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Fleet Space Technologies successfully completed a trial using its proprietary Ambient Noise Tomography (ANT) technology to faster and non-invasively find critical lithium deposits. 

This was commissioned by Australia’s newest lithium miner, Core Lithium, at its Finniss Project in Australia’s Northern Territory. This is in line with its mission to provide the globe with high-grade lithium suitable to power electric vehicles and renewable energy storage. 

In a statement to the ASX (August 1, 2022), Core Lithium described the results of the trial as “an outstanding success”, noting an excellent correlation with the pegmatite body interpreted from drilling to depths in excess of 500m and stating that a number of previously unknown targets have emerged — a major boost for exploration. 

Core Lithium’s Finniss Project will be Australia’s newest lithium producer on the ASX Australian Securities Exchange, with first production targeted for Q4 2022. As one of Australia’s most capital efficient lithium projects, it has been awarded Major Project Status by the Australian Federal Government.

Matt Pearson, Co-Founder, Fleet Space Technologies said, “We created ExoSphere to provide a sustainable, faster and more economically viable alternative to current exploration practices. This work is vital to enabling the dramatic increase in critical mineral discoveries required to support the global transition to clean-air mobility and more sustainable industrial practices. In Core Lithium we are working with one of the most advanced mineral explorers in the world. We are proud that Fleet’s ExoSphere Earth scanning technology has produced outstanding results in this landmark field trial, proving the role it will play in accelerating mineral finds as we collectively answer the global challenge to find more than $13 trillion (USD) in critical metals to meet soaring global demand. We are proud to work with the most progressive explorers in the world realizing the transformative potential of this technology.” 

Andy Bennett, Exploration Manager Core Lithium added, “Core Lithium’s Finniss Project is providing world-class drilling results, affirming its status among Australia’s most important strategic mineral projects. Our mission to discover the high grade lithium required to support the world’s rapid transition to electric vehicles (EVs) has been enhanced by the results generated through ExoSphere. The success of this trial shows the potential of the technology to deliver our next generation of exploration targets and we are excited by the prospect of doing further work with Exosphere.“

Fleet’s ExoSphere technology has been created to answer the urgent global requirement to locate a more sustainable, economically viable and faster route to finding critical mineral deposits. Since introducing ExoSphere technology to the market in Q1 2022, Fleet has been engaged by the major exploration companies. 

In completing these successful field trials, ExoSphere has proven its viability to support the discovery of the more than $13trillion in additional energy transition minerals. This figure is stated by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) as required to meet global net zero targets to enable the transition of vehicles to clean-air powertrains.

ExoSphere is Fleet’s pioneering exploration technology. It delivers detailed subsurface 3D mapping using an array of Geodes. These devices are so portable and lightweight they can be transported and placed by hand. The geodes use edge computing to analyze ambient seismic noise which is sent by Fleet’s network of small satellites for processing. The data is rapidly processed in the cloud to deliver a 3D visualization of the area to support critical exploration decisions. This makes searching for key energy transition minerals faster, more sustainable, less expensive and more accurate. 

For Fleet, the successful global market introduction of ExoSphere has underpinned significant business expansion, as they have hired more than 80 people in their HQ in Adelaide, South Australia and global growth through its first U.S. regional office in Houston, Texas. Fleet completed an oversubscribed Series B fundraising round in 2021, confirming institutional and VC endorsement for its technical and commercial approach and standing as a leader in Australia’s rapidly growing space economy. 

The Australian federal government has set a dedicated space strategy that aims to triple the space sector’s contribution to GDP to over $12 billion per annum and create up to an additional 20,000 jobs by 2030. In 2021, Fleet announced that it will build the first Hyper Factory of its kind in the Southern Hemisphere at the Australian Space Park, in Adelaide, South Australia. This landmark development will co-locate four space manufacturing companies in a purpose built facility with a focus on collaboration in the heart of Australia’s ‘Space State’. 

From this state-of-the art facility, Fleet will design, engineer and manufacture the next generation of small satellites. The production of these will utilize the latest additive manufacturing (3D printing) technologies to deliver world-changing developments like ExoSphere at great scale, speed and economic viability. 

Matt Pearson, Co-Founder, Fleet Space Technologies stated, “By harnessing the power of Fleet’s ExoSphere technology, we are able to scan the Earth in greater depth and detail than ever before. This cleaner, faster and more flexible approach to exploration answers the urgent global requirement to find more than $13 trillion in critical Earth transition minerals. ExoSphere is supporting the world’s transition to more sustainable practices by speeding up vital mineral discoveries more than one hundred-fold. We are proud to enable this critical step in mining to provide better access to the resources we need to make a better future for humanity.”

The proposal between Fleet Space and Core Lithium outlined the subscription options for ExoSphere by Fleet. ExoSphere is a pioneering exploration technology that delivers detailed subsurface 3D velocity mapping using an array of Geodes, Fleet’s satellite-connected seismic sensors. The subscription included the rental of the Geodes (satellite-enabled Geophones), planning support, deployment support, and the real-time processing and delivery of any 3D shear velocity models. 

ExoSphere is a first-of-its-kind system that combines Geodes, Fleet’s satellite connected geophones with edge computing, and a constellation of Low Earth Orbit (LEO) nanosatellites to discover critical resources by up to 15X times faster than traditional methods. 

 It also drastically reduces the requirement for environmentally damaging elements of existing surveyance practices such as the use of explosives, vibration machines and drilling. In this sense it is a passive, non-destructive technique to assess site viability for mineral and material deposits. 

Deposits of copper, nickel, cobalt and lithium for example, which is used to create zero emissions car batteries can now be discovered through a grid of satellite-enabled Geodes, which can be easily installed by small, local teams. 

These are hand-transportable sensors which reduces the logistics requirements and carbon output for remote exploration projects. It also allows explorers to adapt their approach quickly without the need to dismantle and move heavy equipment.

Each wireless, battery-operated Geode contains a processing unit, satellite transmitter and a seismic sensor. The Geodes use the principles of seismology to map the properties of the Earth’s subsurface from reflected seismic waves by recording ambient noise — a process known as Ambient Noise Tomography (ANT). 

Once sufficient ANT data is gathered, Geodes partially process the raw information on site, reducing the data requirement for transmission — a practice known as ‘edge processing’ that significantly increases the speed of connectivity between Internet of Things (IoT) devices and allows more information to be sent while drawing significantly less power. 

This streamlined volume of data is securely pushed to Fleet Space’s existing network of low-power small satellites. The smallsat then automatically sends the information to ground stations, reducing the time required to process data. This in turn allows explorers to make informed decisions on areas of interest much faster than traditional methods. There is now no need to wait for devices to be collected, shipped, and unpacked to collect the data. 

The data from each Geode is rapidly processed and aimed to deliver a full 3D visualization of the subsurface down to 2 km depth.  A clear, rich image of what resources are below ground can be generated in as little as four — ordinarily, ANT takes months to return a conclusive result.  

Using a bespoke Fleet-developed system, these visualizations are accessible to view and export anywhere on Earth in real-time. The speed of this imaging now means that thousands of square kilometers of area can be imaged in a fraction of the time of traditional methods.

KSATlite is KSATs easy-to-use, ground network solution that offers optimized support for smallsats and large constellations.

The offered solution has gained popularity in the smallsat marketplace and is currently experiencing record-high demand. KSATlite has supported 628,863 satellite contacts in the last 12 months.

The portfolio of customers now represents the full value chain from launch providers, New Space companies, primes and agencies as well as universities. At the same time, the mission profile altitudes span from LEO to Lunar.

The record high success rate over the past year at 99.7% ensures that the more than 50 different supported customers are satisfied with the KSATLite services. The flexible, software-defined, ground radio system allows customer support on all the major standards in satellite and launch vehicle communications. The team of highly skilled engineers and project managers work around the clock to make sure the customers are happy during launches as well as regular satellite communications.

The standardized network is part of KSATs more than 260 antennas at 26 locations around the world. This gives smallsat owners and traditional operators global coverage with the flexibility to keep an eye on the satellite while data can be accessed whenever needed.

“Both KSAT and, more importantly, the customers are very satisfied with the quality of the KSATlite service over the past year.” Kristian Jenssen, director KSATlite. “The traffic on the KSATlite network has been growing exponentially over the past years, but our continuous focus on automation and machine learning powered error correction algorithms has truly paid off.”

KSAT owns and operates a Ground Station Network of polar and mid-latitude stations. The four polar ground stations are uniquely located in Tromsø at 69°N, Svalbard Satellite Station (SvalSat) at 78°N Inuvik Station at 68°N and the Antarctic station (TrollSat) at 72°S. The network handles 75 000+ passes per month.

AST SpaceMobile, Inc. (“AST SpaceMobile”) (NASDAQ: ASTS), the company building the first and only space-based cellular broadband network accessible directly by standard mobile phones, has announced that the company’s BlueWalker 3 test satellite (BW3) has arrived at Cape Canaveral.

The satellite recently departed an off-site testing facility in California after collecting flight data for the upcoming planned launch to LEO, with a launch window for early to mid-September. The actual BW3 launch date remains subject to change and is contingent on a number of factors including, but not limited to, final testing, final integration, timely readiness of the launch vehicle and other unknowns including, but not limited to, weather conditions or technical problems.

Over the summer, AST SpaceMobile completed the assembly and stowing of BW3, including its 693-square-foot phased array of antennas, at the company’s Midland, Texas, headquarters and manufacturing facility. This large array of antennas is designed to connect directly to existing mobile phones from a much longer distance than traditional cell towers. In total, more than 800 tests were conducted on the satellite before it left Texas.

Members of the public will be able to watch a live broadcast of the launch online or view it in person at several public viewing locations throughout the Cape Canaveral area.

Once in LEO, and following initial in-orbit testing and configuration, AST SpaceMobile plans to conduct BW3 direct-to-cell phone testing on every inhabited continent, in coordination with mobile network operators (MNOs). MNOs in the mission’s test plans include Vodafone, Rakuten Mobile and Orange, among others, using cell phone handsets from major global manufacturers.

Concurrent with the launch of BW3, AST SpaceMobile continues to build out its manufacturing capabilities to reach its goal of building six, nexgen, BlueBird satellites per month. The company intends to launch a LEO constellation of BlueBirds that would provide cellular broadband from space across the globe – on land, at sea and in the air.

“There are more than five billion mobile phones in use today globally, but many of us still experience gaps in coverage as we live, work and travel. Additionally, there are billions of people around the world who still lack access to broadband,” said Scott Wisniewski, Chief Strategy Officer at AST SpaceMobile. “We want our efforts to significantly increase the availability of cellular broadband globally by providing a space-based network to existing, unmodified mobile phones. The delivery of BlueWalker 3 to Cape Canaveral represents another milestone in our efforts to reach this goal.”

TriSept Corporation has completed the integration of two experimental mission payloads running the company’s new TSEL satellite security operating software for a suborbital test flight aboard RocketStar’s launch vehicle that is set to liftoff from the Koehn Lake Bed in the Mojave Desert.

TriSept has teamed with RocketStar and its 40-foot-tall, aerospike-powered Cowbell rocket to further lower barriers to space for commercial, government and experimental missions, such as the payloads the University of Central Florida and Brigham Young University will launch and study in September.

“This is the first in a series of suborbital flights aboard our RocketStar Cowbell launch vehicle, with each mission powered by the Aerospike engine designed to achieve more altitude and flight data as we build toward our first orbital insertion mission on our larger launch vehicle in 2023,” said Chris Craddock, RocketStar CEO. “RocketStar is thrilled to partner with the experienced TriSept launch and integration team, as we roll in our portable launch facility and throw open the door even wider to affordable and reliable smallsat access to space.”

A small team of UCF students will be closely studying their payload mission, which will simulate asteroid particle activity in space during the 13 minute flight. They will examine a collection of colliding particles inside a device they’ve named the entrapulator, after a similar payload the university has flown on the International Space Station and other vehicles.

The UCF mission aims to shed more light on collisions in the protoplanetary nebula and the evolution of loose materials or regolith on the surface of asteroids during such an impact. Brigham Young University’s College of Engineering students have designed a sensor package dubbed Motron II that will measure motion, acceleration and vibration aboard the launch vehicle and help mission operators better understand and design for launches of small payloads.

In addition to the rich scientific and technical data both university teams expect to harvest from their missions, they are also excited to explore the valuable findings from the first suborbital tests of TriSept’s new satellite security operating system.

“This experiment is providing a new batch of students the chance to interface and gain invaluable real-world experience with seasoned engineers in the space industry,” said Dr. David Long, an Engineering Professor with the BYU Center for Remote Sensing. “We are excited to work with TriSept and RocketStar to put our flight motion payload to the test and to work with flight-grade security software on its maiden voyage in space.”

“Our students are always thrilled to launch a mission into space. TriSept opened the door to this great opportunity for our students to participate in the integration and launch of our payload aboard the RocketStar rocket,” said Josh Colwell, a UCF Physics Professor whose students at the Stephen W. Hawking Center for Microgravity Research and Education have developed the mission studying asteroids. “We are also incredibly excited to be among the first involved in the milestone tests of new satellite security software that could help pave the way to a new level of protected missions in space.”

“TriSept is passionate about opening up safe space access to everyone, including students who often can only dream about getting their experimental missions aboard a rocket and launched into space,” said Jason Armstrong, TriSept’s Director of Launch and Integration Services. “Our focus will be on supporting two experimental missions and the inaugural flight of our new TSEL satellite security operating system running on both university payload missions. It’s another step toward securing small satellite operations with a new protection solution that is now commercially available.”

The TriSept Secure Embedded Layer (TSEL) operating system, capable of detecting, tracking and eliminating known and emerging vulnerabilities on conventional and small satellites, will undergo a series of environmental and operational tests during the thirteen-minute mission to the edge of space.

“This is an exciting collaborative and multi-faceted mission for two innovative companies determined to transform space access, making it simpler and more affordable for small sat missions looking for both shared and dedicated rides into orbit,” said Rob Spicer, TriSept Founder and CEO. “It’s a historic launch of firsts – the inaugural RocketStar launch vehicle carrying a pair of experimental missions and TriSept’s TSEL operating system is on the verge of making satellite missions and the company’s depending on them more secure from this day forward.”

TriSept’s TSEL was developed to meet rising demand across the satellite industry for a managed cybersecurity solution that secures an embedded device much like a terrestrial server is protected. TSEL offers a series of automated mechanisms and updates that deliver far more detailed audit data, near-real-time security analysis and patch updates along with “zero trust” verification layers that protect against hackers and provide an accurate account of what’s happening aboard the satellite at all times.

A rising number of attacks on critical infrastructure across the U.S. and the world have shown just how vulnerable spacecraft can be, especially as the vast majority of small satellites launched into orbit are ill prepared to protect themselves in the event of adversarial threats.

NASA’s water-scouting cubesat is now poised to hitch a ride to lunar orbit. Not much bigger than a shoe box, Lunar IceCube’s data will have an outsized impact on lunar science.

The satellite is integrated into the Space Launch System (SLS) rocket and ready to journey to the Moon as part of the uncrewed Artemis I mission, launching this year.

Orbiting the Moon, Lunar IceCube will use a spectrometer to investigate lunar ice. Earlier missions revealed water ice on the Moon, but Lunar IceCube will further NASA’s knowledge about lunar ice dynamics.

Scientists are interested in the absorption and release of water from the regolith — the Moon’s rocky and dusty surface. With Lunar IceCube investigating this process, NASA can map these changes as they occur on the Moon.

Lunar IceCube will also study the exosphere — the very thin, atmosphere-like volume surrounding the Moon. By understanding the dynamics of water and other substances on the Moon, scientists will be able to predict seasonal changes for lunar ice that could impact its use as a resource in the future.

This will all be achieved from an efficient and cost-effective cubesat that only weighs 31 pounds. Lunar IceCube is one of several cubesats catching a ride to the Moon aboard Artemis I. These smallsats, along with future Artemis missions, will increase the knowledge for living and working on the Moon and, eventually, Mars.

Lunar IceCube is funded by NASA’s Next Space Technologies for Exploration Partnerships program, or NextSTEP, in support of NASA’s Artemis Campaign Development Division within the Exploration Systems Development Mission Directorate.

The Lunar IceCube mission is led by Morehead State University in Morehead, Kentucky; NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland; NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California; NASA’s Katherine Johnson Independent Verification and Validation Facility in Fairmont, West Virginia; and Busek Space Propulsion and Systems in Natick, Massachusetts.

Article is by Katherine Schauer and Danny Baird, NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center

HyImpulse Technologies GmbH has signed a launch services contract with In Orbit Aerospace Inc. for the launch of their full-scale, Earth return vehicle on SL1, as well as for additional launch options.

The re-entry capsule is scheduled to fly as part of the maiden flight on HyImpulse’s orbital vehicle, Small Launcher SL1, in 2024. In Orbit was founded to enable large-scale manufacturing and research in space.

Recent advancements in technology have led to the production of breakthrough products in microgravity and In Orbit is will build and operate a new, space-based, manufacturing supply chain. The company is developing spacecraft to host customer experiments and manufacturing equipment in space and return those finished products back to Earth. Their uncrewed, reusable vehicles leverage proven technologies and are compatible with many launch vehicles, including Small Launcher, SL1, to enable a high frequency of flights at low cost to the customer.

HyImpulse, is a suborbital and orbital launch services provider based in Baden- Württemberg, Germany. Founded with the goal to revolutionize access to space, HyImpulse’s Small Launcher, SL1, is powered by unique and proprietary hybrid propulsion systems. This disruptive technology enables HyImpulse to offer affordable, frequent, responsive and safe access to space for small satellites and spacecrafts. SL1 has a payload capacity of 500 kg. to a 400 km. SSO / 675 kg. to LEO and it will be the first orbital launch vehicle in the world to reach orbit with a hybrid propulsion system. HyImpulse’s first commercial product and technology demonstrator SR75, is a single stage sounding rocket using a hybrid rocket engine. It is designed to deliver institutional and commercial experiments into a micro gravity environment during a suborbital flight with payload capacity of 350 kg to 200 km. The maiden launch is planned for later this year.

Jinan 1 will conduct key distribution experiments in lower-Earth orbit after a month of testing. More launches planned for near future to support quantum communication for over 100 users around the globe….

China launched a new quantum satellite on Wednesday that could be a first step towards establishing an ultra-secure communications network with global coverage.

It was one of six satellites launched around noon by the Lijian quick response rocket from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in the Gobi Desert, according to Xinhua.

The quantum satellite, developed by the Chinese Academy of Sciences, would conduct quantum key distribution experiments in lower-Earth orbit, the report said.

A quantum key network uses entangled particles to encrypt a message. Any attempt to steal or decode will alter the message physically and alert the receiver, thanks to the law of quantum physics.

It is the second quantum satellite launched by China after it sent the world’s first such satellite, Mozi, into orbit in August 2016.

Called Jinan 1, it weighs less than 100kg — about a sixth of the weight of Mozi — but can generate quantum keys at speeds two or three magnitude higher, the project team said in a statement posted on WeChat.

It said Jinan 1 would enter service after a month of testing and it was “just the first step”. More such satellites would be launched in the near future to support quantum communication for more than 100 users around the globe.

“It is also an important step. It makes China the first country in the world to achieve real-time, satellite-to-ground quantum key distribution with micro-nano satellite and miniaturized ground stations,” the statement said.

China’s first quantum satellite, Mozi, is equipped with what was the most sensitive device when it went into orbit six years ago — it can produce and detect a single photon, or an extremely weak particle of light. The satellite has conducted record-breaking experiments in quantum physics, including proving the feasibility of quantum communication from one continent to another.

But researchers involved in the project say Mozi has its limits. The first generation of space-based quantum communication devices, for instance, can only establish a stable link with the ground at night because the sun produces so much noise that the light signals are drowned out. Also, the bandwidth for quantum key distribution — which is as small as dial-up — restricts communication to voice or low-resolution videos.

The remainder of the article can be found here.

By Stephen Chen in Beijing + FOLLOW

…designs, develops and delivers satellite missions selected UARX Space, a European leader in in-space transportation and developer of highly reliable separation systems for small satellites, for multiple launch services for their PocketQube deployers. The launches of Libre Space Foundation are scheduled for 2023 and 2024

Libre Space Foundation, a not-for-profit organization that designs, develops and delivers satellite missions selected UARX Space, a European leader in in-space transportation and developer of highly reliable separation systems for small satellites, for multiple launch services for their PocketQube deployers. The launches of Libre Space Foundation are scheduled for 2023 and 2024.

“UARX Space is one of the top launch services providers in Europe; we are happy with the sign of these service agreements and to be working and be backed with the experience of the UARX team,” said Mr. Manthos Papamatthaiou, Chairman of the Libre Space Foundation.

UARX will launch into Space several PocketQube deployers of Libre Space Foundation. The launches are scheduled for 2023 and 2024 and are part of the launch manifest of UARX for the next coming years.

“We’re thrilled to have Libre Space as our customer and to support their team with our outstanding technical assistance,” says Mrs. Yanina Hallak, CEO of UARX Space. “We thank Manthos and his team for the trust put on us, and we look forward to future missions with them,” says Mr. Andrés Villa, CTO of UARX Space.