Author: starpathwp-production
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PLD Space Secures ESA Boost! Contract for Payload Accommodation System on MIURA 5
Spanish aerospace company PLD Space has clinched a lucrative contract with the European Space Agency (ESA) under its Boost! program, aimed at advancing commercial space transportation endeavors. The contract, valued at 1.3 million euros, will facilitate the development of a versatile payload accommodation system on PLD Space’s MIURA 5 orbital launcher, enhancing flexibility for its…
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The Excitement Builds
The SATELLITE show is almost here. As always, there is huge excitement as the industry gets ready to discuss the big issues of the day. I always liken our March edition of Via Satellite to a celebration of all that is great in the industry. We announce our nominees for Satellite Executive of the Year…
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Thales Alenia Space to Supply Communication Components for NASA’s NEO Surveyor Mission
Thales Alenia Space has secured a contract from Ball Aerospace, the prime contractor for NASA’s Near Earth Object (NEO) Surveyor mission, to provide critical communications components for the spacecraft destined for Earth-sun Lagrange point 1. Announced on February 13, the contract entails Thales Alenia Space supplying NEO Surveyor’s S-band transponder, K-band modulator, and K-band…
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NuSTAR and NICER observe same radio burst, provide hints into nature of phenomenon
For decades, astronomers have been puzzled by the detection of random, mysterious radio bursts that seemingly originate from deep space. Recently, a team announced the detection of another one of these puzzling radio bursts, which was observed by two NASA X-ray telescopes — the Neutron Star Interior Composition Explorer (NICER) and Nuclear Spectroscopic Telescope Array…
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Before snagging a chunk of space junk, Astroscale must first catch up to one
Astroscale, a well-capitalized Japanese startup, is preparing a small satellite to do something that has never been done in space. This new spacecraft, delivered into orbit Sunday by Rocket Lab, will approach a defunct upper stage from a Japanese H-IIA rocket that has been circling Earth for more than 15 years. Over the next few…
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Rocket Lab Launches Astroscale’s Debris Inspection Spacecraft, ADRAS-J
Astroscale Japan has reached a milestone with the successful launch of its debris inspection demonstration satellite, ADRAS-J. Rocket Lab launched the satellite from Launch Complex 1 in Mahia, New Zealand on Feb. 18. The ADRAS-J spacecraft was selected by the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) for Phase I of its Commercial Removal of Debris Demonstration…
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Omnispace Receives Regulatory Approval to Operate in Brazil
Omnispace received regulatory approval to operate S-band mobile satellite service (MSS) in Brazil, the company announced Feb. 19. Omnispace reports it now has market access to reach more than 735 million people across Latin America, Asia, Africa and the Middle East. Brazil’s National Telecommunications Agency (ANATEL) approved subsidiary Omnispace Comunicações Brasil‘s request to operate the…
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What is open data?
What is open data? Open Data refers to data that organizations provide at no charge, and often with very permissive licensing. An example would be Sentinel-2 data from the European Space Agency, which is multispectral data from their Sentinel-2 satellites provided at no charge from their Copernicus service, as well as from many other platforms,…
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Leonardo to Develop Europe’s First Military Space Cloud Architecture, MILSCA
Italy’s state-owned aerospace and defense company, Leonardo, has been tasked by the Ministry of Defence to spearhead the development of Europe’s first military space cloud architecture project. Known as MILSCA, this initiative aims to revolutionize Italy’s governmental and armed forces’ capabilities by providing them with a cutting-edge system incorporating high-performance computing, cloud services, and artificial…
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The Implications of Space as a Warfighting Domain
Space is evolving into a critical warfighting domain. With the U.S. Space Force indicating the potential anti-satellite (ASAT) capabilities developed by Russia and China as a reason for the need for suitable space-based countermeasures, it is clearly an ongoing arms race in the space domain. Multiple space commands are being reinforced while some have detached…