Arianespace Secures Launch from overhorizon

OverHorizon has contracted Arianespace to launch its first communications satellite, OHO-1, on an Ariane 5 rocket. The deal represents Arianespace’s fourth launch contract of 2010.

OHO-1, which will be built by Orbital Sciences and Thales Alenia Space, will based on the Star 2.3 platform and launched in mid-2012. The satellite will incorporate a Ku-band regenerative payload for two-way broadband communications with small terminals installed on moving vehicles, including cars, trucks, boats, aircraft and other vehicles.
 

Raytheon Receives GPS OCX Contract

Raytheon has won an $886 million contract with the U.S. Air Force to improve the accuracy of information from GPS signals.

The contract represents the first two development blocks of the advanced control segment (OCX), which will include anti-jam capabilities and improved security, accuracy and reliability and will be based on a modern service-oriented architecture to integrate government and industry open-system standards. OCX aims to make it easier for operations teams to run the current GPS block 2 and all future GPS satellites.
 

Thales Alenia Space Wins contract to Build Jason-3

The French Space Agency (CNES) has contracted Thales Alenia Space to build the Jason-3 weather satellite based on the Proteus platform. The satellite, expected for mid 2013, will be placed in the same orbit as Jason-2 to provide coverage over ice-free ocean surfaces.

Jason-3 will work with the Soil Moisture and Ocean Salinity satellite to provide regular maps of sea surface salinity, showing where and when large amounts of fresh waters are introduced in the cycle, for instance through rains, about 90 percent of which are estimated to fall over open sea.

Jason-3 is a collaboration between Eumetsat, NASA and the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association.