Government/Military

[Satellite TODAY 09-15-09] Paradigm Secure Communications, a wholly owned subsidiary of EADS Astrium, has expanded its distribution partnership with Intelsat General by naming the company as its preferred U.S. distributor of X-band and UHF communications services, Intelsat General announced Sept. 14.      In 2008, Intelsat General signed a $48 million contract with DRS Technologies to...

[Satellite TODAY 09-11-09] GeoEye Inc. signed a contract worth $50 million to extend its service level agreement with the U.S. National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA) through Mar. 31, 2010, the imagery company announced Sept. 10.    The contract extension gives the NGA continued access to imagery from the GeoEye-1 and IKONOS Earth-imaging satellites.    The company...

[Satellite TODAY 09-11-09] Telecom Artel has leased four full Ku-band transponders from SES World Skies, the operator announced Sept. 10.     Artel’s new capacity, provided by the Astra 3B satellite, set to launch early next year, will aim to provide the U.S. Department of Defense with broadband, IP voice, data and video solutions across a...

[Satellite TODAY 09-04-09] The Indonesian Palapa-D communications satellite has been placed into a geostationary transfer orbit and will start a nominal launch early operation phase, manufacturer Thales Alenia Space announced Sept. 3.     Launched Aug. 31, the satellite was reported by officials to have failed to enter orbit after an anomaly occurred in the third...

[Satellite TODAY 09-04-09] Raytheon and Iridium Satellite have completed a joint technology development project by integrating a flight-worthy main mission antenna (MMA) with special test equipment to simulate on-orbit antenna performance, Raytheon announced Sept. 3.      The two companies also developed updated antenna control software that will aim to provide enhanced operational flexibility and more...

[Satellite TODAY 09-03-09] MDA was awarded a contract from an unnamed government military customer to provide a long-endurance unmanned aerial (UAV) surveillance solution to support deployed forces, the company announced Sept. 2.     The contract is structured similarly to its previously awarded Noctua UAV service deal with the Canadian Defense Forces, announced in May 2008....

[Satellite TODAY 09-03-09] QinetiQ today signed a $37.3 million contract with EADS Astrium to supply a solar-electric propulsion system for the European Space Agency’s (ESA’s) BepiColombo satellite mission to the planet Mercury, scheduled to launch in 2014, QinetiQ announced Sept. 2.     QinetiQ will install a system comprised of four T6 ion thrusters and complemented...

[Satellite TODAY 09-02-09] Space Exploration Technologies Corp. (SpaceX) has delivered the Commercial Orbital Transportation Services (COTS) Ultra High Frequency (UHF) communication unit to NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in preparation for launch on Space Shuttle Atlantis in November, SpaceX announced Sept. 1.     The communication unit establishes communication between the International Space Station (ISS), SpaceX’s Dragon...

[Satellite TODAY 09-02-09] SDN Global has unveiled its satellite public safety access terminal (PSAT), which aims to more efficiently connect 911 callers to their public safety answering point, the company announced Sept. 1.     The SDN 911 backup solution supports communication services including administrative phone lines, Internet access and connection to data applications over the...

[Satellite TODAY 09-02-09] U-blox has upgraded its core CMOS technology single-chip and chipsets to U-blox 6, with reduced power requirements and management features that extend battery life for GPS applications, the Swiss manufacturer announced Sept. 1.    The new technology aims to exhibit stronger acquisition capability of weak signals and shorten the time to find...