News

The EUTELSAT KONNECT satellite was successfully launched into Geostationary Transfer Orbit by Arianespace using an Ariane 5 rocket that lifted off from the Guiana Space Centre in Kourou, French Guiana, at 9.05 pm Universal Time (10.05 pm CET) on 16 January 2020. The separation of the all-electric satellite occurred after …

After a successful restructuring phase the management team of Planetary Transportation Systems (PTS) now takes full responsibility for the company. The PTS executives take over the Berlin New Space company with immediate effect as part of a management buyout from the Zeitfracht Group. Zeitfracht Group saved PTS from bankruptcy in …

During a meeting of a parliamentary committee, Étienne Schneider, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of the Economy confirmed that the Government of Luxembourg, together with public and private sector partners, have invested a stake in Orbital Ventures, an investment fund focused on early stage companies engaged in space activities. Luxembourg’s …

Arianespace opened its 2020 launch activity with a dual-satellite Ariane 5 mission from French Guiana that successfully placed EUTELSAT KONNECT and GSAT-30 into geostationary transfer orbit on 16 January 2020. Conducted from the Spaceport’s ELA-3 launch site, today’s mission delivered an estimated payload lift performance of 7,888 kg. EUTELSAT KONNECT …

Jonathan Yaney, Founder and CEO of SpinLaunch, Inc., has announced that the company has received an additional investment of U.S.$35 million for continued development of the world’s first kinetic launch system, designed to provide the lowest-cost, environmentally responsible orbital launch system to serve the rapidly growing small satellite industry. The …

Arianespace has announced that it intends to launch the UAE’s second reconnaissance satellite, Falcon Eye 2, on board a Soyuz satellite launch vehicle from the Guiana Space Centre in early March 2020. Falcon Eye 2 was originally slated to be launched on board an Arianespace Vega satellite launch vehicle, but …

The UK Space Agency is offering young people expert advice and a share of £50,000 for their ideas of how satellites could improve life on Earth. The SatelLife Competition, now in its fourth year, is looking for innovative proposals that could use data collected from space to benefit daily life, such …

The UAE Space Agency and the Saudi Space Commission met on the sidelines of the Saudi-Emirati Coordination Council in Riyadh, the capital city of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, on 10 January 2020, where both parties officially activated their Memorandum of Understanding that was initially signed last year. The activation …

exactEarth Ltd. and Hisdesat have announced that in partnership they have been selected by the European Maritime Safety Agency (EMSA) to provide satellite-AIS data services for a four-year period. Hisdesat, as prime contractor, will provide EMSA with exactView RT, exactEarth’s second-generation real-time satellite-AIS data service. Actual revenues under this framework contract …

Rocket Lab, the global leader in dedicated small satellite launch, has announced it will open a new facility which will serve as its Corporate Headquarters, provide incremental production capacity, and bring Mission Control Center capabilities to Long Beach, California. Construction on Rocket Lab’s Long Beach Complex has begun, with the …