Government/Military

[Satellite TODAY Insider 10-15-10] Northrop Grumman is flight-testing computing hardware and communications infrastructure that allow the U.S. Air Force’s B-2 stealth bomber to send and receive battlefield information by satellite at rates more than 100 times faster than current capabilities, the company announced Oct 14.      Northrop Grumman, the Air Force’s prime contractor for the...

[Satellite TODAY 10-15-10] After laying off hundreds of its employees last month, rocket booster manufacturer ATK raised about $280 million in a 2.75 percent senior note debt sale that ended Oct. 14.     On Sept. 30, ATK Aerospace Systems dismissed 414 engineers, factory workers and other employees at three northern Utah locations due to “uncertainty...

[Satellite News 10-14-10] Since military operations began in heated battle arenas such as Iraq and Afghanistan, military command centers using X-band to communicate with critical unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) have dealt with interference issues at a disadvantage. Because there are only two X-band exclusive commercial satellites in orbit (Xtar’s EUR and LANT), geolocating the source...

[Satellite TODAY 10-14-10] Paradigm Services, part of Astrium Services’ Telecoms Division, has entered into a 15-year contract with Telesat to lease the full X-band payload of three transponders on Telesat’s upcoming Anik G1 satellite, Telesat announced Oct. 13.     The 15-year term of the lease represents the satellite’s entire life in orbit.     Anik G1...

[Satellite TODAY 10-14-10] Comtech EF Data Corp. won a $3.2 million order from an unnamed U.S. government agency for satellite communications equipment that will be utilized to upgrade fielded satellite terminals for tactical military communications, the company announced Oct. 13.     Comtech will supply MBT-5003 up/down converter systems and SLM-5650A satellite modems. The MBT-5003 systems...

[Satellite TODAY 10-14-10] Wholesale integrated wireless broadband and satellite network provider LightSquared has formed an Emergency Rapid Response Communications Team (ERRT) to deploy to emergency and disaster locations throughout North America, LightSquared announced Oct. 13.      The ERRT, part of LightSquared’s Emergency Preparedness Program, aims to provide on-call mobile satellite communications services, personnel and equipment...

[Satellite TODAY 10-14-10] The European Organization for the Exploitation of Meteorological Satellites (Eumetsat) held a ground-breaking ceremony for a new infrastructure facility in Darmstadt, Germany, the organization announced Oct. 13.     The new 9.5 million euro ($13.16 million) facility is scheduled for completion at the end of 2011. The new building will be used to...

[Satellite TODAY 10-13-10]  U.S. President Barack Obama signed the NASA Authorization Act of 2010, which adds a third and final space shuttle flight in June, extends space station operations to 2020 and provides increased federal funding for commercial space transport alternatives.     The bill, originally drafted by the U.S. Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee...

[Satellite TODAY 10-13-10] NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center awarded a five-year, $5.5 million indefinite delivery/indefinite quantity contract to Techno-Sciences Inc. (TSI) to provide technical support, maintenance and upgrades for the Distress Alerting Satellite System (DASS) ground processor station at Goddar’s Search And Rescue Center, TSI announced Oct. 12.      Using data received from multiple GPS...

Since military operations began in heated battle arenas such as Iraq and Afghanistan, military command centers using X-band to communicate with critical unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) have dealt with interference issues at a disadvantage. Because there are only two X-band exclusive commercial satellites in orbit (Xtar’s EUR and LANT), geolocating the source of interference has...