Asia Pacific

The South Korean Ministry of Science and ICT has approved 300 billion Won funding (U.S.$264 million) for the development of three remote sensing satellites to be used for resource management, environmental monitoring, and space science.

So much of the coverage of what happens in national, regional, and international space activities focuses on the technical aspects of space or on high-level policy making. A growing number of individuals and organisations, however, are bridging these two very different aspects of the space sector. In Australia, Aria Stirling Colton is doing just this with her Adelaide-based National Space Innovation Hub (NSIH). Helen Jameson, the Editor-in-Chief of SpaceWatch.Global, spoke with Aria to find out more.

Communities in remote areas of Indonesia will soon be able to enjoy reliable broadband internet access delivered by Teleglobal enabled by SES Networks’ managed data services and the SES-12 satellite, SES announced on 24 April 2019.

Relativity, the world’s first autonomous rocket factory and launch services leader for satellite constellations, announced on 23 April 2019 a partnership with mu Space, the innovative Thai satellite and space technology company, to launch a satellite to Low Earth Orbit (LEO) on Relativity’s Terran 1 rocket, the world’s first and only 3D printed rocket.

Following the successful completion of payload and bus integration, Boeing will begin antenna range testing and core testing of the Kacific1 satellite. The satellite is on track to begin service delivery later this year.

Viasat and China Satcom have entered into a strategic partnership to jointly provide in-flight connectivity (IFC) services within China for domestic and international airlines.

Infostellar together with Innovative Solutions in Space (ISIS) and Teledyne Paradise Datacom make StellarStation compatible with widely used ground station hardware options supporting time and cost sharing thus empowering New Space startups.

South Korean President Moon Jae-in visited Turkmenistan last week as part of a tour of Central Asian republics, and pledged South Korean expertise in helping the country to develop its first remote sensing satellite.

Surrounded by air chiefs from 11 other nations, U.S. Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. David L. Goldfein plunged deep into discussion 11 April 2019 about the changing nature of space.

On 19 April 2019, the U.S.–Japan Security Consultative Committee convened in Washington, DC, with the participation of Secretary of State Pompeo, Acting Secretary of Defense Shanahan, Minister for Foreign Affairs Kono, and Minister of Defense Iwaya.