News

Australia’s Buccaneer Risk Mitigation Mission Cubesat, a joint mission between the Australian Defence Science and Technology (DST) Group and the University of New South Wales (UNSW), has performed according to plan since its launch in late 2017 and is paving the way for follow-on Buccaneer missions.

August 15, 2018 at 18:51 UTC, a beacon signal was received from the SiriusSat-1 satellite. The SiriusSat-2 satellite has not made contact yet.

The UK's Goonhilly Earth Station is partnering with Spacebit, a pioneer in space blockchain applications, to provide blockchain solutions for satellite communications, Internet of Things, space exploration, and satellite security. The partnership aims to lower the barrier to entry to access to space communication and application networks.

The Australian and Singaporean New Space launch company, Gilmour Space Technologies, conducted its most powerful orbital engine test to date on 16 August 2018 as part of its preparations for a key suborbital test flight in the fourth quarter of this year.

According to Alexander Medvedev, deputy general director of the TsNIIMash rocket and spacecraft scientific center, the inaugural launch of the Angara-A5M rocket from the Vostochny Cosmodrome is planned for 2025.

As part of a whole-of-government effort, the Japanese government is considering building and launching space-based Space Situational Awareness (SSA) satellites to better monitor space debris and anti-satellite threats against Japanese satellites, according to a report in Japan News.

Japanese company Canon Electronics has outlined its plan to become a turnkey space venture that builds and launches rockets from its own space launch site, and building and operating its own Earth observation satellites and selling the satellite imagery on the open market.

The South Korean government is spearheading investment in its country’s Artificial Intelligence (AI), Big Data, and Blockchain sectors to the tune of 5 trillion Won (U.S.$4.4 billion) starting in 2019.

Japan is considering building a constellation of microsatellites for maritime domain awareness (MDA) operations over the South China Sea, East China Sea, and the Sea of Japan to monitor Chinese maritime and naval activities, especially around the disputed Senkaku/Diaoyutai Islands.

China's Hainan Earth observation satellite constellation that is designed to "reinforce national sovereignty" over the South China Sea and other disputed territories is set to start launching its first satellites in 2019, according to Chinese state media reports.