News & Events

News on key developments at SupremeSAT, and general news on the Space and Satellite industry from across the web

SwiftBroadband High Data Rate Service Testing Complete – Satellite Today

Swiftbroadband coverage chart. Photo: Satcom Direct [Via Satellite 05-20-2015] Inmarsat announced flight and lab tests of High Data Rate (HDR) capabilities for SwiftBroadband have been successfully completed. The new service, developed by Inmarsat, Honeywell Aerospace and Eclipse, will double the in-flight Wi-Fi speeds for commercial, government and helicopter SwiftBroadband users through a software upgrade, according…

Iridium Donates Satphones to ITU – Satellite Today

An Iridium 9555 satellite phone being used in Haiti. Photo: Iridium [Via Satellite 05-20-2015] Iridium Communications has donated 25 satellite phones along with batteries to the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) to support the agency’s disaster response capabilities. The ITU recently deployed 35 satellite phones as well as 10 Broadband Global Area Network (BGAN) terminals, which…

More Partnerships to Fuel Kymeta’s Market Foray – Satellite Today

A Kymeta laboratory. Photo: Kymeta [Via Satellite 05-19-2015] Kymeta is enhancing the ecosystem for its unique metamaterials-based mTenna series ahead of the commercial release of the company’s 70-centimeter Ku-band apertures in 2016. The company has signed partnerships with Airbus Defence and Space on maritime connectivity, Intellian on maritime, Intelsat on next generation capabilities, and Honeywell…

X2nSat to Build Satellite Gateway at Spaceport America – Satellite Today

X2nSat staff. Photo: X2nSat [Via Satellite 05-19-2015] X2nSat has signed a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) for the long-term lease of land and access to infrastructure for Spaceport America‘s new satellite gateway ground station development. The MOA lays the foundation for a long-term lease agreement with an anticipated finalization this summer. The station’s groundbreaking is planned…

DigitalGlobe Retires IKONOS Satellite – Satellite Today

DigitalGlobe’s IKONOS satellite prior to launch. Photo: Lockheed Martin [Via Satellite 05-19-2015] DigitalGlobe retired its IKONOS commercial imaging satellite on March 31 after a service life that exceeded 15 years. The satellite launched on September 24, 1999 and performed for more than double its original design life. Built by Lockheed Martin, IKONOS captured more than…

Proton Anomaly Creates String of New Delays – Satellite Today

The Proton Breeze M rocket that suffered an anomaly on May 16, 2015. Photo: Khrunichev. [Via Satellite 05-18-2015] Following the May 16 Proton Breeze M launch failure that claimed Mexico’s Centenario satellite, all involved parties have begun efforts to identify the cause of the incident and understand its effects. The mission, conducted by International Launch…

Aireon’s Data Processing and Distribution Ground System Moves Forward – Satellite Today

The Winnipeg Area Control Center. Photo: Aireon [Via Satellite 05-18-2015] Exelis has confirmed that the data processing and distribution ground system for Aireon’s space-based Automatic Dependent Surveillance — Broadcast (ADS-B) surveillance technology achieved factory acceptance testing. The company conducted factory testing in a lab environment with both hardware and software that will be operationally deployed.…