January 2016

Via Satellite February 2016 cover. Photo: Via Satellite [Via Satellite 01-25-2016] Our second issue of Via Satellite Magazine in 2016 is fresh off the digital printing press, so to speak. In the February edition, we take a detailed look at the inner workings of the 2015 World Radiocommunications Conference (WRC-15), specifically at the factors that…

Blue Origin’s New Shepard returning from its second flight to space. Photo: Blue Origin [Via Satellite 01-25-2016] Blue Origin has launched and landed its New Shepard booster for a second time, demonstrating reusability by crossing the Karman Line twice. New Shepard first entered space in November, reaching an altitude of 100.5 kilometers. This second mission…

Paradigm headquarters, Alton, U.K. Photo: Paradigm. [Via Satellite 01-25-2016] U.K.-based Paradigm is in the process of rapidly shipping multiple Very Small Aperture Terminal (VSAT) systems out for a European Union (EU)-funded project that will serve more than 50 countries in the African market. The African program has been setup to enable improved management of the…

An Iceland Spot rescue. Photo: Globalstar. [Via Satellite 01-25-2016] European Globalstar Spot safety device activations reached 9,800 in 2015 — a new record year for the company. According to Globalstar Europe Satellite Services, activations have increased 71 percent in two years. Excluding rescues handled by Value Added Resellers (VARs) and other third parties, Spot’s SOS…

A SBIRS GEO satellite rendering. Photo: Lockheed Martin [Via Satellite 01-25-2016] The Remote Sensing Systems Directorate of the U.S. Air Force Space Command Space and Missile Systems Center (SMC) has completed the Block 10 Integrated Test and Evaluation (IT&E) Readiness Soak for the Space-Based Infrared System (SBIR). In addition to other enhancements, Block 10 consolidates operational…

Integration of the EDRS-A laser terminal. Photo: Airbus Defence and Space [Via Satellite 01-22-2016] With the launch of the first European Data Relay System (EDRS) payload only a week away, the European Space Agency (ESA), Airbus Defence and Space and other partners are preparing for the implementation of a first-regional, then global laser communications system. EDRS,…

AsiaSat’s Tai Po teleport. Photo: AsiaSat [Via Satellite 01-22-2016] Harmonic and AsiaSat have entered a partnership to launch a new Ultra-HD channel “4K-SAT2/HVN,” AsiaSat’s second Free-to-Air (FTA) Ultra-HD channel on AsiaSat 4 at 122 degrees east for the Asia Pacific. The channel, which launches on March 1, will broadcast 4K video content from Harmonic’s broad…

Inmarsat’s Singapore office opening. Photo: Inmarsat. [Via Satellite 01-22-2016] Inmarsat has expanded its presence in Singapore, opening a new 1,700 square meter office — the company’s largest facility in the Asia Pacific. Singapore has been Inmarsat’s Asia Pacific headquarters since 2008, but the company increased its investment to tap into the country’s infrastructure, culture and…

An Orbit Communications Systems Antenna on a cruise ship. Photo: Orbit. [Via Satellite 01-22-2016] Orbit Communication Systems has received a new $2.1 million order for OceanTRx 7-500 Ka-band systems, its maritime satellite communications solution, from a global Non-Geostationary Satellite Orbit (NGSO) service provider. The systems will be installed on cruise ships for continuous broadband connectivity.…

[Via Satellite 01-22-2016] Com Dev International received shareholder approval yesterday at a special shareholder meeting for its plan of arrangement with Honeywell Limited/Honeywell Limitée and Honeywell International, which the company entered into on Nov. 5, 2015. At the Com Dev shareholder special meeting, 99.3 percent of the votes were in favor of the arrangement, and…