Yet another SpaceX Starlink mission is planned targeting Thursday, October 22 at 12:14 p.m. EDT, 16:14 UTC, for its fifteenth Starlink mission, which will launch 60 Starlink satellites to orbit. Falcon 9 will lift off from Space Launch Complex 40 (SLC-40) at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. There is a backup opportunity available on Friday, October 23 at 11:53 a.m. EDT, 15:53 UTC.

Falcon 9’s first stage previously supported the GPS III Space Vehicle 03 mission in June 2020 and a Starlink mission in September 2020. Following stage separation, SpaceX will land Falcon 9’s first stage on the “Just Read the Instructions” droneship, which will be stationed in the Atlantic Ocean. You can watch the launch webcast live starting about 15 minutes before liftoff.  

Earlier this week, Ector County Independent School District in Texas announced their participation in a pilot program to help local students and their families access high-speed, low-latency internet. Similar to other rural communities, many residents of Ector County have limited to no connectivity.

This issue was brought to the forefront for the school district earlier this year when COVID-19 forced school building closures and nearly two in five students did not have access to reliable high-speed internet at home. Starting in 2021, Starlink will connect up to 45 households in the community as part of the pilot program. As network capabilities continue to grow, it will then expand service to an additional 90 households in the school district.

Less than a week after the September launch of GHGSat-C1 (‘Iris’), built by Space Flight Laboratory (SFL), GHGSat Inc. recorded the smallsat’s first successful measurement of a methane emission from a known oil and gas facility in Turkmenistan. A week later, the satellite operator tasked Iris to measure a much smaller, controlled methane release from a test site in Alberta, Canada. The satellite-based measurement was successful and confirmed with an airborne sensor.

GHGSat Inc. created the sample image by colorizing the methane concentration measurements that exceeded normal background levels captured over the Alberta test site. The colorized measurements are overlaid on an aerial photograph to provide context.

Precise attitude control and sensor pointing are critical to the success of an atmospheric monitoring microsatellite like GHGSat-C1. The 20x30x40-centimeter satellite must keep its greenhouse gas measuring spectrometer pointed at an area of interest on the ground as the satellite continues on its path.

GHGSat-C1 (‘Iris’) was launched on September 2, 2020, aboard an Arianespace Vega rocket from the Guiana Space Center in French Guiana. Also on that launch was NEMO-HD, an Earth observation microsatellite built by SFL for Slovenia.

GHGSat Inc. awarded SFL the development contract for GHGSat-C1 after building the pathfinding GHGSat-D (“Claire”) smallsat in 2016. Using high-precision target tracking capabilities developed by SFL, Claire successfully demonstrated that sources of methane and other gas emissions could be detected and measured from space. SFL is currently developing another microsatellite, GHGSat-C2, for the company.

Executive Comments

“The successful measurement of methane concentrations in the air above the oil and gas facility indicates the advanced microsatellite attitude control and precise point technologies developed by SFL and built into GHGSat-C1 are functioning as designed,” said SFL Director Dr. Robert E. Zee. “We have a very mature and high-performance attitude control system that can handle various maneuvers and pointing modes with relative ease” said Zee. “In particular, we fine-tuned the attitude control required for GHGSat-C1 by leveraging the results from the GHGSat-D demonstration mission in 2016.”

Established at the University of Toronto Institute for Aerospace Studies (UTIAS) in 1998, SFL has developed CubeSats, nanosatellites, and microsatellites that have achieved more than 128 cumulative years of operation in orbit. These microspace missions have included SFL’s trusted attitude control and, in some cases, formation-flying capabilities. Other core SFL-developed components include modular (scalable) power systems, onboard radios, flight computers, and control software.

TriSept Corporation has signed a launch services contract with the U.S. Army’s Space and Missile Defense Command (SMDC) unit to broker and integrate a milestone cubesat technology demonstration mission scheduled to launch aboard a Rocket Lab Electron early next year.

As part of the demonstration mission, the U.S. Army’s Space and Missile Defense Command will test a proven smallsat bus as host of its new 3U Gunsmoke-J technology initiative aimed at fostering the development of new, game-changing capabilities for the U.S. Army’s tactical ground forces.

TriSept secured both the U.S. Army’s rideshare slot and payload dispenser, which will release the 3U CubeSat into orbit once in space aboard the Rocket Lab Electron launch vehicle. TriSept will integrate the small satellite with the CubeSat dispenser at Rocket Lab’s Long Beach, California facility about 30 days before the scheduled launch date.

TriSept’s team will then travel to the Rocket Lab launch site in Mahia, New Zealand, where it will manage the integration and encapsulation of the dispenser device, carrying the satellite and electrical interfaces inside the fairing, about two to three weeks prior to liftoff atop Electron’s upper stage.

Executive Comments

“Gunsmoke-J is a joint capability technology demonstration executed by the U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense Command and sponsored by both the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense and the U.S. Army,” said Eddie Johnson, Gunsmoke-J Program Manager, U.S. Army SMDC Technical Center. “This science and technology effort will demonstrate an entry-level capability in a 3U form factor relevant to U.S. Army warfighter needs. The mission will also help inform future acquisition decisions.”

“This leading-edge mission for the Army’s Space and Missile Defense Command will orbit aboard a satellite smaller than a loaf of bread, but will have a huge impact on milestone developments in warfighter capabilities on the battlefield and beyond,” said Rob Spicer, TriSept CEO. “TriSept is thrilled to have secured the rideshare slot, dispenser hardware, regulatory compliance in both nations, and spacecraft integration for this important technology demonstration in space. We look forward to integrating this small but game-changing payload aboard a Rocket Lab Electron in the coming months.”

“This rideshare exemplifies the very heart of our overall vision at Rocket Lab; that even the smallest of the small satellites can make a major difference in both commercial and government markets,” said Lars Hoffman, SVP of Global Launch Services for Rocket Lab. “The U.S. Army will be able to hone its capabilities around the world as a result of this CubeSat mission for the Space and Missile Defense Command. We look forward to another Electron launch with TriSept’s key launch integration and overall program support ahead of liftoff set for Q1 next year.”

Momentus Inc. (“Momentus” or the “Company”) and Kepler Communications Inc. (“Kepler”) 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. The GEN1 platform supports both Kepler’s Global Data Service, a wideband high-capacity data service, and EverywhereIoT, a narrowband solution for Internet of Things applications.

With deployment beginning in late 2020, Kepler’s GEN1 constellation is the first to offer both wideband and narrowband services from LEO. The two new satellites will deliver additional commercial capacity for Kepler’s Global Data Service and provide additional support for on-going technology demonstrations for EverywhereIoT.

For communications and IoT satellites, the Local Time of the Ascending Node (LTAN/LTDN) is important in terms of offering fleet coverage diversity so that a satellite operator can offer data and analytics over a variety of times. Once in orbit, Momentus’ Vigoride transfer vehicle can change the LTAN/LTDN of a spacecraft deployed by using precession — a change in the orientation of the rotational axis of a rotating body. Kepler will be a prominent customer for Momentus’ LTAN shift service as they build out their constellation.

Executive Comments

Jared Bottoms, Director, Space Systems at Kepler, said, “Securing this launch with Momentus represents a key milestone in the deployment of our GEN1 constellation. We look forward to the successful launch, and the benefits of the Vigoride service. Assurance on an accurate LTAN insertion is key for Kepler as we serve users on a global scale, and this played a significant role in our selection of Momentus for this mission.”

Mikhail Kokorich, CEO of Momentus, said, “Momentus is honored to enable Kepler’s IOT constellation and will efficiently deploy their GEN1 satellites to precise and specific orbits, thereby enabling Kepler to expand their commercial service.”

mu Space and Advanced Technology, Satellite and Space Technologies venture — led by an aerospace engineer James Yenbamroong (Founder and CEO of the company) — are in talks to raise as much as $25 million in series B funding at a pre-money valuation of $75 million (2.3 billion Baht.)

According to a document reviewed by people familiar with the company’s fundraising activities, the new funding will raise the value of ‘mu Space’ to more than $100 million.

The new funding is expected to conclude in the fourth quarter. The new $25 million series B funding will be spent on the development of a High Throughput Satellite (HTS), whose majority of its components will be developed by ‘mu Space’ engineers. The satellite will be deployed to provide commercial broadband internet services in Thailand and the Asia Pacific Region.

The new funding will also help the company build a medium-sized ‘future’ factory to develop and manufacture space technology, which includes satellites, automation systems, and robots. These innovations will be placed into service in the future. It is expected that the projects will boost investment and employment by generating thousands of new high-paying job opportunities that meet the future demand for the rapidly-growing space technology industry.

Leveraging on existing strong ground infrastructure assets, ‘mu Space’ has partnered with “TOT,” the Thai state-owned telecommunications infrastructure company, to establish a gateway system and provide ground services in key areas of various provinces in Thailand. In addition, ‘mu Space’ plans to demonstrate the new 5G technology in its factory in the Eastern Economic Corridor (EEC) area, where defence and aerospace industries are getting the highest priority in terms of government incentives and assistance, creating high-paying jobs for tech companies in the Eastern region.

As a future technology company, upcoming technologies from mu Space particularly a data center and spaceship concepts will support the rapid development of business sectors that have exceptionally high growth prospects such as Telecommunications, Banks, Securities, including the Industry of Automotive and Aerospace manufacturers.

The SVP of Kasikorn Securities said at a press conference of the MOU signing ceremony between TOT and mu Space that the satellite market — particularly, internet broadband services and the local mobile backhaul market — will likely continue to grow up to $1.3 billion per year in Thailand. He added that ‘mu Space’ aims to be a new leading technology player in the satellite industry and the pioneer in transforming the global space industry. According to Morgan Stanley, the value of the space economy will increase to $1.1 Trillion by 2040 globally.

‘mu Space’ previous investors include Mr. Prasop Jirawatwong, the owner of Nice Group — a major sports apparel manufacturer for Nike and Adidas — B. Grimm Power infrastructure conglomerate, Majuven Fund, LP Venture Capital, and Private Equity. Shared investors include high net worth individual trusts, family, and friends. Several investors who invested with the company before have confirmed to contribute in this fundraising round, along with new investors.

‘mu Space,’ founded in 2017, develops satellite and space technologies. In 2018, the company made history for sending the first payload into space from Asia to be onboard with New Shepard, a Blue Origin‘s rocket. ‘mu Space’ plans to launch its satellite and to lead space technology development in Asia-Pacific.

In addition, the ultimate goal of ‘mu Space’ is to solve resource depletion and overpopulation problems by finding new resources outside the earth. The company is determined to build future infrastructure for human colonies and factories on the Moon. The company is aiming to make space tourism possible in years to come.

There are, and will be, many challenges for the Kleos Space S.A, launch team that has arrived in India for final preparations of their upcoming launch, targeted for the first half of November 2020. The team is preparing for the launch of mission satellites for Kleos’ four Scouting Mission nanosatellites aboard PSLV C49 from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre.

Despite the unprecedented 2020 challenges of the launch industry to follow schedule, Kleos Space’s Gavin Bowyer supported by Ed Stevens from In-Space and mission manager Marcy Rugland from Spaceflight arrived in Chennai yesterday at 3:00 am local time.

The team will isolate in quarantine for six days on their arrival and remain on the launch site in facility barracks. The Satish Dhawan Space Center is nestled in the jungle, where the team will face additional challenges as humidity is typical for the climate during this period of the year.

Kleos’ Gavin Bowyer said before leaving, “In the current pandemic situation, traveling is an obstacle we are willing to overcome. Irrespective of our mission, the challenge on site will nevertheless be to stay in good physical conditions and avoid being bitten by Mosquitoes!”

Over a further week the team will undergo a system checkout and mechanical inspection prior to battery charging, and fueling. The satellites will be armed for flight, inserted into their dispensers and finally integrated onto the PSLV launch vehicle.

Gavin Bowyer is the MAIT (Manufacturing, Assembly, Integration and Test) Manager at Kleos Space having joined the Company at its formation from UK Space Company Magna Parva where he has overseen and built equipment for Mars and Mercury exploration missions over a 10+ year Space career.

Ed Stevens is the Director of Space Systems at In- Space Missions, a Space as a Managed Service company, where he leads the design, build and operation of the company’s satellites. Ed brings his 20+ years of space experience in design, build and launch to bear in providing support to Kleos in delivery of the Scouting Mission nanosatellites.

Spaceflight Mission Manager Marcy M. Rugland is an experienced engineering leader with a passion for commercial space and aerospace. As a Mission Director, she has overall technical and schedule responsibility for the KSM, meaning from the mission assignment to post-launch, including onsite launch campaign team leadership. Marcy also volunteers as a member of the steering committee of “Ladies who launch”.

Andy Bowyer, CEO of Kleos Space added, “We are immensely proud of the entire team, launching satellites is always a huge challenge and the COVID-19 pandemic has made logistics and travel even more difficult, their dedication to getting our Scouting Mission satellites into orbit and collecting data to deliver enhanced situational awareness for our customers has been fantastic.”

Spaceflight, the satellite rideshare and mission management provider, confirmed earlier this week that the launch of Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV), which is an expendable medium-lift launch vehicle designed and operated by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) is on track to occur as previously announced within the first half of November 2020.

Kleos Scouting Mission satellites are the foundation of Kleos’ future constellation, which will deliver unprecedented situational awareness at sea with near real-time coverage over key regions of maritime interest including the Strait of Hormuz, South China Sea and African coast.

Sateliot is advocating to the space and telecommunications industry for smallsat technology to make the democratization of 5G possible in any corner of the planet.

The company, which will be launching their LEO smallsat constellation next year to offer a global and massive IoT service, has in recent days participated alongside companies from mobile operators, network equipment manufacturers and space industry giants in the meetings of the 3GPP, the body responsible for defining the new 5G standard and the maintenance and evolution of the previous 2G, 3G and 4G generations. Sateliot’s aim is to reach a consensus on the integration of satellite networks and IOT protocols into the 5G standard.

The space sector is experiencing a new paradigm in which sizes, costs and times are being reduced, giving rise to a genuine ‘democratization of space’, with more competitive innovation cycles and more possibilities of deploying not one, but tens or hundreds of satellites progressively to provide services on a global scale.

This smallsat revolution has led Sateliot to implement its business model and propose its roaming service to telecommunications operators, offering them the capacity of its smallsats, which act as telecommunications towers from space as an extension of coverage where terrestrial networks cannot reach.

Thus, space is configured as one of the great motors of the economy due to its high added value, its capacity to generate employment and large investments that will be realized over the coming years. In fact, in Spain alone in 2019, this sector moved nearly one billion euros and contributed 0.5% to the national GDP. Moreover, Spain is one of the top 5 European countries by number of employees in this industry, according to TEDAE figures.

Sateliot is the first satellite telecommunications operator that will provide global and continuous connectivity to all the elements that make up the universe of the Internet of Things (IoT) – such as the connected car or house – under the 5G protocol, according to the firm. Thanks to a constellation of the latest generation of smallsats, located at low altitude and acting as mobile towers, Sateliot is the perfect complement to large telecommunications companies by providing them with the necessary infrastructure to deliver terrestrial technologies that are not currently served.

Executive Comment

According to Marco Guadalupi, Co-Founder and CTO of Sateliot, “Our participation in the 3GPP meetings, together with telecommunications and space giants, puts us in the front line to promote our proposals in the development of the 5G IoT standard, where the possibilities of nanosatellites are almost infinite.”