January 2016

A typical QB50 satellite with sensor unit on top. Photo: ISIS B.V., the Netherlands. [Via Satellite 01-29-2016] QB50, a project to launch 50 CubeSats for researching the Earth’s atmosphere, has shifted plans from launching with the Brazilian-Ukrainian Cyclone 4 rocket to instead launching with NanoRacks and Kosmotras. The mission, scheduled to begin this year, split…

Spacebus Neo. Photo: Thales Alenia Space [Via Satellite 01-29-2016] European satellite manufacturers Airbus Defence and Space and Thales Alenia Space have signed two multiyear contracts for high purity xenon with Air Liquide. Xenon is used as fuel for electric propulsion systems. Collectively the contracts are worth approximately $22 million. Xenon is a very scarce gas…

An AH-64E Guardian helicopter. Photo: Boeing [Via Satellite 01-29-2016] ViaSat received a contract from Boeing to supply approximately 90 Link 16 Small Tactical Terminals (STT) for Lots 5 and 6 of the AH-64E Apache Guardian Attack Helicopter production line. The AH-64 Apache is an advanced multi-role combat helicopter used by the U.S. Army and a growing number of international defense…

Photo: Eutelsat [Via Satellite 01-29-2016] RR Media is partnering with Eutelsat to support the operator’s African satellite broadband initiative through the provision of an important hub. The company will contribute by providing satellite broadband capabilities to Sub-Saharan Africa from its Middle East media center. Eutelsat started this project in 2015, partnering with Facebook and Spacecom to offer…

Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS). Photo: Raytheon [Via Satellite 01-29-2016] NASA has awarded Raytheon a $564 million contract modification for two satellite sensors as part of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration‘s (NOAA) Joint Polar Satellite System (JPSS) Polar Follow-On missions. The company is supplying Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) sensors for two…

A DirecTV satellite dish. Photo: ellibertario (Flickr) [Via Satellite 01-28-2016] AT&T is planning to incorporate video capabilities from the recent acquisition of DirecTV into more service offerings, finding that satellite, when bundled with other services, is drawing the attention of more customers. AT&T closed the acquisition of DirecTV during the summer of 2015, and is…

Arianespace’s VA228 Ariane 5 mission carrying the Intelsat 29e satellite. Photo: Arianespace [Via Satellite 01-28-2016] Intelsat 29e, the first of Intelsat’s EpicNG High Throughput Satellite (HTS) series, launched Jan. 27 from French Guiana aboard an Ariane 5 vehicle. With C- and Ku-band coverage over the Americas and North Atlantic region, the satellite will be placed…

An Atlas 5 rocket with the RD-180 engine. Photo: U.S. Air Force [Via Satellite 01-28-2016] The U.S. Air Force Space and Missile Systems Center (SMC) released the last award notice Jan. 27 under the Booster Propulsion Technology Maturation Broad Agency Announcement (BAA) solicitation. The purpose of the BAA is to support technology maturation and risk…

Photo: Access Intelligence [Via Satellite 01-28-2016] The Global Connected Aircraft Summit and The Airline Passenger Experience Association Technology Educational Conference (APEX TEC) will co-locate events this June in Los Angeles, Calif. The Global Connected Aircraft Summit, hosted by Avionics Magazine and Via Satellite, will take place June 6 to 8, while the APEX TEC Conference will take place June…

NSSLGlobal headquarters. Photo: NSSLGlobal [Via Satellite 01-28-2016] NSSLGlobal has upgraded its VSAT network by activating two new satellite beams, one from Gazprom Space Systems, and one from Intelsat, for maritime and land connectivity. From Gazprom, NSSLGlobal added a Ku-band beam from the Yamal 402 satellite at 55 degrees east, which covers Sub-Saharan Africa and waters around Madagascar…