Satellite News

Spaceflight Inc. announced it has secured a launch service agreement to orbit its “SHERPA” hosted payload and in-space transportation system. Spaceflight’s inaugural SHERPA mission will deploy up to 1,200 kilograms of customer satellite payloads into low Earth orbit during the second half of 2015 on an undisclosed launch vehicle.

The Orbiting Carbon Observatory-2 has arrived at its launch site on California’s central coast after travelling from Orbital Sciences Corp.’s Satellite Manufacturing Facility in Gilbert, Arizona. The spacecraft now will undergo final tests and then be integrated on top of a United Launch Alliance Delta II rocket in preparation for a planned launch on 1 July.

The NOAA/NASA Suomi NPP satellite is now the primary operational polar-orbiting spacecraft for NOAA’s operational weather forecasting mission. The National Weather Service (NWS) uses Suomi NPP data in its numerical weather prediction models.

ATK has successfully completed testing of its MegaFlex solar array wing under a contract with NASA Glenn Research Center to ready high-power solar arrays for powering large-scale Solar Electric Propulsion (SEP) systems planned for use on future robotic and manned exploration missions.

After more than ten years of studying the Universe, the Canadian Microvariability and Oscillation of STars (MOST) mission will come to an end on 9 September 2014, having exceeded its objectives.

U.S. sanctions against Russia are expected to have no immediate affect on satellite launches aboard Proton and Atlas V rockets. The United States recently restricted exports of high-tech defence products to Russia, and a U.S. Court of Federal Claims judge issued an injunction prohibiting United Launch Alliance from proceeding with plans to buy Russian-made RD-180 rocket engines

Intelsat S.A. reported financial results for the first quarter 2014.

Telesat Holdings Inc. announced its financial results for the three month period ending 31 March 2014.