Tag: Ground
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Thales Alenia Space Partners with ESA to Develop Argonaut Lunar Cargo Lander
Thales Alenia Space, joint venture between Thales (67%) and Leonardo (33%), has signed a contract with the European Space Agency (ESA), worth € 862 Million, related to the design, the development and the delivery of the Lunar Descent Element (LDE) for ESA’s Argonaut Mission, including responsibility for mission design and integration. Planned to be launched…
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AST SpaceMobile Secures FCC Approval for US Testing with AT&T and Verizon
AST SpaceMobile, the company building the first and only space-based cellular broadband network accessible directly by everyday smartphones, designed for both commercial and government applications, announced that the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has granted the company Special Temporary Authority (STA) authorizing testing service in the United States. This approval enables AST SpaceMobile’s first five commercial…
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Gilat DataPath Secures $4M Defense Contracts for Portable Satellite Terminals
Gilat Satellite Networks Ltd., a worldwide leader in satellite networking technology, solutions, and services, announced that its wholly-owned US-based subsidiary, Gilat DataPath, has been awarded $4M contracts from global Defense customers. These orders for the company’s CCT200, CCT120, and QCT90 portable terminals are slated for delivery over the next 12 months. Gilat DataPath’s C-Series and…
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NASA and Partners Approves Fourth Axiom Space Mission Crew to Space Station
NASA and its international partners have approved the crew for Axiom Space’s fourth private astronaut mission to the International Space Station, launching from the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida no earlier than spring 2025. Peggy Whitson, former NASA astronaut and director of human spaceflight at Axiom Space, will command the commercial mission, while ISRO…
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Planet Labs Joins ESA’s Copernicus Program to Enhance Earth Observation Data
Planet Labs Germany GmbH, a leading provider of daily data and insights about Earth, announced that they have signed a multi-year contract with the European Space Agency (ESA). Through this contract, Planet joins the Copernicus Contributing Missions, officially contributing commercial satellite data alongside ESA’s Sentinel satellite data to the Copernicus services. Through this contract, Planet’s…
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Vast and SpaceX Seek Research Proposals for Human Habitation in Space
Vast and SpaceX announced a joint request for research proposals from the global space science community aimed at advancing long-term human habitation and exploration in space. Building on their established partnership, the two companies seek high-impact research projects to support humanity on Earth and advance our capacity to live and work in Earth orbit and…
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Planet Secures $230 Million Commercial Deal for Pelican Satellite Fleet
Planet Labs PBC, a leading provider of daily data and insights about Earth, announced the signing of a multi-year $230 million agreement to expand its partnership with a long-standing, Asia-Pacific commercial partner. Pursuant to the agreement, Planet will build and deliver a constellation of new Pelican high resolution satellites, securing certain capacity on the satellites…
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Master Bond Introduces NASA-Approved EP53TC Epoxy for Heat Dissipation
Master Bond has launched EP53TC, a two-component epoxy designed for bonding, sealing, coating, and small potting applications where efficient heat dissipation is crucial. The epoxy is formulated with a specialty filler with a particle size ranging from 5 to 30 microns. It is a flowable system with a mixed viscosity of 45,000-65,000 cps at room…
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SiriusXM’s SXM-9 Satellite Enters Service After Successful In-Orbit Testing
SiriusXM and Maxar Space Systems announced that the SXM-9 satellite has completed in-orbit testing and is now fully operational by SiriusXM after being successfully launched by a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket on December 5, 2024. “SiriusXM is committed to cutting-edge technology and enhancing the proprietary satellite delivery systems that help power our audio entertainment and…
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Sierra’s Dream Chaser Successfully Passes NASA Testing in Preparation for Launch
Sierra Space, a leading commercial space company and defense tech prime that is Building a Platform in Space to Benefit Life on Earth, announced it has successfully completed and passed its Joint Test 10B milestone in collaboration with NASA on the Dream Chaser spaceplane. The test demonstrated several capabilities of Dream Chaser, including its ability…