Helical Communications Technology (HCT) has announced that their custom-built Quadrifilar Helical Antennas are now being tested live on Hiber’s smallsats, according to Sal Bologna, President of HCT.

The ground stations have begun receiving information controlling the satellites’ Internet of Things (IoT) capabilities. The first two satellites launched into LEO at the end of 2018 from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California and the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in India. 

Providing antennas with modules aboard for multiple companies on one satellite is rare, and HCT is the first U.S. antenna manufacturer to launch and test in this capacity.

There will be a total of sixty (60) satellites entering orbit upon completion of the project. HCT is also providing assistance with testing the ground station to ensure uninterrupted transmission.  Another prominent Israeli space agency will also use HCT antennas aboard their test platform in the coming days resulting in a significant number of antennas being ordered.

HCT designed the custom-built “quadrifilar” helical antennas at their Rockledge-based operations and shipped them to the Netherlands where Hiber is based. Hiber then shipped the smallsats to their launch destinations in California and India.

In remote regions and developing countries worldwide, subscribers purchase a low-cost modem which they can integrate with existing connected technology devices, allowing them to connect to Hiber’s IoT network. The goal is to have a constellation of dozens of satellites which will enable customers to send SMS-sized messages in real time from IoT-devices, such as sensors on fishing vessels or monitoring devices remote devices in places such as Antarctica.

Founded in 2013 by Salvatore Bologna and Gregory O’Neill, HCT began researching and designing a unique omni-directional antenna for cubesat satellites that capture a much larger footprint of geography and topography on the Earth. Within four years, HCT had developed a design that can be scaled depending on the customer’s requirements to have a wide range of circularly polarized antenna patterns.

Hiber, based in Amsterdam, contracted with HCT to send their smallsats on this mission with the objective to offer IoT connectivity to the 90% of the world which currently lacks access to a network.  The company expects to launch multiple smallsats within the next year to keep up with customer demand.

Spaceflight, in conjunction with Hypergiant SEOPS, will be launching three cubesats from the International Space Station (ISS) and Northrop Grumman’s Cygnus spacecraft in early January.

The payloads will travel to the ISS through a NASA Commercial Resupply (CRS) mission aboard a SpaceX Dragon scheduled to launch atop a Falcon 9 from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station on December 4. The payloads are expected to reach the ISS several days later. Once they arrive, the ISS crew will transfer the cargo from Dragon to the ISS, where it will be stored for several weeks until the Cygnus cargo vehicle is prepared to depart the ISS.

At that time, astronauts will mount the dispensers with the satellites already attached on the Cygnus hatch bulkhead. Once the ISS side-hatch is closed, the space between the ISS and Cygnus spacecraft is depressurized. The ISS robotic arm will then unberth the Cygnus from the ISS. Cygnus will maneuver itself to a higher orbit (450-500 km altitude, 51.6-degree inclination) and then deploy the satellites in January.

Spacecraft on Spaceflight’s SEOPS-2 mission include:

• Two NASA cubesats, both selected for flight by NASA’s CubeSat Launch Initiative to fly on the ELaNa 28 mission:
   
  • 
    CIRiS collects highly calibrated infrared images of land and ocean surfaces. Ball began CIRiS development with an aircraft-mounted instrument, adapting it for the special challenges of the space environment and operation on a 6U cubesat. CIRiS uses carbon nanotube calibration sources to perform on-orbit calibration from a much smaller platform than previously possible. A state-of-the-art uncooled infrared imaging detector enables greater sensitivity without active cooling, eliminating power requirements and weight from the system. Funded by the NASA InVEST (In space Validation of Earth Science Technology) program, the mission objective is to demonstrate new cubesat-compatible technologies enabling Earth observation for scientific applications. CIRiS implements this goal by using its innovative technologies for accurate calibration, on the ground, and on-orbit.

    Compact Infrared Radiometer in Space instrument (CIRiS), built by Ball Aerospace, is designed to investigate and optimize the calibration of infrared images acquired from a 6U cubesat and can benefit a variety of Earth science applications, including land and water use management. CIRiS was selected by NASA’s In Space Validation of Earth Science Technology (InVEST) program.
     

  • EdgeCube, a student-built 1U CubeSat, developed via a partnership with Sonoma State University, Santa Clara University and Morehead State University, is designed to see ecosystem change over time, as well as train and educate future STEM students.
     
• A DARPA 6U CubeSat

Spaceflight has named the mission SEOPS-2, but it is also referred to as ISS SpX-19/NG-12, representing the two CRS missions converging at the ISS (a SpaceX Dragon and a Northrop Grumman Cygnus). Spaceflight and Hypergiant successfully executed a similar mission, dubbed SEOPS-1, in August of 2019 which took three spacecraft to orbit.

This will be Spaceflight’s seventh mission this year. In 2019, Spaceflight will launch nearly 50 spacecraft from four different launch vehicles. Other noteworthy missions from this year include Spaceflight’s GTO-1, which deployed the first commercial lunar lander aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 and its first three missions with Rocket Lab. The SEOPS-2 mission will launch about one year after the Spaceflight’s historic dedicated rideshare mission, SSO-A, which successfully launched 64 unique smallsats, making it the single largest deployment of satellites from a U.S.-based launch vehicle.

Curt Blake, the CEO of Spaceflight, said this unique approach to launch from the ISS has proven to be a valuable option for customers looking for a high-altitude deployment. After the success of the company’s SEOPS-1 mission,Spaceflight was eager to execute another with Hypergiant. These launches are particularly appealing to customers due to the reliability of the launch vehicles, cost-effectiveness and consistency in the launch schedule.

Chad Brinkley, Chief Space Officer at Hypergiant, added that it is a privilege to help the U.S. government, students and scientists improve everyone’s ability to live, work and thrive on Earth through these deployments with Spaceflight, SpaceX, the ISS, and Northrop Grumman.

Safety in space for the nation is critical and, recognizing this fact, the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory’s Propulsion Directorate to strengthen the Department of Defense (DOD) has enlisted Orbion Space Technology to investigate the utility of their leading-edge propulsion technology.  

The DOD will rely on Orbion’s findings to substantially improve the capability and operation of future small satellites, which play a critical role in the resiliency of U.S. systems in space.

Orbion Space Technology’s results will be to enhance resiliency in space and protect the space economy against evolving threats.

Findings reveal that the implementation of small satellite constellations increases the number and diversity of potential targets, improving mission survivability and making it more difficult for potential adversaries to lead successful attacks against the U.S.The contract also allows Orbion to further research, develop, and adapt their current commercial propulsion system to meet the DOD’s unique needs.

Chuck Beames, the Pentagon’s former senior executive overseeing all space and intelligence acquisitions for the DOD and current Chairman of the Small Satellite Alliance, commented that they are at an important inflection point in the development of next-gen space systems. The U.S. must aggressively pursue all measures that would increase its resiliency in space or risk falling far, far behind. Technologies like those developed by Orbion support the move toward better disaggregation, diversity, response times, and proliferation.

Orbion CEO Brad King added that one way to increase the resilience of space systems is to improve the nation’s ability to build and deploy small satellites in large numbers at low costs. Orbion is developing mass-production techniques to build propulsion systems for commercial customers.  With this research contract they are investigating how, or if, their manufacturing processes must be modified to meet DOD requirements.

For all involved in the satellite and space industry and the various market segments that enhance these dynamic environments, the 2020 SmallSat Symposium is invaluable.

The 2020 SmallSat Symposium begins on February 3, 2020, with workshops on the first day. Then the Conference continues from February 4 to 6 at the Computer History Museum in Mountain View, California, in the heart of Silicon Valley.

The SmallSat Symposium is hosted by Satnews Publishers which, since 1983, has been a provider of satellite news, media and events. This information packed forum enables you and your company to secure a larger portion of market share as well as to take a step into the next stage of your company’s, or organization’s, growth.

The personal connections at the SmallSat Symposium enable attendees to network with established organizations, subject-matter experts as well as ‘New Space’ entrants.

The SmallSat Symposium will focus on the daily changes in new technologies and the business environment that is shaping the implementation of SmallSat constellations, SmallSat launchers, the challenges facing the SmallSat developer and actors as well as the enormous benefits of these advanced technologies that will benefit our world.

This event attracts more than 100 diverse speakers, all of whom possess deep industry experience. Additionally, numerous opportunities exist to mingle and network with peers while enjoying exceptional, complimentary meals and refreshment breakfast.

Learn more at this direct link…

With increase in the capabilities of space launch systems owing to various recent technological developments coupled with better understating of their increasing strategic utility, countries around the world are found taking renewed interest towards expanding their small satellite development programs.

All this is pushing various space agencies into developing an exclusive new generation of space launch vehicles. Realizing this, Amsterdam based Market Forecast has announced the release of their latest report titled – “Global Space Launch Systems – Market and Technology Forecast to 2027”. The report also focuses in on 50 of the most sought-after space companies in the world. This report is valuable for anyone who wants to understand the dynamics of space industry and the implementation and adoption of space launch vehicle services.

The Global Space Launch Systems industry is emerging as one of the most lucrative market globally. The Global Space Launch Systems industry, is valued at $7.50 billion in 2019 and is projected to grow at a CAGR of 21.71% by 2027. Demand for satellite launches is anticipated to be driven by the massive investment made by countries such as the U.S., China and the European Union in the development of next generation of launch vehicle technologies and the large-scale procurement of such systems by countries like Saudi Arabia, India, Qatar and China. The United States is the largest spender in the domain with China, European Union, Middle East anticipated accounting for the bulk of spending.
 
Key Topics Covered

• Snapshot of the various Global Space Launch Systems market during 2019-2027, including highlights of the demand drivers, trends and challenges. It also provides a snapshot of the spending with respect to regions as well as segments. It also sheds light on the emergence on new technologies
   
• Market Dynamics : Insights into the technological developments in this market and a detailed analysis of the changing preferences of governments around the world. It also analyzes changing industry structure trends and the challenges faced by the industry participants.
   
• Segment Analysis : Insights into the various systems market from a segmented perspective plus a detailed analysis of factors influencing the market for each segment.
   
• Regional Review : Insights into modernization patterns and budgetary allocation for top countries within a region.

Journalist
Chris Forrester.

Elon Musk’s SpaceX is preparing for as many as four of their Falcon 9 rockets for launch next month, reports journalist Chris Forrester, filing at Advanced Televison.

Already in the manifest is the launch of a condominium satellite (Japan’s JSAT-18/Kacific) joint mission that is slated for liftoff around December 15th.

Earlier than that will see SpaceX on December 4th launch a Dragon re-supply mission to the International Space Station (ISS), no doubt carrying a few Christmas goodies for the astronauts on board. This will be the 19th such launch to the ISS since October of 2012.

SpaceX is also planning a test flight for a high-altitude “abort test” of the company’s Dragon proposed crew spacecraft.

Then, before year-end, SpaceX will launch their latest batch of Starlink LEO broadband satellites. It’s likely that the Falcon rocket will carry around 60 of these smallish, 600 lb. craft to join the 120 already in orbit.

SpaceX is on record as stating their launch rate will increase in 2020 with up to 24 Starlink missions as well as its other commercial and NASA obligations.

Rocket Lab’s Onenui Station in New Zealand is where the upcoming launch of multiple microsatellites in a rideshare mission representing five different countries will take place.

Target Launch Timing:

• Date: 29 November UTC
• Time: Lift-off is scheduled between 07:56 – 09:22 UTC. 
• Launch Window Timezone Conversion: 
• UTC: 07:56 – 09:22 (29 Nov)
• NZDT: 20:56 – 22:22 (29 Nov)
• PST: 23:56 – 01:22 (28/29 Nov)
• EDT: 02:56 – 04:22 (29 Nov)

Onboard this rideshare mission are six spacecraft comprised of 5cm PocketQube microsatellites from satellite manufacturer and mission management provider Alba Orbital. The final payload on board was procured by satellite rideshare and mission management provider Spaceflight for ALE Co., Ltd (ALE), a Tokyo-based company creating microsatellites that simulate meteor particles. 

Electron’s first stage will not be recovered from this mission, however the stage includes new hardware and sensors to inform future recovery efforts. As part of a first stage block upgrade, Electron’s booster will include guidance and navigation hardware, including S-band telemetry and onboard flight computer systems, to gather data during the first stage’s atmospheric re-entry. The stage is also equipped with a reaction control system to orient the booster during its re-entry descent.

Rocket Lab’s Founder and CEO, Peter Beck, says increasing launch frequency for small satellite operators is the key driver behind Rocket Lab’s reusability program. He said that reaching their tenth flight within only two years of commercial operations is an incredible achievement. Thanks to the continued dedication and passion of the teams at Rocket Lab, responsive and frequent access to space is the new normal for small satellites. As they move beyond once-a-month missions towards their goal of weekly launches, recovering and reusing Electron could play a significant role in increasing launch frequency.

ThrustMe and Spacety have announced that the first propulsive operations have been conducted, and this milestone occurring just 15 days after the successful launch of the first ever, iodine-propelled smallsat.

After 10 days in orbit, Spacety managed to complete the on-orbit commissioning of the satellite and then it was time for the two companies to test the I2T5 cold gas thruster for the first time.

ThrustMe’s I2T5, pictured, is a non-pressurized cold gas propulsion system operating with solid iodine propellant.

Image is courtesy of the company.

This thruster is a one-of-its-kind propulsion system, invented and developed by ThrustMe and, if successful, will open up a completely new area for the space industry; smallsats will finally be able to do propulsive operations and larger satellites will gain considerably in both complexity and cost of the propulsion system.

Artistic renditions of Spacety’s TY I 6U smallsat (l) and the
TY II 27U platform on-orbit.

Image is courtesy of the company.

In the U.S., NASA together with established American companies and research institutions, have spent a decade together with millions of dollars trying to develop propulsion systems with iodine as propellant, as has ESA together with many of the larger European space corporates.

The first firing of the I2T5 was performed November 18, 2019, and had a duration of a few 10s of minutes. All subsystems reported correct operations and thus the commissioning of the thruster was successful. During the next firings, the thruster will perform exact orbital maneuvers.

Feng Yang, Founder and CEO at Spacety, said the company had planned to do the propulsive operations after all the other payloads had been fully tested, so in a two to three months’ time from now, but the firm didn’t have the patience to wait — it was just too exciting to test this historic system as soon as possible.

Dmytro Rafalskyi, CTO of ThrustMe, add that iodine has remarkable advantages compared to pressurized gases, but it has also new technical and quite difficult challenges. It is not straight forward — pressurized gas cannot simply be replaced with iodine and think that it will work. The company had to think outside the box and combined many fields of physics, chemistry and engineering to succeed.

Ane Aanesland, the CEO of ThrustMe, noted that the I2T5 is a cold gas propulsion system that the firm designed for cubesats; however, it is also a subsystem for the firm’s ion electric propulsion product. This technology demonstration with Spacety is a big step for us — two birds with one stone.

James Zheng, VP of International Business at Spacety, noted that this was such a big opportunity for the firm, the company wanted to collaborate with Europe and, if possible, also with the U.S. Spacety is proud of what has been accomplished in such a short period of time. It took the firm eight months from signing the contract to launching the satellites, and then only 15 days in space to obtain the first successful data. Speed is something ThrustMe and Spacety have in common and for both parties this does not mean low quality or high risk.

Javier Martinez Martinez, lead flow dynamics engineer responsible for the I2T5 product development at ThrustMe, remarked that from the telemetry continuously transmitted by the I2T5, the company has already obtained insightful knowledge about electrical, thermal and propulsive behavior of the system. ThrustMe is delighted to now be able to analyze the first flight data and to start optimizing the models to further improve the performances of the system. This is extremely encouraging for ThrustMe to continue working on iodine.

Lacuna Space and Miromico have signed a collaboration agreement for the development and easy provision of ‘space ready’ and off-the-shelf communications devices using ultra low-power and low-cost satellite links.

Following successful tests conducted this year the first commercial trials with Miromico devices and selected enterprise clients of the Swiss company in agriculture, environmental monitoring or asset tracking are starting in 2020. By using LoRa®¹ the de-facto standard for low power wireless IoT, the life-time of battery operated IoT devices can be increased by years, saving operation and maintenance cost. The mutual use of LoRa also allowed Miromico to easily and quickly adapt their hardware and connect directly to Lacuna Space’s satellite.

Lacuna Space’s first satellite.

Photo is courtesy of the company.

In parallel to the field tests the two companies will develop a global distribution chain giving customers a simple way to buy modems, firmware, antennas and devices that will enable them to use the Lacuna Network. Semiconductor specialist Avnet Silica is working with Miromico to give easy access to IoT hardware. The first phase of the deployment of the Lacuna Network will be its constellation of 36 small satellites in LEO by the end of 2022. Orbiting at 500 km. above the Earth’s surface, the Lacuna Space Network will provide ubiquitous communication for billions of new wireless IoT devices everywhere in the world including areas of no connectivity.

The devices on the Lacuna Network will seamlessly integrate with any LoRaWAN® (long range wide area network) network on the ground within reach.

Miromico Lacuna devices.

Photo is courtesy of the company.

The LoRa-based space gateway on each satellite also uses the LoRaWAN communication protocol to receive short data messages from IoT sensors on the ground or at sea. This will provide the uninterrupted connectivity that is needed between terrestrial LPWAN (low power wide area networks).

Marcel Wappler, head of IoT & LPWAN at Miromico, said that a low-cost and low-power satellite link such as Lacuna Space’s technology built directly into every smart device will ignite a second IoT revolution. The company is facing a skyrocketing but yet unmet demand for smart devices with low power, affordable, and global connectivity. The lack of global connectivity is holding back endless applications, some of which will help to solve the most difficult challenges of our times such as enabling solar powered local grids in South America and elsewhere, improving agricultural yield, or tracking the global flow of goods or assets and monitor their carbon footprint. Together with Lacuna Space, the company can begin to meet that demand.

Rob Spurrett, CEO and co-founder of Lacuna Space, added that the company has been really impressed by Miromico and their depth of knowledge with LoRa devices was of great importance. The firm is being very selective in the choice of initial partners for the development of the company’s devices as these first steps are vital for Lacuna Spoace. Once the satellite constellation becomes operational, the demand will scale really quickly.

¹LoRa stands for Semtech Corporation’s long range wireless radio technology that allows a carrier signal containing information to be spread over the entire frequency spectrum reducing interference and interception while requiring ultra low power.

Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) on Thursday said the launch of its Earth imaging and mapping satellite Cartosat-3 along with 13 commercial nano satellites from the U.S., has been rescheduled to November 27.

The space agency had earlier announced that the launch is tentatively scheduled at 9:28 a.m. IST on November 25, subject to weather conditions.

“The launch of PSLV-C47 carrying Cartosat-3 scheduled on November 25, 2019 at 09:28 hrs is rescheduled to launch on November 27, 2019 at 09:28 hrs from second launch pad of Satish Dhawan Space Centre SHAR, Sriharikota,” ISRO has said in an update.

The satellites would be launched by India’s Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle, PSLV-C47 into Sun Synchronous Orbit from Satish Dhawan Space Centre (SDSC) SHAR at Sriharikota in Andhra Pradesh.

The Cartosat-3 is a “third generation agile advanced satellite” having high resolution imaging capability, it said, adding the satellite would be placed in an orbit of 509 km at an inclination of 97.5 degree.

With an overall mass of 1,625 kg and mission life of five years, Cartosat-3 shall address the increased user’s demands for large scale urban planning, rural resource and infrastructure development, coastal land use and land cover etc.

PSLV-C47 is the 21st flight of PSLV in ‘XL’ configuration (with six solid strap-on motors).

PSLV-C47 would also carry 13 commercial nano satellites from the U.S. as part of a commercial arrangement with NewSpace India Limited (NSIL), Department of Space.

Among the 13 commercial nano satellites are FLOCK-4P, 12 in numbers, with mission objective of Earth observation, and one satellite named MESHBED, whose mission objective is communication test bed.

ISRO has said this would be the 74th launch vehicle mission from SDSC SHAR, Sriharikota.

From The Hindu

For all involved in the satellite and space industry and the various market segments that enhance these dynamic environments, the 2020 SmallSat Symposium is invaluable.

The 2020 SmallSat Symposium begins on February 3, 2020, with workshops on the first day. Then the Conference continues from February 4 to 6 at the Computer History Museum in Mountain View, California, in the heart of Silicon Valley.

The SmallSat Symposium is hosted by Satnews Publishers which, since 1983, has been a provider of satellite news, media and events. This information packed forum enables you and your company to secure a larger portion of market share as well as to take a step into the next stage of your company’s, or organization’s, growth.

The personal connections at the SmallSat Symposium enable attendees to network with established organizations, subject-matter experts as well as ‘New Space’ entrants.

The SmallSat Symposium will focus on the daily changes in new technologies and the business environment that is shaping the implementation of SmallSat constellations, SmallSat launchers, the challenges facing the SmallSat developer and actors as well as the enormous benefits of these advanced technologies that will benefit our world.

This event attracts more than 100 diverse speakers, all of whom possess deep industry experience. Additionally, numerous opportunities exist to mingle and network with peers while enjoying exceptional, complimentary meals and refreshment breakfast.

Learn more at this direct link…

WORK Microwave has a new partnership with SAIT to provide downlinks for smallsat applications.

Recently, the companies completed a successful communication transmission test between WORK Microwave’s industry-leading AR-80 wideband demodulator and SAIT’s space qualified transceiver, which proved their combined solution is ready to power space, commercial, government, and science missions.

SAIT’s transmitter portfolio supports everything from small to large satellites as well as deep space spacecraft and offers up to 10 years of life. According to the firm, their downlink transmitters feature the industry’s highest throughput, state-of-the-art adaptive error correction coding and modulation, flexible interface options, and small size, weight, and power.

Seamless integration between SAIT’s space transceiver and WORK Microwave’s AR-80 wideband demodulator ensures that satellite downlink operations run smoothly. WORK Microwave’s AR-80 demodulator offers an unparalleled high performance at one of the industry’s lowest price points for specialized satellite downlink receivers.

Andrew Kuzmenko, CTO at SAIT, noted that performance is an important metric of satellite communications equipment, especially for space missions. Teaming with WORK Microwave, the company is able to provide an extremely powerful and reliable solution for space-born missions and satellite Earth Observation.

Joerg Rockstroh, Director of Digital Products at WORK Microwave stated that, from a technology perspective, SAIT and WORK Microwave are compatible, each bringing distinct expertise to the satellite communications domai. WORK’s AR-80 demodulator supports SAIT with efficient downlinks from their cubesat transmitters, featuring 1+Gbps throughput to address the needs of mission customers.