Military agency praised for leading the way on laser communications

By requiring suppliers of laser terminals to comply with a common set of standards, the U.S. Space Development Agency has helped propel the industry forward, executives said Feb. 8 at the SmallSat Symposium in Mountain View, California. The Space Development Agency (SDA), an arm of the U.S. Space Force, is building a mesh network of satellites in low Earth orbit to serve as a data transport layer for the U.S. military. Each satellite will have anywhere from three to five laser links so they can talk to other satellites, airplanes, ships and ground stations. The agency in 2021 issued a set of technical specifications that optical terminal manufacturers have to comply with in order to compete for SDA contracts. SDA is buying satellites from multiple manufacturers and all their satellites have to be interoperable. SDA’s move to set standards and force suppliers to coalesce around them has been game changing for the industry, said Sven Rettig, chief commercial officer of Tesat Spacecom, a Germany-based manufacturer of optical terminals that is expanding its U.S. operations to support SDA satellite suppliers. Laser terminals use optical technologies to route data traffic. They provide much higher transmission data rates than traditional radio-frequency links and are harder to intercept. A network of laser-link satellites also reduces the dependence on ground stations and extends coverage to remote areas where ground stations are not available.

Tesat-Spacecom artist rendering of optical communications in space. Credit: Tesat-Spacecom

 

Before SDA entered the picture, the optical communications industry was waiting for commercial constellations to set standards but “that never happened,” said Rettig. “To be very honest, we wouldn’t be where we are if SDA hadn’t had this initiative.”

As soon as the agency started planning its constellation and buying satellites in 2020, it identified laser intersatellite links as one of the most critical technologies to enable the desired proliferated LEO network.

More competitors emerging

Besides Tesat, other manufacturers jumped into the SDA market for optical intersatellite links, including Mynaric, Skyloom, CACI and others. For SDA’s constellations, laser terminals must be able to communicate at speeds of 2.5 gigabits per second, although vendors say their newest terminals can achieve 10 gigabits per second, and some up to 100.

Tina Ghataore, chief commercial officer of Mynaric, agreed that SDA has played a central role shaping the market. The company, headquartered in Germany, has established U.S. operations and signed a strategic supplier agreement with Northorp Grumman.

“SDA went out there and said optical intersatellite links are an essential technology to support our warfighter needs,” she said. “And they went a step further, developing a standard by which all of us have to communicate, so this way you can really get to a scalable product and the government isn’t tied to just one entity.”

Campbell Marshall, chief operating officer of California-based Skyloom, said the commercial industry needs to follow suit with regard to standards. “There’s going to have to be some thought leadership and coming to terms amongst the commercial producers and operators in terms of what our standards are gonna look like.”

The market today is still trying to decide if it’s going to be “VHS or Beta,” he said .

For the SDA terminals, Skyloom partnered with Honeywell.

“If you want to avoid vendor lock, which I think most customers do, there’s going to have to be standards for interoperability,” Marshall said. “SDA is demanding it.”

Dave Pechner, vice president of SA Photonics, a Florida-based company owned by CACI International, said optical communications is not just important for communications but to deliver positioning, navigation and timing (PNT) data.

SDA’s transport satellites will use optical links to be able to calculate position and time across the constellation and pass that down to ground users, Pechner said. “From a government point of view that seems almost as important as the communications link.”

Separately from the SDA program, the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency is working with the private sector on an effort to develop a standard, low-cost laser terminal to connect government and commercial constellations in low Earth orbit. The project is called Space-BACN, short for space-based adaptive communications node.

Virgin Orbit narrows down cause of LauncherOne failure

Virgin Orbit’s chief executive said Feb. 7 that a problem with a relatively inexpensive part may be linked to the failure of the company’s latest launch last month. Speaking on a panel at the SmallSat Symposium in Mountain View, California, Dan Hart said it was still premature to formally declare the root cause of the failed Jan. 9 flight of the company’s LauncherOne rocket on the “Start Me Up” mission from Spaceport Cornwall in England. However, he said while that investigation continues, evidence was pointing to a component in the rocket’s second stage engine. “Everything points to, right now, a filter that was clearly there when we assembled the rocket but was not there as the second stage engine started, meaning it was dislodged and caused mischief downstream,” he said. He didn’t go into details about that component, other than to say that it was not an expensive item. “This is like a $100 part that took us out.” Hart said the company would no longer use that filter and was “looking broadly” at other potential fixes. He did not disclose a timeframe for completing the investigation, which is being overseen jointly by the U.K.’s Air Accidents Investigation Branch and the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration. Virgin Orbit, though, is preparing its next LauncherOne rocket for a flight that will take place from the Mojave Air and Space Port in California, which hosted all the previous LauncherOne missions before last month’s U.K. launch. “We’re in integration for our next flight and looking forward to flying from Mojave over the coming weeks.”

Virgin Orbit's LauncherOne at Spaceport Cornwall being prepared for the "Start Me Up" mission. Company CEO Dan Hart said Feb. 7 that a problem with a minor component may have caused the launch to fail. Credit: Spaceport Cornwall

Hart did not discuss the financial status of the company amid concerns about available cash. The company has raised $55 million in debt since November from Virgin Investments Limited, the investment arm of Virgin Group, but its recent cash burn rate suggests it could run out of funds as soon as the second quarter.

Publicly, he was upbeat about the company’s future plans. “For us, it’s about ramping this year. We see a market that continues to develop,” he said. “We will see demand grow and we need to grow with it.”

Vega C investigation update

Virgin Orbit was not the only company on the panel that has suffered a recent launch failure. Avio is the prime contractor for the Vega C rocket, which failed to reach orbit on a Dec. 20 launch, destroying two Pléiades Neo imaging satellites for Airbus Defence and Space.

Giulio Ranzo, chief executive of Avio, said he could not comment on the investigation, led by Arianespace and the European Space Agency, since it is still in progress. “It will be released very soon, though.”

He confirmed, though, that the failure was linked to the rocket’s second stage, which is different from the second stage on the original Vega rocket. That could allow the Vega to return to flight first while modifications are made to the Vega C.

“The former version of the rocket is unaffected by this accident,” he said. “In 2023, we need to come back to flight with Vega C. We do have the luxury of using the previous version of the rocket as well to fulfill the market demand.”

Ovzon taps in SpaceX for delayed debut satellite

Ovzon said Feb. 3 the launch of its first satellite has been pushed out by at least another five months after manufacturing delays forced it to swap out Arianespace for SpaceX. The Swedish broadband provider had hoped to piggyback Ovzon 3 on one of Arianespace’s last few Ariane 5 rockets between December and February, after missing out on a slot earlier in 2022 because of Maxar Technologies’ supply chain issues. At around 1,500 kilograms, Ovzon 3 is smaller than traditional GEO communications satellites and could have joined an Ariane 5 with one or even two existing passengers. However, Maxar has run into additional delays to finalize the satellite, Ovzon said in a news release, and Arianespace was unable to accommodate the schedule change. Shifting to a SpaceX Falcon 9 means Ovzon 3 is now looking at a launch between July and September this year from Cape Canaveral, Florida. While Ovzon does not expect the delay to impact its current business commitments, the company said it is set to increase the overall cost of the project by about $25 million. “While we are clearly disappointed in the continued delays in production of the satellite, we remain perfectly confident with the market demand of Ovzon 3,” Ovzon CEO Per Norén said in a statement, pointing to “increasing demand from current and new customers” for the geostationary satellite. Ovzon said it has enlarged an existing $60 million loan facility by $5 million to help cover increasing costs. Several major shareholders are also interested in taking part in a 200 million Swedish krona ($19 million) share sale, according to the company.

Ovzon 3 is being built by Maxar using a Legion-class bus. At 1,500 kilograms, Ovzon’s first custom-built satellite is small compared to traditional geostationary communications satellites. Credit: Maxar/Ovzon/Proventus AB Credit: Maxar/Ovzon/Proventus AB

Maxar’s delays in delivering the Jupiter 3 broadband satellite to EchoStar recently led to a multi-million dollar compensation package for the U.S. operator.

Ovzon currently provides broadband services by leasing capacity from other satellite operators.

Alongside the delay announcement, the company published preliminary financial results for the three months to the end of December.

The results show net sales for the fourth quarter of 2022 increased to 101 million Swedish krona, compared with 73 million Swedish krona for the corresponding period in 2021.

The company also recorded an operating loss of nine million Swedish krona for the quarter, an improvement on the 29 million Swedish krona loss posted for the period last year.

“We renewed contracts with our core customers, won contracts with new customers and expanded into new geographical markets,” Norén said.

Sidus Space raises $5.2 million for LEO constellation

Sidus Space said Feb. 2 it has raised $5.2 million from the stock market to support LizzieSat, a multipurpose constellation it expects to start deploying in low Earth orbit this year. The company sold shares on NASDAQ for $0.30 each, a steep discount to their $5 initial offering price in December 2021 after declining for much of the year. Proceeds will help expand manufacturing capabilities, sales and marketing efforts, and cover operational costs as production ramps up toward as many as 100 small satellites over the next two years. Sidus has now raised about $24 million from the stock market after being borne out of Craig Technologies, a Florida-based government contractor founded in 1999. Less than a year after getting $15 million from its initial public offering, the company entered into a stock purchase agreement Aug. 10 enabling it to raise up to $30 million of additional equity as needed. About $3.5 million was raised under that agreement in the three months to the end of September, Sidus said during its latest financial results announcement Nov. 14. The company recorded $1.32 million in revenue for the three months to Sept. 30, up from $500,000 for the corresponding period in 2021, and had $4.4 million in cash at the end of September. It said total operating expenses reached $3.7 million for the third quarter of 2022, compared with just over $9,000 for the same period the previous year.

An artist's depiction of a LizzieSat satellite. Credit: Sidus Space Credit: Sidus Space

Ramping up

Sidus said Nov. 14 it is in talks with “numerous potential customers, including domestic and international government agencies,” to host payloads and provide data from its proposed constellation.

These include NASA and Mission Helios, a blockchain company. Sidus expects to deploy its first 100-kilogram LizzieSat satellites this year from the International Space Station and via SpaceX rideshare missions.

The company, which declined to provide a narrower launch window, has a five-launch agreement with SpaceX.

Superyacht surveillance

Sidus has plans to use LizzieSat for a space-based maritime surveillance and tracking system developed in partnership with Capital C, a superyacht designer.

According to Sidus, imagery and radio frequency sensors on LizzieSats could help monitor hazards, including piracy, changes in ocean currents, debris, and oil spills.

Under a Memorandum of Understanding between the two companies, Sidus will assist in developing, delivering, and maintaining these monitoring capabilities for Capital C’s future fleet of superyachts. Capital C said the maritime surveillance network is part of Project Terra, a fleet of “Sustainable Passenger Expedition Yachts” announced Sept. 29 for small island developing states and in emerging markets.

The project involves yachts in various configurations from 150 meters up to 250 meters in size. By using Sidus’ space-based monitoring solutions, Capital C said these vessels could use fuel more efficiently to reduce emissions.

Capital C did not give a timeframe for Project Terra and said more details will be “announced in due course.” Sidus said LizzieSat aims to take advantage of a shift away from static and low-frequency satellite imaging and geospatial solutions “toward on-demand access of real-time geospatial intelligence.”

European startup gets $44 million for space station transportation vehicles

European startup The Exploration Company said Feb. 1 it has raised 40.5 million euros ($44 million) to develop reusable orbital vehicles for flying goods and people to space. The Series A funding will help finance a series of tests and demonstrations the startup hopes to kick off late this year on the inaugural launch of Europe’s Ariane 6 rocket. Helene Huby, The Exploration Company’s co-founder and CEO, said Ariane 6 is slated to launch a small reentry demonstrator for the startup called Bikini that is around 40 kilograms and 60 centimeters in diameter. The Exploration Company hopes to gather data from this mission to test thermal protections, an onboard computer developed in-house, and validate the shape of larger capsules. The startup has booked a SpaceX Falcon 9 mission next year that Huby said will carry a larger 1.6 kilogram, 2.5-meter demonstration capsule. This capsule would have propulsion and a parachute for a more controlled reentry after taking payloads for clients, including European space agencies, on a brief trip in low Earth orbit. In 2026, Huby said the startup plans to launch a full-sized version of its Nyx orbital vehicle, measuring four meters in diameter with a mass of 8,000 kilograms. The capsule would be designed to spend several months in orbit, she told SpaceNews, to demonstrate the capability to perform precise operations ahead of a plan to dock with the International Space Station in 2027. A full-sized Nyx would be able to send 4,000 kilograms to orbit for up to six months, and bring 2,600 kilograms back down for 20,000 euros per kilogram. The startup also has later plans for missions to the moon, and one day to use its vehicles for crewed missions.

An illustration of The Exploration Company's Nyx capsule for flying cargo into space, resupplying space stations, and ultimately transporting humans. Credit: The Exploration Company

Before co-founding The Exploration Company in July 2021, Huby was vice president at Airbus Defence and Space for the European Service Module serving as the main propulsion system for Orion, the spacecraft NASA is designing to send humans to the moon.

She sees strong near-term demand for a European capability for space station transportation, in addition to facilitating microgravity missions such as those Europe’s Thales Alenia Space is also targeting with its proposed REV1 vehicle.

The ISS and China’s Tiangong are currently the only space stations in orbit.

Huby expects there will be three additional private space stations within the next five years, and by the end of this decade about five to seven space stations orbiting the Earth.

Getting The Exploration Company’s first flight completed in 2023 is an important stepping stone for the startup; however, the Ariane 6 has already faced multiple delays.

Huby said Bikini received an award last year from the European Space Agency “to fly almost free on Ariane 6,” but the company is looking for alternative options to ensure a flight this year.

“We have several on the table,” she added, and will select one of them by the end of March.

Swedish early-stage investor EQT Ventures and Red River West of France led The Exploration Company’s funding round, which Huby said brings the total amount raised to around $55 million for the 18-month-old company.

Other investors that joined its latest funding round include Promus Ventures, Cherry Ventures, Vsquared, Omnes Capital, July Fund, Partech, Possible Ventures, Habert Dassault Finance, Schlumberger, and Sista Fund.