Archives for 2024

Satellogic Inc. (NASDAQ: SATL) recently announced that Nettar Group, Inc. (the Borrower) has entered into a Note Purchase Agreement, led by Tether Investments Limited (the Purchaser), pursuant to which Satellogic agrees to issue floating rate secured convertible promissory notes in the aggregate principal amount of $30 million to the Purchaser.

The net proceeds from the Offering, after deducting transaction fees and other debt issuance costs, were approximately $27.6 million. The Borrower has the ability to issue additional Secured Convertible Notes, provided the aggregate principal amount outstanding does not exceed $50 million.

The Secured Convertible Notes initially bear interest at a rate of SOFR plus 6.50% per annum, subject to an additional 4.0% per annum if certain events of default occur and are continuing. The Secured Convertible Notes are guaranteed by the Company and each of the Company’s material subsidiaries (other than the Borrower), and are secured by substantially all of the Company’s and its subsidiaries’ assets (including all of its and their intellectual property).

As noted above, the Borrower may issue additional Secured Convertible Notes under the terms thereof to other third parties, provided the aggregate principal amount outstanding does not exceed $50 million. The Secured Convertible Notes mature on April 12, 2028.

The Secured Convertible Notes are convertible into shares of the Company’s Class A ordinary share (the “Class A Ordinary Shares”) at an initial conversion price of $1.20 (or 833 Class A Ordinary Shares per $1,000 principal amount of Secured Convertible Notes), subject to customary anti-dilution adjustments. Conversion of the Secured Convertible Notes held by the Purchaser into Class A Ordinary Shares is subject to CFIUS Approval (as defined in the Secured Convertible Notes).

In the event of an asset sale by the Company (outside the ordinary course of business) or an insurance or condemnation event that results in net proceeds to the Company in excess of $2 million, the Borrower will be required to offer to prepay the Secured Convertible Notes up to the amount of the relevant proceeds at par (unless such proceeds are used to purchase comparable assets within six months).

In the event the Secured Convertible Notes are accelerated as a result of an event of default, the Borrower must pay a prepayment penalty equal to 5% of the greater of (i) the outstanding principal amount of Secured Convertible Notes and (ii) the then-prevailing conversion value. In connection with a change of control of the Company (including delisting of the Company’s Class A Ordinary Shares), the holder has the right to require the Borrower to repurchase the Secured Convertible Notes for cash at a price equal to the greater of (a) 105% of the redemption value of the Secured Convertible Notes and (b) 105% of the then-prevailing conversion value, plus accrued but unpaid interest thereon, as well as any other amounts owed (the “Put Price”).

The Borrower also has the right to repurchase or force-convert the Secured Convertible Notes in connection with a full acquisition of the Company at the Put Price.

The Secured Convertible Notes contain certain restrictive covenants, including restrictions on (i) incurring indebtedness, subject to certain exceptions (including the ability to issue additional Secured Convertible Notes; provided the aggregate principal outstanding amount does not exceed $50 million), (ii) creating certain liens, subject to certain exceptions, (iii) the payment of dividends or other restricted payments, (iv) the sale, transfer or otherwise conveyance of certain assets, subject to the asset sale prepayment described above, and (v) certain affiliate transactions.

In connection with the Offering, the Company also entered into with the Purchaser (i) a side letter, pursuant to which the Purchaser will be entitled to pre-emptive rights in order to maintain its as-converted ownership percentage on the same basis as new capital raised and (ii) a registration rights agreement, pursuant to which the Company agreed to register for resale the Class A Ordinary Shares issuable upon conversion of the Secured Convertible Notes.

The offer and sale of the Secured Convertible Notes are not being registered under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), or the securities laws of any other jurisdiction. The Secured Convertible Notes may not be offered or sold in the United States except in transactions exempt from, or not subject to, the registration requirements of the Securities Act and any applicable state securities laws.

“The proceeds from Tether’s investment in Satellogic will help advance our mission as we continue to focus on our U.S. strategy, the National Security market, and our global Space Systems opportunities,” said Emiliano Kargieman, CEO & Founder of Satellogic.

“This new facility will provide necessary funding as we look to continue expanding in 2024,” said Rick Dunn, CFO of Satellogic.

SpaceX is targeting Thursday, April 18 for a Falcon 9 launch of 23 Starlink satellites to low-Earth orbit from Space Launch Complex 40 (SLC-40) at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida. Liftoff is targeted for 6:40 p.m. ET, with backup opportunities available until 10:40 p.m. ET. If needed, additional opportunities are also available on Friday, April 19 starting at 6:18 p.m. ET.

A live webcast of this mission will begin on X @SpaceX about five minutes prior to liftoff. Watch live.

This is the seventh flight for the first stage booster supporting this mission, which previously launched ESA Euclid, Ax-2, Ax-3, CRS-30, and two Starlink missions. Following stage separation, the first stage will land on the A Shortfall of Gravitas droneship, which will be stationed in the Atlantic Ocean.

Apogeo Space has announced the agreement with INNOSPACE to acquire multi-unit launches, starting in the second half of 2025.

The agreement consists of the management, over the period 2025-2027, of three LEO launches and releases of Apogeo Space’s picosatellites that will populate Italy’s first private constellation dedicated to IoT. The deal between Apogeo Space and INNOSPACE marks an important step toward the Italian future of a global connectivity service, enabling consistent and reliable coverage for IoT worldwide.

Thanks to this agreement, which is in addition to the one with Italy’s D-Orbit, Apogeo Space is increasingly securing qualified access to space, pursuing its motto “IoT everywhere, for everyone” in tandem with a structured business plan for positioning in the first orbits needed to ensure global and continuous connectivity.

When fully operational, Apogeo Space’s plans expect for three to four launches per year, each consisting of nine satellites only 10x10x3 cm in size, to build its constellation, which will begin operations in late 2024 and be completed by 2027, when there will be 96, active, picosatellites on-orbit. The launch of the first nine test satellites occurred in November of 2023, with SpaceX’s Falcon 9 launcher and released by the Italian D-Orbit’s Orbital Transfer Vehicle (OTV).The next launch is scheduled for July 2024.

Apogeo Space’s project will reinforce Italy’s role in telecommunications constellations, specially composed of picosatellites/nanosatellites, capable of offering a full range of advanced services.

These services include data collection for a variety of applications, from the agri-tech sector to integrated logistics, from forest and glacier monitoring to oil & gas, from large watersheds to network and infrastructure monitoring.

Related to these sectors, the World Economic Forum‘s April 2024 Insight Report, in partnership with McKinsey & Company, claims that data from IoT sensors, located even in remote areas, will significantly benefit advanced supply chain services, energy, agriculture, mining and aerospace, generating an additional $3 billion in revenue by 2035.

German research institute Statista estimates a worldwide deployment of about 30 billion connected IoT devices by 2030, with a steady average annual growth of 2 billion between now and then.

Guido Parissenti, CEO and co-founder of Apogeo Space, said, “We are excited to partner with such an innovative company as INNOSPACE. This agreement is of great importance as it guarantees us to expand the number of partners that will allow us to complete our IoT picosatellite constellation by 2027.“

“We are delighted to announce this multi-launch agreement with Apogeo Space and are very proud to undertake the three space missions to deploy the IoT picosatellite constellation. INNOSPACE supports the vision of Apogeo Space as an innovative space partner. Our small satellite launch vehicle, HANBIT, will provide reliable launches to assist in building the constellation with precision deployment to orbits,” said Soojong Kim, CEO and founder of INNOSPACE.

On Wednesday, April 17 at 5:26 p.m. ET, Falcon 9 launched 23 Starlink satellites to low-Earth orbit from Launch Complex 39A (LC-39A) at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

A beautiful Florida sky was the perfect backdrop for SpaceX which is one shy of the total number of Space Shuttle missions (this was the 81st flight of a Falcon rocket compared to the 82 total shuttle flights) from the historic launch pad.

About 8.5 minutes after liftoff, B1077 touched down on the SpaceX droneship, ‘Just Read the Instructions.’ This was the 78th booster landing for JRTI and the 298th landing for SpaceX several days after achieving flight leader status with 20 total launches.

This was the 12th flight for the first stage booster supporting this mission, which previously launched Crew-5, GPS III Space Vehicle 06, Inmarsat I6-F2, CRS-28, Intelsat G-37, NG-20, a Northrop Grumman Cygnus spacecraft on the NG-20 mission to the International Space Station, and now six Starlink missions.

There have been a total of 174 orbital flights from LC-39A. Nine of those were Falcon Heavy rockets with the remaining 72 being Falcon 9 rockets. There were also 11 Saturn 5 launches from this pad.

According to astronomer and orbital tracker, Jonathan McDowell, reported that the 23 Starlink satellites added to the 5,809 currently on orbit. SpaceX launched 564 Starlink satellites so far in 2024 and this will be its 26th flight so far this year.

SpaceX launch of Maxar’s WorldView Legion mission a No-Go

The WorldView Legion mission was postponed the day before launch and, with support ship Go Beyond now returned to the Port of Long Beach and the listing removed from the FAA Operations Plan Advisory, could be delayed for some time.

The booster, which had yet to be confirmed, was expected to return to land on the pad at Landing Zone 4 located around 400 meters away from the launch mount.

Maxar’s statement
Scheduled for Apr 26, 2024 The WorldView Legion mission has been postponed to another date in April. We will adjust the preliminary date and time once SpaceX officially confirms it.

After stage separation, the Falcon 9 booster will make a land landing (land-to-land-landing) at the Landing Zone 4 (LZ-4) at the Vandenberg Space Force Base. WorldView Legion is a planned series of high-resolution earth observation satellites from the US company Maxar Technologies.

Tata Advanced Systems Limited (TASL) and Satellogic Inc. (NASDAQ: SATL) have announced the successful deployment into space of TASL’s TSAT-1A satellite aboard the SpaceX Bandwagon-1 mission that launched from Launch Complex 39A at Kennedy Space Center on April 7, 2024.

TSAT-1A has been assembled in TASL’s Assembly, Integration and Testing (AIT) plant at its Vemagal facility in Karnataka, India. This achievement follows the collaboration signed between TASL and Satellogic in November of 2023, leveraging Satellogic’s expertise to develop and integrate an advanced EO satellite in India and TASL’s capability to undertake complex system integration.

TSAT-1A will deliver high-resolution optical satellite images with increased collection capacity, dynamic range, and low-latency delivery through its multispectral and hyperspectral capabilities.

Satellogic provided industry knowledge transfer, foundational components, IP licensing terms, and support in constructing an AIT facility in India – features of the company’s Space Systems offering for direct satellite sales.

Sukaran Singh, Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director, TASL, said, “This milestone shows  TASL’s commitment to the space sector. This is a first step. Our partnership with Satellogic has enabled us to deliver an assembled and tested in India, best-in-class, fully integrated sub-meter optical satellite which was launched aboard SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket for the Bandwagon-1 mission. We are grateful for the support we have received from various Indian Government authorities for required permissions.”

“Congratulations to both teams on the efficient collaboration that brought TSAT-1A to life and ready for launch,” said Emiliano Kargieman, CEO at Satellogic. “This illustrates the flexibility of Satellogic’s Space Systems program, offering governments and enterprises the ability to tailor a proven satellite model for their specific needs, and reach orbit within a favorable timeframe.”

Comtech (NASDAQ: CMTL) has announced the initiation of trial services to deliver LEO satellite connectivity services to multiple regions of Antarctica.

Launched in January of 2024, the service provides connectivity to customers in Antarctica. Through this trial, Comtech’s market-leading ELEVATE VSAT ground system supported Eutelsat OneWeb’s ability to deliver groundbreaking LEO connectivity services, with data rates reaching up to 120 Mbps, to one of the most challenging geographic regions in the world. Comtech worked with Eutelsat OneWeb to configure and install the company’s ELEVATE ground system to simultaneously route connectivity services over multiple OneWeb LEO satellites.

This trial showcased the importance of high-speed, low latency connectivity for the scientific community and wider Antarctic region. Through satellite-based LEO connectivity services, like those provided by Comtech and Eutelsat OneWeb, scientists in Antarctica can better conduct day-to-day activities by facilitating real-time support from scientific, technical or health teams around the world. LEO connectivity services also have the potential to improve the welfare of the scientists, outside of working hours, as they are often deployed for 18 months at a time in one of the most remote and geographically challenging areas of the world.

Comtech’s ELEVATE ground system is a transportable, software defined VSAT system, which is proven to provide commercial and government customers with access to high-speed connectivity across diverse satellite constellations in multiple orbits. ELEVATE is designed to identify, collect and route data from multiple satellite constellations and orbits as well as deliver next generation capabilities like 4K video streaming and voice services.

“This is a remarkable achievement—not only for the satellite industry, but also for the broader scientific, technology, and connectivity markets around the world,” said John Ratigan, Interim CEO of Comtech. “We are thrilled to partner with OneWeb to deliver LEO connectivity services to Antarctica, which further demonstrates the advanced capabilities of our ELEVATE VSAT ground system. With proprietary software-defined technology embedded at the core, we are continuing to build out network agnostic capabilities of our ELEVATE system to meet the future demands of innovative satellite constellations and hybrid network infrastructures.”

About Comtech
Comtech Telecommunications Corp. (Comtech) is a leading global technology company providing terrestrial and wireless network solutions, next-generation 9-1-1 emergency services, satellite and space communications technologies, and cloud native capabilities to commercial and government customers around the world. Our unique culture of innovation and employee empowerment unleashes a relentless passion for customer success. Comtech leverages our global presence, technology leadership, and decades of experience to create the world’s most innovative communications solutions.

About Eutelsat Group
Eutelsat Group is a global leader in satellite communications, delivering connectivity and broadcast services worldwide. The Group was formed through the combination of Eutelsat and OneWeb in 2023, becoming the first fully integrated GEO-LEO satellite operator with a fleet of 36 Geostationary satellites and a Low Orbit earth constellation of more than 600 satellites. The Group addresses the needs of customers in four key verticals of Video, where it distributes more than 6,500 television channels, and the high-growth connectivity markets of Mobile Connectivity, Fixed Connectivity, and Government Services. Eutelsat Group’s unique suite of in-orbit and on-ground assets enables it to deliver integrated solutions to meet the needs of global customers. The Company is headquartered in Paris and Eutelsat Group employs more than 1,700 from 50 different nationalities. The Group is committed to delivering safe, resilient, and environmentally sustainable connectivity to help bridge the digital divide. The Company is listed on the Euronext Paris Stock Exchange and the London Stock Exchange (ticker: ETL).

The United States Space Force (USSF)’s Space Systems Command (SSC)’s Space Safari Program Office, in partnership with the Defense Innovation Unit (DIU) and SpaceWERX, is awarding contracts to two separate space industry vendors.

The vendors will exercise a realistic threat response scenario in an on-orbit space domain awareness (SDA) demonstration called VICTUS HAZE. DIU awarded a contract to Rocket Lab National Security at a value of $32 million.

SpaceWERX will award a contract to True Anomaly. Of the total $60 million needed for the effort, the government will fund $30 million, and True Anomaly will leverage $30 million of internal private capital.

With both efforts, VICTUS HAZE is leveraging commercially developed products to provide highly capable options for future TacRS operations. The multi-vehicle demonstration enables operationally relevant systems that can be leveraged for future urgent on-orbit needs. VICTUS HAZE will also enable the development of the tactics, techniques, and procedures (TTPs) for a rapid response to on-orbit threats.

True Anomaly and Rocket Lab will both demonstrate their ability to build rendezvous and proximity operation (RPO) capable space vehicles (SVs) and command and control centers with a delivery target no later than fall 2025. Once the build phase is completed the mission will enter several successive phases to include hot standby, activation, alert and launch phases. While this is a coordinated demonstration, each vendor will be given unique launch and mission profiles.

True Anomaly’s SV will launch from either Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida or Vandenberg Space Force Base in California via a rapid rideshare. Rocket Lab will launch via their Electron launch vehicle from either Mahia, New Zealand or Wallops Island, Virginia. Both SVs will quickly begin operations after reaching orbit. Once on-orbit, the operations teams will conduct a variety of scenarios to demonstrate SDA and characterization capabilities.

The planning and execution of VICTUS HAZE is a multi-organization Department of Defense effort. SSC’s Space Safari partnered with the DIU to leverage their commercial market expertise along with their Commercial Solutions Opening and Other Transaction (OT) Authority to rapidly award. DIU will lead the contract and acquisitions administration for Rocket Lab National Security while Space Safari will provide programmatic oversight and execute the mission.

Space Safari partnered with SpaceWERX for assistance in the technical and commercial evaluation of True Anomaly and the push for an emergent SBIR selection by Space Force leadership. Space Safari is leading the contract administration, providing programmatic oversight, and will execute the mission capabilities True Anomaly will bring.

As VICTUS HAZE continues toward mission success, many partners will be involved to play critical roles in this defining Space Force demonstration. VICTUS HAZE leverages state of the art, commercial products and will prove new capabilities that enhance future operational TacRS missions. This demonstration will ultimately prepare the United States Space Force to provide future forces to Combatant Commands to conduct rapid operations in response to adversary on-orbit aggression.

“The commercial space industry is advancing at an unprecedented pace that will provide the Space Force additional options to quickly respond to adversary aggression,” said Lt. Col. MacKenzie Birchenough, SSC’s materiel leader for Space Safari. “VICTUS HAZE will demonstrate and prove capabilities to be used for future TacRS operations in direct support of urgent Combatant Command on-orbit needs.”

“We recognize the significant opportunity to leverage the commercial space industry’s innovations to counter China as America’s pacing threat,” said Col. Bryon McClain, SSC’s program executive officer for Space Domain Awareness and Combat Power. “The United States has the most innovative space industry in the world. VICTUS HAZE will demonstrate, under operationally realistic conditions, our ability to respond to irresponsible behavior on orbit.”

Spire will deploy Neuraspace’s Space Traffic Management (STM) platform to its constellation of 100+ multipurpose satellites — all satellites will be monitored using Neuraspace’s software. This combined setup allows Spire to track and monitor potential conjunctions across its constellation and, at the same time, focus on its more critical assets.

Leveraging the Neuraspace platform, Spire will receive automated conjunctions alerts and in-depth analysis. In addition, the Neuraspace STM platform will provide Spire with collision avoidance maneuver suggestions, advanced conjunction analysis, maneuver management, and automated screening for its growing number of space assets equipped with onboard propulsion.

The Neuraspace platform facilitates agile, real-time decision-making which further reduces collision risks. The automatic update of the orbit positions by the Neuraspace platform enables a faster screening of maneuvers for potential collision avoidance. It also saves human conjunction screening time and effort.

Vincent Furia, Senior Director of Constellation Planning and Operations at Spire, said, “Spire is at the forefront of the Space-as-a-Service model. With the STM platform from Neuraspace, we can customize monitoring and analysis data, providing timely collision information. As our constellation expands and orbit congestion grows, Neuraspace’s AI-powered STM reduces human screening, preserving fuel and enables more efficient operations.“

Chiara Manfletti, CEO of Neuraspace, said,“Being selected by a successful NewSpace company like Spire with a large constellation is testimony to the trust they have in our STM solution. It also demonstrates the need for satellite operators to protect their assets in space. The threat stemming from increased orbital traffic and space debris is a growing concern and potentially a costly issue for satellite and constellation operators like Spire. With our automated STM solution using data from various sources, we can provide them with the most comprehensive overview and analysis. And as a result, we can reduce the threat to their assets and enable our customers to focus on their main business.”