News

LMO (Luxembourg & UK) and In-Space Missions Ltd. (UK) have partnered to explore the use of smallsat platforms for space-based, Space Domain Awareness (SDA) as part of LMO’s AUREA (Autonomous Recognition of Foreign Assets) program — In-Space Missions, a subsidiary of BAE Systems, will study the mission scope of a space-based SDA demonstrator smallsat with a software stack on the ground to demo end-user compatibility.

In-Space Missions will work with LMO and SDA end-users to define the mission requirements, characterize the constraints of the satellite platform and avionics, and identify any development gaps. The study will also identify and define Space Resident Objects (SROs) and orbits of interest, assess real time, on-edge processing needs as well as determine the number of satellites required to deliver LMO’s full, AUREA SDA service.  

The AUREA program will focus on multi-sensor and multi-modal technologies that include optical, LiDAR and radar instruments.  As part of the project, a simulator of the on-board computer will be delivered to LMO for full end-to-end testing of the software, paving the way for the launch of an AUREA SDA demo mission.     

AUREA is a dual-use development program for SDA with funding from Luxembourg’s Directorate of Defence to support the development of capabilities for Luxembourg and the nation’s European and NATO Allies, such as the UK. 

“Partnering with In-Space Missions will allow us to accelerate the validation process of our Protect and Defend architecture, and demonstrate our core SDA capability to end users within NATO and the Five Eyes.” — Michel Poucet, CEO, LMO

“At In-Space Missions, we recognize the importance of monitoring the Earth’s orbital environment and synthesizing an accurate picture of an increasingly contested space domain.  To ensure a secure future in space, the safety of our satellite assets, and the security of those people who depend on them for critical services, we will continue to develop capabilities around space domain awareness.  As an important step forward in growing these capabilities, In-Space is delighted to be working on this project with LMO – a company recognized as a domain leader in space domain awareness.” — Doug Liddle, CEO, In-Space Missions

“Space Domain Awareness is essential for informed decision-making and thus a priority for Luxembourg Directorate of Defence’s space strategy. We need innovative dual-use solutions with military and societal benefits. That was the very ambition of our first R&D call for proposals. As the AUREA program met all our expectations, it is one of the projects we will fund in the framework of the call.” — Colonel Guy Hoffman, National Armaments Director, Luxembourg

Swissto12 has secured a 26.15 million euros working capital facility from UBS Switzerland AG. The bank will provide Swissto12 with access to additional working capital to support the delivery of the company’s first HummingSat, Swissto12’s GEO smallsat.  

Since the company was founded in 2011, Swissto12 has raised more than 50 million euros in venture capital from prominent Swiss and European investors that have included Contantia New Business, Swisscom, Swisscanto and Zürcher Kantonal. In addition to the company’s growing Radio Frequency (RF) product and subsystem business, Swissto12’s partnership project with the European Space Agency (ESA) has gained more than 30 million euros of support to design the HummingSat platform, the first smallsat for GEO. 

In 2022, Swissto12 announced securing a deal to supply a HummingSat satellite to Intelsat, followed in May 2023 by a deal to supply three HummingSats to Inmarsat (acquired by Viasat in 2023). The company currently has more than 200 million euros in back orders from customers across the firm’s RF products and subsystems business, partnership with ESA and recent HummingSat contracts.

“Swissto12 is the first ever growth-stage company to sell a whole geostationary satellite to global satellite operators – testament to the uniquely transformative market potential of the HummingSat platform and the team’s technical and commercial acumen. Having generated over €200 million in customer orders, Swissto12 is also one of the few growth-stage companies able to secure a growth facility of this magnitude from a multinational bank such as UBS – the company is in a tremendously good position to reinvigorate the geostationary communications market on which billions of people depend for broadband, broadcast and safety services.” — Pär Lange, Partner, Swisscom Ventures

“As the Swiss Export Risk Insurance SERV, we are pleased to help enable this partnership between Swissto12 and UBS and support Swissto12 as it seizes new growth opportunities in the global satellite market.” — Peter Gisler, CEO, SERV

“This working capital facility with UBS gives us additional agility to execute on the manufacturing and delivery of our first HummingSat. Swissto12 is thereby creating a new class of agile, high performance SmallSat for geostationary orbit that is approximately three to five times smaller and lower cost than conventional geostationary satellites, while still reliably delivering critical services. We’re excited to build on customer demand from global satellite operators and national governments with our innovative geostationary communications satellites that will better connect and protect users worldwide.” — Emile de Rijk, Founder and CEO of Swissto12

Rogue Space Systems, creator of Orbots, autonomous AI robots, that provide in-space infrastructure and services, has successfully integrated their “Barry” (Barry-1) spacecraft into its deployer with partner Exolaunch — Barry-1 is now ready for transport to Vandenberg Space Force Base where it will be flying on the SpaceX Transporter-9 mission NET October 2023.

The completion of this integration marks the final steps for Rogue’s inaugural launch, gaining the company space heritage. The “Barry” spacecraft will test Rogue’s novel Scalable Compute Platform (SCP) and its ability to aggregate data from multiple sensors and process that data in real time. Rogue will also be testing a number of both internal and customer developed algorithms.

Also, on Barry-1, Rogue has some interesting customer hardware payloads. The Rogue team will be testing two, IVO Quantum Drives, propellant-less propulsion systems which, if successful (according to Rogue’s CRO Brent Abbott), “would revolutionize the space industry.” Rogue was contracted by IVO to ensure thorough in-space testing and validation.

As a first in a series of demonstrations and testing for their customers, Rogue has included “Massless Payload Hostings” on Barry-1. The team at Rogue has an additional hosting that will be announced once the smallsat has completed initial commissioning. In the past 18 months, Rogue has successfully delivered 14 SpaceWERX and AFWERX SBIR/STTR contracts, valued at more than $3.25 million.

“We are embarking on the in-space demonstration of Rogue’s novel technology. These technologies were developed contracts awarded through the SpaceWERX Orbital Prime Program.. Rogue has rapidly advanced multiple, essential technologies and is now achieving space heritage. This is the definitive milestone for any space startup. None of it would have been possible if not for our brilliant and driven team here at Rogue who overcame so many challenges to get here. Watching the team thrive in the face of those challenges was a genuinely humble experience. We look forward to Barry-1 in space, this is their moment. These guys have earned it.” — Jeromy Grimmett, Founder and CEO, Rogue

AAC Clyde Space and partners, Saab and Orbcomm, are planning to launch Ymir-1, a Swedish built VDES (VHF Data Exchange System) spacecraft, in November of 2023.

This research project, that is partially funded by the Swedish Transport Administration, intends to launch a test satellite that will make way for a future constellation to provide a next generation VDES service. The first cutting-edge satellite is part of a collaborative project AOS, a brand born from a partnership between AAC Clyde Space, ORBCOMM and Saab.

Ymir-1 will carry a Saab VDES payload for two-way communication between satellite and ground and ORBCOMM will integrate the data in the firm’s distribution center for maritime communications.

The goal of the consortium is to create a global, maritime communication network that enables ship-to-ship and ship-to-shore communication everywhere around the globe. Together, they are developing the nexgen of space based VDES. The addition of a space-based capability will increase VDES range from the shoreline to anywhere in the ocean, converting what is currently a predominantly coastal system into a global maritime system.

“We look forward to welcoming the Swedish Transport Administration this month to showcase our ready to launch smart satellite but also the development of the next generation of space based VDES.  This In Orbit Demonstration satellite will provide proof of concept of a space-based capability that will increase VDES range from the shoreline to anywhere in the ocean, converting what is currently a predominantly coastal system into a global maritime system. VDES will increase maritime safety and contribute to a greener shipping industry, that will improve life on Earth.” — AAC Clyde Space CEO Luis Gomes.

“We are grateful for the support of funding from the Swedish Transport Administration on the development of space based VDES. Saab’s aim is to enhance a selection of existing products and to make use of space capabilities for the benefit of our customers and users. Saab’s R6 Supreme AIS/VDES ship-transponders will provide functionality to the next generation of global maritime communication services based on a VHF VDES. The Ymir-1 launch will complement this, by supporting the development of our space-based VDES, and by that create a foundation for a global maritime communication network beyond the horizon,” — Head of Transpondertech at Saab Johanna Gustafsson

GEOST, LLC., (GEOST), a LightRidge Solutions Company, has been selected by Northrop Grumman to build and rapidly deliver its Starlite resiliency payload for Tracking Layer Tranche 1 satellites being developed for the Space Development Agency that is scheduled to launch in 2025 — GEOST will provide eight Starlite payloads and a ground system to be integrated with the Tranche 1 Tracking Layer.

The Starlite system is significantly smaller and more affordable than predecessor satellite payloads. At approximately the size of a can of soda, Starlite is mission agnostic and applicable to a wide range of government and commercial distributed satellite constellations.

“As the threats to space assets grow, the GEOST Starlite payload on the Tracking Layer constellation and other satellites will add significant resiliency, rapidly and affordably,” noted LightRidge Solutions Chief Growth & Strategy Officer Joshua Hartman. “Small, affordable yet high performance payloads such as Starlite change the paradigm for how capability is delivered across a variety of missions, particularly with regard to the growing number of government and commercial distributed satellite architectures.” — Joshua Hartman, Chief Growth and Strategy Officer, GEOST

GEOST, LLC, a LightRidge Solutions Company, is a rapidly growing designer, producer, and integrator of small, affordable high-performance electro-optical/infrared sensors for critical National Security Space missions. The company was founded in 2004 and has served its core National Security Space customer base since inception. GEOST employs approximately 170 professionals and is headquartered in Tucson, Arizona with additional facilities located in Northern Virginia and Los Angeles, California.

LightRidge Solutions is a rapidly growing designer, developer and producer of small, affordable, high-performance space and airborne sensors and payloads and ancillary technologies. Its operating units GEOST, LLC., and Ophir Corporation, have been selected to fly defense and national security assets, solving customers’ mission critical sensor and payload challenges for more than 50 years.

Rocket Lab USA, Inc. (Nasdaq: RKLB) has scheduled the next Electron launch during a window that opens on September 19, 2023 NZST/UTC.

The ‘We Will Never Desert You’ mission is scheduled to launch from Rocket Lab Launch Complex 1 on New Zealand’s Mahia Peninsula for Capella Space, a provider of commercial Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) imagery.

‘We Will Never Desert You’ will launch the second of Capella’s 3Gen SAR Acadia satellites to LEO. This will be Rocket Lab’s third launch for Capella in 2023, and second launch in a multi-launch contract of four missions. Capella’s highest quality, high resolution SAR imagery penetrates all weather conditions and captures clear imagery 24/7, day and night, anywhere on Earth, delivered through a fully-automated ordering and delivery platform.

Capella’s existing SAR capabilities includes long-dwell imaging and extended duty-cycle – which results in more images collected per orbit than any other SAR systems. Acadia will augment Capella’s existing constellation with increased bandwidth and power, faster downlink speeds, and reduced latency

As Capella’s sole launch provider in 2023 to build out the company’s Earth-imaging constellation, Rocket Lab’s most recent launch, ‘We Love The Nightlife,’ successfully deployed Capella’s first Acadia satellite to space on August 24, 2023. An earlier mission for Capella this year, ‘Stronger Together,’ successfully delivered two satellites to space for the company from Rocket Lab Launch Complex 2 in Wallops, Virginia, in March 2023.

Electron’s precise payload deployment record and ability to meet wide-ranging mission requirements enables operators like Capella to increase their constellation’s orbital diversity while at the same time grow quickly to meet customer demand. Rocket Lab is also supplying its own separation systems for each Capella mission that further maintains the Company’s vertical integration strategy.

“As the only commercial U.S. small launch vehicle providing regular and reliable dedicated access to orbit, Electron provides a unique service to satellite operators like Capella. When you’re a dedicated launch customer you can fly where you want and when you want to, and launching these two missions back-to-back for Capella demonstrates the value that brings to commercial constellation operators.” — Peter Beck, Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Rocket Lab

Terran Orbital (NYSE: LLAP) has launched their Responsive Space Initiative. Under this initiative, the company is committed to providing customers with satellite buses within just 30 days and complete satellite systems with integrated payloads within 60 days — there are seven new satellite buses that will be participating in this program.

Terran Orbital’s advanced production capabilities through the implementation of automation and robotics find the firm standardizing common components that can be stocked and are interchangeable, depending on the bus configuration. The company proudly designs and manufactures 85% of all modules and components that go into a bus today.

With the Responsive Space Initiative, Terran Orbital will be able to deliver smallsats that are flexible, of high-quality, and reliable to military, civil, and commercial customers at a faster and more cost-effective rate. Satellites for critical missions will be delivered in days instead of requiring years to complete. The company recently introduced a new product line that is comprised of seven buses that are ready for quick delivery and can be immediately added to the firm’s inventory.

Terran Orbital will be partnering with best-of-breed payload suppliers to stock a wide range of payloads. This will allow the fulfillment of any customer requirements, whether Electro-Optical Imaging, Synthetic Aperture Radar, Communications, Hyperspectral, or any other payload with global demand.

There are currently more than 30 conflict zones across the globe and the demand for Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance (ISR) capabilities to monitor these zones is increasing far faster than satellite manufacturers can currently address. Terran Orbital’s goal is to meet this demand and improve the availability of ISR capabilities in critical regions.

Terran Orbital is also building a new facility in Irvine, California, dedicated to the Responsive Space Initiative. The facility is scheduled to be operational in the summer of 2024 and the program will be launched in the Q4 of the same year.

“We recently announced our seven new stocking buses, today we are announcing how fast we can build them. These are exciting times not only for Terran Orbital but the industry as a whole.” — Marc Bell, Co-founder, Chairman and CEO, Terran Orbital