Satellite Launch Business

Russia, Kazakhstan, and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) are set to proceed with a trilateral agreement to modernise the ‘Gagarin’s Start’ launch complex at the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan, according to a 16 January 2020 report in Azerbaijan’s Trend News Agency citing Russian and Kazakh sources. The trilateral agreement is …

The European Commission is partnering with the European Investment Bank Group, announcing €200 million of investments into the EU space sector, supporting ground-breaking innovation in the industry. During the European Space Policy Conference in Brussels, EIB Vice-President Ambroise Fayolle signed an agreement with André-Hubert Roussel, CEO of ArianeGroup, confirming a …

Skyrora, the Edinburgh-based satellite launch company, is looking in Iceland for a possible space launch location, according to reports in the Icelandic news media. The Skyrora visit was hosted and assisted by Iceland’s own space body, Space Iceland. Skyrora is developing its Skyrora XL satellite launch vehicle and is already …

China is looking forward to 2020 being a banner year for its ambitious space programme, according to a Chinese government report released on 17 January 2020. China expects to break its own satellite launch record by lofting over 60 satellites into various Earth orbits on more than 40 launches from …

India’s latest communication satellite GSAT-30 was successfully launched from the Spaceport in French Guiana during the early hours of 17 January 2020. The launch vehicle Ariane 5 VA-251 lifted off from Kourou Launch Base, French Guiana at 2:35 am IST carrying India’s GSAT-30 and EUTELSAT KONNECT for Eutelsat, as scheduled. …

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 …

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 …

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 …