North America

Euroconsult, a global consulting firm for satellite-enabled markets, reported in their latest edition of FSS Capacity Pricing Trends that fixed-satellite service (FSS) capacity pricing is decreasing at a rapid rate. This is due to services supported by next-generation geostationary (GEO) and non-geostationary orbit (NGSO) HTS systems such as Starlink undercutting the market. At the highest industry level, FSS capacity pricing continued to erode in 2022, as the global volume of leased and used capacity increased at a rate that outpaced the growth in satellite operator revenues.

GHGSat has announced the upcoming launches of six additional satellites in 2023. The first three are GHGSat satellites, named Mey-Lin (C6), Gaspard (C7) and Océane (C8), which will travel into orbit this Spring onboard SpaceX’s Transporter-7 rideshare mission.

Capella Space - an American-based company providing data and satellite solutions for government and commercial use - announced on the 22nd of February that it will launch its Analytics Partner Program. This program aims to meet the increasing global demand for geospatial products and solutions that leverage the power of Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) imagery. This program will empower partners to develop AI-powered geospatial solutions for a wide range of industry verticals. 

Vast, a start-up developing artificial-gravity space stations, has acquired launch services company Launcher, located in California to help it develop long-term human habitation in space. Vast is developing an artificial gravity station, greater in volume than the International Space Station, in low Earth orbit. 

NASA will launch Israel’s first space telescope mission, the Ultraviolet Transient Astronomy Satellite (ULTRASAT). ULTRASAT, an ultraviolet observatory with a large field of view, will investigate the secrets of short-duration events in the universe, such as supernova explosions and the mergers of neutron stars.

In this German Space Café Radio - SpaceWatch.Global publisher Torsten Kriening spoke with Andreas Lindenthal, Head of Business Operations & Products at Airbus Space Systems, about the launch of SARah,  Artemis and the Ministerial Council 2022.

On January 3, 2023 at 09:55 ET, Launcher successfully launched its first spacecraft (Orbiter SN1) to orbit aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 (Transporter-6). Upon successful separation on Launcher’s 24” separation system, the spacecraft powered up and communicated to the ground (command uplink and telemetry downlink) during its first scheduled ground station pass. The Company also communicated with the vehicle for the duration of expected battery life.

In this first pilot episode of Space Economy Insights, Kevin O'Connell and Emma Gatti interviewed Claire Jolly, Head of Ocean Economy & Space Economy, Directorate for Science, Technology and Innovation at the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).

Maxar Technologies and Umbra have announced an agreement to provide Maxar with dedicated capacity from satellites in Umbra’s synthetic aperture radar (SAR) imagery constellation. As a result, the data will become available in Maxar’s portfolio of Earth Intelligence products and services.

Boecore has announced its acquisition of Orbit Logic. Orbit Logic will bring over two decades of experience providing operationally proven and highly configurable software products that support their customers’ complex mission objectives in a rapidly evolving space environment.  With this acquisition, Boecore strengthens its software development and specialized mission operations capabilities and brings new product offerings to serve its customers better.