August 2015

An Atlas 5 rocket used for NASA’s Juno mission. Photo: ULA [Via Satellite 08-05-2015] Lockheed Martin Commercial Launch Services announced a contract from EchoStar to launch the company’s High Throughput Satellite (HTS) EchoStar 19/Jupiter 2. Lockheed Martin is scheduled to launch the satellite aboard a United Launch Alliance (ULA) Atlas 5 rocket from Cape Canaveral…

A Deutschen Welle satellite dish. Photo: Wikimedia Commons. [Via Satellite 08-05-2015] German broadcaster Deutsche Welle has signed a new long-term capacity agreement on three SES satellites to broadcast two channels in Eastern Europe and Africa. The company will be broadcasting its German-language TV channel DW using SES’ Astra 4A satellite to reach more than 6…

An artist’s rendition of GOLauncher 1. Photo: Generation Orbit Launch Services [Via Satellite 08-05-2015] Generation Orbit Launch Services (GO) received a Phase 2 Small Business Innovative Research (SBIR) contract from the Air Force Research Laboratory, Aerospace Systems Directorate (AFRL/RQ) for continued development of GOLauncher 1, a single-stage air launched liquid rocket vehicle. Through the contract,…

Digital rendering of an Altair satellite. Photo: Millennium Space Systems [Via Satellite 08-05-2015] Millennium Space Systems has initiated the manufacture of the first commercial Altair spacecraft, a low cost platform for Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellites. Altair 1 uses a flexible 27U form factor, leveraging the CubeSat concept to increase mission capability while keeping cost…

Kim Gram, vice president of Cobham Satcom’s aeronautical business unit. Photo: Cobham Satcom [Via Satellite 08-04-2015] Cobham Satcom aims to position itself as a growing presence on the In-Flight Connectivity (IFC) landscape. The company supplies equipment to airlines to help them enable the next generation of connectivity services on their fleet. This includes major U.S.…

Elara Comunicaciones. Photo: Elara Comunicaciones [Via Satellite 08-04-2015] Global private equity fund manager Northgate Capital has acquired a majority stake in Elara Comunicaciones through a transaction in which Northgate will invest up to $38 million in both primary and secondary transactions. According to Elara, the investment will help further develop the company’s product portfolio and…

A Proton rocket. Photo: Roscosmos [Via Satellite 08-04-2015] International Launch Services’ (ILS) Failure Review Oversight Board (FROB) has concluded its investigation of the May 16 Proton failure, concurring with the most probable cause and the associated corrective action plan identified by the Russian Interagency Commission (IAC). Based on the data presented by Khrunichev, Proton’s manufacturer…

Goonhilly satellite station. Photo: Gemma Garner (Flickr) [Via Satellite 08-04-2015] Hispasat has reached an agreement with British teleport owners Goonhilly Earth Station (GES) to provide television distribution services across Europe. A transponder from the Hispasat 1E satellite will provide the capacity contracted over the next three years, which will be transmitted by means of one…

Yahsat’s Y1B satellite. Photo: Yahsat [Via Satellite 08-04-2015] Yahsat and mobile backhaul technology developer Sevis Systems have successfully created an optimized cellular backhaul solution that facilitates the expansion of mobile networks across the Yahsat Ka-band footprint. The pre-tested backhaul solution is based on Yahsat’s Ka-band system and Sevis’ scalable 7000-series optimization platform. The integrated IP…

[Via Satellite 08-04-2015] Comtech PST Corp., a New York-based subsidiary of Comtech Telecommunications has received a $1.3 million order for solid-state, high-power RF switches. The follow-on order came from a major domestic prime contractor for use by the United States military. The switches provide for broad frequency coverage and are key components in an integrated electronic countermeasures…