The European Space Agency (ESA) successfully ‘hot test’ fired the giant engine for the much-awaited Ariane 6 rocket. ESA said that the November 23rd engine test added to a full-scale rehearsal including the proposed countdown all went well. The first test-launch of the complete rocket is scheduled for Q4 next year. The Vulcain 2.1 engine […]
Intelsat has already ordered a small HummingSat craft from manufacturer SWISSto12. The company is now developing further iterations of its 3D-printed small satellites with help from the European Space Agency (ESA). London-based Inmarsat, now owned by Viasat, has ordered three HummingSats. The HummingSat craft are small, and orbit at geostationary altitudes and designed to be […]
Chinese technology giant Huawei’s low-orbit satellite Internet constellation has been officially announced, and a test satellite has already conducted in-orbit communication tests. At an event in Shanghai was reported on Chinese web-site Weibo, which stated “China Satellite Internet, Huawei is coming!” Huawei has launched two pairs of Ka-band prototype satellites (on August 21st and November […]
Canada-based satellite and aerospace business MDA has announced a strategic expansion in the UK. The focus of this will be a new facility in Stevenage and an expansion of its existing facility in Manchester. As part of its UK expansion, MDA says it will hire 75 new employees in the UK by the end of […]
SpaceX’s Starlink dish has been completely redesigned with a much simpler concept. Starlink has redesigned its high-tech antenna. The latest versions have eliminated the automatic self-seeking positioning motors. The supplied instructions now talk about positioning the dish terminal as being with “manual orienting”. In other words, the customer positions the dish. The new dish (officially […]
The Filipino government is buying two satellites and says that the move will help create more than 10,000 jobs. The orders come via Astranis Space Technologies which specialise in building small satellites for broadband use. San Francisco-based Astranis hosted a meeting this week with Ferdinand Marcos Jr, the President of the Philippines and where the […]
Telenor, which has been looking to dispose of its satellite division for some years, has finally announced a buyer in the shape of Norwegian government-owned business, Space Norway. Space Norway paid NOK 2.36 billion (about €200 million) for the three satellites in Telenor’s fleet which operate from 1 degree west. Telenor’s satellite division generated revenues […]
Orange is expanding its range of connectivity offerings in France and now includes satellite in its technology mix, alongside fibre, ADSL, 4G and 5G Home. This new Satellite offer from Orange is aimed at customers who are not eligible for fiber and those with ADSL speeds of less than 8 Mbps. It is marketed through […]
Euroconsult’s latest report suggests that satellite ground segment will reach a cumulative value of $80 billion (€73.5bn) by 2032. The study, which includes the role of flat-panel antennas, says these antennas represent a massive growth area and will account for 74 per cent of the sold commercial user terminals by 2032 compared to about 45 […]
Investment bank BNP/Paribas has resumed coverage of Eutelsat and taken advantage of the move to take a close look at Europe’s two satellite giants Eutelsat and SES. The report is not overwhelmingly positive. It favours SES with a reiterated ‘positive’ recommendation, but its view of Eutelsat is reiterated as ‘negative’. The bank also cautions that […]