Technology

[Via Satellite 01-22-2014] ATK has deployed its Solar Electric Propulsion (SEP) MegaFlex solar array under a NASA contract to further the development of a high-power system for future manned and robotic exploration missions. The MegaFlex solar array can generate 40kW of power when fully populated with solar cells, and has been considered for near-term mission...

[Via Satellite 01-16-2014] Viking Satcom and Superior Satellite Engineers are beginning to deploy ground station equipment to support SES’s new satellite at 40.5 degrees west. The SES 6 satellite will deliver a total of 40 available transponders in dual Circular-Pol configuration in the Americas, Europe and Atlantic Ocean regions by transmitting in 3.7-4.2 GHz and...

[Via Satellite – 01-15-2014] Boeing’s Space-Based Space Surveillance (SBSS) system has helped the U.S. Air Force reduce satellite loss by 66 percent by detecting potential threats more quickly and allowing operators to take early action if necessary. SBSS provides timely detection, collection, identification and tracking of space objects from deep space to low-Earth orbit due...

[Via Satellite 01-15-2014] C-COM Satellite Systems has received new orders for its iNetVu auto-deploy antenna systems from AltegroSky, the company’s largest Russian reseller. The antennas will assist with oil and gas exploration in Russia by one of the world’s leading oilfield services companies, and will be deployed over the Russian Yamal 200 and Yamal 402...

[Via Satellite 01-15-2014] Surrey Satellite Technology Ltd (SSTL) will use its new X50 platform to deliver Ghalam LLP’s KazSTSAT satellite. This satellite will use a version of the SSTL-X50’s Earthmapper technology that will allow for global wide-area imaging to help with agricultural and flood monitoring, water quality assessment and disaster monitoring. “It is very gratifying...

[Via Satellite 01-14-2014] Tethers Unlimited (TUI) is testing a new propulsion method that stands to greatly improve access to, as well as the capability of CubeSats. The thruster, called Hydros, is the company’s newest product, and it has already received interest from a variety of markets. Last month the United States Air Force signed a...

[Via Satellite 01-13-2014] Com Dev International found more of its growth in 2013 outside the borders of the United States. In a conference call, Michael Pley, president and CEO of Com Dev, said that the company will continue to rescale its U.S. operations, and that it still has positive long term prospects in the country....

[Via Satellite 01-10-2014] Spaceflight Inc. and NanoRacks are preparing to deploy multiple CubeSats from the International Space Station (ISS). The CubeSats are currently en route to the ISS onboard Orbital Sciences’ Cygnus Orb 1 resupply mission, which launched on Jan. 9, 2014. The satellites were manifest via the NanoRacks space act agreement with NASA, and...

[Via Satellite 01-10-2014] Advantech Wireless has released its new SapphireBlu Series 6.6kW C-Band Rackmount UltraLinear GaN solid state power amplifier/block up converter (SSPA/BUC), for wide bandwidth, ultra high power satellite teleport uplinks. The new SapphireBlu Series of UltraLinear GaN technology based SSPAs and BUCs is designed for Multi Carrier Operations and uses a compact indoor...

[Via Satellite 01-08-2014] The European Space Agency’s (ESA) billion-star surveyor Gaia is now in its operational orbit at Lagrange point 2 (L2), a gravitationally stable virtual point located 1.5 million kilometers from Earth. Gaia has been travelling toward L2 since Dec. 19, 2013 when it was launched from Europe’s Spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana. A...