LONDON, 15 January, 2021 – OneWeb, the Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellite communications company jointly owned by the UK Government and Bharti Global, announced today that it has secured additional funding from SoftBank Group Corp. (“SoftBank”) and Hughes Network Systems LLC (“Hughes”), bringing OneWeb’s total funding to $1.4 billion. The capital raised to date positions the Company to be fully funded for its first-generation satellite fleet, totaling 648 satellites, by the end of 2022.
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by Douglas Messier
Managing Editor
China’s newest booster, Long March 8, successfully placed five satellites into sun-synchronous orbit on Tuesday from the Wenchang Satellite Launch Center in a step toward partial reusability.
The medium-lift booster blasted off at 12:37 p.m. local time from Hainan island carrying the classified XJY-7 remote sensing technology test satellite and four smaller payloads.
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CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (Exolaunch PR)–Exolaunch, the leading rideshare launch and deployment services provider for the NewSpace industry, begins its launch campaign to integrate 30 small satellites from the U.S. and Europe aboard SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rideshare mission scheduled for no earlier than January 2021. This is the first dedicated rideshare mission of SpaceX’s SmallSat Rideshare Program and the first of several rideshares Exolaunch is manifesting on Falcon 9 as part of a multi-launch agreement the company signed with SpaceX earlier this year.
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PARIS (ESA PR) — OPS-SAT is the world’s first open, in-orbit testbed for new spacecraft software and applications. By conducting low-cost, low-risk experiments with OPS-SAT, teams from across Europe are ushering in a new era for European spaceflight innovation and commercial opportunity.
UK businesses will be able to tap into the potential of 5G and satellite technology as a new testing facility is being created.
SWINDON, UK (UK Space Agency PR) — The engineering hub, set to be built by the IT and business consultancy CGI in ESA-ECSAT at the Harwell Campus in Oxfordshire, is being backed by over £3 million of government investment and due for completion in 2021.
Providing a base for UK researchers and businesses to experiment, the new 5G hub – eventually planned to extend across the entire Harwell campus – will provide a testing facility that can show the benefits of hybrid 5G and satellite communications networks. The hope is that once the technology is demonstrated the techniques can be rolled out to other businesses across the UK.
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Space Capital has launched its latest institution fund, Space Capital II, to invest in three areas. The company has also launched a careers site called Space Talent.
Managing Partner Chad Anderson writes in Medium:
Building upon insights from The GPS Playbook, we plan to deploy Space Capital II in the following thematic areas:
Geospatial Intelligence
Applications:
– AgTech
– InsurTech
– ClimateTech
Distribution:
– Synthetic DataGPS (precise/micro positioning)
Applications:
– Sensor fusion
– AR
– AdTech
– Mobility
– Autonomous Systems
Distribution:
– Next-generation mapping infrastructure
– Precision navigationCommunications
Applications:
– IoT
– Logistics
Distribution:
– 5G
– Cybersecurity
To further stimulate growth in these areas we’ve launched Space Talent, a free career platform and central resources hub built for the global ecosystem of companies at the intersection of space and tech. With over 9,000 jobs and 550 companies across 50 countries, Space Talent matches credible employers with top talent while providing insights into an ever-expanding range of opportunities. The platform also helps founders experiment, build, and finance new businesses by providing resources and the opportunity to receive up to $1.5M in funding from Space Capital and our affiliates.
by Douglas Messier
Managing Editor
Galactic Energy, which became the second private Chinese launch provider to orbit a satellite on Saturday, has announced that it completed a Series A financing round of 200 million yuan ($30.25 million) in September.
In a press release, Galactic Energy said the funding will be used to manufacture and perform upgrades on the solid-fuel Ceres-1 small-satellite booster that flew last week. The funding will also allow the company to continue research and development on its larger liquid-fuel Pallas-1 (Zhishen-1) booster.
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LISBON (Fregata Space PR) — Fregata Space, the company owned by Sateliot and that transforms satellite images into high-resolution information and high predictive value , uses the New Space ecosystem, as well as its own Big Data and Machine Learning technologies to prevent more 8 million tons of plastics end up in the oceans each year .
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LONDON, 02 November 2020 (Inmarsat PR) — Inmarsat, the world leader in global mobile satellite communications, has been awarded a three year contract with the European Space Agency (ESA), which will co-fund the development of a new capability for governments to plan, procure, manage and monitor their satellite communications (satcoms) services from Inmarsat and other operators and service providers.
The new Inmarsat capability, called the International Virtual Satellite Operators Network (INVISON), is a secure, user centric platform. It is being supported by ESA as part of its Space Systems for Safety and Security (4S) Strategic Line, which is a new component of ESA’s programme of Advanced Research in Telecommunication Systems (ARTES), aimed at transforming R&D investment into successful commercial products and services.
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BASKINSTOKE, UK, October 28, 2020 (NanoAvionics PR) — NanoAvionics, a leading nanosatellite bus manufacturer and mission integrator, is expanding its space sector business in the United Kingdom by moving to a new, larger facility for satellite assembly, integration and testing (AIT) as well as sales, technical support and R&D activities in Basingstoke (50 miles/80 km outside Central London) this month.
Having already developed a hub in Lithuania and two in the USA, the move, entirely financed by NanoAvionics, is a first step for its UK growth plans by creating jobs in the space sector and a local technology cluster with a dedicated supply chain of companies in Britain.
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Rochelle Park, NJ, (ORBCOMM PR) — ORBCOMM Inc. (Nasdaq: ORBC), a global provider of Internet of Things (IoT) solutions, and Inmarsat, the world leader in global mobile satellite communications, today announced that they will extend their agreement through at least 2035 and enhance their strategic partnership. The two companies will collaborate on joint product innovation and distribution of next-generation IoT satellite services, telematics devices and end-to-end solutions that offer the best-in-class combination of high bandwidth data packets with low-cost terminals.
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SANTA CLARA, Calif., October 20th, 2020 (Momentus PR) — Momentus Inc. (“Momentus” or the “Company”), a commercial space company offering in-space infrastructure services, and Kepler Communications Inc. (“Kepler”), developer and operator of next-gen satellite communications technologies, have signed a launch service agreement to deploy two additional satellites for Kepler’s GEN1 constellation in 2021. Momentus’ rideshare service will include launch provisions and delivery to the customer’s desired orbital altitude while maintaining the SSO inclination using Momentus’ Vigoride transfer vehicle.
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The contract covers InOrbit NOW Launch Service for two AAC Clyde Space’s 6U CubeSats built for the Eutelsat LEO for Objects (ELO) Constellation
FINO MORNASCO, Italy, October 8, 2020 (D-Orbit PR) — Italian in-orbit transportation company D-Orbit has announced a launch service agreement with Swedish-British small satellite manufacturer AAC Clyde Space. The contract covers launch and deployment of two Eutelsat LEO for Objects (ELO) 6U CubeSats in 2021 developed and built by AAC Clyde Space.
Eutelsat’s ELO is a constellation that aims at providing global Internet of things (IoT) coverage from low Earth orbit to support sectors like transport, oil and gas, and agriculture. The constellation, in combination with ground infrastructures, will enable companies to gather data from tens of millions of objects, irrespective of their geographic location.
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MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif., Sept. 29, 2020 (Swarm Technologies PR — Swarm Technologies, developer of the world’s lowest-cost global satellite communications network, today announced details and pricing of its hardware and network services. Device connectivity remains inaccessible for millions of people worldwide and is prohibitively expensive for many industries. Swarm’s commercial satellite network solves this problem. From the shipping lanes of the Bosphorus to the farmlands of California’s Central Valley, Swarm’s affordable network can now connect IoT devices at an unprecedented scale.
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The European Vega rocket that launched this evening was carrying 53 satellites on its first rideshare mission as part of the Small Spacecraft Mission Service Proof of Concept Flight.
The payloads included 14 Flock 4V Earth imaging satellites from Planet, 12 SpaceBEE Internet of Things spacecraft from Swarm Technologies, and 8 maritime monitoring satellites from Spire.
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