Government/Military

[Via Satellite 04-28-2014] SpaceX is filing suit in the United States court of federal claims against the U.S. Air Force’s block buy of 36 cores from United Launch Alliance (ULA) for the Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicle Program (EELV). The decision to procure additional launches from ULA was made before SpaceX was able to complete the...

[Via Satellite 04-28-2014] Airbus Defence and Space has been selected as the prime contractor for building Peru’s first Earth observation satellite system, with support from the French government. The satellite system will include a high-resolution optical satellite with a ground control segment, image reception and a processing center. The program will also include training for...

[Via Satellite 04-25-2014] Harris has been awarded an eight-year $133 million contract from the U.S. Navy to provide shipboard terminals that give access to high-bandwidth voice and data communications. Harris will provide up to 120 terminals, on top of the 70 that were already provided since 2008 under the Indefinite Delivery/Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) Commercial Broadband...

[Via Satellite 04-25-2014] Comtech’s Arizona-based subsidiary, Comtech EF Data, received a $3.1 million order from the U.S. Army’s Defense Communications and Army Transmission Systems (DCATS) for SLM 5650A Satellite Modems. The modems support data rates from 8 kbps to 155 Mbps and symbol rates from 32 ksps to 64 Msps. The SLM 5650A modems provide...

[Via Satellite 04-24-2014] The United States Department of Defense has awarded Savi Technology, a partner company of Orbcomm, with a five-year contract as the sole provider to the $204 million RFID-IV program. The DoD set a $102 million cap for Savi to provide active Radio Frequency Identification (aRFID) sensors, readers, Real-Time Location Systems (RTLS), Satellite...

[Via Satellite 04-23-2014] General Dynamics C4 Systems opened one of two United States Navy-approved laboratories that support radio terminal testing for the Multiple User Objective System (MUOS) space-ground network. Companies that desire to use the lab must receive approval from the Navy’s Communications Satellite Program office, PMW 146, to authorize access. The first company to...

[Via Satellite 04-22-2014] The European Space Agency (ESA) has received the first radar images from Sentinel 1A. The images were captured the day after launch, and though not calibrated, serve to demonstrate the capabilities of the satellite. Sentinel 1A will be used by the European Commission as part of the Copernicus environmental monitoring program for...

[Via Satellite 04-17-2014] SES and Milano Teleport signed a deal to provide connectivity to Mario Zuccelli, an Italian research station in Terra Nova Bay, Antarctica. SES will provide ground infrastructure services from the company’s teleport in Adelaide, as well as satellite capacity on the NSS 9 satellite to deliver data and voice services to the...

[Via Satellite 04-16-2014] SpaceX has signed a 20-year agreement with NASA for use of the agency’s historical Launch Complex 39A at Kennedy Space Center, the launch site of numerous Apollo and space shuttle missions. The platform will serve to support SpaceX’s commercial launch activities, which include nearly 50 missions in development. SpaceX’s use of pad...

[Via Satellite 04-16-2014] The DubaiSat 2 satellite has completed in-orbit commissioning and is now fully operational according to the Emirates Institution for Advanced Science and Technology (EIAST). Starting last November, the satellite underwent the Launch and Early Operations Phase (LEOP), which calls for verification of the satellite’s operating systems and subsystem level electronics, and testing...