Engineers prep the payload for Telebras’ SGDC satellite.

The Space Data Association (SDA), an international non-profit association of satellite operators, has expanded once again with the addition of Telebras.
Telebras, a strategic provider of telecommunications infrastructure solutions in Brazil, is the latest member to join. Through its Space Data Center (SDC), SDA supports the controlled, reliable and efficient sharing of data that is critical to the safety and integrity of satellite operations and the Radio Frequency (RF) spectrum. These services are able to provide operators with enhanced Space Situational Awareness (SSA) knowledge.

Telebras provides telecommunications infrastructure solutions across Brazil. The company has plans to use Ka-band satellites to expand broadband coverage to the remotest places of Brazil.

“With an increasingly congested space environment, we have felt that joining the Space Data Association is an important step to secure the future of space safety, both for our own operation and the industry as a whole,” commented Jarbas Valente, technical operations director at Telebras.

“With the advent of our next generation system, SDC 2.0, it is very important that our membership adopts this step change in safety of flight capabilities, for the protection of their satellites and also for the whole geostationary environment,” said SDA Director Chris Grogan.

According to SDA, the SDC 2.0 service features an independently generated catalogue of space objects, providing transparent and actionable collision warnings. Additionally, SDC 2.0 features functionality to combat Radio Frequency Interference (RFI), including geolocations scenarios and a Carrier ID database.