Swiss space startup Astrocast announced the signing of a new contract with Spaceflight for the launch of 10 additional Internet of Things (IoT) nanosatellites. This new contract, announced 6 February 2020, will be Astrocast’s sixth launch booked with Spaceflight. Both its test and fully functional satellites were also launched with Spaceflight within the last year. In total, Spaceflight is now set to launch 30 of the 100 satellites that will complete the Astrocast IoT Nanosatellite Network. The launch of the satellites is expected to take place in late 2021.
“Spaceflight was founded to provide cost effective, reliable rideshare launch services for smallsat companies, such as Astrocast,” said Curt Blake, CEO and president of Spaceflight. “We are excited to continue our partnership with Astrocast as both our companies strive to expand accessibility of an innovative service.”
Today only 10% of the earth has access to terrestrial communication networks. However, IoT devices in the remotest areas still need the ability to establish two-way communications to send data such as status information and updates. Astrocast’s IoT Nanosatellite Network of 100 CubeSats is specifically designed to transmit and receive low bandwidth data from IoT devices anywhere in the world. Whether a marine buoy in the deep sea or water purification station in the world’s most remote village, Astrocast will allow companies to exchange data with millions of devices around the globe.
“Access to space is the number one challenge for this industry. Astrocast is at an accelerated phase in company growth where it is critical to have experienced partners deploying our constellation,” said Kjell Karlsen CFO of Astrocast. “Spaceflight has proven to be a reliable partner from our very first launch. We couldn’t ask for a better launch and mission management service.”
Astrocast SA was founded in 2014 by the developers of SwissCube, one of the longest-lasting, operational nanosatellites in space. Spaceflight Industries, Inc. is an American private aerospace company specialising in organizing rideshare space launches of secondary payloads and geospatial intelligence services
