Satellite News

Rocket: Rokot/Briz KM; Payload: SERVIS-2 (Space Environment Reliability Verification Integrated System 2); Date: 2 June 2010, 0159 UTC; Launch site: Plesetsk, Russia. The spacecraft was injected into a Sun-synchronous orbit of 1,200 km altitude.

SpaceX said it is now targeting 4 June for its first test launch attempt of the Falcon 9 launch vehicle. The four-hour launch window opens at 1500 UTC.

Iridium Communications said it chose Thales Alenia Space over Lockheed Martin Corp. to design its its next-generation satellite constellation, Iridium NEXT, and announced a financing plan for the project.

Boeing and its teammate Ball Aerospace and Technologies has announced that the first Space Based Space Surveillance (SBSS) system satellite has been shipped to Vandenberg Air Force Base and is scheduled to launch on 8 July.

Russian Satellite Communications Company is not planning to take the partially defunct Ekspress-AM1 satellite out of service or move it to a different orbital slot, Intersputnik said.

While cable and satellite program providers will continue to serve the great majority of homes as the primary signal source, missing HD local reception, compression issues, higher costs, billing add-ons, service outages, contact difficulties, in-home service waits and no shows have left many of these subscribers looking to off-air antennas as good additions and alternatives. Most TV consumers think of antennas as low-tech devices, but there is more behind some of the newer antenna designs than just bent metal and plastic.

One of the most commonly used excuses these days has to be “I don’t have time.” People use it in a million different situations. “I would go to the gym 3 times a week, but I don’t have time.” “I really need to catch up with my old friend, but I just don’t have the time.” It always seems to come down to not having the time for the things that we want to do.

You might find the greatest appeal of a vacation home in its out-of-the-way location and peaceful environment. At the same time, you may not be able to kiss the world at large goodbye every time you need a break. In places where the traditional cable lines don’t go, you’ll find yourself looking for solutions in internet and TV. Satellite broadband is probably the easiest way to handle the internet, while satellite TV needs little introduction as a solid service for people away from cable lines.