Finance

[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 and owner of ILS, the...

[Via Satellite 08-03-2015] Switzerland-based RUAG Space has agreed to establish a composites production capability in the United States at United Launch Alliance’s (ULA) Decatur, Ala., factory. RUAG provides carbon fiber structures for ULA’s Atlas launch vehicles, namely the payload fairing for the larger Atlas 5-500 launcher as well as the interstage adapter for the smaller...

[Via Satellite 07-31-2015] Small satellite launch company Rocket Lab has signed a Commercial Space Launch Act Agreement with NASA, enabling the company to use NASA resources such as personnel, facilities and equipment for launch efforts. The partnership opens up the opportunity for Rocket Lab to conduct missions from the space agency’s launch complexes in addition...

[Via Satellite 07-30-2015] Intelsat, in announcing its second quarter earnings results, affirmed that the satellites it has awaiting near term launches are still scheduled for when previously anticipated despite launch failures of both International Launch Services’ (ILS) Proton and SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rockets in recent months. “Our expected satellite launches from August 2015 through the...

[Via Satellite 07-29-2015] On Saturday, July 25, China launched two satellites aboard a Long March 3B/Expedition 1 rocket for its indigenous Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS), BeiDou. The launch occurred from the Xichang Satellite Launch Center in southwestern China’s Sichuan Province, with the satellites reaching their preset orbits in 3.5 hours, according to the center....

[Via Satellite 07-24-2015] United Launch Alliance (ULA) orbited the U.S. Air Force’s seventh Wideband Global Satcom (WGS 7) satellite July 23 aboard a Delta 4 rocket. The satellite features a payload upgrade from prime contractor Boeing that enables 17 percent more secure communications bandwidth than its predecessors. WGS satellites provide military communications in X and...

[Via Satellite 07-23-2015] Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI) and Mitsubishi Hitachi Power Systems (MHPS) have decided to reorganize, respectively, their Nagasaki Shipyard and Machinery Works and Nagasaki Works facilities to consolidate manufacturing by product. MHI will concentrate its defense and space systems, and MHPS will concentrate its operations involving thermal power generation systems. The reorganization initiatives...

[Via Satellite 07-21-2015] After reviewing data consisting of more than 3,000 telemetry channels from the June 28 Falcon 9 rocket failure, SpaceX has identified the probable cause as a defective strut in the second stage. Going forward, SpaceX intends to replace the strut entirely, though thousands of them have flown without issue on previous missions....

[Via Satellite 07-20-2015] The Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) completed a hot test of a high thrust cryogenic rocket engine for a duration of 800 seconds. The engine generated a nominal thrust of 19 tons and ran for approximately 25 percent more time than the engine burn required for flight. ISRO is designing the engine...

[Via Satellite 07-20-2015] Generation Orbit Launch Services (GO) completed a second flight of its GO-Flight Experiments Testbed (GO-FET). The flight test is a key milestone on the company’s roadmap to develop affordable air-launched rocket systems for access to space and for hypersonic flight research. GO-FET serves as a captive-carry research platform for maturing mechanical, thermal,...