Pakistan adopts Chinese GPS satellite system, despite cheap, unreliable service

Pakistan is set to become the fifth Asian country to use China's cheap domestic satellite navigation system which was launched as a rival to the US global positioning system.

The Beidou, or Compass, system started providing services to civilians in the region in December and is expected to provide global coverage by 2020. It also has military applications.

Thailand, China, Laos and Brunei already use the cheap Chinese system, which currently consists of 16 operational satellites, with 30 more due to join the system.

Huang Lei, international business director of BDStar Navigation, which promotes Beidou, stated that the company would build a network of stations in Pakistan to enhance the location accuracy of Beidou.

He said building the network would cost tens of millions of dollars.

American website Defensenews.com reported early May that Pakistani military experts were in favour of using the Chinese system, even though the availability of the signal could not be guaranteed in case of conflict.

But according to one of them, Pakistan "cannot place its trust in the United States."

"Pakistan's armed forces cannot rely on US GPS because of its questionable availability during a conflict that has overtones of nuclear escalation," former Pakistan Air Force pilot Kaiser Tufail told the site.

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang travels next week to Pakistan, a long time ally, after a visit to India.

Unha-3 Rocket: North Korea Successfully Launches Satellite

Sohae Launch Facility, North Korea, Nov. 26, 2012.

This satellite image of the Sohae Launch Facility on Nov. 26, 2012 shows a marked increase in activity at North Korea's Sohae (West Sea) Satellite Launch Station. 

This activity is consistent with launch preparations as witnessed prior to the failed April 13, 2012 launch of the Unha 3 (i.e., Universe or Galaxy 3) space launch vehicle (SLV) carrying the Kwangmyongsong 3 (i.e., Bright Lodestar 3). 

Given the observed level of activity noted of a new tent, trucks, people and portable fuel/oxidizer tanks, should North Korea desire, it could possibly conduct its fifth satellite launch event during the next three weeks (e.g., by mid-December 2012).

CREDIT: DigitalGlobe via Getty Images 

North Korea apparently succeeded in placing a satellite in Earth orbit after a Wednesday morning (Dec. 12) launch that is already drawing condemnation from the United States and other Western nations.

North Korea launched its long-range Unha-3 rocket at 9:49 a.m. Wednesday local time (7:49 p.m. EST on Tuesday) from Sohae Satellite Launch Station on the nation's northwest coast.

North Korean officials declared the launch a success shortly thereafter, claiming that the Unha-3 had delivered a scientific satellite to orbit as planned.

The rogue nation has a history of making such claims even after failed liftoffs, but it appears to be telling the truth this time.

"Initial indications are that the missile deployed an object that appeared to achieve orbit," the North American Aerospace Defense Command, a joint U.S.-Canadian effort, said in a statement.

"At no time was the missile or the resultant debris a threat to North America."

If it was indeed successful, the launch would end a string of rocket mishaps for North Korea. A satellite launch this past April failed shortly after liftoff, and similar attempts in 1998 and 2009 also flopped.

These past blastoffs drew condemnation from the United States, South Korea and other nations, which viewed them as thinly disguised missile tests.

Wednesday's launch has already elicited a strong reaction. The White House called it a "highly provocative act that threatens regional security," and United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon declared it a "clear violation" of a UN resolution.

ESA DLR: EDRS space network ready to go ahead

The design of Europe’s data relay satellite system – EDRS - has been completed and approved.

This marks the moment when it moves ahead with a green light from its first customer, the Global Monitoring for Environment and Security initiative from the European Union (GMES).

EDRS will provide a telecommunications network that is fast, reliable and seamless, making real-time information from satellites available on demand.

EDRS will be the first commercially operated data relay system to deliver services to the Earth observation community.

It is being built through a Public–Private Partnership (PPP) between ESA and Astrium Services, using payloads carried by two satellites in geostationary orbit, hovering 36 000 km above the Equator, where their speed matches Earth’s rotation.

Data transmitted from satellites in lower orbits to either of these EDRS payloads can then be relayed to the ground.

The payload includes a laser terminal developed by TESAT of Germany to transmit up to 1.8 gigabits per second over distances in excess of 40 000 km, between the lower satellites and EDRS in geostationary orbit.

A design review board of senior members from ESA, Astrium and the DLR German Aerospace Center approved the entire system design: from the satellites to the support that will be required from the ground.

The industrial organisation is fully in place with all subcontracts negotiated and ESA’s partner Astrium Services ready to begin production.

“EDRS is a fantastic breakthrough for Europe, from the innovative laser communication terminal technology, which is the heart of EDRS, to the provision of operational services by 2014 through a PPP that combines the best from European space companies with the national and European space institutions,” says Magali Vaissiere, director of ESA’s Telecommunications and Integrated Applications Directorate.

The first of the two EDRS payloads will be carried on the Eutelsat-EB9B satellite, starting operation in 2014, built by Astrium and positioned at 9°E over the Equator.

The second satellite, planned for launch in 2016, will carry the second EDRS payload as well as the Hylas-3 payload from the UK’s Avanti Communications. This satellite will be built by Germany’s OHB using the SmallGEO platform, currently under development by OHB under ESA contract.

ESA EDRS Satellite System makes room for Hylas-3

When the European Data Relay System launches its second satellite in 2015, it will be taking the Hylas-3 communications package along for the ride thanks to ESA’s ‘hosted payload’ approach.

EDRS is being built through a public–private partnership between ESA and Astrium Services, using payloads carried by two satellites in geostationary orbit, 36 000 km above the Equator.

Data transmitted from satellites in lower orbits to either of these EDRS nodes can then be relayed to the ground.

The first of the two EDRS nodes will be carried on the Eutelsat-9B satellite in late 2014, built by Astrium and positioned at 9°E over the Equator.

The second satellite carrying EDRS had room for another payload, so ESA offered it to industry in August last year.

Avanti Communications of the UK was selected, with the final agreement being signed on 10 July at the UK’s Farnborough International Airshow.

Through this arrangement, the cost of satellite resources and the launch are now shared. This contributes to the funding of the EDRS programme while providing access to space at a lower cost for the hosted payload.

Avanti and ESA previously worked together to launch the Hylas-1 satellite in 2010.

Providing European broadband coverage and TV distribution, Hylas-1 is the first European satellite specifically designed to provide interactive broadband services, as ESA’s first public–private partnership in a full satellite system.

Hylas-3 includes a steerable multibeam antenna to provide communications for institutional and international customers, and is completely independent of EDRS.

The EDRS payload includes a laser terminal developed by TESAT of Germany to transmit up to 1.8 gigabits per second over distances in excess of 40 000 km, between the lower satellites and EDRS in geostationary orbit.

Both EDRS and Hylas-3 will be flown on a satellite built by OHB of Germany using the Small GEO platform.

Through its ARTES telecommunications programme, ESA has supported a number of hosted payloads over the years.

Earth Orbiting debris starting to impede Space Exploration programs

Japan’s H-2A rocket that blasted off on May 18 sent a Japanese satellite, Shizuku, and a South Korean satellite, Arirang-3, into orbit but it has also left behind space junk, the accumulation of which is starting to create big problems above Earth's atmosphere.

The amount of space debris has steadily increased since its start on Oct. 4, 1957, when the Soviet Union launched Sputnik 1, the first artificial satellite to enter Earth orbit.

Now that India and China are testing space systems, the "garbage problem" could rise at an explosive rate.

Countries are now trying to figure out ways to take care of the problem, but progress has been slow.

"We know that it will eventually impede the development of space, but if we just leave space debris out there anyway, then some day we won't be able to go into space anymore and our development there will hit a brick wall," said Seishiro Kibe, director of the Innovative Technology Research Center of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA).

An estimated 22,000 pieces of debris with a diameter of 10 centimeters or more are floating around in space. Information, such as orbital path, size and origin, is known for about 16,000 of them.

There are also about 1,000 satellites in operation. The continued accumulation of space debris could interfere with the satellites' orbital paths, leaving them nowhere to operate.

Debris has always been a part of space development and will continue to be so but nations participating in space programs need to take responsibility for the disposal of there waste products, just as on Earth.

Read more of this article here: Space debris - AJW by The Asahi Shimbun

NASA Stennis Space Centre: J-2X Engine 10001 Returns to Test Stand

J-2X engine 10001 is returning back to the A-2 Test Stand at NASA's Stennis Space Center for its second round of tests. 

The developmental engine underwent an initial series of tests last year. 

Both the engine and test stand have been modified to begin simulated altitude testing in the coming months.

The J-2X engine is designed and built by Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne for NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center.

It is the first human-rated liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen rocket engine to be developed in 40 years. 

The J-2X will provide upper-stage power for NASA's Space Launch System, a new heavy-lift vehicle capable of missions beyond low-Earth orbit.

Credit: NASA/SSC

ESA Galileo - Europe's GPS system in big cash boost

Sufficient savings have been found in Europe's Galileo sat-nav project for at least six additional spacecraft to be bought for the system before 2014.

The European Commission says it has about 500m euros (£440m) "in its pocket" which it will use to make the extra purchase.

It would take Europe's version of GPS from 18 operational satellites in the next few years to 24.

This should make a big difference to Galileo's performance.

It should also hasten the eventual completion date.

The announcement was made at the Paris Air Show by European Commission Vice President Antonio Tajani, who has overall responsibility in Brussels for the flagship EU space project.

"It is possible to reduce not only the cost but also the timing," he said. "And by reducing the timing, we reduce the cost. This is a very good cocktail - cost and timing together."

Mr Tajani was at Le Bourget aerodrome to sign the last two industrial contracts needed to make Europe's satellite-navigation venture a reality.

The combined valued of these two agreements is 355m euros. They are both concerned with ground operations.

One (281m euros) is with Thales Alenia Space of France, who will be tasked with looking after Galileo's timing and navigation data, ensuring it is properly formatted for transmission by the satellites.

The other contract (73.5m euros) is going to Astrium-UK. Their work will ensure the good "housekeeping" of the satellites, including the maintenance and correct positioning of the spacecraft in orbit.

But it was the news that Mr Tajani had managed to find major economies in the project that dominated discussions at Le Bourget.

BBC News - Europe's Galileo sat-nav in big cash boost

ESA Data Relay Satellite System gets funding approval

After more than two years of negotiations, European Space Agency (ESA) governments have secured the full funding package to build a data-relay satellite system whose initial customer will be the European Commission’s Earth observation program, ESA’s director of telecommunications said Jan. 28.

In an interview, Magali Vaissiere said the agency’s Industrial Policy Committee, which clears funds for release, has approved 280 million euros ($380 million) for the European Data Relay Satellite (EDRS) system.

EDRS will include two laser-optical terminals, one installed as a hosted payload aboard a still-unselected commercial telecommunications satellite to be launched in 2013 or 2014, and one aboard a dedicated data-relay satellite to be ready for launch in 2014 or 2015.

Vaissiere said Germany, which has led the program since it was first proposed in November 2008, retains a 50 percent share of EDRS. Last-minute support from the Netherlands and Norway helped push EDRS over the financial hurdle that had prevented its go-ahead in the past two years.

Vaissiere said Astrium Services, which won the competition to operate the EDRS service as a profit-making business, is expected to invest about 100 million euros to round out the capital expenditure needed to build and launch the two payloads.

In return, Astrium Services will contract with the European Commission to provide EDRS service to relay data from the Sentinel series of Earth observation satellites being built as part of Europe’s Global Monitoring for Environment and Security, or GMES, program.

The European Commission will be Astrium Services’ anchor tenant, but the company will be free to seek other customers as well. Vaissiere said “several million euros” in additional funds are expected to be found by hosting one or more payloads aboard the dedicated EDRS satellite, to be built by OHB Technology of Bremen, Germany.

It remains unclear when the European Commission, which has had trouble financing its existing GMES commitments, will be able to contract with Astrium Services. Vaissiere said that while the contract to build EDRS will be signed by March, the services contract is likely to take months longer to prepare given the budget cycle of the European Commission.

SSTL have developed 'STRaND-1, a Smartphone Satellite

Space researchers at the University of Surrey and Surrey Satellite Technology Limited (SSTL) have developed 'STRaND-1', a satellite containing a smartphone payload that will be launched into orbit around the Earth later this year.

SSTL is a privately owned company. The University of Surrey owns 1% of the shares EADS Astrium NV owns 99% of the shares. .
STRaND-1 (Surrey Training, Research and Nanosatellite Demonstrator) is being developed by the Surrey team to demonstrate the advanced capabilities of a satellite built quickly using advanced commercial off-the-shelf components.

STRaND-1's lead researcher Dr Chris Bridges explained why a smartphone made an ideal satellite payload "Smartphones pack lots of components - such as sensors, video cameras, GPS systems and Wi-Fi radios - that are technologically advanced but a fraction of the size, weight and cost of components used in existing satellite systems.

Also, because many smartphones also run on free operating systems that lend themselves to online software developers, the creators of applications ('apps') for smartphones could feasibly develop apps for satellites," he said.

Smartphones aren't designed to go into space, so in addition to extensive ground testing prior to launch there will be an in-orbit test campaign to put the phone through its paces. A powerful computer built at the SSC will test the vital statistics of the phone once in space.

The computer will check which components of the phone are operating normally and when components malfunction in orbit for recovery. Images and messages from the phone will be sent back to Earth via a radio system.

Once all the tests are complete, the micro computer will be switched off and the smartphone will be used to operate parts of the satellite.

ESA - New international standard for spacecraft docking

European, Russian, Canadian and Japanese Partners in the International Space Station programme have agreed on a new standard for docking systems, which will be capable also of implementing berthing.

The agreement allows a range of compatible, but not necessarily identical, mechanisms for spacecraft docking. A first agreed version of the Interface Definition Document will be released on 25 October.

The International Docking System Standard (IDSS) provides the guidelines for a common interface to link spacecraft together.

It builds on the heritage of the Russian developed APAS system (Androgynous Peripheral Attachment System) used for the Space Shuttle for the ‘hard docking’ and the innovative soft-capture features of the new NASA and ESA systems. Other agencies will be free to choose specific features behind the interface.

“The IDSS is an outstanding example of international collaboration. We have developed a common language for docking systems to use the same 'words' in space when it comes to work together,” said Simonetta Di Pippo, ESA Director of Human Spaceflight.

“The Docking Standard sweeps away the boundaries for a truly global exploration endeavour. It will also make joint spacecraft docking operations more routine and eliminate critical obstacles to joint space exploration undertakings,” she went on and on.

To allow you to buil your own model at home, a PDF copy of the International Docking Standard document can be downloaded from here

NASA NPOESS: National Polar-orbiting Operational Environmental Satellite System

Ball Aerospace technicians perform a pop-and-catch partial deploy of the NASA National Polar-orbiting Operational Environmental Satellite System (NPOESS) Preparatory Project (NPP) weather satellite's solar array during this week's successful pre-environmental review in advance of flight environmental testing.

This is one of the final satellite activities being done prior to the Vibration testing, the first phase of environmental tests. Credit: Ball Aerospace.

A group of multi-disciplinary experts from NASA and NOAA, as well as a number of independent reviewers conducted the pre-environmental review of the five-instrument satellite.

The review team assessed the satellite test activities completed to-date, the completeness and adequacy of the environmental test plans, and determined the satellite is ready to proceed with its environmental test campaign.

"We are confident that the NPP satellite systems are robust and we are preparing the satellite to undergo rigorous environmental testing," stated Ken Schwer, NPP Project Manager, at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Centre. The launch is slated for October 2011.

The five-instrument suite includes: the Visible/Infrared Imager Radiometer Suite (VIIRS); the Cross-track Infrared Sounder (CrIS); the Clouds and the Earth Radiant Energy System (CERES); the Advanced Technology Microwave Sounder (ATMS); and the Ozone Mapping and Profiler Suite (OMPS).

NPP's advanced visible, infrared, and microwave imagers and sounders will improve the accuracy of climate observations and enhance capabilities to the nation's civil and military users of satellite data.

NPP is designed to provide continuity with NASA's Earth Observing System (EOS) satellites for climate observations and to provide the operational weather community with risk reduction for the next generation of weather satellites.