Arianespace Enjoyed A 'Remarkable' Year In 2012

The French satellite launch company, Arianespace, announced its net income of €1.7 million for 2012 on sales of €1,329 million.

Despite the contrasted market conditions, according to the company, Arianespace enjoyed a remarkable year in 2012 in  terms of both number of launches and orders booked.

Retaining its world leader status in terms of satellite launching, Arianespace currently has seven Ariane 5 launches orbiting 12 commercial satellites plus the ATV3 Edoardo Amaldi supply vessel for the International Space Station. They have three Soyuz launches, as well, and the first launch of Vega, And having signed 13 launch contracts out of 18 open to competition is not that bad.

In 2013, it looks as though Arianespace is up for even a better year since Eutelsat (for two satellites launches), Australian operator NBN (two satellites launches), and Intelsat (one Vega launch) all signed contracts with the company.

With one Ariane 5 already launched this year, Arianespace still has five more launches planned for this year and a couple more with Soyuz, and Vega launch.

See also: Hawaii To Launch Its First Satellite On October 2013

Azerspace-1/Africasat-1a now offers full commercial service

Azerbaijan’s first satellite, Azerspace-1/Africasat-1a, is finally done with all in-orbit testing and has entered full commercial service, this according to Azercosmos and MEASAT.

Launched on February 7 aboard the Ariane 5 vehicle, the Azerbaijani communications satellite will deliver services to customers residing in Azerbaijan, Africa, Central Asia, Europe and the Middle East. The satellite offers C-band capacity in Africa, Central Asia, Europe and the Middle East, and Ku-band capacity over Europe and Central Asia.

Azerspace-1/Africasat-1a is based on the platform of Orbital Science Corporation’s GEOStar-2 and has a life expectancy rate of more than 15 years. The satellite generates about five kilowatts of payload power, carries 36 active transponders and operates from 46 degrees east longitude orbital location.

Norsat Awarded Repayable Government Contribution For Research & Development

A $13.3 million repayable contribution from the Strategic Aerospace and Defence Initiative (SADI) was awarded to Norsat International Inc. One of the leading innovation communication solutions provider, Norsat said that the contribution will enhance Norsat’s strategic research and development program and enable the company to maintain a leadership position in the development of innovative new or improved communications products, services and processes.

According to a statement Norsat released, the company's research and development program focuses on communications technologies that provide militaries, governments, and commercial customers around the world with connectivity in locations or applications in which infrastructure is unreliable, damaged, insufficient or non-existent.

Norsat President and CEO, Dr. Amiee Chan, said, "Norsat has a long history of excellence in research and development, and the contribution from SADI ensures we remain at the forefront of communications technology development. Through a 2008 contribution from SADI, we have developed over 20 products for the satellite and wireless markets, including our industry leading GLOBETrekker 2.0 fly-away satellite terminal, and we anticipate making further advances through this new contribution.   The relationship with SADI has been a major benefit to our R&D program, and we look forward to using this funding to collaborate with universities and channel partners as we continue to develop technology that enables our customers to remain connected wherever they go."

The contribution from SADI will further six major projects, including the development of:

• Microwave products with improved technical specifications and performance.  Norsat’s microwave components are used worldwide for satellite signal transmission and reception.
• Fly-away satellite terminals with improved ease-of use and technical performance
• Communications-on-the-Move (COTM) technologies that provide connectivity throughout moving deployments.
• Wireless communications technologies for Land Mobile Radio (LMR)
• Novel antennas that deliver high performance, reliability, and durability
• Complementary Communications solutions, providing end to end solutions for applications such as monitoring, surveillance and emergency communications.

See also: Harris Corporation & NOAA Partnered At Launching New Tracking Tool For Weather Satellite Operations