April 7, 2021

Satellite Operators Jockey to Address Starlink Threat (Source: Space News)
Other satellite operators are weighing approaches to compete with the growing Starlink constellation. SES says it's taking a hybrid approach, using both its geostationary satellites as well as the O3b constellation in medium Earth orbit. The company believes that governments are interested in a seamless network that takes advantage of having multiple orbits to route traffic based on customer demand. Hughes Network Systems is taking a similar approach thanks to its partnership with OneWeb. Viasat believes that GEO satellites provide more cost-effective services, but even that company is considering a LEO constellation. (4/7)

SpaceX to Ramp Up Vandenberg Launch Cadence with Starlink Missions (Source: SpaceFlight Now)
After a lull in launches from America’s primary West Coast rocket base, SpaceX is set to resume a regular cadence of missions from Vandenberg Air Force Base as soon as July to deploy Starlink internet satellites into polar orbits. The launches from Vandenberg will allow SpaceX’s ever-growing Starlink network to fill in coverage gaps and provide internet connectivity over the poles. Gwynne Shotwell, SpaceX’s president and chief operating officer, said Tuesday that the company plans to start launching more Starlink satellites into polar orbit this summer. So far, nearly all of the Starlink satellites launched by SpaceX have gone into 341-mile-high  orbits tilted at an inclination of 53 degrees to the equator.

In November, SpaceX sought authorization from the FCC to fly 348 Starlink satellites in sun-synchronous orbits at an altitude of 348 miles. Those satellites would launch into polar orbits inclined 97.6 degrees to the equator, to provide Starlink service in the polar regions. The FCC approved SpaceX to launch the first 10 Starlink satellites into a sun-synchronous orbit aboard the Jan. 24 rideshare mission on a Falcon 9 rocket. FCC approval is still pending for the rest of the Starlink satellites in the lower-altitude sun-synchronous orbit. Officials said SpaceX could ramp up to a cadence of launching one Starlink mission per month from the California launch base. (4/6)

Telesat Moves Forward with Lightspeed LEO Constellation (Source: Space News)
Telesat is moving forward with its LEO constellation, Lightspeed, finalizing its financing and launch plans. Dan Goldberg, president and CEO of Telesat, said at a conference Tuesday that the company expects to complete financing of the $5 billion system in the next couple of months, using a mix of debt and equity to fund the 298-satellite constellation. The company is also in talks with launch providers, beyond its existing contract with Blue Origin, and expects to announce agreements in the coming months. Goldberg said Telesat elected to pursue a LEO system after concluding it was the most effective way to provide broadband services, but still sees a role for GEO satellites for the foreseeable future in other markets, like direct-to-home television. (4/7)

Microsoft Plans Automated Satellite Image Processing for Azure Orbital (Source: Space News)
Microsoft plans to incorporate automated satellite image processing technology developed by Thales Alenia Space into its Azure Orbital platform. Thales Alenia's DeeperVision software is designed to automatically analyze images as soon as they are received from satellites through the use of artificial intelligence and machine learning technologies. Microsoft unveiled Azure Orbital last year to connect satellites to its Azure cloud infrastructure, including equipping data centers with ground stations to help customers retrieve information from Earth observation, remote sensing and communications satellites. (4/7)

CAES and Swissto12 Offer 3D-Printed Satellite Components (Source: Space News)
Two companies are working together to bring 3D-printed satellite RF technology to the U.S. market. CAES (formerly known as Cobham Advanced Electronic Solutions) is partnering with Switzerland-based additive manufacturing specialist Swissto12 to offer the technology to U.S. government and commercial customers. Swissto12 says its technology allows 3D printing of RF components that can't be produced with conventional 3D-printing systems, and has flown such components on satellites operated by Eutelsat and Inmarsat. CAES, the former electronics unit of British defense and aerospace contractor Cobham, will work with Swissto12 to offer the technology to customers like the Defense Department. (4/7)

AST SpaceMobile Begins Nasdaq Trading, Toward Constellation for Cellular Connectivity (Source: AST SpaceMobile)
AST SpaceMobile will begin trading Wednesday on the Nasdaq exchange after completing its merger with a special-purpose acquisition company (SPAC). AST announced Tuesday it completed its merger with New Providence Acquisition Corp. after shareholders of that SPAC voted to approve the deal last week. AST will trade on Nasdaq under the ticker symbol ASTS starting today. The merger provided AST with $462 million, which the company will use to further development of a constellation of satellites to provide cellular connectivity services. (4/7)

NASA Drop Tests Orion at Langley (Source: Space.com)
NASA conducted a drop test of an Orion spacecraft prototype Tuesday. The agency dropped an Orion capsule model into a pool at the Langley Research Center in Virginia as part of a final series of tests of the spacecraft. Those tests collect data to compare to models of the capsule's performance when hitting the water, including the forces astronauts inside would experience at splashdown. (4/7)

New Permits Shed Light on SpaceX Activity at Florida Facilities (Source: NasaSpaceFlight.com)
SpaceX facilities in Florida originally used to build Starship prototypes are being repurposed for other work. SpaceX started work on a Starship prototype at a factory in Cocoa, Florida, in 2019, but stopped that effort to concentrate Starship development in Texas. That Florida facility, though, now appears to be making thermal tiles that will be used on Starship. SpaceX also halted work on a site on the grounds of the Kennedy Space Center last year when it consolidated Starship work in Texas, but activity there may resume soon based on a permit to extend an access road at the site. (4/7)

Mike Gold Leaves NASA for Redwire (Source: Redwire)
A NASA official is joining Redwire. The company announced Tuesday it was hiring Mike Gold as its new executive vice president of civil space business development and external affairs. Gold was associate administrator for space policy and partnerships at NASA, and worked on projects such as the Artemis Accords. He previously worked for Bigelow Aerospace and Maxar. Redwire, which announced plans to go public last month through a merger with a SPAC, has acquired several space manufacturing and component companies over the last year. (4/7)

NASA Psyche Mission to Test Electric Thruster Tech (Source: Ars Technica)
An upcoming NASA mission will be the first deep-space test of an electric thruster technology. The Psyche mission to the main belt asteroid Psyche will use Hall thrusters, which are in common use in commercial satellites in Earth orbit but have yet to be used in a deep-space mission. Both NASA and Maxar, which is building the spacecraft, believe the technology is mature enough for use on such a mission. The technology, they added, makes the mission feasible within its Discovery-class budget of about $1 billion. (4/7)

SpaceX Shifts Fairing Recovery Approach (Sources: SPACErePORT, SpaceXfleet.com)
SpaceX had limited success catching its fairings in large nets attached to two ships based at Port Canaveral, but ended up fishing most of the fairing halves out of the water, where they floated awaiting retrieval, refurbishment, and reuse. Now the company has decided to abandon the ships, Ms. Tree and Ms. Chief, removing the netting and distinctive arms. They are likely leaving Port Canaveral for good. Elon Musk confirmed via Twitter that the Falcon-9 fairings will now be recovered from the water.

SpaceX's two Dragon recovery ships, GO Searcher and GO Navigator, have been fishing out fairings since March, with each ship capable of carrying two fairing halves. And a new larger ship, the Shelia Bordelon has successfully demonstrated it can retrieve and transport two fairing halves back to port. SpaceXfleet.com believes the Shelia Bordelon is a temporary part of the SpaceX navy, and that the two Dragon recovery ships can be deployed for longer durations to recover fairings from multiple launches without returning to port after each fairing recovery. SpaceX's quickening launch tempo may require this capability. (4/6)

Ariane-6 Tests Mimic Liftoff (Source: Space Daily)
Ariane 6 early combined tests at Latesys in Fos-sur-Mer, in France, have simulated the moment of liftoff when the umbilicals separate from the launch vehicle. These tests are part of the critical path towards the first flight of Europe's new Ariane 6 launch vehicle. They validate the interfaces and mechanical behaviour during separation of this complex cryogenic connection system. More extensive combined tests will be carried out at Europe's Spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana which will include the fluidic supplies. (4/7)