Advanced Television

Space

SpinLaunch gets NASA task

SpinLaunch is a technology business that uses a massive centrifugal mass accelerator to launch payloads into space. Based in Long Beach, California, it has signed a Space Act Agreement with NASA. “Through the partnership, we’ll fly a NASA payload on our Suborbital Accelerator to collect the necessary data to enable potential future commercial launch opportunities,” […]

April 7, 2022

Bezos’s giant rocket orders unwrapped

The news on April 5th that Jeff Bezos had signed unprecedented orders for rocket capacity to get Amazon’s Project Kuiper broadband system operational did not go far enough. The announcement also kick-starts a five-year timetable and designed to compete head-to-head with Elon Musk’s Starlink operation which is already in business. Amazon had ordered up a […]

April 6, 2022

Bezos makes Kuiper move

Jeff Bezos has ordered a massive series of rocket launches to get Amazon’s Project Kuiper broadband system into space. Amazon has selected Arianespace, its own Blue Origin, as well as the United Launch Alliance for an overall 68 launches, split between the three giant launch providers. The three sets of contracts are by far the […]

April 5, 2022By Chris Forrester

Russia’s Express AM-3 satellite goes to graveyard

According to observation data from Johnathan McDowell, from the Harvard-Smithsonian Centre for Astrophysics, the orbit for a Russian DTH satellite has been raised to a ‘graveyard’ orbit. Express (Ekspress) AM-3, once transmitting what is described as ‘civilian’ television signalsand launched in June 2005, has been shifted from a standard geostationary orbit at about 35,786 kms […]

April 5, 2022By Chris Forrester

Virgin Orbit reveals 2022-23 plans

Sir Richard Branson-backed space plane and small satellite launcher Virgin Orbit has reported a downbeat revenue picture for 2021 with just two launches last year (and only one to date in 2022). This translated into a net loss of $157.3 million (€141.5m) for 2021 on $ 7.4 million in revenue. Back in August last year […]

March 31, 2022

US to boost satellite communications budget

US President Joe Biden, in his plans for next year, shows a potential increase in the US space budget for defence and satellite communications. While the overall budget grows by 2 per cent, the amount suggested for the US Space Force is upped by 26 per cent. A report from investment bank Exane/BNPP says that […]

March 30, 2022

ITU toughens up on late satellites

It might be logical to think that coming out of a two year pandemic – which saw staff and logistical problems for satellite operators and the companies building their new satellites – might offer a reasonable excuse for missing launch deadlines. ‘Not so’, implies the International Telecommunications Union (ITU). The ITU has firmly rejected applications […]

March 28, 2022

Open Beta for Flying Wild Hogs’ Space Punks this April

Polish developer Flying Wild Hog has announced the forthcoming Open Beta launch date of its top-down looter-shooter Space Punks. From April 20th, PC players will be able to ‘rip space a new one’ in Space Punks’ galaxy of guns, glory and over-the-top action via the Epic Games Store. This milestone is an important step in Space Punks’ […]

March 28, 2022

Blue Origin readies next launch

The next Jeff Bezos-backed Blue Origin rocket launch was originally currently scheduled for March 23rd. Following the need for additional ground tests, lift-off is now scheduled for March 29th at 08:30 CDT from Blue Origin’s Launch Site One in West Texas. It will be the 20th flight for the rocket. The New Shepard version of […]

March 22, 2022By Chris Forrester

India ramps up rocket launch capability

India’s Space Research Organisation (ISRO) is identifying its programme of tasks to be carried out in 2022 and what steps can be taken to increase the number of satellite launches and its manufacturing. According to Sreedhara Somanath, Chairman of ISRO and Secretary, Department of Space, new rockets coming on stream during this year include three […]

March 16, 2022By Chris Forrester