GomSpace Group AB, provider of nanosatellites, today announces that Carsten Drachmann has been appointed CEO of GomSpace as of March 13, 2023.

Carsten Drachmann comes from the position as CEO of the tech startup Zero Error Systems PTE LTD in Singapore, and provides expertise and extensive global experience as CEO and Senior Executive from well-established companies and start-ups within Space, IT, SatCom and Telecom such as Nokia, KEBNI AB in Sweden, and Datapath Inc. in the U.S.

Carsten Drachmann holds an MSc in Software and Electronics from the Technical University of Denmark and an E-MBA in Strategy and Organization from Stanford University.

Chairman of the Board Jukka Pertola says, “We are very pleased to welcome Carsten Drachmann as CEO. Carsten has a solid track record of creating growth in tech companies. Together with the rest of the management team, Carsten will execute on the strategy and product investment program following the planned rights issue.”

Carsten Drachmann added, “Since its establishment, GomSpace has been a pioneer in the development and production of nanosatellites. I look very much forward to working with the rest of the management team and the many dedicated and skilled employees to unleash the great potential of GomSpace in a growing market.”

After the appointment of Carsten Drachmann, the Executive Management of GomSpace consists of Carsten Drachmann as CEO and Troels Dalsgaard as deputy CEO and CFO.

BeetleSat, formerly NSLComm, a satellite technology company building the first global LEO constellation optimized for premium point-to-point communications, announced that Executive President Patricio Northland has been named Chief Executive Officer. Northland is an industry veteran with a 20+ year track record of scaling space technology and communications companies. His previous executive leadership roles include serving as CEO of Eutelsat Americas, CEO of Satelites Mexicanos S.A. de C.V. (SATMEX) and Chairman, President and CEO of AT&T Latin America.

As CEO of Eutelsat Americas, Northland led the company’s market entry and business in the region after architecting a successful merger with his prior company SATMEX in a deal valued at over $1.7B. At SATMEX, Northland was responsible for transforming the business into one of the most profitable satellite operators in the world.

Before his work with Eutelsat and SATMEX, Northland founded telecommunications corporation FirstCom. He orchestrated the company’s $1.25B merger with Netstream Brazil and Keytech Argentina to create AT&T Latin America (AT&T LA), which he then led as President, Chairman and CEO. Under his leadership, AT&T LA was the first provider to offer seamless broadband to a global Fortune 1000 client base across the Americas region.

Leveraging his 20+ years of corporate leadership experience in the satellite technology and communications industries, Northland will lead BeetleSat through the next phases of its growth.

“I am honored to take on the role of CEO and to advance our mission to become the world’s first LEO constellation operator focused on delivering premium global satellite communications to broadband carriers and service providers,” said Northland. “With our proprietary technology – an expandable antenna that significantly reduces the overall cost of the satellite constellation– and open network architecture, BeetleSat is leading a paradigm shift in satellite communications that not only allows us to deliver premium service at a fraction of the cost of traditional systems, but also to create new service categories and applications. As CEO, working alongside a world-class management team, I’m excited to scale BeetleSat to serve the growing needs of our customers and to lead a company that is blazing a trail toward a more flexible, open and cost-effective model for the satellite communications industry.”

On February 24, BeetleSat announced the successful deployment of its lightweight, very high data rate, expandable antenna in space. The in-orbit deployment of the Company’s 60 cm expandable antenna from a 6U CubeSat — an industry first — marked a significant milestone in the development of the BeetleSat constellation and proved the viability of its proprietary technology.

The BeetleSat Nano-Satellite carrying the expandable antenna launched via SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket on January 3. Now in Sun-synchronous orbit (SSO) at 550Km altitude, the Nano-Satellite will provide BeetleSat’s public sector customer with store and forward, very high throughput satellite communication services.

“Serving as BeetleSat’s Executive President for the last year, we have already seen Patricio drive growth and help achieve significant technical milestones for the business,” said Yoav Tzurya, a BeetleSat director and a managing partner at Jerusalem Venture Partners, BeetleSat’s first investor. “We are looking forward to celebrating even greater success for the company under his leadership.”

Kymeta has completed the first shipment of the company’s electronically steered Hawk u8 OneWeb LEO terminal via its partnership with OneWeb — Kymeta is the first to commercially deliver, electronically steered user terminals for OneWeb’s LEO network and continues to ramp up production to meet overwhelming demand.

Kymeta user terminals are available for fixed applications and will soon be available for Communications-on-the-Move (COTM) for land and sea. This commercial milestone marks the start of new solutions and opportunities to better serve the needs of customers around the world.

Kymeta and OneWeb will demonstrate the solution across remote locations in the UK and via a roadshow in Canada.

“The satellite industry is entering an exciting new era, as every major industry from agriculture to defense can increasingly tap mobile broadband as an efficient and effective means to transform their operations,” said Walter Berger, President and Co-CEO, Kymeta. “The race to capitalize on the opportunity will be won by a group relay, not a single-company sprint. Partnerships such as our ongoing collaboration with OneWeb, along with Kymeta’s investments and innovation, will accelerate new applications to connect industries on Earth to capacity in space.”

OneWeb CEO, Neil Masterson, said, “We know there is palpable demand for flat panel, small, lightweight, easy to use, low power terminals. Kymeta’s u8 terminal gives our customers an exciting new choice of terminal for reliable, efficient connectivity to our LEO network.”

Widely adopted by military, government and enterprise customers, Kymeta offers the world’s only high-bandwidth, low-power, fully integrated family of high throughput mobile terminals. OneWeb’s LEO satellite network will give Kymeta customers access to high-speed, low-latency broadband connectivity while on the move or while stationary, anywhere in the world.

Neumann Space, a leader of in-space electric propulsion has successfully completed integrating its world leading propulsion system, called the Neumann Drive®, onto Skykraft’s Australian designed and manufactured satellite.  

This marks the first time the Neumann Drive®, whose unique propulsion technology uses solid metallic propellant, has been integrated onto a satellite. The satellite is now undergoing final testing before being shipped to the U.S. for a scheduled launch in mid-2023. 

Neumann Space’s CEO, Herve Astier said, “In the rapidly evolving new space economy there is a growing need for better propulsion. Whether it is deorbiting at the end of a mission’s life, navigating into the most effective orbit, or maneuvering away from growing space junk, we are seeing an increasing demand for our products.”  

“We are pleased to be working with Skykraft, a fellow Australian space company working to commercialzse technology for the benefit of global customers. We look forward to demonstrating in space the sovereign capability that Neumann Space has developed, and the benefits of using a propulsion system that is safer, more efficient and easier to operate,” he said. 

Dr. Michael Frater, CEO of Skykraft added, “Skykraft is pleased to be able to carry payloads like the Neumann Drive® to enable them to achieve crucial space heritage. Through this activity, Skykraft supports innovation in the broader Australian space community and has the opportunity to work with our world leading companies.” 

Neumann Space designs and manufactures propulsion systems for CubeSats and SmallSats, and it is its CubeSat Product Class that will be carried on the Skykraft satellite. The propulsion system incorporates a Thruster Unit that contains Molybdenum as the solid metallic propellant and is based on the company’s patented pulsed cathodic arc thruster technology. Neumann Space’s team of engineers based in Adelaide, South Australia, continue to refine the company’s products, and have now finalised the design and commenced manufacturing of its next generation Neumann Drive®.  

Neumann Space, a leader of in-space electric propulsion has successfully completed integrating its world leading propulsion system, called the Neumann Drive®, onto Skykraft’s Australian designed and manufactured satellite.  

This marks the first time the Neumann Drive®, whose unique propulsion technology uses solid metallic propellant, has been integrated onto a satellite. The satellite is now undergoing final testing before being shipped to the U.S. for a scheduled launch in mid-2023. 

Neumann Space’s CEO, Herve Astier said, “In the rapidly evolving new space economy there is a growing need for better propulsion. Whether it is deorbiting at the end of a mission’s life, navigating into the most effective orbit, or maneuvering away from growing space junk, we are seeing an increasing demand for our products.”  

“We are pleased to be working with Skykraft, a fellow Australian space company working to commercialzse technology for the benefit of global customers. We look forward to demonstrating in space the sovereign capability that Neumann Space has developed, and the benefits of using a propulsion system that is safer, more efficient and easier to operate,” he said. 

Dr. Michael Frater, CEO of Skykraft added, “Skykraft is pleased to be able to carry payloads like the Neumann Drive® to enable them to achieve crucial space heritage. Through this activity, Skykraft supports innovation in the broader Australian space community and has the opportunity to work with our world leading companies.” 

Neumann Space designs and manufactures propulsion systems for CubeSats and SmallSats, and it is its CubeSat Product Class that will be carried on the Skykraft satellite. The propulsion system incorporates a Thruster Unit that contains Molybdenum as the solid metallic propellant and is based on the company’s patented pulsed cathodic arc thruster technology. Neumann Space’s team of engineers based in Adelaide, South Australia, continue to refine the company’s products, and have now finalised the design and commenced manufacturing of its next generation Neumann Drive®.  

Intellian Technologies Inc., a global provider of resilient multi-constellation, feature-rich satellite user terminals and communications solutions, unveils their latest Electronically Scanned Array (ESA) technology at Satellite 2023, in Washington, D.C.

Intellian’s flat panel user terminal portfolio includes solutions designed to operate across fixed enterprise, land mobility, maritime, government and defense sectors. The full-duplex ESA user terminal will operate on the OneWeb satellite network, with production slated to commence in Q3 2023.

Flat panels are ideally suited for Low Earth Orbit (LEO) networks. The OneWeb LEO satellites require satellite hand-overs approximately every two to three minutes depending on the user terminal’s geographical location. As such, Intellian’s flat panel is designed to electronically scan over a wide field of view within hundreds of microseconds for seamless handovers. Intellian’s ESA product design focus has been on optimization of size, weight, power and cost so they can provide seamless connectivity for remote communities and minimal infrastructure, through to cellular backhaul solutions and installations on critical first responder vehicles.

The full-duplex user terminal, OW11FL, features a low profile weatherized antenna designed to deliver high reliability and performance to Enterprise customers. Paired with the CNX-WiFi indoor unit, the OW11FL delivers the ideal solution for enterprise, community broadband, and civil government applications. 

The innovative modular ESA user terminal, designed by Intellian’s industry leading in-house engineers, has enabled parallel development of a half-duplex user terminal, and will facilitate rapid development of other configurations and form factors to address alternative markets and use cases including a military manpack, also on display at Satellite 2023.

Intellian is a vertically integrated product company with their flat panel solutions designed at the Advanced Development Center and manufacturing taking place at Intellian’s state-of-the-art Campus 2, in Korea.

Eric Sung, President and CEO at Intellian Technologies Inc, said, “This milestone is a testament to our position as a leading technological innovator within the satcoms industry. By keeping production in-house at our state-of-the-art facilities, Intellian is able to deliver exceptional quality-assured products with scale and control over our supply chain. We are excited to unveil our new ESA technology at Satellite 2023 to the market and look forward to providing assured connectivity across fixed enterprise, land mobility, maritime, government and defense sectors.”

Based on the weather forecast this week, Rocket Lab has set a new no earlier than launch date for the upcoming mission from Rocket Lab Launch Complex 2 in Virginia for Capella Space. Here are the details.

Stronger Together

• Launch date: Wednesday March 15

• Launch timing: 6:00-8:00 p.m. Eastern, with lift-off targeted for 6:00 p.m.

Launch location: Rocket Lab Launch Complex 2, Wallops Island, Virginia.

The mission will be Rocket Lab’s second Electron launch from Launch Complex 2 on Wallops Island, Virginia. Stronger Together will carry two 100-kg class satellites for Capella Space, a leading provider of commercial Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) imagery.  

Previous update posting…

Unfavorable weather conditions required Rocket Lab to cancel the March 11th launch of the Capella Space SAR smallsats… a new launch date will be announced shortly and the company has an open window for such activity throughout this coming week.

Original information posting…

Rocket Lab USA, Inc. (Nasdaq: RKLB) has scheduled their next Electron launch from Virginia during a launch window that opens on March 11, 2023, ET.

The “Stronger Together” mission is scheduled to launch from Rocket Lab Launch Complex 2 (LC-2) on Wallops Island, Virginia, for Capella Space, a provider of commercial Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) imagery. The mission will be Rocket Lab’s second launch from the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport at NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility following on the Company’s successful inaugural mission from LC-2 on January 24, 2023.

“Stronger Together” will deploy two,100 kg class satellites to LEO and expand the existing Capella Space SAR constellation, increasing imaging capacity to meet growing customer demand. Capella Space SAR satellites are able to gather images of Earth any time of the day, in any weather as well as penetrate conditions that include clouds, fog, smog, darkness and smoke.

Supporting Rocket Lab’s vertical integration strategy, Rocket Lab will also supply Capella Space with two of the Company’s own Motorized Lightbands; separation systems designed to separate the Capella satellites from Electron once in orbit. Rocket Lab has launched for Capella previously with the “I Can’t Believe It’s Not Optical” mission in August of 2020, when Electron successfully deployed to orbit Capella’s first satellite in that firm’s SAR constellation.

This upcoming launch is one of five missions for Capella Space scheduled to start launching on Electron this year, following the recently-announced multi-launch deal securing four rapid succession launches for Capella from Rocket Lab Launch Complex 1 in Mahia, New Zealand. However, there is the option for Capella to move any of these missions to Launch Complex 2 should that be needed to meet Capella’s requirements – the type of responsive and flexible launch solution that Rocket Lab can provide by operating three orbital launch pads across two continents.

Members of the public wanting to watch Electron’s upcoming launch from Virginia can visit nearby viewing locations in Accomack County, Virginia, such as Robert Reed Park and Curtis Merrit Harbor on Chincoteague Island. The Virginia, Maryland and Delaware Atlantic beaches also provide good viewing locations.

A live launch webcast will also be available at this direct link from around T-20 minutes.

Unfavorable weather conditions required Rocket Lab to cancel the March 11th launch of the Capella Space SAR smallsats… a new launch date will be announced shortly and the company has an open window for such activity throughout this coming week.

Original information posting…

Rocket Lab USA, Inc. (Nasdaq: RKLB) has scheduled their next Electron launch from Virginia during a launch window that opens on March 11, 2023, ET.

The “Stronger Together” mission is scheduled to launch from Rocket Lab Launch Complex 2 (LC-2) on Wallops Island, Virginia, for Capella Space, a provider of commercial Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) imagery. The mission will be Rocket Lab’s second launch from the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport at NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility following on the Company’s successful inaugural mission from LC-2 on January 24, 2023.

“Stronger Together” will deploy two,100 kg class satellites to LEO and expand the existing Capella Space SAR constellation, increasing imaging capacity to meet growing customer demand. Capella Space SAR satellites are able to gather images of Earth any time of the day, in any weather as well as penetrate conditions that include clouds, fog, smog, darkness and smoke.

Supporting Rocket Lab’s vertical integration strategy, Rocket Lab will also supply Capella Space with two of the Company’s own Motorized Lightbands; separation systems designed to separate the Capella satellites from Electron once in orbit. Rocket Lab has launched for Capella previously with the “I Can’t Believe It’s Not Optical” mission in August of 2020, when Electron successfully deployed to orbit Capella’s first satellite in that firm’s SAR constellation.

This upcoming launch is one of five missions for Capella Space scheduled to start launching on Electron this year, following the recently-announced multi-launch deal securing four rapid succession launches for Capella from Rocket Lab Launch Complex 1 in Mahia, New Zealand. However, there is the option for Capella to move any of these missions to Launch Complex 2 should that be needed to meet Capella’s requirements – the type of responsive and flexible launch solution that Rocket Lab can provide by operating three orbital launch pads across two continents.

Members of the public wanting to watch Electron’s upcoming launch from Virginia can visit nearby viewing locations in Accomack County, Virginia, such as Robert Reed Park and Curtis Merrit Harbor on Chincoteague Island. The Virginia, Maryland and Delaware Atlantic beaches also provide good viewing locations.

A live launch webcast will also be available at this direct link from around T-20 minutes.