states. This four-year framework contract was awarded by the European Defence Agency (EDA) and is estimated to be worth tens of millions of euros. http://www.sat-nd.com/archive/?id=2020051202
Spacecom and Comtech Telecommunications Corp. announced the successful demonstration of a 1.3 Gbps link using Comtech EF Data’s CDM-760 Advanced High-Speed Trunking and Broadcast Modems operating over Amos-17 C-band HTS payload. http://www.sat-nd.com/archive/?id=2020051203