Satellite News

ESA’s Soil Moisture and Ocean Salinity (SMOS) satellite, which is to complete its commissioning phase next month, experiences some terrestrial interference, the BBC reported.
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OHB-System AG has been awarded contracts under the E-SGA programme (Europeanisation of Satellite-Based Reconnaissance) providing for the operation of both the French ground station of the SAR-Lupe system and the German ground station of the HELIOS II system. The two contracts have a combined value of EUR14.0 million.
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Intelsat S.A. announced an expansion of its April 2009 agreement for UHF hosted payload services with the Australian Defence Force (ADF).
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GE – Satellite was recently chosen by NASA to provide Ku-band satellite connectivity for a science mission to study atmospheric and environmental conditions across in the Pacific via Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV).
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Avanti Communications Group plc said it has signed a contract with a Government customer for the sale of an option over specific capacity on the HYLAS 2 satellite, which serves the Middle East, Africa and Europe.
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Hughes Network Systems, LLC announced an US$18 million, multi-year agreement to supply Avanti Communications Group, plc with advanced Ka-band networking infrastructure for Avanti’s HYLAS 2 satellite, building on the initial US$24 million contract to supply Ka-band technology for HYLAS 1 signed last October.

Telenor, the Norwegian owner and operator of the Thor satellites at 1 West, has renewed its contract with Arqiva for the uplinking of three digital multiplexes onto its Thor 5 satellite.

SES Astra has signed a capacity agreement with South African pay-TV operator On Digital Media (ODM) for three transponders on its Astra 4A satellite, and has also contracted to provide the related broadcasting services via its affiliate Astra Platform Services.
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