Government/Military

[Via Satellite 04-15-2014] NASA is pursuing new energy storage technologies to replace the battery technology it has used for the majority of its space exploration projects. The agency released a call for proposals to solicit technologies that will be used to power the space program and other government agencies, such as the Department of Energy’s...

[Via Satellite 04-15-2014] The United States Department of Defense (DoD) has agreed to a five-year contract awarding Savi as the sole provider for the RFID 4 program. The contract establishes a $102 million ceiling for Savi to provide a comprehensive selection of hardware and software products, such as active Radio Frequency Identification (aRFID) sensors, readers,...

Roughly a year and a half after collaborating with several other satellite companies on a white paper titled “Seven Ways to Make the DoD a Better Buyer of Commercial Satcom,” SES Government Solutions sees progress being made in regards to the United States Department of Defense’s (DoD) approach to buying from commercial FSS operators. “There...

[Via Satellite 04-14-2014] With an impending gap in meteorological satellite coverage looming over the United States, the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) is being pushed to make greater use of commercial data sources. On April 2, 2014 the House of Representatives passed the Weather Forecasting Improvement Act, which strongly encouraged the agency to make...

[Via Satellite 04-14-2014] Northrop Grumman shipped its fourth Advanced Extremely High Frequency (AEHF) satellite payload module to Lockheed Martin two months ahead of schedule. Later this year, complex phased array and nulling antennas will be shipped to complete the payload delivery. Since the last payload shipment four years ago, Northrop Grumman has been developing a...

[Via Satellite 04-11-2014] Mitsubishi Electric signed a contract to begin development on the Greenhouse Gases Observing Satellite 2 (GOSAT 2) for the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA). GOSAT 2 will have a variety of advanced features, such as greenhouse gas and cloud/aerosol sensors. The satellite will deliver information to contribute to Japan’s Proactive Diplomatic Strategy...

[Via Satellite 04-11-2014] Boeing handed over a fifth Global Positioning System (GPS) satellite to the U.S. Air Force to improve upon the accuracy of the constellation. Boeing and the Air Force validated the systems of the spacecraft, which was launched on February 20, and the vehicle has been stabilized and its navigation payload activated. Boeing...

[Via Satellite 04-09-2014] Intelsat General and L-3 Communication Systems-West demonstrated the new Protected United States Air Force Tactical Waveform technology over Ku-band transponders. These tests measured the performance of anti-jam modems and waveform technology over Intelsat’s Galaxy 18 satellite. The demonstrations were observed by an Air Force Space and Missile Systems representative and showed full-duplex...

[Via Satellite 04-09-2014] The United States Air Force’s latest Defense Meteorological Satellite Program (DMSP) spacecraft, launched on April 3 from Vandenberg Air Force Base, is currently undergoing a series of on-orbit system tests. Operational use is expected in approximately six weeks. The DMSP 19 satellite is tasked with producing more data for National Oceanographic and...

[Via Satellite 04-04-2014] The United States Air Force has awarded Lockheed Martin with a contract to complete production of the next two GPS satellites in its GPS 3 system. The more than $245 million contract will cover production costs for GPS vehicles seven and eight (SV 07-08), following the December 2013 contract issued to complete...