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InfoBeam – Part II
Latest News Items, by the editors


The Swiss Sweep Space With Janitor Satellite

It won’t be a winged space tow truck with a big hook to snag space debris, and a bumper sticker that says, “Don’t follow me, I’m lost” but...

InfoBeamFig15 Serious concerns and hopeful solutions abound regarding the proliferation of debris orbiting the Earth. This pertains to primarily jettisoned rocket and satellite components that can cause potentially immensely expensive damage and collisions.

Enter... the Swiss Space Center at EPFL (École Polytechnique Fédérale De Lausanne) which is announcing today the launch of CleanSpace One, the first generation of satellites specially designed to clean up space debris. The following is the post from the EPFL’s website...

The Earth’s orbit is full of all kinds of floating debris; a growing crowd of abandoned satellites, spent rocket stages, bits of broken spacecraft, and fragments from collisions are rocketing around the planet at breathtaking speeds.

NASA keeps close tabs on at least 16,000 of these objects that are larger than 10 cm in diameter. When an operational spacecraft such as a satellite collides with one of them, serious, costly damage can result; often the satellite is complete destroyed. And the collision itself then generates thousands more fragments, further exacerbating the problem. “It has become essential to be aware of the existence of this debris and the risks that are run by its proliferation,” says Claude Nicollier, astronaut and EPFL professor.
To move beyond mere rhetoric and take immediate action to get this stuff out of orbit, the Swiss Space Center at EPFL is launching CleanSpace One, a project to build the first prototype in a family of “de-orbiting” satellites. The project developers have chosen a symbolic target for the initial CleanSpace One launch: either Switzerland’s first orbiting object, the Swisscube picosatellite which was put in orbit in 2009, or its cousin TIsat, launched in July 2010.

One satellite, three technological hurdles The cleanup satellite has three major challenges to overcome, each of which will necessitate the development of new technology that could, in turn, be used down the road in other applications.

After its launch, the cleanup satellite will have to adjust its trajectory in order to match its target’s orbital plane. To do this, it could use a new kind of ultra-compact motor designed for space applications that is being developed in EPFL laboratories. When it gets within range of its target, which will be traveling at 28,000 km/h at an altitude of 630-750 km, CleanSpace One will grab and stabilize it—a mission that’s extremely dicey at these high speeds, particularly if the satellite is rotating. To accomplish the task, scientists are planning to develop a gripping mechanism inspired from a plant or animal example. Finally, once it’s coupled with the satellite, CleanSpace One will “de-orbit” the unwanted satellite by heading back into the Earth’s atmosphere, where the two satellites will burn upon re-entry.

Newtec_ad_SM0312 Although its first model is destined to be destroyed, the CleanSpace One adventure will not be a one-shot deal. “We want to offer and sell a whole family of ready-made systems, designed as sustainably as possible, that are able to de-orbit several different kinds of satellites,” explains Swiss Space Center Director Volker Gass. “Space agencies are increasingly finding it necessary to take into consideration and prepare for the elimination of the stuff they’re sending into space. We want to be the pioneers in this area.” The design and construction of CleanSpace One, as well as its maiden space voyage, will cost about 10 million Swiss francs. Depending on the funding and industrial partners, this first orbital rendezvous could take place within three to five years.

About space debris—16,000 objects larger than 10 cm in diameter and hundreds of millions of smaller particles are ripping around the Earth at speeds of several kilometers per second. From the beginning of the Space Age, Earth’s periphery has been increasingly encumbered by all kinds of debris, primarily concentrated in Low Earth Orbit (less than 2000 km in altitude, where the International Space Station is orbiting) or Geostationary Orbit (35,786 km in altitude). Many of these objects are spent rocket stages or satellites that have broken up in orbit. If they collide with another orbiting object, say a functioning satellite, they can cause massive damage, or even destroy it. This is what happened on February 10, 2009, when the U.S. satellite Iridium-33 exploded upon impact with the abandoned Russian satellite Cosmos-2251. The financial consequences of these collisions are enormous, particularly for insurance companies involved in the space sector; a sum currently estimated at $20 billion to insure existing satellites.

InfoBeamFig16 Cases such as this one are bound to increase in number. Even in the immensity of outer space, the increasing density of human-generated waste is becoming a problem. It’s expanding exponentially, because each collision generates in turn several thousand more fragments, which, although smaller, are no less dangerous than a large, abandoned satellite. NASA, which tracks 16,000 of these objects, can only monitor the largest ones (greater than 10 cm in diameter)—but at these incredible speeds even a simple paint chip can seriously damage a solar panel or the window on a shuttle. To avoid the largest objects before they get critically close, the International Space Station must constantly alter its orbit. It managed to do this again just recently, on January 29, 2012.
Last year the Swiss Re insurance company published a study showing that every year, there is a nearly one in 10,000 chance that a 10 m2 satellite traveling in a sun-synchronous (600-1,000 km) orbit will collide with a piece of space debris larger than 1 cm.

Author: Emmanuel Barraud Source: Mediacom

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Small Satellites Make History

The first satellites entirely designed and built by Hungary, Poland, and Romania are now orbiting Earth after today’s successful maiden flight of ESA’s small Vega launcher.

InfoBeamFig17 The latest addition to Europe’s versatile family of space launchers, Vega carried nine satellites, seven of them built by European universities.

This group of ESA-sponsored educational CubeSats included Goliat from Romania, PW-Sat from Poland and Masat-1 from Hungary.

The unique opportunity to launch the first satellites from these countries was made possible by a fruitful collaboration between the ESA launcher and education programmes.

“Since Vega’s first mission was a qualification flight, ESA decided to offer the chance to European Universities of a free ride into space for small scientific or educational payloads,” noted Antonio Fabrizi, ESA’s Director of Launchers.

Following the agreement to include an educational payload, including up to six CubeSats, on Vega’s first flight, ESA issued a call that led to a flood of proposals from universities all over Europe.

As a result of the overwhelming response, the number of available CubeSat slots on Vega was increased to nine. Seven university teams eventually made it in time, including UniCubeSat-GG and e-st@r from Italy, XaTcobeo from Spain and Robusta from France.
The student teams took advantage of a rare and invaluable hands-on opportunity to design, develop and operate their own space missions.

ESA provided technical expertise and educational support for integrating, testing and preparing the satellites for launch.

“The launch of these CubeSats on Vega, each carrying scientific or technology experiments, represents a huge educational achievement both by ESA, the student teams and their countries,” said Giuseppe Morsillo, ESA’s Director of Policies, Planning and Control, who is responsible for the ESA education programme, as well as for relations with ESA’s Member States.

“This success is particularly important for Romania, Poland and Hungary, as a clear demonstrator that investing in space also means bringing bright young talents – the workforce of the future – to the front line, so promoting and reinforcing from its very basis the competitiveness of our economies.”

InfoBeamFig18 “Romania, Poland and Hungary have a history of participation in several European space projects and activities,” commented Karlheinz Kreuzberg, Head of the ESA Director General’s Cabinet, whose team is also responsible for establishing cooperation agreements with non-ESA EU Member States and preparing their eventual membership of ESA. “The next major step has now been achieved by these countries with the deployment of their first national satellites, extending the ground for collaboration on new, collaborative, European space ventures.”

Giuseppe Morsillo concluded, “This step is also very important as it helps in reinforcing the dialogue with European countries from ESA’s perspective of increasing the number of its Member States by progressively including other Member States of the EU.

WORKMicro_ad_SM0312 “The transfer of ESA’s space knowhow to new partner countries can also definitively pass through an educational exchange.”

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Achievements For Maritime Entertainment

Intellian has announced two new t80 antenna systems that will start shipping in March the Intellian t80 and t80W, which are ideally suited for 80ft. plus yachts requiring a compact antenna size with global satellite TV service reception.

The 3-axis stabilized Intellian t80 antenna locks onto satellites quickly and provides seamless operation in all regions, offering global coverage. Built-in as standard, the internal GPS combined with Intellian’s patented Wide Range Search (WRS) provides the fastest satellite acquisition possible. Multiple HD receivers can be connected to the system as standard, providing a truly hands off global coverage depending on the regions visited.

The Intellian t80W incorporates the patented WorldView™ LNB (Low Noise Block-Down Converter), which automatically switches the polarization and local frequency depending on the satellite the antenna is tracking onto; all of the switching information is contained in the antenna control unit (ACU). As the satellite TV provider is selected electronically, there is no requirement to purchase multiple LNB modules, reconfigure complex systems and manually change the LNB unit inside the antenna dome each time the vessel crosses into a different satellite service region.

InfoBeamFig19 The t80 antennas have a built-in DVB-S2 decoder to allow users to track a satellite by using a DVB-S2 carrier. For uninterrupted viewing of HD DIRECTV programming, an upgrade kit will be provided. The upgrade of the antenna will allow simultaneous reception of Ku- and Ka-band satellites for uninterrupted viewing.

The t80 antenna has a broad elevation range, from -15° to +110°, enabling operation in all conditions and the cross level axis ensures uninterrupted viewing even when the antenna is near the equator. Weighing in at only 180 lbs, and the inclusion of an internal shock absorption system, makes this antenna one of the lightest and strongest in its class of antennas.

The t80 dome is designed to complement the new v80G VSAT antenna, providing customers with a compact dual antenna solution for communications and entertainment. All Intellian antenna systems are designed, manufactured and tested to withstand the company’s industry-leading standards for vibration and extreme shock in all sea states and weather conditions. VSAT and 3-axis TVRO warranties are now increased to an industry-leading two years for parts and one year for labor, while the i-series 2-axis antenna warranties are increased to three years.

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No Additional Equipment Needed

SkyTrac Systems has another combined integration project with EuroAvionics GmbH & Co. SkyTrac Systems has been selected by EuroAvionics to provide a SkyTrac programmed Iridium 9523 modem that can be embedded in the EuroNav 7 Situational Awareness System, the latest product development from EuroAvionics.

The EuroNav 7 is a moving map and task management system that will now have the option to provide flight following and satellite communication, without the need to have additional SATCOM equipment installed. GPS position data of the aircraft will be sent directly from the EuroNav 7 through the Iridium satellite network for display on SkyTrac’s web based SkyWeb software. The combined solution will also provide email messaging and voice communication options.

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U.S. Connectivity Clobbered By The FCC

With a statement issued by one of its officials, the FCC has all but negated years of work from both the FCC and the mobile satellite industry in developing a hybrid satellite-terrestrial system to offer connectivity across North America. LightSquared could not proceed with its LTE network due to GPS interference issues. This is somewhat the picture that NSR envisaged in its study Mobile Satellite Services, 7th Edition when it described “….several key announcements and major changes in the regulatory environment expected to take place in 2011” that led NSR to stop forecasting the MSS-ATC market.

arabsatFP_ad_SM0312 There will be a lot of things said about undoing what the FCC did in 2003 to promote seamless connectivity across the United States by this decision, but lo and behold… there is still spectrum left after this saga that the U.S. desperately needs to use, but not for an MSS-ATC system... for now anyway. NSR re-affirmed its belief that “…a market of any significance for integrated dual-mode MSS-ATC devices is unlikely to occur in the foreseeable future “ due to mounting challenges the industry has faced. NSR identified the GPS industry’s challenges to the FCC allowing LightSquared to deploy 40,000 base stations as the major regulatory development impacting the satellite communications industry in North America. Even with support, albeit tenuous, from Sprint, LightSquared’s story was going nowhere fast and may end up as another example of a good idea gone wrong.

Starting with Globalstar’s revocation of their ATC licensing agreement with OpenRange in 2010, to the GPS adjacent frequency interference issues, the MSS-ATC marketplace fell out favor in terms of regulation and business cases after garnering support from a financial powerhouse such as Harbinger Capital Partners and seeing billions of dollars spent on satellites and ground infrastructure to meet stringent FCC gating requirements.

Even if DISH acquired MSS-ATC S-band spectrum from bankrupt TerreStar and DBSD, it still has to find a way to get the FCC to agree to a well thought-out plan to gain significant revenues from a dual satellite and terrestrial network. It is therefore doubtful that it could be interested in the LightSquared spectrum, which needs more thoughtful planning from the operators as well as the FCC to operate in the vicinity of GPS frequencies.

Saying that ‘…it could take years for current generation GPS devices to be replaced with modern, robust systems”, NSR noted in its study that the MSS-ATC gloomy future was a result of lack of general investor support for operators who in turn failed to deliver on promises to regulators and shareholders, missed satellite operations deadlines, and ultimately did not prove convincingly that what is technically possible is sometimes not practically feasible.

LightSquared will probably go back to its satellite-only business plans or try to sell its assets before going under. But with bandwidth being scarce, many wireless operators will be on the lookout as regulatory and business environments for L-band take time to resolve. Because of these delays, DISH, which has yet to figure out how to deploy its own ATC network, will probably not buy LightSquared unless it’s for pennies on the dollar. And even if it did, it could present a severe case of monopoly in the U.S. MSS market.

All there is left from this battle is valuable spectrum that can eventually be cleaned-up of GPS interference issues. Perhaps then a ‘beauty’ contest for this precious asset for the mobility segment could be held for another operator to snap it up and take it down another road. This story was authored by NSR’s Claude Rousseau, Senior Analyst, NSR, France.

For more information on NSR report, access this link:

http://www.nsr.com/

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Supertanker Solution

ORBIT Communication Systems, a subsidiary of Orbit Technologies Ltd. (TASE:ORBI), and Milano Teleport, the largest independent teleport in Italy, have received new orders for a complete VSAT solution based on ORBIT’s OrBand™ C-band VSAT system and Milano Teleport’s C-band satellite capacity and value added services.

InfoBeamFig20 The solution will be installed on supertankers owned by one of the world’s leading shipping companies based in Greece. In mid 2011, ORBIT and Milano Teleport supplied the tanker company with a single C-band system, satellite capacity and value added services for testing purposes. The customer examined a broad range of performance parameters to ensure that the C-band VSAT solution was able to meet the complex challenges and demands of maritime communications.

The VSAT solution was found to meet these key criteria, which included stringent requirements regarding quality of service and data transfer rates, as well as global coverage. Orbit’s OrBand systems together with the services of Milano Teleport will be used by the customer to support various broadband applications, including centralized management and control from company headquarters, VoIP telephony, VPN and internet connectivity for the ship’s crew.

Reflecting the success of the initial installation and this new order, the shipping company plans to equip its entire fleet of tankers with this VSAT solution during 2012 and 2013.

GlobeCast_ad_SM0312 Accordingly, ORBIT and Milano Teleport anticipate that significant additional orders will be received over this period to meet the broadband communications needs of the entire fleet. ORBIT’s recently launched OrBand system represents a new paradigm in maritime C-band VSAT solutions. Small enough to be shipped as a single, fully assembled and tested unit in a standard 20-foot container, OrBand is designed for quick and simple single-day installation. This is a major time-saver vis-à-vis the customary 2-3 days required to install equivalent solutions.

The system’s extraordinarily compact form factor makes it ideal also for smaller vessels that cannot accommodate traditional C-band solutions. This means that OrBand can be installed while ships are on routine port calls, substantially driving down operational costs and eliminating the need for vessels to await dry dock.

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MASER Makes Microgravity More Meaningful

At 9.32 UTC on February 13th, the microgravity rocket MASER 12 was successfully launched from SSC’s launching facility Esrange Space Center.

InfoBeamFig21 MASER 12 reached an apogee of 260km and the experiments on board spent six minutes in microgravity. MASER 12 carried five ESA financed microgravity experiments for studies of:

– The effect of microgravity on white blood cells
– T-cell activation in microgravity
– Blood cell transportation and movement in blood vessels
– Solidification process on binary Au-Cu alloy through x-ray radiographic observation
– The behaviour of propellants in spacecraft tanks


“This was a long awaited launch, and the scientific teams are really enthusiastic. The countdown was very tense but no room was given to inculcated risks: we are only happy if we have 100% success, I believe we caught the whole prey” says Mr. Antonio Verga,
Project Technical Officer, ESA.

MASER is an SSC sounding rocket programme for research using microgravity as a means of investigation. SSC is the prime contractor for the Maser 12 mission, which is carried out for the customer ESA. This includes the responsibility for all experiment modules, the service module, the recovery system and the rocket motor as well as launch and recovery.

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The First Time For Vega

After years of design and preparation, the Company can announce the successful launch of the first Vega by the European Space Agency (ESA).

Vega placed two scientific satellites and seven picosatellites into orbit. Thanks to this success, Arianespace now has the largest range of commercial launch services. Vega has been designed to launch payloads of up to 1,500kg at an altitude of 700km. This means that Europe now has a new vehicle to launch all its scientific and institutional missions. After the success of this maiden launch, Arianespace will be in charge of the commercialization and exploitation of Vega.

With Ariane 5, Soyuz, and now Vega, all of which are operated from the Guiana Space Center, Arianespace is the only launch service and solutions company that can place any payload into any orbit: telecommunications satellites, scientific or Earth observation satellites, constellations and missions to the International Space Station.

Following this historic success, Jean-Yves Le Gall, Chairman and CEO of Arianespace, said, “Bravo Europe! Congratulations to the European Space Agency, to the Italian Space Agency, to the Centre National d’Etudes Spatiales and to all our industrials partners. This success comes after 9 years of cooperative development. Well done Europe!”

Even before this first launch Arianespace and ESA had already signed the first commercial launch service and solutions contract, for the European Union launch of Sentinel-2 and Sentinel-3 spacecraft on Vega.

InfoBeamFig22 Lifting off from the Spaceport’s ZLV launch site, this no. 1 Vega deployed nine spacecraft into orbit. It carried Italy’s LARES laser relativity satellite, the small ALMASat-1 technology microsatellite demonstrator from the University of Bologne, and seven CubeSats developed by more than 250 university students from six different countries. This flight was performed under responsibility of the European Space Agency, and its goal was to qualify the overall Vega system—including the vehicle, its ground infrastructure at the Spaceport, and operations from the launch campaign to payload deployment.

The Vega is powered by three solid propellant stages and a liquid-propellant fourth stage. It was developed by the European Space Agency, Italy’s ASI space agency, and the French CNES space agency. Production is handled in an industry team led by industrial prime contractor, ELV SpA. Vega’s flexibility enables varied payloads to be carried – from a single passenger to mixes of satellites, microsatellites and cubesats.

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NASA Stretches For The Stars With New Budget

NASA has announced a $17.7 billion budget request for fiscal year 2013 supporting an ambitious program of space exploration that will build on new technologies and proven capabilities to expand America’s reach into the solar system.

InfoBeamFig24 Despite a constrained fiscal environment, the NASA FY13 budget continues to implement the space science and exploration program agreed to by President Obama and a bipartisan majority in Congress, laying the foundation for ground-breaking discoveries here on Earth and in deep space, including new destinations, such as an asteroid and Mars by 2035.

The NASA budget includes $4 billion for space operations and $4 billion for exploration activities in the Human Exploration Operations mission directorate, including close-out of the Space Shuttle Program, and funding for the International Space Station, $4.9 billion for science, $669 million for space technology and $552 million for aeronautics research.

The budget supports NASA’s continued work to develop the Space Launch System, a new heavy-lift rocket to carry astronauts to destinations such as an asteroid and Mars, and the Orion crew capsule in which they will travel.

Included are resources for final preparation and manufacturing milestones for Orion’s 2014 Exploration Flight Test 1 and preliminary design reviews of major Space Launch System elements.

NASA has prioritized funding for its partnership with the commercial space industry to facilitate crew and cargo transport to the station. The $830 million for this work in the FY13 budget advances progress towards a vibrant space industry that will create well-paying, high-tech jobs to the U.S. economy, and reduce America’s reliance on foreign systems The agency will continue to develop and conduct critical tests on the James Webb Space Telescope leading to its planned launch in 2018. As the successor to Hubble Space Telescope, James Webb again will revolutionize our understanding of the universe. NASA also is developing an integrated strategy to ensure the next steps for the robotic Mars Exploration Program will support science as well as long-term human exploration goals.

InfoBeamFig23 Space Technology work supported in the budget will drive advances in new high-payoff space technologies such as laser communications and zero-gravity propellant transfer, seeding innovation that will expand our capabilities in the skies and in space, supporting economic vitality, lowering the cost of other government and commercial space activities, and helping to create new jobs and expand opportunities for a skilled workforce.

NASA supports its commitment to enhancing aviation safety and airspace efficiency, and reducing the environmental impact of aviation by helping to accelerate the nation’s transition to the Next Generation Air Transportation System through investments in revolutionary concepts for air vehicles and air traffic management.

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Agility, Flexibility And Readiness To Be Maintained

The U.S. Air Force has released its fiscal 2013 and has stressed the need for difficult budgetary cuts to meet the new defense strategy while maintaining the service’s agility, flexibility and readiness.

The Air Force is requesting $154.3 billion in the president’s 2013 budget, a reduction of five percent from the $162.5 billion the service received in fiscal 2012.

Foxcom_ad_SM0312 “The Air Force made some very difficult choices,” said Maj. Gen. Edward L. Bolton Jr., the deputy assistant secretary for budget. “It is worth noting that our budget has reduced by 12 percent in real terms since FY09. So we have seen a consistent trend of reductions in the budget. The Air Force budget portion of the Budget Control Act reductions over the next five years is $54 billion.”

The Air Force Strategic Choices and Budget Priorities paper, released by Secretary of the Air Force Michael Donley and Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Norton Schwartz on Jan. 27, calls for streamlining of the force, making it smaller and more efficient with care to not create a hollow force. Under the Budget Control Act, the Department of Defense is required to reduce expenditures by $487 billion over the next 10 years with a reduction of $259 billion over the next five. The Air Force’s portion is not a result of simply dividing responsibility between the services. Instead, the budget amount is strategy driven, while maintaining a properly equipped force with the ability to deter, deny and defeat an opportunistic aggressor in a combined campaign any time, anywhere, Bolton added. “The strategy requires a different force structure and different tools; the Air Force is realigning the total force to address the future.”

The Air Force is looking at a nearly $3 billion reduction in procurement cost because the service divested and is purchasing less hardware. Also, there is a reduction of about $500 million in research, development, testing and evaluation, but the Air Force continued its focus on modernizing key components that will maintain the service’s technological edge, Bolton said. “Funding for intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance and space remain a priority,” he added. “We will continue to develop programs in ISR ensuring we are supplying this skill set to the joint warfighter and coalition partners.”

“We are reducing the force by 9,900 Airmen, which will reduce the end strength of active duty, Guard and Reserve to around a 501,000 total force,” Bolton said. “This allows us to appropriately size the force structure to the strategy and hardware we are going to have in the inventory.”

InfoBeamFig25 The Air Force is proposing a 1.7 percent military pay raise in fiscal 2013 and a 4.2 percent raise in basic allowance for housing and 3.4 percent raise in the basic allowance for subsistence as a continuing growth of compensation for service. “We are budgeting more than $700 million for family programs including child and youth programs and child development centers,” Bolton said. “We will continue to take care of our folks; we just need to ensure it is being done efficiently under tighter fiscal constraints.”

Housing is a key ingredient to taking care of Airmen and the Air Force is close to reaching its goal of 53,000 privatized housing units force-wide with over 40,000 units in place and the remaining units to be ready in fiscal 2013. “We’ve increased our family housing budget by $93 million and this will allow us to meet our goal,” Bolton said.

Looking back to the 2011 requirements—military action and support in Iraq and Afghanistan, supporting NATO missions in Libya, along with humanitarian support to Japan following a major earthquake—Bolton reinforced the reach and responsibility placed on today’s Airmen and emphasized the importance of providing them the tools required for a versatile force. “We will continue to do everything we can to provide them with the tools they need to continue to be the best Air Force in the world for decades to come,” Bolton said.

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iDirect_ad_SM0312.jpg God In The Satellite Just Got Bigger With GLC

Learning about God just got bigger... SatLink Communications Ltd. is extending its long-standing agreement with God’s Learning Channel (GLC) to broaden its reach into Asia.

The religious satellite broadcaster already delivered on Satlink’s AsiaSat 5 C-band Multiple Channels Per Carrier (MCPC) digital platform to the Asia Pacific region and Middle Eastern markets and is now increasing its channel penetration with the addition of on ABS1 satellite at 75 degrees East on the Ku-band.

God’s learning Channel is a satellite network dedicated to spreading the Christian gospel worldwide. Originally set up in the American Southwest in 1982 by husband and wife team Al and Tommie Cooper, it has since grown to global proportions. A key consideration in the selection of Ku-band was the fact that several other free-to-air religious channels are already broadcasting on this frequency, offering a greater potential for viewers who are channel hopping to discover God’s Learning Channel.

GLC joins SatLink’s growing bouquet of religious networks, which also features the Daystar faith-based TV network, in spreading their messages to the Asian audience. Al Cooper, founder and President of Prime Time, commented, “Our aim is to spread the word of God to as many households and churches around the world as possible. Being a religious broadcaster we have a strong affinity to Israel and we see benefit from both a technology and theological perspective in using SatLink’s satellite services located as they are in Jerusalem connecting the three continents of Europe, Middle East and Asia.”

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Award For Bullet-Proof Reliability

This Company is the dominant manufacturer in the Single Channel per Carrier (SCPC) area of the satellite industry.

Comtech EF Data Corporation announced today that in the recently published 12th Edition of the VSAT Report by COMSYS, it was named the dominant manufacturer in the Single Channel per Carrier (SCPC) area of the satellite industry.

The report identifies that the provision of SCPC links to support mobile cellular backhaul remains an important business. Mobile cellular backhaul continues to account for a majority of the new growth in the SCPC market, primarily in Africa and Asia with Latin America expected to expand rapidly in the next two years. The report further explains that SCPC has a reputation for bullet-proof reliability, with strong sales into the military, government and maritime markets.

InfoBeamFig26 “The most common applications for SCPC modems are where maximum efficiency is needed in high-priced satellite capacity environments and where dedicated clear channel capacity is required,” commented Simon Bull, senior consultant for COMSYS. “Comtech EF Data has worked hard to refine bandwidth efficiency. We believe that their latest Advanced VSAT Solutions product line represents a significant step forward for the company in addressing the shift from dedicated circuits to shared systems.”

The VSAT Report is known as the definitive study on the satellite industry, which enables telecommunication and IT managers, existing and prospective system operators, manufacturers and integrators to stay competitive and increase profitability. COMSYS bases the VSAT Report on primary research involving site visits and interviews.

“We are honored to be recognized as the leader in bandwidth efficiency and SCPC modems,” said Daniel Enns, senior vice president strategic marketing and business development for Comtech EF Data. “We will continue to deliver solutions that enable users to reduce OPEX/CAPEX and to increase satellite link throughput.”

The Advanced VSAT Solutions portfolio provides high-performance satellite-based communication solutions for a diverse range of applications, including mobile backhaul with RAN optimization, IP trunking and backhaul, maritime and offshore networks, corporate and enterprise networks, emergency and disaster recovery. Incorporating advanced technologies developed by Comtech EF Data, AHA Products Group, Memotec and Stampede, the solutions provide unmatched performance, industry-leading bandwidth efficiencies and network optimization—while minimizing total cost of ownership.


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