E-letter: Briefs

The main stage of Europe’s new small launcher, Vega, is slated to undergo a maiden test firing Nov. 30 at Europe’s Spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana. The test, in which […]

Datapath Inc., a global provider of satellite and wireless communications networks, announced Nov. 28 its appointment of James R. Balkcom, Jr., to its board of directors. Balkcom, chairman of the […]

Andrew Corp., a global provider in communications equipment and systems, expanded its milsatcom offerings Nov. 28 with introduction of a new 2.4-meter transportable antenna to serve military and large commercial […]

Euro1080, a provider of high-definition (HD) content to satellite platforms throughout Europe, has announced a distribution deal with set-top box manufacturer Topfield. Under the agreement, Topfield HDTV satellite receivers will […]

Germany’s Terrasar-X radar satellite is scheduled to be launched Feb. 27 launch aboard a Russian Dnepr-1 rocket, the German Aerospace Center (DLR) announced. The mission had been planned for Oct. […]

Satellite operator Hispasat is offering advanced broadband services via its onboard processing system housed on the Amazon satellite. The company’s advanced multimedia-enhanced regenerative Hispasat (Amerhis) system is an advanced multimedia […]

Batelco, an integrated communications provider in Bahrain offering telecommunications in the Middle East, plans to expand its global reach through satellite-based IP (Internet Protocol) services. Batelco is expanding its Ras […]

Robert Vacek has resigned as president of Spacedev Inc.‘s Starsys division to pursue an opportunity outside of the aerospace industry, Spacedev announced Nov. 24. Vacek was appointed president of Starsys […]

Thrane & Thrane Airtime A/S has signed the first customers for Inmarsat’s Broadband Global Area Network (BGAN) service. Thrane & Thrane Airtime, a BGAN distributor for Inmarsat, will provide Explorer […]

International Communications Group (ICG) announced Nov. 20 its appointment of Techstart LLC as authorized distributor for its Iridium-based satellite communication products in the defense and aerospace sector.

Newsat Ltd., a Melbourne, Australia-based satellite communications provider, has opened its new international sales office in Dubai’s Internet City.

A Russian Federation military satellite was deorbited and burned up in the Earth’s atmosphere Nov. 20 after its mission was completed, according to Xinhua. The latest of three Cosmos satellites […]

Boeing Co. has shipped the Measat-3 communications satellite to the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan for a scheduled Dec. 11 launch aboard an International Launch Services (ILS) Proton rocket, Boeing announced […]

SES Astra has revealed details of its latest contract for a new satellite, stating that it has awarded the contract for the design and construction of its Astra-3B spacecraft to […]

NASA announced Nov. 21 that its Mars Global Surveyor has likely finished operations after a 10-year mission, the longest one sent to the red planet. The spacecraft has not communicated […]

Gilat Satellite Networks Ltd. announced Nov. 21 that it and a selling stockholder plan to sell 7 million ordinary shares of stock in an underwritten public offering. In a registration […]

The United States Air Force has awarded Boeing Co. with a $674,116,428 cost-plus-award fee contract providing for Delta 4 launch capability for the Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicle (EELV) rocket program. […]

Orbital Sciences Corp. announced Nov. 20 its selection by Netherlands-based SES New Skies to design, build and deliver the NSS-9 commercial communications satellite. Slated for location at 183 degrees East […]

Norsat International Inc. has announced fulfilling a follow-on order from the United States Air Force for the supply of additional portable satellite equipment and training for San Antonio-based Air Force […]

Satguard Asia announced the launch of its latest GPS-based vehicle security and tracking devices designed to bring the technology within the reach of the majority of vehicle owners. Based on […]

A Boeing Delta II launch vehicle successfully delivered to orbit Nov. 17 a replenishment Block 2R Global Positioning System (GPS) satellite for the U.S. Air Force. The Delta II has […]

NASA is using one space probe orbiting Mars to search for another spacecraft left missing around the planet. Earlier in the month, the Mars Global Surveyor lost contact with Earth […]

The European Space Agency (ESA) has created a special layer of content that will appear in Google Earth, enabling people to see more than 130 new satellite images including natural […]

Battery producer Eaglepicher Technologies has landed a new, $1.8 million contract to provide nickel-hydrogen battery cells to Lockheed Martin for use on a new U.S. Navy satellite communications system, Eaglepicher […]

British Surrey Satellite Technology Ltd. was recognized as the winner among the Times Higher Educational Supplement Awards 2006 in the category of "Outstanding Contribution to Innovation & Technology," rewarding its […]

Speck of Palo Alto, Calif., announced Nov. 20 that it is partnering with Sirius Satellite Radio to develop licensed products for their portable live satellite radio devices. Speck’s Sirius Stiletto […]

Iridium Satellite LLC announced Nov. 20 its appointment of Lieutenant General John Campbell, U.S. Air Force (retired), as the global mobile satellite services provider’s executive vice president for government affairs. […]

Claudio Martini, governor of Tuscany, has requested a Rai International satellite channel to promote Italian tourism worldwide. In a Nov. 18 letter to Rai president Claudio Petruccioli, Italian culture minister […]

A People’s Republic of China communications and broadcast satellite is failing less than a month into orbit because of malfunctioning solar panels, according to Internet reports. In a Nov. 20 […]

BSkyB, a satellite pay-TV operator in the United Kingdom, has announced that it will take a stake of nearly 18 percent in commercial broadcaster ITV. The total cost of the […]