Archives for September 2022

Last month, SAB Launch Services S.r.l., a company part of the SAB group that specializes in smallsat launch service provision on Arianespace missions, and ICEYE signed an agreement to fly two, Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) satellites on the first VEGA-C SSMS mission in Q1 of 2023.

ICEYE delivers proven and reliable Earth Observation (EO) solutions and offers the rapid delivery of high-precision SAR satellites and data to its customers, allowing them to take full control of their mission.

The partnership between SAB and ICEYE highlights the modularity and flexibility provided by the VEGA-C launcher System in combination with the SSMS Dispenser. The two ICEYE spacecraft will be flown on VEGA-C mission VV23, the first flight of the SSMS on the new rocket, which had a successful maiden flight in July.

The two spacecraft will be accommodated in VV23 on the upper part of the SSMS dispenser together with the two main passengers of this mission. The final aggregate counts a total of 5 smallsats and a large number of deployers, including institutional as well commercial cubesat customers from all over the world. Thanks to the AVUM performance, the aggregate will be released in 3 different orbits, whereas one of them has been specifically selected by ICEYE.

“We are excited to be launching a pair of our SAR satellites in early 2023 and to continuously grow our SAR constellation,” said Aloïs Lepâtre, Launch Manager at ICEYE. “SAB has been extremely supportive of our integration and orbit needs, and we acknowledge the flexibility and ownership we were given by being able to select an orbit that meets our specific requirements.”

“SAB is very proud to announce the signature of this Launch Service agreement which is a big achievement for our company, which can now be recognized also as a Launch Service provider for mcrosatellites, in particular for one of the most relevant constellations in the world”, said Marco Mariani, CEO of SAB Launch Services, during the event organized at IAC. “This agreement shows the appreciation from commercial customers for VEGA Services, including those used to take advantage of Non-European launch services in the past. I think that the service we are able to offer is very peculiar since it leverages on VEGA performance and on the SSMS System. Therefore, we can provide spots in rideshare missions, flying the satellites not-cantilevered, and offering our customers the possibility to select the orbit. I see these three factors as a winning mix, which places our entire organization in a unique position to compete and win on the worldwide launch market. ICEYE is definitely a very important partner and we will do our best to reinforce this cooperation.”

Celestia UK recently announced that the company had won a 800k euros ESA NAVSIP (Navigation, Innovation and Support Program) contract to develop a PNT solution based on LEO satellite constellations for 5G networks and applications, a solution that will boost the reliability and performance of GNSS.

Called LEO-SYN+, the project will use LEO satellite Signals of Opportunity (SoOp) to provide a resilient position and time reference for 5G networks and improve the robustness of GNSS signals.

Time and Synchronization are fundamental building blocks in 5G and GNSS systems play a pivotal role in the network operation. However, GNSS signals can prove vulnerable to interference, for instance when blocked by objects such as tall buildings or trees, and require augmentation with supplementary technology to deliver the level of reliability and longevity required.

Celestia UK’s solution is to combine the use of LEO satellite constellation signals with the development of a PNT receiver compatible with multi-GNSS constellations and LEO SoOps and test the solution in 5G networks.

During the project, a prototype will be produced to validate the product design and the technology development, paving the way for additional applications of the technology to other critical infrastructures after the initial ESA NAVSIP roll-out.

To deliver the ambitious project, Celestia UK is partnering with Heriot-Watt University who bring extensive knowledge in SATCOMs and Digital Signal Processing and The Scotland 5G Center, the national center for accelerating the deployment and adoption of 5G and realizing its economic and societal potential for Scotland.

“It is a great benefit for the business to have won an ESA NAVSIP contract and we are looking forward to collaborating with ESA and our partners to unlock the potential to improve the resilience of 5G networks with our PNT solution,” said Malachy Devlin, CEO of Celestia UK. “Building on our expertise in high throughput electronic steerable gateways together with the evolution of 5G integrating non terrestrial networks together with the Scotland 5G Center here on our doorstep, make us well-placed to meet the requirements of this challenging project and deliver a future-proofed solution with scope for considerable future commercial application.”

“The Scotland 5G Center is currently providing businesses access to 5G services through a national network of innovation hubs, S5GConnect Program. It is well known that 5G will support higher data throughput and interactive services through reduced latency. However, 5G will also provide new possibilities for positioning, navigation and timing (PNT). Use of advanced antennas and positioning over satellite will be critical for outdoor applications where precise navigation is essential to meet safety requirements for the likes of drone navigation and autonomous vehicles. We are delighted to be working alongside Celestia UK, supporting the innovative LEO-SYN+ project, which will utilise our cutting edge 5G network,” said Ian Sharp, Head of Business Development, The Scotland 5G Center.

Note: NAVSIP is an ESA program and the Contract was carried out under a program of and funded by the European Space Agency.

The National Reconnaissance Office (NRO) today announced the award of six study contracts for commercial radio frequency (RF) remote sensing. Companies receiving awards under NRO’s Strategic Commercial Enhancement’s (SCE) Broad Agency Announcement (BAA) Framework include Aurora Insight, HawkEye 360, Kleos Space, PredaSAR, Spire Global, and Umbra Lab.

The NRO leads in developing, acquiring, launching, and operating the nation’s intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance satellites to secure and expand America’s advantage in space. The NRO is building a diversified and resilient architecture of spacecraft and ground systems designed to meet the challenges of a changing space environment by accelerating innovation and leveraging strategic partnerships.

“Since the 2019 award of an integration study contract for commercial RF, we’ve seen increasing demand for this data source from across the user community,” said Dr. Chris Scolese, director of the NRO. “Today’s awards are another great example of NRO’s efforts to innovate on all fronts, as we continue to work with our partners in government and the commercial sector to find new ways to build capability, agility, capacity, speed, and resilience into everything we do.”

This new BAA focus area will help the NRO better understand the capabilities of multiple commercial RF providers to address new intelligence challenges. This is the second focus area awarded under the NRO’s new SCE BAA framework, designed to streamline the assessment and operationalization of emerging commercial capabilities. The SCE BAA Framework and first focus area for commercial radar were released in October 2021, followed by awards in January 2022 to five commercial radar providers. Similar to the commercial radar focus area, the RF focus area was open to both U.S. and foreign-owned U.S. commercial RF providers.

The unclassified, shareable nature of commercial remote sensing data, including RF, makes it a valuable source for situational awareness and intelligence sharing among U.S. allies and partners.

“As evidenced by the quality and quantity of commercial data flowing to our partners and allies, commercial remote sensing is a mainstay not only for security and intelligence applications but also for helping to manage humanitarian crises,” emphasized Pete Muend, director of NRO’s Commercial Systems Program Office. “Since the early days of Ukraine crisis, NRO’s commercial data providers have been collecting electro-optical and radar imagery as well as commercial RF data over the region.”

The BAA and its first two focus areas build on the success of NRO’s earlier studies and operational contracts, and create additional opportunities to expand NRO’s commitment to the rapid acquisition and integration of commercial space-based data.

With the space economy and critical defense initiatives dependent on safe rendezvous and proximity operations (RPO), Kayhan Space, along with partners Astroscale U.S. and the University of Texas at Austin, has won a U.S. Space Force (USSF) award to develop an intelligent platform that autonomously enables spacecraft to safely engage with on-orbit support vehicles for services such as refueling, maintenance, debris removal and national security.

Kayhan Space has been selected by SpaceWERX for a Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) Phase 1 to investigate how its Kayhan Proxima solution will enable in-space service assembly and manufacturing (ISAM) capabilities being explored by the Department of the Air Force (DAF) and USSF through the Orbital Prime program, which was created to accelerate the commercial ISAM market toward a use case of active debris remediation.

The Air Force Research Laboratory and SpaceWERX have partnered to streamline the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and STTR process by accelerating the small business experience through a faster proposal to award timelines, changing the pool of potential applicants by expanding opportunities to small business and losing bureaucratic overhead by continually implementing process improvement changes in contract execution.

During Phase 1 of the STTR SpaceWERX program, Kayhan Space will collaborate closely with Astroscale U.S. engineers and UT-Austin spaceflight researchers and students to deliver a first-of-its-kind optimized RPO management solution to support secure space commerce and national security activities. A feasibility study of the RPO management platform will be delivered early next year, while a prototype and Phase 2 demo mission is planned for 2024.

The autonomous RPO offering, named Kayhan Proxima, will initially be deployed as a zero-SWaP enhancement of Astroscale’s flight software package to effectively and efficiently direct and manage safe and repeatable RPO maneuvers and missions using the existing cameras, sensors, telescopes, and other hardware aboard the demo-mission spacecraft.

Kayhan Proxima will allow close proximity among spacecraft in extremely popular and busy orbits by enabling repeatable, safe and autonomous RPO missions and maneuvers with minimal manual support, versus current RPO and mission extension initiatives that require dozens of ground control staff.

“Kayhan Space is already empowering leading satellite operators to leverage real-time conjunction assessment and collision avoidance with Kayhan Pathfinder to help hundreds of spacecraft steer clear of pile ups in popular orbits,” said Siamak Hesar, Kayhan Space CEO and Co-Founder. “And now we’re building on that proven expertise with our Kayhan Proxima solution, in collaboration with Astroscale U.S. and UT-Austin, to ultimately bring spacecraft close together safely to drive a sustainable space economy and defense with autonomous RPO.”

“Safe and reliable RPO is the foundation on which the entire on-orbit servicing and ISAM ecosystem is being built,” said Ron Lopez, President and Managing Director of Astroscale U.S. “Our approach to on-orbit servicing is one of collaboration, which is why we’re thrilled to bring our RPO expertise to this dynamic team composed of small business and the academic sector. We are confident that together, we will provide the Space Force and SpaceWERX a solution that achieves their vision to enable sustainable space operations.”

“This STTR program will support one of our graduate students and will provide a great opportunity for our university to play an integral role in enabling the Space Force to ultimately drive more efficient and safe RPO operations in space,” said Renato Zanetti, Assistant Aerospace Engineering and Engineering Mechanics Professor, University of Texas at Austin.

Kayhan Space Corp. is making spaceflight safer with spaceflight safety software-as-a-service that enables satellite and mission operators to leverage precision data and real-time collaboration capabilities across the industry to anticipate and avoid conjunction events in space. Kayhan’s autonomous tools allow operators to coordinate safe avoidance maneuvers for all spacecraft and operators’ missions by reducing response time to collision events by more than 95%. The risk of a catastrophic collision in orbit is rapidly increasing with the number of satellites bound for space up ten-fold over the next decade. Kayhan’s next-gen spaceflight safety platform allows operators to run missions with confidence in increasingly busy but important orbits around the Earth. For more information, visit www.kayhan.space.

NASA has selected GHGSat, Inc., of Montreal, Quebec, Canada, to provide commercial small constellation satellite products for evaluation to determine the utility for advancing NASA’s science and application goals.

GHGSat will provide a comprehensive catalog of Earth Observation (EO) data High Resolution, Gas Detection, Commercial, Earth Observation, Data products.

This is a fixed-price, blanket purchase agreement and each call issued is not to exceed $7 million over a five-year period. The work will be performed at the contractor’s facilities in Montreal, Quebec.

The contractor shall be responsible for delivery of a comprehensive catalog of its commercial EO data High Resolution Gas Detection Commercial Earth Observation Data products indicating at a minimum: the data sets, associated metadata and ancillary information; data cadence; data latency; area coverage; and data usage policy.

NASA will assess and evaluate these small constellation satellite data products with the purpose of augmenting and/or complementing NASA-collected data in the future. To facilitate standard scientific collaborations, NASA requires End User License Agreements to enable broad levels of dissemination and shareability of the commercial data with the U.S. government agencies and partners.

Kleos Space Inc. (a space-powered Radio Frequency Reconnaissance Data-as-a-Service (DaaS) and Mission-as-a-Service (MaaS) provider) has been awarded a first stage contract by the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO) as part of the Strategic Commercial Enhancements Broad Agency Announcement (SCE BAA) Framework.

The NRO is responsible for maintaining global vigilance in times of peace and war. The agency develops, acquires, launches, and operates innovative space-based surveillance and reconnaissance systems that collect and deliver intelligence to enhance U.S. national security.

After a multiple-phase proposal process, Kleos was awarded the first stage contract under the NRO’s SCE BAA Framework, focused on the analysis, modeling, and simulation of Kleos’ capabilities to support the U.S. Government’s current and future commercial radio frequency (RF) reconnaissance needs. The NRO’s SCE framework continuously evaluates new and emerging capabilities and providers.

Under the project, Kleos will provide insights into how to optimize evolving commercial RF geolocation capability to enhance and augment existing capabilities in a persistent, resilient, cost-effective manner that is also easily shareable across the U.S. Government, and with international partners and allies.

Follow-on stages will emphasize tasking, data collection and direct delivery of data to end-users. This contract will allow Kleos to support the U.S. Government Defense, Intelligence, and Law enforcement missions, thanks to the integration of its data within the NRO’s capabilities.

Kleos’ Chief Revenue Officer, Eric von Eckartsberg, said, “We are very proud to receive this contract with the NRO, and to start our projected journey to growth with RF Earth Observation data, which imagery companies have been enjoying for many years. This study project represents a significant opportunity for Kleos to help the NRO assess the operational and decision-making usefulness of commercial RF GEOINT and understanding how our unique data set can be leveraged and fused with NRO’s operational capabilities through a combination of modeling and simulation, and analysis of collected data from our growing constellation of satellite clusters. Our four satellites per cluster constellation has significant operational benefits, including increased resilience and risk reduction compared to systems with fewer satellites. It enables us to collect additional radio frequencies within each band and accurately detect transmissions even when the tracking or positional system has been disabled or turned off. Our independent intelligence data can be used to validate or tip and cue other commercial datasets to enhance situational awareness.”

Kleos is a space-enabled radio frequency (RF) Reconnaissance data-as-a-service company with operations in Luxembourg, the U.S., and the U.K. Kleos locates radio transmissions in key areas of interest around the globe, efficiently uncovering data points to expose human activity on land and sea. Using clusters of four satellites, proprietary RF data is collected, transmitted to the ground, processed, and delivered to customers worldwide. Customers, including analytics and intelligence entities, will license data on a Data-as-a-Service (DaaS) subscription basis for government and commercial use cases – aiding better and faster decision making. Kleos’ first satellite cluster, the Scouting Mission (KSM), successfully launched in November 2020, is performing as a test and technology demonstration whilst collecting data. The company’s second satellite cluster, the Vigilance Mission, successfully launched in June 2021, and its Patrol Mission launched in April 2022. Kleos’ fourth cluster, the Observer Mission, is targeted for a 2022 launch. These satellite clusters form the foundation of a global high-capacity constellation of up to 20 satellite clusters, which will deliver high value global observation.

The launch of the shoebox-sized Prometheus-2 satellites will take place later this year from Spaceport Cornwall in Newquay. HyperScout® M, the most compact and miniaturized version of the HyperScout product line developed by cosine, will be on board one of these satellites. Its goal is to help UK Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (Dstl) pave the way for a more collaborative and connected space communication system.

Cosmic Girl, the Virgin Orbit’s modified Boeing 747 that carries the LauncherOne rocket, will soon take off from Spaceport Cornwall to deliver the two Prometheus-2 satellites into Earth’s orbit, one of which contains HyperScout M,the intelligent miniaturized hyperspectral instrument built by cosine.

The satellites demonstrate further progress towards the government’s ambition that by 2030 the UK will have the ability to monitor, protect and defend the interests of the country in and through space. “HyperScout M will allow Dstl and partners to research and assess the potential of hyperspectral and onboard processing for rapid response defense applications”, says Robert Gask, Dstl project technical authority.

cosine’s long heritage with hyperspectral imaging has led to the development of instruments suitable for a large set of applications. “This mission allows the UK Ministry of Defence to operate a hyperspectral sensor for the first time and also to be able to run processing and algorithms directly on HyperScout”, explains cosine Remote Sensing director Dr Marco Esposito. “It means being able to respond to events faster than is possible with current space assets.”

The HyperScout product line is a set of miniaturized hyperspectral imagers based on 2D sensors used in push broom mode. It allows you to observe reality from a picture with different layers and wavelengths. HyperScout M is the 1 cubic liter of volume compact refractive version of the product line. It has been developed to fit in a standard single CubeSat unit. “The Prometheus-2 CubeSat’s dimensions are six cubes. They are tiny, with a lot of instruments inside. We delivered a HyperScout M engineering model in 3 months. The entire Remote Sensing team was involved in this project,” explains cosine project manager Luigi Castiglione.

Dynetics, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Leidos, announced the successful launch and checkout of the Lonestar tactical space support vehicle for the U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense Command (USASMDC).

Lonestar, a technology demonstrator designed to provide space-based situational awareness directly into the hands of the tactical warfighter, lifted off from Mojave Air and Space Port as a payload aboard Virgin Orbit’s LauncherOne two-stage orbital air-launch vehicle in summer 2022. 

“The successful contact of our satellite in orbit is a substantial milestone for our team and the years of work supporting critical national security missions in space,” said Leidos Dynetics Group President Steve Cook. “This will enable further development for our growing satellite capabilities and accelerate our customer’s national security mission in space.”  

Dynetics completed the on-orbit satellite and payload checkouts with the USASMDC payload development laboratory on the Redstone Arsenal in Huntsville, Alabama. The laboratory provides ground systems for command and telemetry to the satellite.

The payload is operational and ready to support the situational awareness mission for the warfighter. Dynetics developed, tested, integrated and delivered the tactical space support vehicle (TSSV) through the Design, Development, Demonstration and Integration (D3I), Domain 1 task order for $9 million including a one-year on-orbit demonstration. 

The company’s expertise in space systems and high-performance signal processing applications enabled a rapid development. Using hardware-in-the-loop testing and simulation, the Lonestar team verified the payload mission software through a series of tests that ensured functional operation of the payload flight hardware. Work on this program took place at both Redstone Arsenal and the Dynetics campus in Huntsville.

Astroscale Limited, the UK and European subsidiary of Astroscale Holdings Inc., have opened their new Zeus satellite manufacturing and operations facilities at the Harwell Science & Innovation Campus in Oxfordshire.

The UK space industry is growing rapidly, quadrupling in size since 2000, and with ambitious growth plans over the next 10 years. This new, advanced UK facility will enable Astroscale to build satellite debris removal servicer satellites, and rapidly develop their commercial offering in the coming years, helping to further contribute to the growth, innovation, and manufacturing potential of the UK space sector. 

The move from Astroscale’s previous premises to the new facility, Zeus, marks a 900% increase in space, covering approximately 20,000 square feet to accommodate a high specification satellite manufacturing facility, a satellite operations center, and offices for 120 staff.

Astroscale’s new UK headquarters will be at the heart of the Harwell Science & Innovation Campus Space Cluster, close to partners such as the UK Space Agency, European Space Agency (ESA), Satellite Applications Catapult, the STFC Rutherford Appleton Laboratory, and many space industry partners. This strategic location will enable Astroscale to lead development of the in-orbit servicing supply chain and commercial servicing economy through creating new jobs, national capability and world-leading facilities in the UK.

“I am delighted to open our new state-of-the-art UK premises at the Harwell Science Campus,” said Nobu Okada, Founder and CEO of Astroscale. “This facility will support our ambitious growth plans for the UK business, allowing us to work with our partners to drive forward the development of the in-orbit servicing commercial market in the UK. If we act now, we will ensure a sustainable space economy for future generations.”

The UK continues to be a leader in both the policy and technology development for space debris removal and sustainability. Recent strategic announcements include the UK National Space Strategy in 2021, the UK Space Agency’s Corporate Plan 2022-25, and more recently, the Plan for Space Sustainability (June 23, 2022), which highlight the UK Government’s commitment to build on the UK’s early mover advantage in space robotics and In-Orbit Servicing & Manufacturing (IOSM) to establish global leadership in space sustainability.

“With nearly 5,000 operational satellites and over 30,000 pieces of trackable debris, the ability to operate safely in space is growing increasingly challenging,” said Dr. Paul Bate, Chief Executive of the UK Space Agency. “The UK is leading efforts to make space more sustainable and we’re backing companies, such as Astroscale, to design innovative new missions to clear hazardous space junk. It’s fantastic to see this state of the art facility open, bringing new capabilities to the UK and creating more than 100 jobs at the Harwell Space Cluster.”

“We want debris removal and in-orbit servicing to be part of routine operations by 2030. We can only deliver this through working in close partnership with government and industry stakeholders who share our ambition to push the boundaries of innovation and space technology,” said Nick Shave, Managing Director of Astroscale Limited. “Together we can create an in-orbit economy and new high-value jobs that will ensure space remains safe and sustainable for future generations. This is transformational moment for us as a fast-growing space business to open our own facilities that will design and manufacture Astroscale debris removal and satellite servicing satellites in the UK. We also plan to harness our long-standing partnership with the Satellite Applications Catapult on space mission operations for future in-orbit servicing missions including our ELSA-M multi-client removal servicer, and to evaluate use of the STFC National Space Test Facility at Harwell. This is also a milestone moment for Astroscale., as we create a new home for our 120 staff, many of whom will soon start working on the recently announced UK Space Agency Active Debris Removal Mission to remove two defunct satellites from Low Earth Orbit.”

Original posting…

Astroscale Ltd. has received a £1.7 million funding boost from the UK Space Agency to continue developing its technology and capability to remove defunct satellites from Low Earth Orbit (LEO.

This latest mission phase of The Cleaning Outer Space Mission through Innovative Capture (COSMIC) will harness Astroscale’s Rendezvous and Proximity Operations (RPO) and robotic debris capture capabilities to remove two defunct British satellites currently orbiting Earth by 2026.

Astroscale has selected a small number of potential UK satellites currently in congested orbit to capture and remove, two of which will be identified for removal during this latest Phase B of the COSMIC mission. Further space situational awareness data will inform this final selection.

The COSMIC mission will be developed in collaboration with ten UK-based partner companies in England, Scotland and Northern Ireland including: MDA UK, Thales Alenia Space UK, Nammo, GMV-NSL, NORSS, Goonhilly, Satellite Applications Catapult, Willis Towers Watson, and other advisory and industrial partners.

Astroscale’s team combines extensive systems engineering, Guidance, Navigation and Control (GNC), mission operations and ground segment capability. The company is partnered with MDA, renowned robotics and satellite systems pioneers, to harness their expertise on capture robotics including robotic operations experience.

Industrial partner Thales Alenia Space will focus on the propulsion system of the Astroscale mission study and on-orbit refurbishment aspects such as refueling; they will also support the assembly, integration and verification of the main satellite servicer spacecraft.

Astroscale most recently proved their magnetic capture and RPO capability during the End-of-Life Services by Astroscale-demonstration (ELSA-d) mission in 2021-2022. During this mission, the team performed a series of complex maneuvers to align, release and capture a demonstration satellite with a servicer spacecraft using relative navigation and on-board systems.

The COSMIC debris removal servicer will be a technological evolution of Astroscale’s Sunrise program End-of-Life Services by Astroscale-Multi-client (ELSA-M) servicer – a commercial partnership together with the European and UK Space Agencies and OneWeb. The first ELSA-M debris removal space servicer will be launched ahead of the UK’s Active Debris Removal mission in 2024.

“As our reliance on space technologies increases rapidly and the UK becomes a global hub of satellite design, manufacturing and launch, we are committed to leading efforts to make space more sustainable,” said Dr. Paul Bate, Chief Executive of the UK Space Agency. “With 1,700 satellites launched last year alone, the need to safeguard the space environment for the benefit of everyone on Earth has never been more pressing. By catalysing investment, backing innovative new technologies and supporting a national mission to remove space debris, we can keep space open for future generations and protect the important satellite services that modern life depends on.”

“We’re delighted to be building an in-orbit servicing economy in the UK, which will help us to deliver the UK government’s ambitious plans to develop a sustainable space environment that will support the many essential services that space enables for our society,” said Nick Shave, Managing Director of Astroscale Ltd. “Astroscale’s COSMIC UK Active Debris Removal Mission Phase B programme will define an efficient, national robotic capture capability to safely remove two defunct UK-registered satellites in Low Earth Orbit. With our proven space mission heritage, and strong industrial partnerships across the breadth of the UK, we can make in-orbit debris removal part of routine satellite operations by 2030.”

“Astroscale is pleased to be able to continue our commercial service developments through the COSMIC mission,” said Dr. Jason Forshaw, Head of Future Business Europe for Astroscale. “We will create new capability, minimise development costs and bring excellent value for money to the UK Space Agency and the taxpayer. COSMIC will leverage the ELSA-M supply chain, which is spread over the breadth of the UK, supporting the levelling-up agenda. We look forward to working with our 10 selected partners, advisors and suppliers, all of whom are world leaders in spacecraft mission technology, payload development, and specialist support services.”

“MDA is proud to be part to be working with Astroscale and the UK Space Agency on this important project to assess, study and ultimately develop solutions to protect and preserve the space environment,” said Anita Bernie, Managing Director, MDA UK. “As we explore and expand space further than we ever have before, we all have a role and responsibility to play in ensuring that we do so safely and sustainability.”

“Thales Alenia Space is extremely proud to contribute to this important UK led Mission, working towards a more responsible use of space for everyone,” said Andrew Stanniland, CEO of Thales Alenia Space in the UK.

“The UK ADR mission provides an opportunity for Astroscale to harness our technological innovations, rapidly expanding UK capability, and unwavering commitment to develop a world-class debris removal service,” said Nobu Okada, CEO and Founder of Astroscale.

Satellite Vu has partnered with Viasat to ensure rapid commanding, reception and dissemination of thermal imagery from Satellite Vu’s satellites.

This partnership will enable Satellite Vu to regularly contact its constellation throughout the day and night to ensure rapid responsiveness to customers for tasking new collections, low latency times, and high-speed delivery of its thermal imagery and derived analytics.

Satellite Vu is looking to combat greenwashing claims, monitor water pollution events and support disaster response, such as wildfire monitoring. The company is hoping to be able to guide targeted retrofitting of legacy buildings to improve energy efficiency and reduce energy wastage, supporting communities with the cost-of-living crisis and the effects of urban heat islands. Furthermore, Satellite Vu’s infrared data can reveal rates of industrial activity around power plants, refineries and ports.

As the global community looks for reliable and independent data to measure and ensure compliance with environmental standards, such as Energy Performance Certificates (EPCs) and Environmental, Societal and Governance (ESG); Satellite Vu will partner with value added resellers to reach users around the globe.

Anthony Baker, Founder and CEO of Satellite Vu, said, “We are delighted to partner with Viasat with whom we share a mission to bring information into peoples’ hands across the globe. We hope our data will be able to revolutionise the fight against climate change, by connecting people to independent data, giving them the ability to measure and therefore manage their communities, neighbourhoods, and livelihoods sustainably for future generations.”

John Williams, Vice President of Real-Time Earth at Viasat, said, “We are thrilled to be selected as the exclusive ground service provider for Satellite Vu. Our companies share a passion for innovation and positive change around the world. With the global buildout of our Real-Time Earth ground service, Viasat will provide Satellite Vu with frequent access to ground stations at the poles and low latency delivery of data for applications ranging from wildfire detection and analysis to monitoring carbon emissions and improving energy efficiency.”