Launch

Helios Wire, a satellite-enabled Internet of Things (IOT) connectivity company, revealed that its Pathfinder II satellite is scheduled to launch aboard Spaceflight‘s SSO-A SmallSat Express mission, on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, Nov. 19, 2018, from Vandenberg Air Force Base, California. This is the first satellite in a constellation of up to 28 smallsats that...

The Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) successfully launched the GSAT-29 satellite into Geostationary Orbit (GEO), carried onboard the GSLV Mark III launch vehicle. The satellite was launched from Satish Dhawan Space Center (SDSC) in Sriharikota, off the Bay of Bengal coast located in the southern Indian state of Andhra Pradesh at 5:08 p.m. local time. The...

SpaceX recently revised the likely roadmap for its Starlink initiative, a plan to beam high-speed internet across the globe using a satellite constellation. The changes slightly reduced the number of satellites that will need to launch, where they’ll be positioned, and how they’ll interact. The company has permission from the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to...

Rocket Lab successfully launched its 1st commercial rocket, carrying seven payloads into orbit on Sunday. The mission, named “It’s Business Time,” marks Rocket Lab’s second successful orbital launch and deployment of customer satellites. Rocket Lab’s Electron launch vehicle lifted-off from Launch Complex 1 on New Zealand’s Māhia Peninsula at 3:50 UTC. After first reaching orbit...

Iceye, an Earth observation company creating a large Synthetic-Aperture Radar (SAR) satellite constellation, is launching the company’s second SAR satellite, ICEYE-X2, into Low Earth Orbit (LEO) on Spaceflight‘s SSO-A: SmallSat Express mission. The mission is currently targeted to launch on Nov. 19 from the Vandenberg Air Force Base in California aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9...

Thales Alenia Space handed over transmission and operation management of Bangabandhu-1 to Bangladesh, and the country will start the commercial activities of the satellite. Bangabandhu-1 is Bangladesh’s first Geostationary Orbit (GEO) communications satellite. A delegation of Thales Alenia Space handed over relevant documents to acting chairman of Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) Jahurul Haque. Two ground stations —one in...

  Phase Four, a provider of electric Radio Frequency (RF) thrusters for in-space propulsion, introduced Maxwell, a flexible propulsion solution targeted at small satellites. Designed for scale manufacturing, Maxwell aims to bring the performance and efficiency of traditional and expensive electric engines to new small satellite constellations. Maxwell’s technology does not require high voltage components and...

A group of young women are building a cubesat in Kyrgyzstan, aiming to build and launch the country’s first satellite before 2020. Women account for less than 10 percent of Kyrgyzstan’s Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) graduates, according to the U.N. Development Program.  “I feel very proud that it’s going to be the first...

In 2014, Ovzon launched its end-to-end mobile broadband satellite service. But as it so happens, the U.S. and Swedish-based company was destined to transition from a service provider to satellite operator. Today, the company is in the final stages of the procurement of its first Geostationary Orbit (GEO) satellite, which will be launched by SpaceX....

  Raytheon’s Next-Generation Operational Control System (GPS OCX) completed a round of testing, preparing the program for its use on the GPS III launch next month. The tests were cybersecurity vulnerability assessments that tested the system’s ability to defend against both internal and external cyber threats. GPS OCX prevented the broadcast of corrupt navigation and...