Satellite News

The Bates family and friends (who occupy a former British military installation located 10 km off the coast of Suffolk, England, and call themselves an “independent micro-nation” by the name of Sealand) announced they “have received a multi-million dollar investment opportunity to fund the launch of a new communications satellite.”

WildBlue Communications, Inc. announced that it was named Euroconsult’s 2007 Broadband Satellite System Operator of the Year during the 11th World Summit for Satellite Financing in Paris, France.

SpaceDev has been awarded three contracts to deliver over 200 satellite components for Mitsubishi Electric Corporation.

The radar and UHF radio on NASA’s Phoenix Mars Lander have passed in-flight checkouts, the agency said.

International Launch Services (ILS) and Inmarsat Plc reiterated that the Inmarsat 4-F3 satellite would be launched on a Proton Briz M vehicle in early 2008.

Kazakhstan has accused Russia of not doing enough to ensure the safety of its space launches a day after a Proton M rocket crashed in the Central Asian state. Meanwhile, satellite operator JSAT has ordered a replacement for JCSAT-11, which was destroyed in the accident.