MICROCOM'S SPACE NEWSFEED 22 September 2002<br />Space Industry News from Around the World<br /><br />**********************************************************************<br /><br />Brought to you by Microcom Systems Ltd, consultants in satellite communications since 1985.
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http://www.space-jobs.co.uk<br /><br />**********************************************************************<br /><br />CONTENTS<br /><br />**********************************************************************<br /><br />SATCOMS:<br />APT Satellite Expands Capacity with Harmonic Digital Headend Systems<br />Sat@Once Service Passes 13.000 Registered Users<br /><br />LAUNCH SERVICES:<br />Arianespace to Launch Spainsat<br /><br />LAUNCHES:<br />Hispasat 1D<br />Launch Schedule<br /><br />BUSINESS:<br />Scrambling for Space in Space<br /><br />PEOPLE:<br />Former Astronaut Frank L Culbertson Jr Joins SAIC<br />G Scott Hubbard Named NASA AMES Research Center Director<br />New Chief Executive of Iridium Holdings LLC<br />Spectrum Astro Promotes Patricia Oleson to Executive VP And COO<br />Swales Aerospace Reorganises<br /><br />**********************************************************************<br />**********************************************************************<br /><br />Bolton Associates - Corporate Strategies applies 21st. Century thinking for the Earth Observation, SatCom and Environment Industries that penetrate new markets using creative commercial Risk models and innovation.<br /><br />Visit us at
http://www.BoltonAssociates.com and/or download our Power Point presentation
http://www.microcomsystems.co.uk/ads/EOConsult.ppt [131Kb]<br /><br />**********************************************************************<br />**********************************************************************<br /><br />SATCOMS<br /><br />**********************************************************************<br /><br />APT Satellite Expands Capacity with Harmonic Digital Headend Systems<br /><br />(18 September 2002) APT Satellite Holdings Limited has significantly expanded the broadcast capacity of its existing satellites by deploying Harmonic's DiviCom digital video encoders and statistical multiplexing systems.<br /><br />By fitting more television channels into the existing bandwidth, these highly efficient MPEG-2 video solutions enable APT to increase its revenue potential and the return on its satellite network investments while maintaining the original picture quality.<br /><br />A leading provider of satellite network services throughout the People's Republic of China (PRC) and the Asia-Pacific region, APT leases capacity to content providers and other broadcast networks. International broadcasters such as Disney, HBO, Sony Pictures Entertainment, Hallmark Entertainment, Galaxy and Viacom are leasing bandwidth on APT's Apstar-I and Apstar IIR satellites while, at the same time, prominent regional broadcasters - including CCTV, China Entertainment, One Leader and Po Hsin - are leasing capacity on Apstar-IA.<br /><br />Satellite network bandwidth, unlike that of a land-based network, is extremely expensive to upgrade once deployed. Typically, adding bandwidth means launching a new satellite. The advanced compression and noise reduction capabilities of Harmonic's DiviCom MPEG-2 encoders combined with Harmonic's DiviTrackXE statistical multiplexing increase the effective bandwidth of their existing network, yielding a more practical way to expand their revenue generating capacity. By implementing this Harmonic-based solution, APT was able to more than double the number of leasable channels it offers.<br /><br />**********************************************************************<br /><br />Sat@Once Service Passes 13.000 Registered Users<br /><br />(16 September 2002) Sat@Once, a satellite multicast Internet extension operated by the European Space Agency and SES Astra jointly with the CSP research centre in Turin, has registered its 13,000th user, less than 6 months after its launch.<br /><br />The Sat@Once free of charge service distributes, by satellite and at 2 Mb/s, most popular parts of the most popular web sites and newsgroups from the Internet. The popularity of these contents are determined by “votes” coming directly from the audience of Sat@Once users. The local PC automatically determines and filters among the huge amount of broadcast data (20 GB a day) what is interesting to its owner, doing this in total privacy.<br /><br />A dedicated receiver software, available for free download at
http://www.sat@once.csp.it, together with a standard DVB-Data equipment, are all that are needed for a PC user to enjoy this new Astra satellite extension to the Internet. The contents distributed come from the Internet and can be viewed with the standard players: Internet Explorer, Flash, Real Player, Windows Media Player, QuickTime Player, etc. The missing links that are not sent by satellite can be retrieved seamlessly using a classical Internet connection (modem, ISDN, ADSL, etc.).<br /><br />The advantage for web authors is a better exposure to the market since the most popular pages, quickly available, will lead the interested users to the more specific parts of their site.<br /><br />The advantages for web advertisers are a higher surf rate from the users and a faster display of their ad banners since most of the contents already came by satellite.<br /><br />The advantage for users is a better Internet experience with the most popular contents available at high speed, closest to their private preferences and renewed every day at no recurrent cost.<br /><br />The Sat@Once service is operated by SES Astra and the CSP, and jointly financed by SES Astra and the European Space Agency as part of the ARTES-3 programme.<br /><br />**********************************************************************<br /><br />LAUNCH SERVICES<br /><br />**********************************************************************<br /><br />Arianespace to Launch Spainsat<br /><br />(16 September 2002) Arianespace and Hisdesat, the Spanish military operator, have signed a launch service contract for Spain's first military communications satellite, Spainsat.<br /><br />Spainsat will be boosted into orbit by an Ariane 5 in 2004, from the Guiana Space Centre, in Kourou, French Guiana.<br /><br />Spainsat is the first satellite in Spain dedicated to secure governmental communications. The satellite will be operated by Hisdesat, a new company founded in 2001 by Hispasat, INSA (100% owned by INTA), EADS CASA Espacio, INDRA y SENER. Its first customer is the Spanish Ministry of Defence. Spainsat will take over for the Secomsat military payloads on the Hispasat 1A and 1B satellites.<br /><br />Built by Space Systems/Loral in Palo Alto, California, Spainsat will weigh about 3,700 kg at launch, and will be positioned at 30° W, over the Atlantic Ocean. It will be fitted with 13 X band transponders, plus one Ka band transponder. Several of the satellite's major parts will be built in Spain, as will the ground segment.<br /><br />**********************************************************************<br /><br />LAUNCHES<br /><br />**********************************************************************<br /><br />Hispasat 1D<br /><br />Launched: 18 September 2002<br />Site: Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida<br />Launcher: Atlas 2AS<br />Orbit: GEO, 30° W<br />International Number: 2002-044A<br />Name: Hispasat 1D<br />Owner: Hispasat<br />Contractor: Alcatel Space Industries<br /><br />Hispasat 1D is a commercial communications satellite which is owned and operated by Hispasat.<br /><br />Hispasat 1D is based on Alcatel's Spacebus 3000B2 platform and had a launch mass of 3,250 kg. It carries 28 Ku band transponders and has a design life of 15 years. It will provide TV broadcast and communications services (including broadband Internet, interactive and multimedia services) over a coverage area spanning Europe, North and South America, North Africa and the Middle East.<br /><br />**********************************************************************<br /><br />Launch Schedule<br /><br />September 25: Progress M-47 (9P) on a Soyuz-U from Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan<br />September 26: military satellite on a Kosmos 3M from Plesetsk Cosmodrome, Russia<br />October: GPS 2R-8 on a Delta 2 from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida<br />October: Hotbird 7, Stentor on an Ariane 5 from CSG Kourou, French Guiana<br />October 2: ISS 9A/BA, ITS S1 on the Shuttle Atlantis (STS-112) from the Kennedy Space Center, Florida<br />October 15: Foton M-1 on a Soyuz from Plesetsk Cosmodrome, Russia<br />October 17: Integral on a Proton from Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan<br />October 22: military satellite on a Molniya-M from Plesetsk Cosmodrome, Russia<br />October 28: Soyuz (ISS 5S) on a Soyuz U from Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan<br />October 29: Nadezhda, AlSat 1 on a Kosmos 3M from Plesetsk Cosmodrome, Russia<br />November: Adeos 2, Micro-Lab Sat, WEOSS, FedSat on an H-2A from Tanegashima Space Center, Japan<br />November 3: Eutelsat W5 on a Delta 4 from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida: first EELV launch<br />November 10: ISS 11A, ITS, P1 on the Shuttle Endeavour (STS-113) from the Kennedy Space Center, Florida<br />Q4: AMC 9 on a Proton from Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan<br />Q4: Astra 1K on a Proton from Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan<br />November 20: TDRS J on an Atlas 2AS from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida<br />November 24: MUSES-C on a ISAS M-V from Kagoshima Space Centre<br />December: Galaxy XIII/Horizons-1 on a Zenit 3SL from Sea Launch's Odyssey platform in the Pacific Ocean<br />December: SMART-1 on an Ariane 5 from CSG Kourou, French Guiana<br />December 1: SORCE on a Pegasus XL from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida<br />delayed: DSCS-B6 on a Delta 4 from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida<br />December 15: Coriolis on a Titan 2 from Vandenberg Air Force Base, California<br />December 15: ICESat/CHIPSat on a Delta 2 from Vandenberg Air Force Base, California<br />December 17: Nimiq 2 on an Atlas 5 from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida<br /><br />**********************************************************************<br /><br />BUSINESS<br /><br />**********************************************************************<br /><br />Scrambling for Space in Space<br /><br />(16 September 2002) The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) upholds the right of all nations - rich or poor - to equal affordable access to satellite orbit space. However, there is an urgent need to reduce an avalanche of applications for satellite 'slots', many for systems that will never leave earth. These 'speculative' systems are known as 'Paper Satellites'.<br /><br />The backlog of satellites awaiting co-ordination stands at 1,200, with ITU receiving between 400-500 requests for new systems each year.<br /><br />The huge world demand for satellite-based telecommunication services has seen steady growth during the past 15 years. This has been a boon for service providers and consumers alike but it has resulted in a densely packed orbital space neighbourhood and a scramble for desirable orbital slots. This rush for prime orbital real estate could well increase as new services such as third generation mobile telephony and proposed broadband access systems that envisage high-speed wireless connections through large constellations of rapidly moving satellites become a reality.<br /><br />The challenge for ITU is that because no two radio systems, including satellite responders, can operate on exactly the same frequency and in the same orbital position without causing harmful interference to one another, global co-ordination of radio frequency applications is essential.<br /><br />The problem of 'paper satellites' has been recognised for years, however, satellite operators have been reluctant to pay processing fees and some developing countries argue that fees contravene the international principles of fair and equitable access to orbital slots and the frequency spectrum that governs them. Despite this, four years ago at the Plenipotentiary conference in Minneapolis a sliding scale fee was implemented. While these fees and other efficiencies implemented by ITU have gone some way to discourage casual filing, over-filing of 'paper satellites' remains an issue. One of the important issues expected to be tackled by the Marrakesh Plenipotentiary (being held in Marrakesh, Morocco from 23 September to 18 October 2002), is the question of what action to take if administrations filing a satellite co-ordination request fail to pay their processing fee and whether to bring into effect the decision taken by the 2000 World Radio Conference to cancel automatically any filing for which fees have not been settled within a six month period. There will no doubt be arguments from some nations, mostly in the developing world, that arbitrary cancellation effectively contravenes their right to unrestricted access to the orbit. With opinions strongly polarised over an issue that many argue currently favours rich over poor, the question of non-payment of fees seems certain to be a future source of vigorous debate.<br /><br />The Plenipotentiary Conference is the top policy-making body of the International Telecommunication Union. Held every four years, the Conference sets the Union's general policies, adopts five-year strategic and financial plans and elects the senior management team of the organisation, the members of Council and the members of the Radio Regulations Board. In other words, it is the key event at which ITU Member States decide on the future role of the organisation, thereby determining the organisation's ability to influence and affect the development of issues such as convergence, the Internet, universal access and electronic commerce.<br /><br />**********************************************************************<br /><br />PEOPLE<br /><br />**********************************************************************<br /><br />Former Astronaut Frank L Culbertson Jr Joins SAIC<br /><br />(16 September 2002) Science Applications International Corporation's (SAIC) Space, Earth and Atmospheric Sciences (SEAS) Group has announced that Frank L Culbertson Jr, USN (ret) has been named senior vice president and program manager of the Safety, Reliability and Quality Assurance (SR&QA) contract at the National Aeronautics & Space Administration (NASA) Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas.<br /><br />In this role, Culbertson will be responsible for overall management of the SR&QA contract, drawing upon his extensive experience in NASA human space flight operations. The SR&QA contract provides support to the Space Shuttle and International Space Station programs.<br /><br />Prior to joining SAIC, Culbertson had a distinguished career as a NASA astronaut, which includes logging more than 144 days in space on his three space flights and more than five hours of extra-vehicular activity (space walk) time. In 1999, Culbertson was selected to command the third expedition to the International Space Station.<br /><br />That mission was launched in August, 2001, and returned to Earth in December, 2001. Culbertson and his two Russian crewmates lived and worked in space for 129 days and he commanded the Space Station for 117 days.<br /><br />In 1994, Culbertson was named deputy program manager of Phase 1 of the Shuttle-Mir program, and became manager of the program the following year. During this period, Culbertson was responsible for a multi-national team which built the flight hardware, developed the joint procedures for seven American astronauts who worked aboard the Mir for more than 30 months, and executed nine Shuttle docking missions to the Russian Space Station Mir.<br /><br />In 1984, Culbertson was selected as a NASA astronaut and was a member of the NASA team that investigated the Challenger accident. His subsequent assignments included lead spacecraft communicator in the Mission Control Center for seven Shuttle missions. Culbertson piloted the Atlantis on STS-38 in 1990 and was commander of STS-51 aboard Discovery in 1993.<br /><br />This mission deployed two satellites, retrieved one satellite and conducted a seven-hour spacewalk in preparation for an upcoming Hubble telescope repair mission. He also executed the first night landing of a Shuttle at the Kennedy Space Center.<br /><br />Culbertson is a graduate of the US Naval Academy and the US Naval Test Pilot School. His Navy career includes several carrier deployments and tours as an instructor pilot and automatic carrier landing test pilot. He has logged more than 6,500 hours flying time in 50 different types of aircraft and has made more than 350 carrier landings. He retired as a US Navy Captain from active military duty in 1997.<br /><br />**********************************************************************<br /><br />G Scott Hubbard Named NASA AMES Research Center Director<br /><br />(19 September 2002) G Scott Hubbard, Deputy Director for Research at NASA's Ames Research Center has been selected as Center Director, effective immediately.<br /><br />Hubbard replaces Dr Henry "Harry" McDonald, who will join the faculty at the University of Tennessee (UT) at Chattanooga after assisting with the transition as Hubbard's special assistant. McDonald has been named Distinguished Professor of Computational Engineering at UT.<br /><br />As Center Director, Hubbard will be responsible for Ames, which is located in the heart of "Silicon Valley." Ames was founded in 1939, as an aircraft research laboratory by the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA), which in 1958 became NASA. Ames specialises in research geared toward creating new knowledge and new technologies that span the spectrum of the agency's missions and interests.<br /><br />In his previous position, Hubbard was responsible for the organisation and oversight of Ames' research efforts. Hubbard helped establish NASA's Astrobiology Institute at Ames, which addresses fundamental questions about the origin and evolution of life in the universe, and served as its initial Director.<br /><br />He is widely acknowledged as the originator of the highly successful Mars Pathfinder mission concept and was the project manager for Ames' portion of that 1997 mission. He also served as the NASA Manager of the 1998 Lunar Prospector Mission, which returned outstanding science data at very low cost.<br /><br />In 2000, Hubbard was named to NASA Headquarters in Washington to serve as the first Mars Program Director.<br /><br />In his 15 years at Ames, Hubbard served in a variety of increasingly responsible management positions, including Deputy Director of Space. He also led his own research as principal investigator for several detector technology projects. Hubbard has been a contributor to, and the developer of, space research missions since 1974.<br /><br />Prior to joining NASA in 1987, Hubbard conducted both basic and applied work in radiation detection materials and devices, both in private industry and at Ernest Orlando Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. His innovative work in technology creation found application in the agency's space science missions.<br /><br />Hubbard received his bachelor's degree at Vanderbilt University and graduate education in solid state and semiconductor physics at University of California at Berkeley.<br /><br />**********************************************************************<br /><br />New Chief Executive of Iridium Holdings LLC<br /><br />(16 September 2002) Stephen N Carroll has assumed the position of President and CEO of Iridium Holdings, parent company of Iridium Satellite LLC. Gino Picasso, President and CEO of Iridium Satellite LLC will remain in his current position and report to Mr Carroll.<br /><br />Mr Carroll has a solid history of corporate leadership and industry expertise. Before joining Iridium, Mr Carroll most recently was a co-investor with the Soros Private Equity Group where he served as Chairman of Storm Telecommunications of New York and London as well as Chairman of ACCESS 7, a Germany-based VPN/IP telecommunications company. He has also served as President of WorldCom International (formerly IDB Worldcom) and as an investor and entrepreneur in several domestic and international telecommunications ventures including LCR, which was later sold to Primus Communications. In his new capacity, Mr Carroll will direct all aspects of Iridium Holdings LLC, including service provider relations, product development and delivery, and geographic and vertical market outreach and cultivation both in the US and abroad.<br /><br />**********************************************************************<br /><br />Spectrum Astro Promotes Patricia Oleson to Executive VP And COO<br /><br />(17 September 2002) Spectrum Astro has announced the promotion of Patricia M Oleson to Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer. In this role, she will be responsible for all day-to-day operations of the company, including financial, engineering, and other business areas.<br /><br />Formerly Spectrum Astro’s Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, Ms Oleson has been with the company for over 11 years, overseeing many business operations of the company including Contracts, Subcontracts and Purchasing, Accounting, Finance, Cost Analysis, Human Resources, Facilities, and Security. Prior to being promoted to that position, she was the company’s Controller. Ms Oleson is also a member of Spectrum Astro’s Board of Directors.<br /><br />Ms Oleson has over eighteen years of experience in the aerospace industry. Prior to joining Spectrum Astro in 1991, Ms Oleson was the Deputy Director for Classified Programs at Tecolote Research Inc, a company that specialises in cost, schedule, and financial analysis of space, launch, and command and control equipment for major spacecraft programs. Her career experience also includes five years with the B-1 Division of Rockwell International where she supported the B-1 Flight Test Program. Ms Oleson received a Bachelors Degree in Accounting from State University of New York and an MBA in Finance from Loyola Marymount University.<br /><br />**********************************************************************<br /><br />Swales Aerospace Reorganises<br /><br />(17 September 2002) Swales Aerospace has announced the promotion of Frank Hornbuckle to the newly created position of Chief Operating Officer reporting directly to Tom Wilson, Chief Executive Officer. The company also announced the realignment of its engineering function into two separate units headed by Paul Sanneman and Dr. Mehmet Basci. All appointments were effective on September 1, 2002.<br /><br />Prior to joining Swales, Hornbuckle was employed by CTA Space Systems in Beltsville, Fairchild Space Company in Germantown, and at RCA Astro in East Windsor. He holds an MS degree in electrical engineering from Rutgers University and a BS degree from Tennessee State University. With the realignment of the engineering function, Sanneman becomes Director of Aerospace Systems Engineering and Dr Basci assumes duties as the Director of Mechanical Systems Engineering.<br /><br />Sanneman has managed Swales' Guidance, Navigation & Control Group since joining the company in 1998 when Swales purchased Welch Engineering Ltd. He has been keenly involved in providing engineering management and technical oversight to numerous NASA programs and also served as the NMP/EO-1 spacecraft attitude Control Subsystem lead engineering. He holds a BSEE from Worcester Polytechnic Institute and an MSEE in Controls from the University of Southern California.<br /><br />Dr Basci has been with Swales for more than 20 years in various fields of structural mechanics supporting NASA projects and other aerospace-related activities. He earned his doctorate in structural engineering from George Washington University and both his bachelors and masters degrees from Istanbul Technical University.<br /><br />**********************************************************************<br />**********************************************************************<br /><br />Press releases should be sent to: newsfeed@microcomsystems.co.uk<br /><br />**********************************************************************<br /><br />Microcom makes no charge for this service and makes no payments for the use of material. Microcom makes no warranties about the quality of this free service and accepts no liability for mistakes and errors. 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