Sponsored By Viasat
www.viasat.com/gov-uk
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18 Dec 23. Viasat, Inc. (NASDAQ: VSAT), a global leader in satellite communications, is working with Safran Data Systems to jointly bring InRange to market so launch providers and spaceports can relay launch vehicles’ telemetry in flight throughout their trajectory – and without having to rely on ground networks.
InRange uses Viasat’s global L-band satellite fleet – which Viasat now operates following the acquisition of Inmarsat in May – to provide real-time telemetry data for launch missions. By using space-based communications, InRange will allow launch mission controllers to monitor the performance of missions beyond the line of sight, without the need for ground communications infrastructure. A global satellite communications network can also prevent so-called ‘blackout zones’ when a launch vehicle moves into an area not covered by Earth-based connectivity.
Under the MoU, Safran Data Systems will provide its telemetry antennas, onboard transmitters, and Cortex modems to support the InRange system for commercial launch systems virtually anywhere in the world. The companies will also explore different commercial models to allow launchers to purchase and use the InRange system ‘off the shelf’. The move will be another commercial milestone for InRange, following a recent European Space Agency joint contract to test the system on Skyrora’s sub-orbital Skylark L launch vehicle next year.
InRange is part of Viasat’s wider in-orbit communications services which are designed to enable real-time data transfer between satellites in different orbits, for uses like government communications, earth observation, or climate monitoring. This includes the IDRS space relay service, which enables operators to command and control Low Earth Orbit satellites whatever the mission.
Gary Lay, Vice President of Viasat’s Strategic Programmes, said: “In the last 10 years we’ve seen the commercial launch industry really take off with many private launch providers coming to market. Accurate telemetry is a critical part of any launch mission, so global connectivity that provides accurate, real-time data could be game changing as we continue to see rapid growth.”
“InRange is designed to give launch operators greater flexibility and reliability for their launch telemetry. This partnership with Safran is aiming to bring the service to market faster and help it become an indispensable tool for mission success.”
Jean-Marie Bétermier, Safran Electronics & Defense Space Director, said “Meeting the new needs of launch operators is our main objective at Safran Data Systems. We have been anticipating them over the last few years and are proud of the progress made with this InRange service offered jointly with Viasat. This is a great recognition of our expertise in the field of advanced telemetry, as we can provide data in real time and continuously, whatever the position of the launch vehicle.”
22 Dec 23. Russia arrests head of space equipment maker on suspicion of major fraud. The head of a company that makes navigation systems for Russia’s space programme was arrested in Moscow and charged with major fraud, state media reported on Friday.
TASS news agency quoted an unidentified law enforcement official as saying that Yevgeny Fomichev had been interrogated and charged with large-scale fraud, which carries a prison term of up to 10 years and a m rouble ($10,972) fine.
TASS said Moscow’s Basmanny District Court, which often handles high-profile cases, had ordered Fomichev to be held in pre-trial detention until Feb. 21 at the request of Russia’s Investigative Committee, which deals with serious crimes.
Fomichev is head of NPP Geophysics-Cosmos, a company whose website says it manufactures “optical electronic orientation and navigation devices for spacecraft”. It says that almost all Russian spacecraft use its equipment.
The website includes a nine-page anti-corruption policy that says management has a key role in creating a culture of zero-tolerance towards corruption.
Russia’s space programme suffered a huge setback in August when its Luna-25 spacecraft smashed into the surface of the moon while attempting to land there.
An investigation blamed a malfunction in an on-board control unit for the failure of Russia’s first moon mission for 47 years. ($1 = 91.1360 roubles) (Source: Reuters)
20 Dec 23. Starship failure informed launchpad design, says ELA. The CEO of spaceport firm Equatorial Launch Australia has said his company learned lessons from failed blast-offs to help design its new launch pads.
Speaking to Space Connect, Michael Jones said his team studied failures from TI Space and SpaceX to help create mitigation techniques such as its water deluge system.
ELA unveiled its final plans for its “state of the art” launchpads on Tuesday, which can handle weights of up to 450,000kg.
The final seven pads will be located at the Arnhem Space Centre in the Northern Territory and feature an 80,000-litre water deluge system aimed at reducing the adverse effects of rocket plumes. It will also boast a nitrogen ‘oxygen purge system’ to tackle post-blast-off fires.
“We learned lessons from seeing TI Space burning on the pad,” explained Jones.
“Most people didn’t see, but there was a very early version of Starship with the top section coming back. It landed off-centre and had a bit of a residual fire from just the heat that the engine produced.
“Automatic water cannons, for instance, were firing but missed it because it landed off-centre.
“So I looked at that, and went, ‘We really need to have a good system so that we plan for the worst case of having an accident on the pad.’
“So we said let’s have pre-wetting, let’s have large, really efficient water deluge for the period of launch.
“And if we have any residual fire, I want to purge all the oxygen out of it. Nitrogen is the best source of that. And there’s a reason why we use nitrogen, as well as the longer term. In the next 18 to 24 months, we’re likely to construct a liquid oxygen plant on-site.”
Jones added that the water cannons on the new pads will also be able to be steered rather than being fixed in one set position.
“We took a long time and had a team of five people working on it,” he said.
ELA is hoping for the first launches from the new pads in March 2025, with two suborbital launches due to take place next year on its existing pads.
Space Connect reported earlier this year how the spaceport firm announced a Korean launch company would become its first long-term tenant.
The pair are now working with the Australian Space Agency to obtain a launch permit – a process that is expected to take between six and 14 months to complete.
ELA believes it can eventually accommodate up to seven rocket companies at its site, fuelled by strong demand for satellite launches combined with a lack of supply from traditional rocket companies overseas. (Source: Defence Connect)
18 Dec 23. Thales Alenia Space has Selected the UK’s National Satellite Test Facility for FLEX Satellite 1st Test Campaign. Thales Alenia Space, a joint-venture between Thales (67%) and Leonardo (33%), has selected the UK’s National Satellite Test Facility (NSTF), at RAL Space in Oxfordshire, for the first comprehensive assembly, integration and test campaign of the European Space Agency’s FLEX (Fluorescence Explorer) satellite.
FLEX satellite will be used to map the fluorescence of the Earth’s vegetation, which will provide a better understanding of the Earth’s state of health and vegetation productivity on a global scale. As prime contractor, Thales Alenia Space will lead the satellite platform assembly, integration and test campaign planned in 2025, following the receipt of the FLORIS (Fluorescence Imaging Spectrometer) innovative instrument. Developed by Leonardo, this high-resolution imaging spectrometer will map the Earth’s vegetation fluorescence to quantify photosynthetic activity.
“We are delighted to lead the first test campaign for ESA’s FLEX satellite in the National Satellite Test Facility. This activity builds upon our recent successful completion of the assembly, integration and test campaign of the MicroCarb Satellite. The AIT of MicroCarb was carried out on behalf of the UK and French Space Agencies and will be Europe’s first carbon monitoring mission” commented Andrew Stanniland CEO of Thales Alenia Space in the UK.
Matt Fletcher, Head of Environmental Test at National Satellite Test Facility, RAL Space, added : “FLEX is a fascinating satellite and we’re delighted to be supporting Thales Alenia Space and ESA with its assembly and testing. The National Satellite Test Facility was purpose-build for just this sort of ambitious project, and we’re looking forward to putting FLEX through its paces and preparing it for the rigours of space.”
Information from FLEX will improve our understanding of how carbon moves between plants and the atmosphere and how photosynthesis affects the carbon and water cycles. In addition, information from FLEX will give us a better insight into plant health. This is especially important today since the Earth’s growing population is placing increasing demands on the production of food and animal feed. It is estimated that there will have to be more than a 50% increase in agricultural production by 2050 to meet demand. Understanding plant health and productivity is therefore essential to managing resources.
The FLEX satellite will orbit in tandem with one of the Sentinel-3 satellites (part of Europe’s Copernicus program), also built by Thales Alenia Space. It will take advantage of Sentinel-3’s optical and thermal sensors to provide an integrated package of measurements to assess plant health. (Source: ASD Network)
19 Dec 23. Brazilian companies Akaer and CENIC to develop satellite launch vehicles. The Brazilian companies Akaer and CENIC have signed separate contracts with the country’s innovation agency, Finep (Financiadora de Estudos e Projetos), to build small launch vehicles capable of placing multiple nano- and micro-satellites into low Earth orbit (LEO). Finep, which is part of the Ministry of Science, Technology, and Innovation, has awarded a total of BRL370.46m (USD75.4m) for the project – BRL185.34m (USD37.72m) went to the consortium led by Akaer, and BRL192m (USD39.08m) was awarded to the consortium led by CENIC. The funding originates from the National Fund for Scientific and Technological Development, with the remaining BRL7m granted by the Ministério da Ciência, Tecnologia, e Inovação. The two contracts, signed on 13 December, call for each consortium to design, develop, qualify, and launch prototypes of launch vehicles capable of lifting a minimum payload of 5 kg from the Brazilian territory. The prototypes are scheduled to be unveiled in 2026. (Source: Janes)
19 Dec 23. Policy bill backs new revenue streams for US Space Force launch ranges. The fiscal 2024 defense policy bill takes a step toward helping the U.S. Space Force manage its launch ranges more like commercial spaceports, but one lawmaker says there’s still work to be done.
The National Defense Authorization Act, which is awaiting President Joe Biden’s signature, includes a provision that allows the Space Force to collect additional fees from commercial companies that operate at its space launch ranges. While the service previously charged for direct cost like equipment usage at a launch pad, the 1984 Commercial Space Act restricted it from asking companies to pay for what are considered “indirect” costs, like facilities repair and maintenance.
Rep. Salud Carbajal, D-Calif., told C4ISRNET the change in policy is a win for the Space Force and for the companies that use its ranges, particularly those at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida and Vandenberg Space Force Base in California, which resides in Carbajal’s district.
“It’s just really making sure that the ranges are getting their appropriate share of reimbursement from these companies so that they can continue to modernize and put that money back into the ranges,” he said. “It moves in the direction of just being more equitable all around.”
The provision, which Carbajal first introduced to the House’s version of the NDAA, limits the amount of indirect fees the Space Force can collect to 30% of what a company is contracted to pay in direct costs, with a cap of $5m per year.
Carbajal noted that the details of the cap could be modified but was meant as a starting point as the Space Force works with companies to negotiate what indirect costs it will charge.
As launch rates surge at its East and West Coast ranges, and as more companies look to use their services, the Space Force has shifted toward a model of running its launch facilities more like commercial airports. That means viewing its launch pads like airport terminals, and rocket companies like airlines with paying customers.
The service’s FY24 budget request included $1.3bn over the next five years for infrastructure projects aimed at increasing the number of launches it can support.
The change in how the Space Force collects range fees is one of two major policy changes the service sought heading into the FY24 legislative cycle to help enable this new way of operating. The other involves streamlining the process for leasing federal land around military bases — including those that are home to launch complexes — to commercial companies.
Carbajal proposed an amendment to the House Armed Services Committee’s original bill that would have given the Space Force more authority to lease land for space launch companies to grow their footprint on its ranges.
He said the amendment drew bipartisan support from the committee, but not enough for it to pass. He plans to push for its inclusion in the FY25 policy bill.
“There’s a huge amount of viable, productive space around a number of bases, and if it’s done right and appropriately, it could actually provide a revenue stream that, in this case, could be reinjected back into the ranges,” he said. “I will continue to work on this.” (Source: C4ISR & Networks)
19 Dec 23. ELA unveils launch pad design for spaceport. Spaceport firm Equatorial Launch Australia has unveiled the final plans for its launch pads it believes are so versatile they can be used by multiple clients with minimal changes. Other key features include technology to minimise damage from rocket plumes, mitigate environmental impacts and handle launch weights of up to 450,000kg.
It significantly comes after ELA announced earlier this year that a Korean launch company would become the first long-term tenant at its Arnhem Space Centre spaceport in the Northern Territory.
The company believes it can eventually accommodate up to seven rocket companies at its site, fuelled by strong demand for satellite launches combined with a lack of supply from traditional rocket companies overseas.
ELA said on Tuesday its Arnhem Space Centre Advanced Launch Pads (ASCALP) feature a “world first” and “state of the art” design.
The business’ chairman, Michael Jones, declared every element of ASCALP has been created to improve the safety and efficiency of launch.
“It is also designed to make the operation of the Arnhem Space Centre much more efficient and cost-effective,” he said.
“The use of a proprietary Interface Plate element seamlessly mating a rocket to the Pivot Base of the pad allows each rocket to mate and be used with the standard launch pads anywhere on the ASC site.
“This has multiple advantages, including having all seven Space Launch Complexes at the ASC able to launch any rocket with very little notice for configuration change.”
Jones admitted that ELA fought hard to convince clients they should all blast off from pads that feature a similar design.
“When we first introduced the ASCALP design to our customers, we received some push-back – not every customer was at the same stage and had fully scoped their launch system,” he said.
“Others did, and so we had to do some work to convince them of the benefits and the need for both increased safety and also efficiency. We think we have achieved a pretty good situation now.”
In August, ELA revealed that Innospace would become one of up to seven resident launchers.
The pair are now working with the Australian Space Agency to obtain a launch permit – a process that is expected to take between six and 14 months to complete.
However, the company is best known for successfully launching three NASA rockets last year – the first from a commercial port outside the US and Australia’s first commercial space launches.
More than 70 NASA staff travelled Down Under from the Wallops Flight Facility to work on the project.
The first mission saw the sub-orbital “sounding rocket” blast off from the launchpad carrying scientific instruments designed to observe the Alpha Centauri A & B constellations.
The three marked NASA’s first blast-offs from Australia since 1995, when launches were conducted from the RAAF Woomera Range Complex. (Source: Space Connect)
18 Dec 23. Tyvak International Completes Test Readiness Review of the Milani Nano Satellite.
- The nanosatellite designed by Tyvak International, Terran Orbital’s international arm, will support the European Space Agency’s Hera Mission
Tyvak International, European leader in small satellite solutions, today announced together with its project partners the successful achievement of Test Readiness Review of the Milani spacecraft. A critical component of the Hera planetary defense mission, Milani will be the European Space Agency’s (ESA) first deep-space nanosatellite. Milani will also be the first nanosatellite ever to orbit an asteroid. Tyvak International is responsible for Milani’s design, build, and mission operations. In this exploration, Tyvak International is joined by an excellent consortium of European industries and research centers from Finland, Czech Republic, and Italy.
As part of the world’s first test of asteroid deflection, following the successful impact of NASA’s DART spacecraft on asteroid Dimorphos, Hera will perform a detailed post-impact survey turning the experiment into a well-understood and repeatable planetary defense technique. To achieve its objectives Hera will be utilizing new technologies from autonomous navigation around an asteroid to low-gravity proximity operations. Hera will be humankind’s first probe to rendezvous with a binary asteroid system and Europe’s flagship Planetary Defender.
Milani, named after Professor Andrea Milani, the pioneer of asteroid risk analysis who came up with the original double-spacecraft Don Quijote mission concept from which the DART-Hera missions were derived, is a companion nanosatellite of Hera, carried by the mothercraft along the journey to Didymos, and ultimately released in its proximity. Milani’s instruments are the ASPECT hyperspectral imager (by VTT, Finland), the VISTA (Volatile In-Situ Thermogravimetre Analyser) dust detector, and the Navigation Camera developed by Tyvak International with the collaboration of Politecnico di Milano for Image Processing algorithms. Finally, laser reflectors (by INFN, Italy) will enable unprecedented gravity field measurements of the asteroid coupled with Hera’s laser range finder.
Tyvak International is part of the Terran Orbital Corporation (NYSE: LLAP) (“Terran Orbital” or the “Company”), a global leader in satellite-based solutions primarily serving the aerospace and defense industries. “Terran Orbital is proud of Tyvak International’s successful achievement of the Test Readiness Review,” said Terran Orbital Co-Founder, Chairman, and Chief Executive Officer Marc Bell. “We are honored by the trust placed in Tyvak International by ESA, and we look forward to continuing to design, build, deliver, and operate cutting-edge satellite solutions for missions, like Hera Mission.
“We’ve always been proud to be part of such a challenging mission and the Test Readiness Review is a crucial milestone for the program” said Tyvak International’s VP of Programs and Milani Program Manager Margherita Cardi. “In the last months we assembled the satellite and saw it taking shape day after day; It was a very exciting and emotional phase for me and the whole team”.
“Admiring the Milani spacecraft fully integrated brings lots of emotions that pay off the tens of thousands of hours of cutting edge engineering efforts,” said ESA Hera Project Manager Ian Carnelli. “Tyvak International has proved unprecedented commitment to bring this project from blueprints to reality, we can’t wait for the environmental test campaign to be completed and start testing with the Hera spacecraft. One step closer to Didymos.”
The next main step for Milani Satellite is the execution of the Environmental Test Campaign at Laboratorio di Qualifica Spaziale of CIRA (Centro Italiano Ricerche Aerospaziali, Capua, Italy), after which it will return to Tyvak for the last tests and verification. Milani will be delivered to ESA in early 2024, to support the Hera electromagnetic compatibility test campaign and extensive System Validation Tests (SVTs), involving the mission ground segment as well. (Source: ASD Network)
10 Dec 23. In world first, China’s LandSpace methane rocket sends satellites into orbit. A Chinese company became the first in the world to launch satellites with rockets fueled by methane and liquid oxygen on Saturday, beating SpaceX to the technology and raising hopes for its commercial applications.
The Zhuque 2 Y-3, developed by Beijing-based private aerospace company LandSpace, blasted off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwest China at 7.39am, according to state news agency Xinhua.
The rocket sent three satellites – Honghu, Honghu 2, and TY-33 – into planned orbit, the report said.
LandSpace said the launch “pioneered a new stage for the commercialization of launching liquid-powered rockets in China” and proved the technology’s reliability and stability.
“We will continuously create highly reliable, cost-effective, and high-capacity commercial launch rocket products,” the company said.
“The key to achieving true industrialization and commercialization of liquid rockets is to realize low-cost, large-scale manufacturing and delivery of rockets and ensure continuous and stable launch success.”
China’s Shenzhou 16 space crew returns to Earth after 5 months in orbit
The company said the Honghu and TY-33 satellites, developed by Chinese start-up Spacety, and the Honghu 2, built by start-up Hongqing Technology, were put into a 460km (285-mile) sun-synchronous orbit.
It did not specify the weight or size of each satellite.
But it did say the rocket had the capacity equivalent to being able to take up to 1.5 tonnes into a 500km sun-synchronous orbit.
With improvements it is expected to be able to expand its payload capacity to 4 tonnes at that orbit, meeting the needs of spacecraft and near-Earth orbit satellites, according to the company.
The rocket was 49.5 meters (162 feet) in length, had a diameter of 3.35m, and had a lift-off mass of 220 tonnes, excluding the payloads, it said.
Chinese news outlet Caixin reported that LandSpace planned three launches next and to double the number annually to reach 12 launches in 2026.
China beats SpaceX with world’s first methane-powered rocket launch
China aims to become a world-leading space power by 2045 and use innovation in space to drive the country’s overall development.
Inspired by Elon Musk’s SpaceX, a company founded in 2002 to cut launch costs and make space flights more affordable, private tech start-ups like LandSpace have mushroomed in China and are working to catch up.
In April, in a global first, Beijing-based Space Pioneer launched the Tianlong 2, using a coal-based kerosene.
LandSpace first tried to launch a methane-liquid oxygen rocket in December 2022 but the attempt was unsuccessful.
It tried again in July and succeeded, becoming the first in the world to do so and opening a new era for methane in commercial launches.
Methane burns more cleanly than carbon-based fuels, prolonging the engine’s life and making it more applicable for reusable rockets.
According to US space agency Nasa, methane is also more stable and denser than liquid hydrogen, the most common rocket fuel, allowing it to be stored at “more manageable temperatures” and enabling the use of smaller tanks.
Two other US-made liquid oxygen methane rockets – SpaceX’s Starship and Terran 1 from the US aerospace firm Relativity Space – failed at their attempts to reach orbit earlier this year. (Source: Satnews)
11 Dec 23. DISA releases electromagnetic spectrum capability to enhance modern warfighting. has released the initial features for Electromagnetic Battle Management – Joint (EMBM-J) that improves the U.S. military’s situational awareness of the electromagnetic spectrum, or EMS, considered a modern-day
EMBM-J Situational Awareness is a minimum viable capability release, or the first iteration of the tool. The cloud-based platform, which aligns with Combined Joint All Domain Command and Control, integrates a range of electromagnetic spectrum capabilities and functions into one system that seamlessly gathers and arranges data into a single visual display.
EMS has become a highly contested and constrained battle space in which the United States and its allies are vying for dominance over energy waves produced from things like radios, cell phones, radars and microwaves. Maintaining situational awareness of EMS is necessary for military commanders to manage its use, as it becomes increasingly used by adversaries, and therefore congested.
EMBM-J implements a common data layer, allowing it to be interoperable with service-specific EMS systems such as the U.S. Army’s Electromagnetic Warfare Planning & Management Tool, the United States Marine Corps’ Spectrum Services Framework, and the U.S. Navy’s Real Time Spectrum Operations.
DISA, through its Program Executive Office – Spectrum, partnered closely with United States Strategic Command to develop EMBM-J. The two will continue developing the capability to enhance its analytical features and ability to identify and address any EMS issues that could affect a commander’s decision-making.
“EMBM-J provides critical and accurate electromagnetic spectrum spontaneous data to combatant commands and Joint Task Force Headquarters Joint Electromagnetic Spectrum Operations Cells.This tool ensures a commander’s ability to rapidly act by visualizing the EMS common operating picture and the first step toward achieving EMS superiority.” — Christopher Argo, DISA’s Spectrum Program Executive Office Director
“Effective use of the electromagnetic spectrum is essential for successful military operations. This system is crucial for the full integration and visualization of spectrum operations.” — U.S.A.F. Brig. Gen. Ann-Marie Anthony, Joint Electromagnetic Spectrum Operation Center Director. (Source: Satnews)
12 Dec 23. The Dawn Aerospace spaceplane achieves key rocket engine milestone. Dawn Aerospace has achieved a key rocket engine as the company has successfully completed a full-duration, bi-propellant test of the Mk-II Aurora spaceplane’s rocket engine — the Mk-IIA engine was fired for 112 seconds at their test facility in Christchurch, New Zealand.
This engine will be fitted to the Mk-II Aurora, a subscale technology demonstrator for the Mk-III – Dawn’s two-stage to orbit solution for scalable and sustainable space access.
The Mk-II Aurora has already completed 50 test flights, 47 with jet engines and 3 under rocket power in March 2023. Dawn’s propulsion team have been working on improvements in preparation for the next set of flight tests, set to take the vehicle to supersonic speeds and above 20km altitude in early 2024 to complete the test campaign of the Mk-IIA.
The rocket engine uses HTP and kerosene as propellants, rather than the more commonly used liquid oxygen, due to their storability and deep throttling capabilities. These are crucial factors as Dawn builds toward having a global fleet of spaceplanes with aircraft-like operations.
The next phase in the development roadmap for the Mk-IIA is to test critical aspects of operating the vehicle such as high-altitude operations and BVLOS flights (beyond visual line of sight). The Mk-IIB will incorporate all the learnings from the Mk-IIA to achieve an optimized vehicle for flights to 100 km. In doing so, it will be the first vehicle to fly to space twice in a day. The Mk-IIB will be a uniquely capable vehicle with commercial applications in atmospheric, microgravity, and high-speed flight research as well as earth observation.
“While HTP is the right long-term choice for the spaceplane, it led to some interesting challenges in the development of the engine. The available information is extremely limited and is often outdated or walled off. This meant we ran into some fundamental challenges along the way that were difficult to engineer our way out of. That makes this achievement even more special. It is exciting to see everything come together and work flawlessly.” — Ralph Huijsman, Lead Propulsion Engineer
“The team has put in significant work to reach this milestone. We’re excited about our future flights where we’ll fly MUCH higher and faster than ever before.” — CEO of Dawn Aerospace, Stefan Powell. (Source: Satnews)
11 Dec 23. Momentus’ update of successful deployment of two satellites and investigation of three uncertains. Momentus Inc. (NASDAQ: MNTS), a U.S. commercial space company that offers satellite buses and in-space infrastructure services including transportation, hosted payloads, and other in-orbit services, has an update on its latest mission that launched on the SpaceX Transporter-9 mission on November 11.
On this mission, Momentus used a third-party deployer system to deliver payloads into orbit. Momentus supported five payloads for four customers.
Since launch, the Company has confirmed the deployment of the Hello Test 1 and 2 satellites for Hello Space. Momentus cannot confirm the deployment of the remaining three satellites for three other customers and based on the results of a detailed investigation undertaken, the Company does not believe those satellites were released from the third-party deployer system.
Momentus appreciates and thanks SpaceX for its work and collaboration in providing information necessary to assist our ongoing investigation into the likely root cause of the issues encountered. Momentus has also been in regular communication with our customers.
Momentus has launched four missions to date, deployed 17 customer satellites, and provided hosted payload services. The Company’s next mission is targeted to fly in Q1 2024. That mission will serve customers that require orbital delivery and hosted payload services. The mission will also feature a Momentus-hosted payload for a rendezvous and proximity operations demonstration. (Source: Satnews)
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At Viasat, we’re driven to connect every warfighter, platform, and node on the battlefield. As a global communications company, we power ms of fast, resilient connections for military forces around the world – connections that have the capacity to revolutionize the mission – in the air, on the ground, and at sea. Our customers depend on us for connectivity that brings greater operational capabilities, whether we’re securing the U.S. Government’s networks, delivering satellite and wireless communications to the remote edges of the battlefield, or providing senior leaders with the ability to perform mission-critical communications while in flight. We’re a team of fearless innovators, driven to redefine what’s possible. And we’re not done – we’re just beginning.
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