Really Rocket Science

Inmarsat’s been around since 1979, operating geosynchronous communications spacecraft using the S-band. Compared to the GPS system, not overly glamorous. In the maritime satcom market, they’re the biggest fish in the pond.

With the current attention focused on how this old satellite company using standard physics to help locate the lost Malaysian airliner, they should become better known.

They’re on it, mate.

Here’s the story in The Malaysian Insider…

Britain’s Inmarsat used a wave phenomenon discovered in the 19th century to analyse the seven pings its satellite picked up fromMalaysia Airlines Flight MH370 to determine its final destination.

The new findings led Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak to conclude on Monday that the Boeing 777, which disappeared more than two weeks ago, crashed thousands of miles away in the southern Indian Ocean, killing all 239 people on board.

The pings, automatically transmitted every hour from the aircraft after the rest of its communications systems had stopped, indicated it continued flying for hours after it disappeared from its flight path from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing.

From the time the signals took to reach the satellite and the angle of elevation, Inmarsat was able to provide two arcs, one north and one south that the aircraft could have taken.

Inmarsat’s scientists then interrogated the faint pings using a technique based on the Doppler effect, which describes how a wave changes frequency relative to the movement of an observer, in this case the satellite, a spokesman said.

The Doppler effect is why the sound of a police car siren changes as it approaches and then overtakes an observer.

Britain’s Air Accidents Investigation Branch was also involved in the analysis.

“We then took the data we had from the aircraft and plotted it against the two tracks, and it came out as following the southern track,” Jonathan Sinnatt, head of corporate communications at Inmarsat, said.

The company then compared its theoretical flight path with data received from Boeing 777s it knew had flown the same route, he said, and it matched exactly.

The findings were passed to another satellite company to check, he said, before being released to investigators on Monday.

The paucity of data – only faint pings received by a single satellite every hour or so – meant techniques like triangulation using a number of satellites or GPS (Global Positioning System) could not be used to determine the aircraft’s flight path.

They did a fine job with their corporate video, too. Standard concept of a “timeline” script, yet executed brilliantly.

Very cool, yet incomprehensible. A 360º view of the Milky Way galaxy, composed of more than 2 million images. Not very pretty, is it? Well, you can win them all — but the sheer magnitude of this piece of work is pretty wild.

That’s astronomy for you: deeper than your deepest imagination. Never ceases to amaze most of us: there are more galaxies out there than there are stars in the Milky Way.

W T F ?!?

OK, now get this. You can put some of this “WTF?!?” up on your wall. Go check out BigBangPrints.com and order some for yourself, or your spouse, boss, kids, etc. Go ahead: make their day!

High winds delay launch of Astra 5B and Amazonas 4A.
[Broadband TV News – 03/21/2014]

Satellites pick up two significant objects in the southern Indian Ocean southwest of Australia, one estimated at 78 feet long, and ships are steaming quickly toward both.
[Hot Air – 03/20/2014]

Malaysia Airlines Jet – NDTV file photo

Missing flight MH370 puts spotlight on satellite technologies that could ensure tracking and communicating with aircraft over water and uninhabited areas.
[NDTV Gadgets – 03/20/2014]

Congress acknowledges need for new acquisition models for DOD to obtain needed satellite bandwidth – recorded Federal News Radio panel discussion with SES GS CEO and
government officials and consultants.
[Federal News Radio – 03/20/2014]

NewSpace Global releases 2014 SmallSat report examining global industry leaders, major investors, and sources of revenue in this sometimes obscure market.
[SatNews – 03/20/2014]

KazSat-3 at the testing and assembling division of Baikonur cosmodrome. ©RIA Novosti

KazSat-3 being readied for shipment to Baikonur.
[Tengri News – 03/20/2014]

Orbital drops antitrust lawsuit against United Launch Alliance.
[Space News – 03/20/2014]

Es/HailSat solicits bids for second satellite.
[Space News – 03/20/2014]

RRsat plans expansion in US market, opening a new office in the United States.
[Via Satellite – 03/20/2014]

Exelis installs its satellite communications on-the-move technology into the U.S. Army Stryker vehicle during the Army Expeditionary Warfighting Experiment at Fort Benning, GA.
[Executive Biz – 03/20/2014]

M7 group selects EUTELSAT 9A to launch its new pay-TV platform in Hungary.
[Satellite Evolution Group – 03/20/2014]

Speedcast strengthens it leadership position in the Asian maritime market with new facilities in Singapore.
[Satellite Evolution Group – 03/20/2014]

SES reaches 291 million TV homes around the world, with 151 million in Europe; sees room for growth in Latin America.
[Via Satellite – 03/19/2014]

DMSP-19 encapsulation within the Atlas V launch vehicle payload fairing represents an important milestone for the DMSP-19 launch campaign.
[Los Angeles AFB – 03/19/2014]

Arianespace launch – Satellite Evolution Group file photo

Arianespace calls for opening of U.S. government market to international launch services competition.
[Satellite Evolution Group – 03/19/2014]

Head of Germany’s space agency urges ESA to scrap the favored Ariane 6 plans.
[Space News – 03/19/2014]

Gogo receives supplemental type certificate from FAA to install Ku-band satellite connectivity service on Airbus A330 aircraft.
[Yahoo Finance – 03/19/2014]

Inmarsat signs contract with Hughes Network Systems to manufacture the new Low Profile BGAN terminal.
[Satellite Evolution Group – 03/19/2014]

Globecomm Maritime forms a strategic relationship with Future Care, Inc, to create Future Care Live, a video-enabled telemedicine solution.
[Satellite Evolution Group – 03/19/2014]

Gilat introduces StealthRay 300X-M Low-Profile Ultra-Compact X-Band Satellite-on-the-Move Antenna.
[ThomasNet News – 03/19/2014]

RSCC and Thales Alenia Space successfully launch two new Russian communications and broadcasting satellites, Express At1 and At2.
[Via Satellite – 03/18/2014]

Former Arianespace chief says SpaceX has advantage on cost in testimony to French Senate.
[Space News – 03/18/2014]

GeoStar 3 platform – Space Daily file photo

Orbital introduces the GEOStar-3 commercial communications satellite platform.
[Space Mart – 03/18/2014]

Pentagon weaning itself from controversial bandwidth lease with Hong Kong firm.
[Space News – 03/18/2014]

Ball Aerospace powers on bus of the first Joint Polar Satellite System (JPSS-1) satellite for the first time.
[Yahoo Finance – 03/18/2014]

File photo CCL3 – MarineLink.com

An alliance between France’s Orolia, and Transas Group aims to integrate Maritime Domain Awareness (MDA) and Search and Rescue (SAR) functionality into enhanced marine communication solutions.
[MarineLink – 03/18/2014]

Harris Broadcast splits into two separate companies: Imagine Communications and Gates Air.
[Via Satellite – 03/18/2014]

Gogo’s business group Aircell unveils its ST 4300, a new in-flight communications system for business aircraft.
[Via Satellite – 03/18/2014]

Elektrobit completes a multi-year study with European Space Agency (ESA), analyzing the benefits of using multiple antennas (MIMO) in satellite communications.
[CIOL – 03/18/2014]

Airbus Defense and Space launch new high throughput satcom services featuring Ku-, X-, and Ka-bands without need to change antenna systems.
[Space Daily – 03/18/2014]

Gilat SkyEdge II-c Capricorn IP Router offers throughput exceeding 200 Mbps.
[Thomas Net – 03/18/2014]

Moscow accuses Ukraine of electronic attack on satellite.
[Free Beacon – 03/17/2014]

M2M satellite communication market to grow at a CAGR of 9.8% to 2019 according to RnRsMarketResearch report.
[Satellite Spotlight – 03/17/2014]

Global Satellite Communication market in the Oil and Gas industry is to grow at a CAGR of 5.74 percent over the period 2013-2018.
[Live – PR – 03/17/2014]

Arab satellite pay-TV market expected to grow at steady pace from 2014 to 2017, with room for more entrants into the market.
[Via Satellite – 03/17/2014]

Azerbaijan and Argentina to cooperate in outer space.
[azernews – 03/17/2014]

kangshutters/shutterstock.com – CGN

GSA renews satellite-based training network contract with Hughes Network Systems.
[GCN – 03/17/2014]

Orange Business Services joins European Union to assist in development of cloud-based ship management platform.
[Via Satellite – 03/17/2014]

Satellite signals can confirm plane’s identity.
[KETV – 03/17/2014]

PlanetLabs small satellite – New York Times

Start-up Planet Labs aims to conquer space market, launching dozens of small satellites to provide near constant observation of Earth.
[New York Times – 03/16/2014]

Arabsat issues an RFP for four new satellites, to be designated HS3, HS4, AR6E and AR6A.
[Broadband TV News – 03/16/2014]

Gilat Satellite Networks chosen by Inmarsat as Gobal Xpress services partner for new fixed land VSAT opportunities.
[Space Ref – 03/16/2014]

TECOM antenna – Avionics Intelligence

Ka-band tail-mounted satellite communications antenna for in-flight Internet connectivity introduced by TECOM.
[Avionics Intelligence – 03/16/2014]

VSAT Auto-commissioning systems enable accurate VSAT pointing, crosspol, and power adjustment, providing feedback to the installer from a carrier monitoring system over the VSAT link.
[SatMagazine – March issue]

WBMSAT satellite communications consulting services

Continuing satellite system handshake signal after other communications had been turned off leads to conclusions that someone on Malaysian flight deliberately altered its flight path to one of two corridors.
[Fox News – 03/15/2014]

Inmarsat says it had recorded electronic “keep alive” ping signals from the missing Malaysia Airlines jet after it disappeared.
[NY Times – 03/14/2014]

Survey by MarketsandMarkets puts worth of M2M satellite communications market at $4.763 billion by 2019.
[Yahoo Finance – 03/14/2014]

Arieanespace launch – Credit: Arianespace photo – Space News

SES threatens to cease future dealings with Arianespace unless SES’s O3b Networks broadband satellites are given a spring launch slot also coveted by the European Commission for the commission’s Galileo spacecraft.
[Space News – 03/14/2014]

Jury trial to begin March 26 to determine whether satellite broadband provider ViaSat Inc. is right in claiming $800 million in patent-infringement damages from satellite builder Loral Space and Communications.
[Space News – 03/14/2014]

SpaceX delays its next supply run to the international space station after discovering an oily residue on thermal blankets that protect the trunk of the Dragon cargo capsule.
[Space News – 03/14/2014]

Inmarsat is negotiating with fleet operator Arabsat on the placement of an Inmarsat S-band payload aboard Arabsat’s Hellas Sat 3 satellite.
[Space News – 03/14/2014]

PhoneSat 2.5 – Phys-Org file photo

NASA prepares to launch fifth in a series of smartphone-controlled small spacecraft into orbit; PhoneSat 2.5 to be carried into orbit sunday, March 16 as part of SpaceX cargo for International Space Station.
[Phys-Org – 03/14/2014]

Cobham Satcom, an Inmarsat Global Xpress partner, announces two new maritime terminals and three new land mobile terminals for Inmarsat’s new satellite network.
[Via Satellite – 03/14/2014]

DRS is awarded $30 million contract to operate control and maintain satellite communications between the continental U.S. and worldwide locations.
[AFCEA – 03/14/2014]

Nearly a week after Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 vanished U.S. investigators say based on an analysis of satellite signals from the Boeing 777, it may have landed at some point.
[Examiner – 03/13/2014]

Chief of the space services department at the ITU Radiocommunication Bureau expresses surprise to hear satellite executives brag about their prowess in playing fast and loose with the rules.
[Space News – 03/13/2014]

Credit – Arianespace photo – Space News

Commercial launch service providers raise the possibility of Europe’s Ariane 5 rocket becoming American, the international Sea Launch becoming Russian and the high-cost Japanese H-2A rocket becoming cost competitive.
[Space News – 03/13/2014]

Malaysian airliner disappearance highlights need for Aireon’s satellite air traffic system.
[Seeking Alpha – 03/13/2014]

Northrup begins integrating new 20 GHz high-speed phased array antenna into fourth Advanced EHF communications payload.
[Satellite Spotlight – 03/13/2014]

Credit – Excelis artist’s concept – Space News

Lockheed Martin solicits info on alternative navigation payload similar to the one that has delayed the U.S. Air Force’s next-generation GSP-3 system.
[Space News – 03/13/2014]

Panasonic Avionics Corporation expects to double the size of its connectivity-equipped fleet by the end of 2014 following FAA certification of a bird strike compliant radome for B777-200 aircraft.
[Satellite Evolution Group – 03/13/2014]

Intelsat enters agreement with Airbus Defense & Space bridging maritime VSAT services to Intelsat’s High Throughput Ku-band Satellite (HTS) EpicNG platform.
[Satellite Evolution Group – 03/13/2014]

Gilat introduces new X-band antenna.
[Via Satellite – 03/13/2014]

Arquiva to provide exclusive distribution of Al Jazeera Media Network channels on two of the Es’hailSat satellites.
[Satellite Evolution Group – 03/13/2014]

Crystal Solutions will be launching Crystal Solutions Connect™, a content substitution tool for multiple distribution paths, at the National Association of Broadcasters Show (NAB).
[Satellite Evolution Group – 03/13/2014]

SES signs a capacity deal with Alruya, a leading system integrator and VSAT operator based in Libya, to deliver connectivity to oil and gas fields in the country.
[Satellite Evolution Group – 03/13/2014]

Boeing 702 – Credit – Boeing artist’s concept – Spaceflight Now

Boeing reveals an order last year by a U.S. government customer for three light-class geostationary satellite platforms with all-electric propulsion.
[Spaceflight Now – 03/12/2014]

The importance of high-quality satellite earth station installation and maintenance is being reinforced in the energy, maritime, military and other key markets through recognition of Harris CapRock Communications as a “GVF Accredited Organization.”
[SatNews – 03/12/2014]

Boeing and TrustComm to sell satellite bandwidth to government and commercial users.
[Satellite Spotlight – 03/12/2014]

Gilat Satellite Networks selected by Inmarsat as Global Xpress services partner for new fixed land VSAT opportunities.
[Yahoo Finance – 03/12/2014]

Elektrobit (EB) develops a Multiple Antenna (MIMO) test environment for next generation satellite networks.
[msn money – 03/12/2014]

Emerging Markets Communications announces receipt of contract from Brazilian Navy to provide VSAT satellite connectivity services for the entire Brazilian Navy fleet.
[digital Journal – 03/12/2014]

Picture source: smartplanet.com – Screen Africa

SatLink Communications chosen for global distribution of Ethiopian news channel.
[Screen Africa – 03/12/2014]

Euroscan Holdings, B.V., a telematics solution provider, is acquired by ORBCOMM Inc.
[Near Earth LLC. – 03/12/2014]

A rocket carrying a satellite is launched in Xichang, China. Reuters – The Wall Street Journal

China brings its rapidly expanding satellite surveillance capabilities to bear in the effort to find out what happened to Malaysian Airlines 370.
[China Real Time – 03/11/2014]

ITC Global launches a new network over Sub-Saharan Africa, utilizing the Intelsat IS-25 spacecraft.
[Yahoo Finance – 03/11/2014]

Nynex grows its multi-million dollar contract with Avanti Communications to extend satellite broadband coverage across Libya.
[Satellite Spotlight – 03/11/2014]

Etisalat showcases latest VSATExpress, VSATConnect and Satellite News Gathering services at CABSAT 2014.
[TMC News – 03/11/2014]

Vislink chooses the Q-Lite compact satellite modem for its Advent MSAT portal terminal for Satcom On The Move (SOTM).
[Business Wire – 03/11/2014]

Kratos selected by TrustComm to provide Starlight gateway satellite earth station.
[IT Business Net – 03/11/2014]

Harris CapRock debut’s its advanced Pulse VSAT system which dynamically reassigns satellite capacity on demand by leveraging Comtech EF Data Corporation’s efficient modem technologies and Vipersat Management System.
[Wall Street Journal – 03/11/2014]

Harold Rosen, satellite communications pioneer often called the father of the geosynchronous satellite, gets life achievement award.
[Satellite Spotlight – 03/10/2014]

Gilat announces availability of SkyEdge II-c Capricorn satellite VSAT with exceptional throughput exceeding 200Mbps.
[Yahoo Finance – 03/10/2014]

Newsat selects Kratos for command and control systems for Jabiru-1 satellite.
[The Wall Street Journal – 03/10/2014]

Orbital introduces the GEOStar-3 commercial communications satellite platform combining traditional and electric propulsion.
[Wall Street Journal – 03/10/2014]

Kymeta demonstrating metamaterials-based flat panel satellite antenna at Satellite 2014 following successful transmit and receive tests on the satellite in Canada and the U.S.
[PR Newswire – 03/10/2014]

LightSquared and ViaSat enter multi-year agreement to introduce ViaSat L-band managed Service, a mobile service using LightSquared’s SkyTerra 1 L-band satellite, with the largest antenna, 22 meters, ever put in service on a commercial satellite.
[Broadway World – 03/10/2014]

Thuraya partners with Talia Onboard to reach oil and gas customers.|
[National Post – 03/10/2014]

Germany’s Federal Network Agency selects Kratos for satellite carrier monitoring solution.
[The Wall Street Journal – 03/10/2014]

Opportunities exist to provide services to remote areas in Chile including tele-health and tele-education as satellite communications forms key part of Chile’s national space policy in 2014 – 2020.
[BN Americas – 03/10/2014]

EMC Satcom Technologies and Kymeta announce strategic collaboration to advance the speed, reliability and efficiency of satellite communications for mobile, fixed, and aerospace markets with flat panel metamaterials antenna.
[PRWEB – 03/09/2014]

ORBCOMM launches new satellite modems targeted for systems integrators and resellers.
[University Chronicle – 03/09/2014]

WBMSAT satellite communications consulting services

In the satellite business, there’s a always a sense of excitement.

The competitive arena around choice orbitals slots. The suspense surrounding a launch campaign. Pushing the limits of new technology to get more out of what you already have.

Outside the industry, the general business public doesn’t fully understand it. For those of us inside the satellite business, being aware of the immense financial interests at stake on each of those complex systems, we can get worked up over the smallest success or failure, only without the drama.

It depends on what part of the business you’re working on.

We work in spacecraft propulsion systems: electric propulsion, to be specific. So you can imagine how we reacted two years ago, when we released news of our partnership with OHB Sweden, just as Boeing announced contracts to build two pair of all-electric spacecraft, one each for Satelitales Mexicano (Satmex) and Asia Broadcast Satellite (ABS).

This came soon after the U.S. Air Force and Aerospace Corp. saved the Advanced EHF spacecraft using electric propulsion. So we thought our timing was rather fortunate.

We’ve always admired Boeing for being typically at the forefront of new technologies in commercial space systems. And it’s been rather interesting to see how other manufacturers are responding. The ELECTRA project, a partnership with SES S.A. and European Space Agency, is one of the most noteworthy recent examples in developing a complete, all-electric propulsion platform.

Naturally, we’re very excited. We’ve seen the future and electric propulsion technologies will soon be at the core of in-space propulsion. This transformation will likely usher in a new era for satellite-based services by significantly expanding payloads aboard virtually any spacecraft.

We’re a small company and we’ve spent more than a decade developing electric propulsion systems and we think that soon the scene will be set for it to take center stage. Our breakthrough technology, the Electrodeless Ionization Magnetized Ponderomotive Acceleration Thruster (E-IMPAcT) is being brought to market on a solid foundation of more than 30 registered patents. Various testing in the U.S. and Europe have been very promising and we are approaching a new technological horizon. The interest we’ve received over the last couple of years has exceeded our expectations. Propulsion has a major impact on the entire economics of the satellite market and new solutions are rare.

Indeed, in many respects, the interest in electric propulsion for orbit-raising is logical and expected. Boeing’s 702SP bus is a real commercial endorsement of the critical advantages conferred by all electric propulsion and a prime example of future game-changing economics: more payload at less overall cost.

The Boeing spacecraft for Satmex and ABS, scheduled to launch in early 2015, are expected to weigh 1,800 kg and carry the same payload as some of the behemoths we’ve seen go up lately, thereby getting two spacecraft to launch on a Falcon 9 (or Ariane 5, just in case). Think about what this does for the design-build-launch side of the satellite business. Add the revenues associated with bigger payloads and the economic advantages are enormous.

There’s always risk in the space business. However, Boeing’s approach is only the beginning of this revolution. They spent a few years developing this propulsion system for the 702SP bus. However, one must consider the heritage this is built on top of — many years of experience with XIPS (xenon-ion propulsion system). Proven on-orbit technology is one of the most significant qualities customers looks for. This flown technology is being used in a new way, applied to medium-sized spacecraft after proving itself for station-keeping many times over.

On the orbit-raising aspect, flight-proven electric propulsion systems do take a long time to get the spacecraft to its useful service orbit. ESA’s Artemis took 18 months from the launch to its intended orbital location. That’s right: 18 months. The U.S. Air Force’s AEHF spacecraft needed 14 months to be salvaged by its electric propulsion system after its main chemical propulsion system failed.

That’s why we see opportunity for change in our industry, providing the technology for faster, higher-thrust, all-electric orbit-raising capability. We feel fortunate to have worked in electric propulsion for more than a decade and to now be at a point where we expect to meet the emerging and proven needs of the marketplace. We are but one company out of many in the space business who are continually looking for a better way to do things. These are the leaders with whom we identify – and the quiet, inherent enthusiasm we feel in our space business partners have for their work.

Seek out new technology. Embrace it and share your vision of what’s possible. The enthusiasm, competence and dedication I see every day is encouraging.

The new era in electric propulsion, of which Elwing hopes to be a part of, brings to mind a passage in Sir Arthur C. Clarke’s essay “Space and the Spirit of Man” (1965)…

“…we cannot predict the new forces, powers, and discoveries that will be disclosed to us when we reach the other planets or can set up new laboratories in space. They are as much beyond our vision today as fire or electricity would be beyond the imagination of a fish.”

Yet it now seems quite clear to many the future of in-space propulsion will indeed be electric propulsion technologies. Not that chemical propulsion is going away — there will still be many missions using it, but electric will swiftly become the mainstay, just as the rise of airplanes have not made all sea-faring vessels disappear. This evolution will certainly deeply reshuffle the global shares of the various space companies. It seems likely that the majority of satellite manufacturers will choose to no longer produce their own propulsion systems and rely instead on specialized industrial partners. Most importantly, this change in the root of the technology underlying all satellite services will probably change the entire industry, enabling new services and/or new players to emerge (think lower cost of bandwidth for sure, but also asteroid mining or satellite servicing which could not be viable without advanced propulsion).

The future will be electric, and it will be a much more diverse one. For the time being, no flight-proven electric technology to date is able to cover all the needs of all missions. Even as new technologies become available, the needs of satellite and space probe missions are diverse and call for diversified solutions. The future belongs to electric propulsion and it will greatly improve the space-based services we receive here on earth.

Gregory Emsellem
Chief Executive Officer
The Elwing Company
+1.310.308.3295
+33.601.82.15.27

Crystal Solutions will host a series of satellite interference prevention and Carrier ID detection workshops at Satellite 2014.
[SatNews – 03/08/2014]

Satmex adopts the Eutelsat brand, becoming Eutelsat Americas.
[The Wall Street Journal – 03/07/2014]

Disaggregation gets traction in 205 Pentagon budget request as the U.S. Air Force plans to take its initial steps toward adopting a new military space architecture.
[Space News – 03/07/2014]

U.S. Air Force is halving the number of space launches to be competitively awarded from 2015 to 2017 due in part to anticipated slowdowns in satellite programs.
[Space News – 03/07/2014]

Arabsat and Telesat sign new Hellas Sat agreement under which Telesat will utilise a lifetime Ku-band payload on the new Hellas Sat-4.
[Broadband TV News – 03/07/2014]

Credit: Virgin Galactic photo – Space News

Virgin Galactic nearing approval for SpaceShipTwo launch license.
[Space News – 03/07/2014]

Airbus and Thales poised to solicit bids for components for Neosat, a platform whose goal is to assure European commercial competitiveness with its U.S., Japanese, Chinese, Russian and other competitors.
[Space News – 03/07/2014]

Kratos is selected to upgrade the network operations center for the Vinasat-2 satellite.
[The Wall Street Journal – 03/07/2014]

KVH foresees big lift from rising tide of maritime broadband demand.
[Space News – 03/07/2014]

CEO of Liquid Telecom, builder of the largest fiber network in Africa, explains that the growth of fiber across Africa has actually driven up the need for more satellite services.
[Via Satellite – 03/07/2014]

Intrasky purchases Ka-band capacity on Eutelsat 8 West C satellite to improve Internet connectivity in Lebanon.
[Via Satellite – 03/07/2014]

CPI’s new LifeExtender technology for TWT amplifiers adjusts the heater voltage over time, resulting in up to 50% longer life.
[Via Satellite – 03/07/2014]

Arabsat to order four satellites, including two for Hellas Sat subsidiary.
[Space News – 03/06/2014]

Extreme Networks graphic – BGR

Chief marketing officer of network infrastructure company Extreme Networks posts image on Twitter showing every single satellite in space currently orbiting Earth in a single graphic.
[BGR – 03/06/2014]

Europa – Credit: NASA/JPL/DLR image – Space News

NASA to solicit ideas for $1 billion mission to Europa.
[Space News – 03/06/2014]

TrustComm signs agreements with Inmarsat and Spectra Group to distribute new L-TAC service with Slingshot adaptor.
[CNBC – 03/06/2014]

Global Xpress satellite – Credit: Boeing photo – Space News

Inmarsat remains confident Global Xpress will be a hit with U.S. military.
[Space News – 03/06/2014]

MTN expands into Southeast Asia and Oceania, extending C- and Ku-band satellite coverage in those regions through an agreement with NewSat.
[Yahoo Finance – 03/06/2014]

CSG to support Inmarsat Global Xpress offering with its next-generation convergent billing platform CSG Singleview, and offline and online network mediation platform CSG Intermediate.
[Satellite Spotlight – 03/06/2014]

Orbcomm releases next-generation OG2 satellite modems for OEM integration into satellite M2M applications.
[Via Satellite – 03/06/2014]

South Korean KNS acts as primary sponsor of MSUA-11 at Satellite 2014 in Washington DC March 11-13th.
[SatNews – 03/06/2014]

Iridium chosen by ZTR Control Systems to provide satellite connectivity to its inReach remote monitoring solution.
[4-Traders – 03/05/2014]

Eutelsat’s Ka-Sat – Credit: Astrium artist’s concept – Space News

El Al Israel Airlines to offer ViaSat in-air broadband service.
[Space News – 03/07/2014]

Strategy Analytics survey expects 55 percent of Europeans to buy Ultra HDTV in next two years.
[Satellite Markets & Research – 03/05/2014]

Elon Musk, whose company Space X has made headlines ferrying cargo to the International Space Station, ways the launching of national security satellites should be subject to bidding.
[USA Today – 03/05/2014]

C-COM iNetVu FLY-75V is first auto-deploying flyaway product type approved by ViaSat for use on its Exede Enterprise Service.
[SatNews – 03/05/2014]

Kratos’ RT Logic delivers 60th IP-routing Iridium modem.
[Yahoo Finance – 03/05/2014]

In deal with Disney, Dish secures Internet streaming rights for content from Disney’s ESPN, ESPN2, ABC Family and Disney Channel as well eight ABC television stations.
[LA Times – 03/05/2014]

Intrasky combines Eutelsat Ka-band capacity with Newtec technology for Internet connectivity in the Levant area of France.
[Satellite Spotlight – 03/05/2014]

ETL launches new range of RF over fiber equipment called the StingRay series.
[SatNews – 03/05/2014]

Pivotel joins Inmarsat distribution network for M2M services in the Asia-Pacific.
[ITWire – 03/05/2014]

Skylogic’s DataMiner end-to-end multi-vendor network management platform is expanded to include management of all antennas in its satellite earth station at Torino, Italy.
[Satellite Evolution Group – 03/05/2014]

Intelsat high capacity satellite – Credit: Boeing artist’s concept – Space News

Intelsat CEO pins Intelsat’s return to growth on promise of Epic series of high-throughput satellites and mobility applications, as military demand for bandwidth declines.
[Space News – 03/04/2014]

Iridium announces delivery by Thales Alenia Space of satellite simulators for Iridium Next launch testing.
[Yahoo Finance – 03/04/2014]

Digital Satellite News Gathering (DNSG) operators can now offer free of low-cost public Wi-Fi access to venue and event operators using NovelSat’s new portable, satellite-based wireless internet access solution Sky-Fi.
[SatNews – 03/04/2014]

Pentagon budget scraps two Lockheed satellites, postpones others.
[Reuters – 03/04/2014]

ITC Global debuts new brand and marks milestone as top 3 satellite network provider to remote industrial markets.
[Digital Journal – 03/04/2014]

UK based Ocean Signal, claiming the world’s smallest personal locator beacon, announces the appointment of All Sat Communications as its new distributor in Australia.
[mysailing.com.au – 03/04/2014]

Newly declassified military space program would utilize new Air Force spacecraft as orbital watchdogs to protect U.S. satellites.
[USA Today – 03/03/2014]

Hughes Network Systems is awarded new task order by GSA to provide commercial satellite communications end-to-end services to enable distance learning capabilities for the Education and Training Network (GETN).
[Yahoo Finance – 03/03/2014]

Hispasat and Asiasat, two of several foreign suitors of Israel’s Spacecom, raise their bids.
[Haaretz – 03/02/2014]

WBMSAT satellite communications consulting services