Military Satellite News (November & December 2007)Visit
www.satnews.com/military for today's military satellite news
December 18, 2007
Russian Angara Engines Brought Into Spotlight
Being developed at the Khrunichev Space Center is the Angara launch vehicle family. These will be environmentally clean vehicles.
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Dragon Demo For SpaceX Gets Closer
A Systems Requirements Review (SRR) for Space Exploration Technologies, otherwise known as SpaceX, has been completed. This is the process for what will be the company's third Falcon 9 / Dragon demo under NASA's Commercial Orbit Transportation Services (COTS) program.
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December 17, 2007
Improvements To Be Realized With Upcoming Launch Of GPS IIR-M
Cape Canaveral... Florida... The fifth in a series of eight modernized Global Positioning System Block IIR (GPS IIR-M) satellites... Lockheed Martin built this vehicle for the U.S. Air Force.
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DoD Can Buy Into Norsat Terminal Goodies
Norsat International Inc. [TSX: NII and OTC BB: NSATF] has been awarded a $750,000 Indefinite Delivery/ Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) contract by the United States Department of Defense (DoD).
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Boeing Brings Demo On Home For TSAT
The third demo of their nexgen processor/router (NGPR) for the Transformational Satellite Communications Satellite Communications System (TSAT SS) has been successfully accomplished by Boeing [NYSE: BA].
Full Story
December 14, 2007
Satellite's Non-Space Flight From Lockheed Martin To Vandenburg AFB
The shipment of the DMSP Flight-18 spacecraft has successfully been completed by the Defense Meteorological Satellite Programs Systems Group.
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December 13, 2007
To The Moon With LOX & Methane, Says ATK
The ascent engine is a critical propulsion system on the Lunar Lander. Its operation is required to return the astronauts from the lunar surface to rendezvous with the orbiting Crew Exploration Vehicle (CEV).
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December 12, 2007
Hauling Cargo & Crew Is Andrew's Goal
Andrews Space has released details of the company's Andrews Cargo Module. This is a cargo logistics system capable of addressing NASA's International Space Station (ISS) cargo logistics requirements, as well as the needs of emerging customers such as Bigelow Aerospace and the Department of Defense.
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Lockheed Looks To New Lab For Orion Support
Lockheed Martin [NYSE:LMT] has opened a new space Exploration Development Laboratory (EDL) that will support NASA's Project Orion and Constellation Program.
Full Story
December 11, 2007
France & Italy Bretheren With Athena-Fidus SatProject
A Letter of Intent has been signed by both the French and Italian ministers of defense approving the Athena-Fidus geo-stationary comsat project.
Full Story
OCX & SBSS Both Part of Boeing's Successful Contract Portfolio
The Boeing Company [NYSE: BA] has been selected to participate in the development of the nexgen Global Positioning System (GPS) ground system for the U.S. Air Force. Boeing has also successfully completed a series of Space Based Space Surveillance (SBSS) systems tests.
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December 10, 2007
Integral Systems Detects USAF Contract Deployment... To Them!
The U.S.A.F. has exercised contract options totaling $29.8m for the Rapid Attack Identification Detection Report Systems (RAIDRS) Block 10 (RB-10) program to the recipient, Integral Systems, Inc. [NASDAQ:ISYS].
Full Story
December 9, 2007
SBIRS' Software Setbacks
The Space Based infrared System, known as SBIRS, is the first of a newgen of missile warning satellites for the U.S. Air Force. During some testing of SBIRS earlier this year, some "problems" popped-up.
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Seasoned Astronaut Departs NASA For Private Sector
NASA astronaut Robert Curbeam, Jr., served as deputy director of NASA's f
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New Russian MilSat Makes Orbit
The Associated Press is reporting a new military satellite courtesy of the Russian Space Forces is now in orbit, after a successful launch on December 9th abovard a Proton-M rocket.
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December 6, 2007
Express SatPlat Unifies Thales Alenia Space & NPO-PM
Thales Alenia Space and Reshetnev Nauchno-Proizvodstvennoe Obiedinenie Prikladnoi Mekhaniki (NPO-PM) have strengthened their position as they finalize an industrial cooperation program for the development of a multi-mission satellite platform.
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ATK Continues To Motor Along With Orbital Sciences
A healthy $35 million contract has been received by Alliant Techsystems [NYSE:ATK] from Orbital Sciences Corporation to continue providing Orion Motors.
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December 5, 2007
Harris Tests Their Falcon
A successful demo by Harris Corporation [NYSE:HRS] of their new Falcon III multiband manpack radio has been completed. The demo was held during a 10-day U.S. Army exercise that focused on integrating new networking technologies into the Patriot missile communications system.
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December 4, 2007
Radomes & DARPA Addressed By Galileo Composites
MFG Galileo Composites now has the funding for a second Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) assignment to advance technology for ground-based radomes.
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ORBIT News Brief : Norsat Solidly In The Game -
Full Story
December 3, 2007
SPACEHAB Does More Than Wish For NASA COTS Award
NASA's Commercial Orbital Transportation Services (COTS) Phase 1 Demonstrations Request for Proposal (RFP), based on the Advanced Research and Conventional Technology Utilizations Spacecraft (ARCTUS) design, has been responded to by SPACEHAB, Inc. And with affiliates the likes of Lockheed Martin, United Launch Alliance, Cimarron and Odyssey Space Research, a commercial cargo trasnportaion capability is being developed.
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Italy's 2ndSat To Be Off & Away @ Vanderburg
Italy's second Earth-imaging satellite will be the second launch for that country this year. Occurring at Vandenburg Air Force Base this week, the 4,200-pound COSMO-2 satellite will be taken for its space ride atop a 12-story Delta rocket.
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December 2, 2007
Back To Basics... For Spying...
Two years ago, the <b>Future Imagery Architecture</b> system was cancelled, and ever since then, the United States has been researching and mulling over various project plans to develop the nexgen of spysats.
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November 29, 2007
A Vacuum Test At Northrop Grumman Does Not Mean Cleaning A Carpet
In May of this year, the first STSS (Space Tracking and Surveillance Systems) space vehicle completed thermal vacuum testing, Now, prime contractor Northrop Grumman Corporation [NYSE:NOC] has reported the second of two STSS demo satellites being built for the Missile Defense Agency has also successfully completed thermal testing.
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ORBIT News Brief : CVG Inc. & Florida Army National Guard... -
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November 28, 2007
Cerona Reaches For Their Sky To Fulfill Contract
Cerona Networks Corporation is absolutely delighted that a billion-dollar leading defense company has selected Cerona's SkyDSR-DT as the service replacement of its Integrated Receiver Decoder expressly for the multicast of IP video, audio and data products to the warfighter.
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November 27, 2007
ORBIT News Brief : The Air Force Association... -
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November 26, 2007
Failure Analysis Technology Attracts NASA
As you may recall, from reading a recent article in SatMagazine authored by the CEO of Failure Analysis, Dr. Len Losik, telemetry prognostics lowers the cost to produce expensive satellites and launch vehicles. Such also shortens delivery schedules and increases vehicle reliability, halting launch failures and more.
Full Story
Raytheon Positioned Positively With USAF GPS Contract
Raytheon Company [NYSE:RTN] has been awarded a $160 million, 18-month competitive contract to develop a new system design for the nexgen Global Positioning System Control Segment.
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November 24, 2007
ORBIT News Brief : Northrop & Raytheon Garner USAF Contract -
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November 20, 2007
AIA Develops Cost Estimating Fix
The Aerospace Industries Association (AIA) has reported that industry and government efforts to bridge huge differences in the estimated costs of military space programs resulted in the formation of a permanent council tasked with improving future efforts.
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New SATCOM Paths For GSA From DataPath
DataPath, Inc. has added baseband solutions for its mobile satellite communications (SATCOM) networks to the General Services Administration (GSA) IT Schedule 70 contract (number GS-35F-0424T).
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Milstar Follow-On Now At Lockheed For Subsystem Work
The Space and Missile Systems Center's Military Satellite Communications Systems Wing has announced the core propulsion module of the second Advanced Extremely High Frequency (AEHF) satellite was shipped from Stennis Space Center, Mississippi, and arrived safely at Lockheed Martin Space Systems in Sunnyvale, California, on Wednesday, Nov. 14.
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November 19, 2007
40th Anniversary Celebrated for Space Test Program
On November 8th, the Department of Defense Space Test Program celebrated its 40th anniversary at Kirtland Air Force Base in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Past and present personnel examined the program’s history, current missions and took a look toward the future of space research.
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Chinese Life Expectancy To Double By 2020… Er, Satellites, That Is…
According to the Chinese vice minister in charge of the Commission of Science, Technology and Industry for National Defence, the life expectancy of Chinese homemade satellites will likely double by 2010, up from their current eight year life expectancy.
Full Story
Navigating The Waterways With Trimble
Trimble [NASDAQ:TRMB] has received a contract from the U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) to provide as many as 400 reference station receivers over the next three years for the USCG’s Maritime Differential GPS (DGPS) Service modernization program.
Full Story
Stratos Solutions For Waterborne Folk
Stratos Global Corp. [TSX: SGB] announced the commercial availability of their new maritime broadband satellite communications solution based on
Inmarsat's FleetBroadband service. FleetBroadband from Stratos offers a
wide range of value-added services to provide ship managers with optimal communications performance and cost efficiency.
Full Story
Failure Is Not An Option Is More Than A Motto For Failure Analysis
Lt. General Hamel, Commander, Space & Missile Systems, Space Command, has requested Boeing and Aerospace Corporation to investigate Failure Analysis’ telemetry prognostic technology used for predicting failures in satellites, launch vehicles and missiles which could lower the cost to produce expensive satellites and launch vehicles, shorten delivery schedules and increase reliability, stop launch failures, and yield uninterruptible on orbit payload services
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November 18, 2007
Advanced EHF Payload Engineering Model Test Is Successful
The MILSATCOM Systems Wing, Space and Missile Systems Center at Los Angeles Air Force Base has revealed that on October 29th. Lockheed Martin Space Systems Company in Sunnyvale, California and Northrop Grumman Space Technology in Redondo Beach, California successfully completed the first system-level intersegment test of an Advanced EHF Payload Engineering Model.
Full Story
WEST 2008 Industry Event Upcoming
From February 5th through the 7th at the San Diego Convention Center, San Diego, California, learn the answer to “U.S. at a Crossroads: Where—and How—After Iraq?”, the theme for the WEST 2008 event.
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November 15, 2007
An Absolutely FAB Demo For Boeing
The Boeing Company [NYSE: BA] has successfully demonstrated secure interoperable communications between two Family of Advanced Beyond line-of-sight Terminals (FAB-T) software-defined radios. This validates a capability that eventually will link ground, air and space platforms.
Full Story
November 14, 2007
Aussies & Yanks Are WGS Buds
Australia and the United States have signed an agreement which will find the two nations cooperating on the wideband Global SATCOM (WGS) system. This will expand this constellation to six satellites.
Full Story
Yes-o On Nanos For USAF Via Orbital’s Technologies
Orbital Sciences Corporation [NYSE: ORB] has been selected by the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory’s (AFRL) Space Vehicles Directorate, Kirtland Air Force Base, N.M., for a $29.5 million contract to support the execution of the Autonomous Nanosatellite Guardian for Evaluating Local Space satellite program (ANGELS).
Full Story
November 13, 2007
ORBIT News Brief : Los Angeles Air Force Base -
Full Story
November 12, 2007
CPI Amplifies Their Success With General Dynamics
Communications & Power Industries, Inc. (CPI) has received an initial award for satellite communications (satcom) amplifiers to support the General Dynamics SATCOM Technologies specialized satcom earth terminals. This will be for Increment One of the U.S. Army's Warfighter Information Network-Tactical (WIN-T) program (see Editor’s Note below for more info on this program).
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“Surprise” Chinese Sat Launch
The Chinese’ Xinhua news service is reporting the launch of a new, remote sensing satellite from the Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center which is located in northern China in the Shanxi Province. In a Rui C. Barbosa bylined article at the NASA website, the launch occurred yesterday (Monday, 22:48 UTC Sunday night) in the early morning hours.
Full Story
Final DSP Sat Also Packing Nuke Detection Equipment
In close cooperation with the U.S. Air Force, the Department of Energy’s National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) deployed two payloads of nuclear detonation detection equipment aboard an Air Force satellite. The payloads were separated from the second stage booster at 3:22 a.m. EST yesterday morning.
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ViaSat Gets SatCom Order For JIPM
ViaSat Inc. [NASDAQ:VSAT] has received an order from Globecomm Systems Inc (GSI) for an open standard satellite communication network called the Joint Internet Protocol Modem (JIPM). The new networking modem is designed to integrate key technologies, including advanced commercial satellite networking and information assurance, into an integrated IP network for joint, interoperable communications.
Full Story
Globecomm Gets Lead SatCom Order For JIPM
Globecomm Systems Inc. [NASDAQ:GCOM] has received a contract from the U.S. Army's Communications—Electronic Life Cycle Management Command, under the Program Executive Office Enterprise Information Systems (PEO EIS) Project Manager Defense Communications and Army Transmission Systems' (PM DCATS) World Wide Satellite Systems (WWSS) Program, to provide the Joint IP Modem (JIPM).
Full Story
ORBIT News Brief : Situational Awareness In Space To Be Highlighted -
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November 11, 2007
Final DSP For USAF Via Delta IV ELV—SUCCESS!
The Air Force successfully launched the final Defense Support Program satellite 23 into space atop a giant Delta IV Heavy Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicle (ELV) from Pad 37B at Cape Canaveral Air Force Base at 8:50 p.m. EDT last evening. This launch marked the first use of the Delta IV HLV for an operational mission on a day honoring our nation’s veterans.
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November 10, 2007
Latest GPS IIR-M Sat Goes “Gold” For Lockheed Martin
The modernized Global Positioning System Block IIR (GPS IIR-M) satellite, launched from Cape Canaveral on October 17th, has been declared fully operational for military and civilian navigation users around the globe. This announcement last week follows a successful on-orbit checkout by a combined U.S. Air Force/Lockheed Martin [NYSE: LMT] team.
Full Story
November 8, 2007
Northrop Grumman’s Final Sat For DSP Set For Launch
The final Northrop Grumman Corporation [NYSE:NOC] built satellite in support of the Defense Support Program for the U.S. Air Force will launch from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station on Saturday, November 10th, from Launch Complex 37.
Full Story
MoU By Australian DoD For MUOS Signed, Sealed & Delivered (SSD)
A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) has been signed by the Australian Department of Defence and the U.S. Navy, which covers the arrangements for a joint military communications, ground station near Geraldton, Western Australia. This new ground station will support the U.S. Navy’s Mobile User Objective System (MUOS).
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November 7, 2007
X-band, Ku-band, Flexibility With Norsat’s Military Terminal Debut
Norsat International Inc. [TSX: NII and OTC BB: NSATF] unveiled their GLOBETrekker X-Band at the 9th annual Global MilSatCom Conference, Europe’s largest independent military satellite communications conference. The Norsat GLOBETrekker X-Band terminal is available as a highly integrated system.
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DoD Offers Pertinent Users Workshop
Only one week away is the third annual DoD Commercial SATCOM Users Workshop, which will be held at the Renaissance Washington DC Hotel, from November 13th through 15th.
Full Story
November 5, 2007
XTAR X-ing The GSA
XTAR, LLC is a joint venture between Loral Space & Communications [NASDAQ: LORL] and HISDESAT. The company has announced the reception of a contract from the U.S. General Services Administration, Federal Acquisition Service for Information Technology Equipment, Software, and Services (FSC Group 70).
Full Story
U.S. Army Believes In Immersive SimTraining
The U.S. Army's Program Executive Office for Simulation, Training and Instrumentation (PEO STRI) has announced performance will begin on the Warfighter Field Operations Customer Support (FOCUS) contract.
Full Story
DataPath Gains SWAN Award
A $2.9 million award has been given to DataPath, Inc. to upgrade and enhance the flexibility of DataPath Satellite Transportable Terminals (STTs) used in the U.S. Marine Corps' Support Wide Area Network (SWAN) programs.
Full Story
November 4, 2007
Another Prestigious Award For Lt. Gen. Michael Hamel
The Space and Missile Systems Center commander, Lt. Gen. Michael Hamel, has received the California State University Dominguez Hills Alumni of the Year Award.
Full Story
November 3, 2007
Expanded Alliance Hardens Space Micro & DR Technologies
By joining forces, Space Micro Inc. and DR Technologies will be bringing radiation hardened structures to both the military and space markets. They will work together to support the development, testing and marketing of new technologies and products related to intelligent, multifunctional structures for space and military applications.
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November 1, 2007
Growth Continues With MilSegement for Iridium
Iridium Satellite continues to relish the continued growth in the firm’s military sector business—they know have cumulative Department of Defense (DoD) subscribers reaching 31,000. Military traffic through Iridium’s satellite network is up more than nine percent (an increase of almost 10 percent over last year).
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