Government/Military

[Satellite Today 11-28-08] A European Space Agency (ESA) Center based in the U.K. moved a step closer to reality with the news that ESA director general Jean-Jacques Dordain and the U.K. Science and Innovation Minister, Lord Drayson, signed an agreement in principle to pursue the establishment of an ESA research center, to be based at...

[Satellite Today 12-01-08] European space ministers have concluded a two-day meeting where they made agreements on four key resolutions to undertake new initiatives in several fields and endorsing the next phases of a set of ongoing programs, the European Space Agency (ESA) announced Nov. 26.     The resolutions include – ‘The role of space in...

[Satellite News 12-01-08] ViaSat has made significant progress in developing its Blue Force Tracking (BFT) upgrade for the U.S. Army, according to Ric Vandermeulen, the company’s director of government broadband. But Vandermeulen told Satellite News that despite the progress, the transition to BFT2 will take at least 24 months.     “Even if we shipped these...

[Satellite Today 12-01-08] China has launched the Yaogan-4 remote sensing satellite from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center on Dec. 1, the Chinese state media announced.     The Yaogan-4 satellite, developed by the China Academy of Space Technology, was orbited by a Chang Zheng-2D launch vehicle at 4:42 a.m. UTC.     According to the state media,...

[Satellite Today 12-01-08] Alliant Techsystems (ATK) has been awarded a $26.1 million contract by the U.S. Air Force‘s Arnold Engineering Development Center for the design, fabrication, installation and testing of the Space Threat Assessment Testbed (STAT) System, ATK announced Dec. 1.      STAT aims to create a realistic space environment to perform developmental and early...

President-elect Obama today announced he will retain Secretary of Defense Robert Gates in the top Pentagon post, and also said Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-N.Y.), a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee (SASC), will be nominated as secretary of state. In almost two years as secretary, Gates has overseen marked progress in many ballistic missile...

New Uses Seen For ABL Include Taking Out Aircraft, Cruise Missiles, Surface-To-Air Missile: Boeing Test Success, Possible New Uses For ABL Come As Congress May Consider Cutting ABL Funds In Fiscal 2010 Budget Bill By Dave Ahearn The Airborne Laser (ABL) scored an important first when it fired a high-powered megawatt class laser weapon through...

The Czech Republic Senate, 40-31, approved a plan for the United States to install a radar on Czech territory as part of the envisioned European Missile Defense (EMD) system. Because the Czech administration already approved the deal, that leaves only the lower parliamentary chamber having to approve the plan before the Czech Republic is fully...

Pre-Solicitation Conference Set For Wednesday At Marshall In Huntsville NASA released a draft request for proposals, or RFP, for Phase I of its Ares V heavy lifter rocket that will be part of the next-generation U.S. spaceship system. The rocket will haul heavy payloads to space in a program that envisions a manned mission to...

RS-24 Test-Fired Successfully For Third Time An increasingly bellicose Russia test-launched a sea-based ballistic missile from a submarine, and also readied plans to deploy a land-based nuclear-tipped missile that Russians claim can elude U.S. missile defense systems. In one test, the Dmitry Donskoy submarine launched a Bulava missile with a multiple warhead that hit targets...