Satellite News

SES Astra said it had further increased the number of digital satellite TV homes reached by the Astra satellite system in Germany by 1.72 million to 9.75 million households (+ 21.5 percent).

Advantech AMT Inc., a provider of satellite and microwave products and solutions, said it carried out one of the world’s first successful transmissions of 155.52 Mbps carrier over satellite using 64QAM and 32APSK.

Asia Satellite Telecommunications Holdings Limited announced its 2007 annual results for the year to 31 December 2007.

Jules Verne ATV successfully performed two boosts today, bringing the spacecraft to an altitude of 303 km – half-way between the insertion orbit reached after last Sunday’s launch and the orbit of the International Space Station.

Complete minute-by-minute coverage of space shuttle Endeavour’s final approach and docking with the International Space Station.

The Endeavour astronauts are closing in on the international space station today, on track for a docking around 11:25 p.m. EDT to kick off a five-spacewalk assembly mission.

The astronauts unlimbered the shuttle’s robot arm and inspected the ship’s nose cap and wing leading edge panels with a laser scanner on the end of a 50-foot-long boom. The areas of the orbiter that experience the most extreme heating during re-entry appeared in good shape to the untrained eye, including the nose section where launch imagery indicates a possible bird or debris strike about 10 seconds after liftoff.

“If I had not criticised them, they wouldn’t have done anything – constructive criticism is helpful.” – Russian Vice-Premier Sergei Ivanov commenting earlier harsh remarks about Roskosmos, which he blamed for shortcomings of the GLONASS system