Inmarsat Maritime, a Viasat company, has launched NexusWave, a fully managed connectivity service underpinned by a ‘bonded’ multi-dimensional network, offering high-speed connectivity, unlimited data, global coverage, and ‘secure by design’ infrastructure.

Delivered by a single provider, NexusWave is a fully managed service that seamlessly integrates multiple high-speed networks in real time – Global Xpress (GX) Ka-band, LEO services, and as-available coastal LTE service – with an additional layer of L-band for resiliency – for fast, always-on connectivity. The solution also offers enterprise grade firewall security trusted by global enterprises and governments.

The future-proof NexusWave will also integrate the next-generation ultra-high capacity high-speed ViaSat-3 Ka-band service, following expected entry into service in 2025. As a unified solution, NexusWave ensures managed performance levels regardless of the vessel’s location or requirements, while providing complete transparency on total cost of ownership – with no unexpected charges.

Designed to provide an unparalleled experience in line with evolving customer needs, the new service supports digitization and crew welfare initiatives by transforming ships into floating offices and homes.

Supported globally and fully managed by Inmarsat, NexusWave comes with top-tier technical assistance and guidance derived from decades of experience. The solution will be continuously enhanced over time, in line with Inmarsat’s commitment to delivering excellence.

Ben Palmer OBE, President, Inmarsat Maritime, said, “Maritime operators face ever-growing demand for data consumption and speeds on board their vessels, coupled with the operational challenges of connecting worldwide while ensuring the security and efficiency of their communications. Meeting all these requirements typically relies on multiple, disjointed solutions, resulting in a complex patchwork of data caps, speeds, and coverage, in addition to unverifiable cyber security. At a time when reliable communications are a competitive advantage, maritime operators are seeking a value proposition tailored to their needs and rooted in high performance, certainty, and targeted outcomes. This is where NexusWave fulfils all of those demands, and more. Truly a game-changer in maritime communications, the new solution gives our customers the confidence to operate on their own terms, anywhere in the world, with complete peace of mind. Our combination with Viasat last year brought together the extraordinary people, innovation capabilities, and network assets of both businesses, creating a synergy that has been integral to the development of NexusWave – through which we will ensure unmatched connected confidence for our customers well into the future.”

St12 RF Solutions, the US entity of the manufacturer of advanced satellite products, payloads and Radio Frequency (RF) systems SWISSto12,  has developed, qualified and delivered three fully-integrated RF Antenna Feed Chains in various bands for a Northrop Grumman commercial GEOStar-3 satellite program. SWISSto12 completed the qualification program in January 2024, delivering the three integrated feed chains to Northrop Grumman for payload integration.

The space-qualification and shipment of SWISSto12’s RF Antenna Feed Chains to Northrop Grumman represents a significant milestone in the availability of next-generation RF payload solutions. SWISSto12’s RF Feed Chains are designed as fully-integrated monolithic assemblies; including diplexers, filters, polarizers, horn apertures and mechanical interfaces 3D printed as a single-piece assembly. SWISSto12’s proprietary Radio Frequency Additive Manufacturing (RFAM) processes allow for design optimization to minimize size and weight, while successfully meeting the stringent RF performance and qualification requirements established for this Northrop Grumman’s commercial GEOStar-3 program.

SWISSto12 has pioneered the development of advanced Additive Manufacturing technology for RF applications since 2011, creating strong momentum in the aerospace industry. Previously, RF product designs were constrained by manufacturing limitations impacting performance, weight, size, and cost competitiveness. SWISSto12’s RFAM technology enables the production of highly complex, intricate and non-conventional product designs which were previously not achievable. Through optimized manufacturing tolerances, surface finishes, plating techniques, and RF designs, SWISSto12 can deliver advanced RF performance, size, and weight savings while maintaining product competitiveness.

Scott Wolf, Managing Director of St12 RF Solutions, the US entity of SWISSto12, said, “SWISSto12 is delighted to announce this first delivery to Northrop Grumman of cutting-edge Radio Frequency Antenna Feed Chains for one of its commercial GEOStar-3 programs. Our novel Radio Frequency Additive Manufacturing capabilities coupled with advanced monolithic designs enabled by 3D printing have created a new benchmark in Antenna Feed Chain size, weight and performance. Our Radio Frequency Additive Manufacturing and HummingSat geostationary SmallSat businesses have delivered over $200 million in customer orders to date, validating  our mission to push the limits of existing payload capabilities to better protect and connect every corner of the world.”

SpaceX’s Falcon 9 will launch a batch of Starlink communications satellites on Friday May 17 from Space Launch Complex 40 Cape Canaveral from 4:52 – 9:01 PM PDT.

Falcon 9 is a two-stage rocket designed and manufactured by SpaceX for the reliable and safe transport of satellites and the Dragon spacecraft into orbit. The Block 5 variant is the fifth major interval aimed at improving upon the ability for rapid reusability.

SpaceX schedules Friday for Starlink Group 6-59 launch

Photo captured on Tuesday, May 14, by Satnews from SpaceX video stream.

SpaceX’s Falcon 9 will launch a batch of Starlink communications satellites on Friday May 17 from Space Launch Complex 40 Cape Canaveral from 4:52 – 9:01 PM PDT.

The forecast calls for a temperature of 80°F, overcast clouds, 99% cloud cover and a wind speed of 12mph.

Space Launch Complex 40 has witnessed the launch of 241 rockets, including 241 orbital launch attempts, while Cape Canaveral, FL, USA, has been the site for 952 rocket launches.

The cost is factored to be $52M.

SpaceX has launched 6436 Starlink satellites to date.

Satellogic Inc. (NASDAQ: SATL) was recently onboarded as a commercial vendor in the Global Data Marketplace (GDMP), a real-time, e-commerce platform that delivers commercially sourced data and data fusion analytics to meet the not classified space awareness needs for the U.S. and international agencies, including the U.S. Space Force.

The Global Data Marketplace connects vendors and consumers of commercial space data on a single platform. This modern approach allows immediate interaction, immediate payment, and anonymous data acquisition for approved commercial, government, academic, and allied sector participants. Satellogic is now able to leverage a streamlined, online process to work with federal agencies and contractors. 

Through the e-commerce GDMP, Satellogic will be able to 1) market and sell our product to consumers, 2) create order proposals to bid on consumer placed orders, and 3) service accepted orders.

The U.S. Government continues to advance the commercial space sector, and earlier this year, the U.S. Department of Defense released an updated classification policy – advancing the National Defense Strategy by expanding access to information within the U.S. government and reducing barriers to space integration with allies, partners, and commercial space actors.

The Global Data Marketplace is another example of the U.S. Government’s efforts to disrupt traditional procurement methodologies and lowering barriers for commercial providers, including those with international heritage. The acceptance from the GDMP is a major step towards Satellogic’s goal of becoming a mission critical partner for U.S. and international agencies and presents a welcome opportunity to showcase the company’s capabilities.

“We are excited that the U.S. Government is taking an innovative and disruptive approach to procurement and leveraging a broader set of commercial capabilities,” said Matt Tirman, President, Satellogic. “Satellogic’s portfolio of cost-effective, low-latency, and high-resolution electro-optical imaging is a great benefit to this platform since it gives government users the ability to easily and affordably purchase directly from Satellogic.”

About Satellogic
Satellogic operates the largest commercial fleet of submeter-resolution EO satellites in the world and provides EO data to governments and corporations for better decision-making. Its mission is to advance cost-efficiencies as well as rapidly iterate its proprietary technology to expand affordable access to critical information about the planet and life on Earth.

Tomorrow.io has been named to Fast Company’s prestigious list of the World’s Most Innovative Companies of 2024.

This year’s list shines a spotlight on businesses that are shaping industry and culture through their innovations. These organizations are setting new standards and achieving remarkable milestones in all sectors of the economy. Alongside the World’s 50 Most Innovative Companies, Fast Company recognizes 606 organizations across 58 sectors and regions

“The logistics industry is the backbone of the world economy, but increasingly volatile weather is having a devastating ripple effect across global supply chains,” said Shimon Elkabetz, CEO and Co-Founder of Tomorrow.io. “Tomorrow.io is the only company delivering an end-to-end solution, including our proprietary dataset, AI models, and weather translation technology, to predict the impact of weather on any supply chain, anywhere on the planet, empowering logistics leaders to adapt like never before.”

In the last 18 months, Tomorrow.io made history with the launch of Tomorrow-R1 and Tomorrow-R2, the first commercial weather radar satellites, set to democratize access to critical weather data for the 5 billion people currently living outside of radar coverage.  

Since launch, the satellites have demonstrated impressive performance, showing results comparable to leading industry benchmarks, such as NASA’s Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM) mission, in various key metrics.

Tomorrow.io also unveiled its revolutionary NextGen platform, an industry-first fusion of space-based observations, proprietary AI, deep learning, and neural networks, which is poised to redefine the boundaries of weather intelligence, delivering unparalleled insights to organizations worldwide.

Fast Company‘s editors and writers identified the companies driving progress around the world and across industries, evaluating thousands of submissions through a competitive application process. The result is a globe-spanning guide to innovation today, from early-stage startups to some of the most valuable companies in the world. Fast Company’s Most Innovative Companies package is available online, as well as in-app form via iTunes and on newsstands — the hashtag is #FCMostInnovative.

“Our list of the Most Innovative Companies is both a comprehensive look at the innovation economy and a snapshot of the business trends that defined the year,” said Fast Company editor-in-chief Brendan Vaughan. “We saw extraordinary innovation across the board in 2023, but we also saw a handful of clear patterns: the growing footprint and impact of AI, the triumphant return of live events, and great leaps forward in climate tech. We face daunting challenges on many fronts, but the solutions we celebrate in MIC give me plenty of hope about the future.”

About Tomorrow.io
Supercharged by next-generation space technology, cutting-edge generative AI, and proprietary modeling capabilities, global leaders including JetBlue, Fox Sports, The United States Air Force, Ford, and Uber rely on Tomorrow.io to solve their weather and climate-related challenges. From innovative early warning systems to actionable insights, organizations can predict impact, mitigate risk, and ensure operational resilience with Tomorrow.io.

About Fast Company
Fast Company is the only media brand fully dedicated to the vital intersection of business, innovation, and design, engaging the most influential leaders, companies, and thinkers on the future of business. Headquartered in New York City, Fast Company is published by Mansueto Ventures LLC, along with a sister publication, Inc., and can be found online at www.fastcompany.com.

AcubeSAT is a team participating in the third edition of Fly Your Satellite!, an ESA program that supports university students to design, build, launch, and even operate their own satellites.

AcubeSAT is a SpaceDot project, run by a multidisciplinary team of students primarily from the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, but also with members from various Greek and European universities.

The miniature satellite aims to boost space biology research by investigating the effects of radiation and microgravity on eukaryotic cells’ behavior, and testing microfluidic chips as modular devices for multi-parallel biotechnological experiments in orbit. 

Five members of the team recently traveled from Thessaloniki to the CubeSat Support Facility in ESA ESEC, Belgium. Their objective was to put AcubeSAT’s On-Board Computer/Attitude Determination & Control System (OBC/ADCS) board through its paces.

This vital component was designed by the students themselves, which is an impressive feat and provided a wealth of hands-on experience, but warrants the most rigorous testing regime to ensure correct functioning, and ultimately a successful mission. Any problems must be spotted and fixed prior to launch! 

It was decided that the best approach would be an Environmental Test Campaign. The first part of this was a Vibration Test, which saw the OBC/ADCS board shaken intensely, simulating the conditions it will experience when launched into orbit. Then came the Thermal Vacuum Chamber, which saw the board endure the harsh conditions of space. 

Unexpected events required the students to step up and troubleshoot under time pressure. They conducted themselves admirably, and gained invaluable insight into how their system would perform in orbit, as well as challenges they may face. 

The team are now back at Thessaloniki, where their work continues at pace. Next on the agenda is debugging and investing issues to ensure AcubeSAT will be ready for qualification at the CubeSat Support Facility in the near future.

Synspective recently entered into an agreement with Oriental Consultants Global Co., Ltd. (OCG) and Geosphere Environmental Technology Co., Ltd. to leverage their respective strengths to strategically collaborate on monitoring urban subsidence using SAR satellite data and groundwater simulation technologies.

The memorandum of understanding outlines a strategic collaboration among the three companies and involves leveraging Synspective’s expertise in SAR satellite data collection and analysis along with Geosphere Environmental Technology’s advanced water cycle simulation technologies to develop a subsidence monitoring system. Additionally, the collaboration aims to use OCG’s proven track records in international infrastructure projects to offer consulting services and expand business operations, primarily in Southeast Asia.

About OCG
Oriental Consultants Global Co., Ltd. (OC Global) has offered engineering, as well as non-engineering consultancy services in more than 150 countries and regions, for sectors such as roads, railways, ports, airports, architecture, urban planning, water supply, sewerage, energy development, environment, smart city, and peace building, etc. OC Global has been involved in every discipline and phase of infrastructure development projects, including master planning, data gathering, surveys, basic design, detailed design, tender assistance / management, construction supervision, operation, and maintenance.

About Geosphere Environmental Technology Corporation
Geosphere environment technology draws water cycle phenomena in the natural environment of the land area and conducts quantitative and objective third-party evaluation, with the integrated water cycle simulation system “GETFLOWS” at the core. We will draw up the global flow field and the local pollution situation over time, and provide unprecedented high precision information that can be used for prediction and countermeasures of various water problems.