Space blog - In the news

SSTL wins new Galileo contract

nospam@example.com (Robin Wolstenholme) — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 09:42:00 +0000

Last week it was announced that SSTL and its German partner OHB System AG have won a contract to build the next 8 satellites for the EU’s Galileo satellite navigation programme.

Prime contractor OHB will be constructing the satellites and SSTL will assemble, integrate and test the navigation payloads in its new Kepler facility in Guildford.

CEO of Arianespace Jean-Yves Le Gall, Universities and Science Minister David Willetts, Executive chairman of SSTL Sir Martin Sweeting and Vice president of the EC in charge of Industry and entrepreneurship Antonio Tajani

The contract was announced in London by Antonio Tajani, Vice President of the European Commission in charge of Industry and Entrepreneurship. SSTL’s Executive Chairman Sir Martin Sweeting and CEO Matt Perkins were joined at the event by Universities and Science Minister David Willetts and members of the European Space Agency (ESA).

This contract builds on SSTL’s nine years of experience with the Galileo project. The consortium is currently working on the construction of 14 satellites for the constellation the first of which are due for completion at the end of this year.

SSTL Executive Chairman, Sir Martin Sweeting

SSTL’s payloads are based on European-sourced atomic clocks, navigation signal generators, high power travelling wave tube amplifiers and antennas and will provide a system that is interoperable with both the American GPS system and the Russian GLONASS system.

The contract announcement is not the only recent development in the Galileo system. On January 27th the Czech government signed an agreement with the European GNSS Agency (GSA) for the headquarters of the Galileo system to be moved to Prague later in 2012.

Also Arianespace, the company in charge of launching the Galileo satellites, signed an agreement last week with ESA announcing the possibility of using Ariane 5 launchers to deploy Galileo satellites after 2014. Ariane 5 launchers can carry 4 satellites at a time while the Soyuz rockets currently used for Galileo carry 2.

Executive chairman of SSTL Sir Martin Sweeting, CEO of Arianespace Jean-Yves Le Gall, CEO of OHB-System AG Marco R Fuchs, Chairman of OHB-System AG Professor Manfred Fuchs, Vice president of the EC in charge of Industry and entrepreneurship Antonio Tajani and Universities and Science Minister David Willetts

SSTL is proud to be playing a pivotal role in Europe’s next generation satellite navigation programme. Follow our blog to find out more about SSTL’s involvement!

The Full Operational Capability phase of the Galileo programme is managed and fully funded by the European Union. The Commission and ESA have signed a delegation agreement by which ESA acts as design and procurement agent on behalf of the Commission. The views expressed in this blog can in no way be taken to reflect the official opinion of the European Union and/or ESA. “Galileo” is a trademark subject to OHIM application number 002742237 by EU and ESA.

ESA DG and UK Science Minister open Kepler facility

nospam@example.com (Robin Wolstenholme) — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 08:00:00 +0000

Earlier this week, Jean-Jacques Dordain, the Director General of the European Space Agency (ESA), officially opened SSTL’s new Kepler building. The Director General unveiled a commemorative plaque with David Willetts, the Universities and Science Minister, at an event attended by guests from the UK and European space sectors.

Dr Matt Perkins, Rt.Hon. David Willetts, Sir Martin Sweeting and Jean-Jacques Dordain mark the occasion with a handshake.

The Director General was taken on a tour of the building by SSTL’s CEO Matt Perkins and Executive Chairman, Sir Martin Sweeting. On their rounds they viewed satellites currently under construction in the Kepler building, including TechDemoSat-1, a medium resolution spacecraft for Kazakhstan and ADS-1B, an SSTL-100 platform for COM DEV’s exactEarth constellation which is due to be launched later this year.

Franco Ongaro, ESA Director of Technology and Quality, Sir Martin Sweeting, Dr Matt Perkins and Jean-Jacques Dordain with TechDemoSat-1, currently under assembly and test in SSTL's AIT hall and due for launch Q4 2012.

The Director General was also shown the 14 European GNSS payloads being built in a specially designed secure area within the 40,000 sqft facility which is co-located with SSTL’s HQ in Surrey.

The Kepler building’s world-class testing halls and state of the art facilities will provide SSTL with greater capacity to build whole constellations at one time and also work on larger spacecraft than previously, such as the geostationary telecommunications satellite currently being developed under ARTES funding from ESA.

ADS-1B, an SSTL-100 platform for COM DEV’s exactEarth constellation.

David Willetts welcomed the new facility, commenting:

"The continued success of SSTL is a clear sign that our space industry is thriving. This impressive, high-tech new facility is already manufacturing some of the most advanced satellites in the world, boosting growth and helping the UK stay ahead of the game in space technology."

Jean-Jacques Dordain, Martin Ditter (ESA Harwell) and Dr Matt Perkins inspecting flight hardware in SSTL's Assembly, Integration and Test Hall.

How solar storms affect you

nospam@example.com (Robin Wolstenholme) — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 12:54:55 +0000

We are currently experiencing the effects of a solar storm. Since Monday morning, high-energy particles have been hurtling towards Earth from the Sun. This is the result of a Coronal Mass Ejection (CME); a sudden burst of electromagnetic energy and particles released into space from the Sun’s atmosphere.

This Youtube video shows a large solar eruption that occurred in June, 2011:

In space, CME particles can collide with crucial electronics onboard a satellite, disrupting its systems. This is of particular concern in a region centred over a point close to the Falkland Islands, known as the South Atlantic Anomaly, where the Earth’s inner radiation belt comes closer to our planet’s surface. Normally satellites experience much higher levels of radiation when travelling through this region, and these effects will be exacerbated during a solar storm.

Interference with satellite signal transmissions can potentially affect our satellite-dependent communications and TV. Disruptions can also affect satellite navigation resulting in positional errors of up to tens of metres – with significant consequences for aircraft navigation and landing in particular.

Another concern for aircrews is the enhanced radiation experienced during solar storms at high altitude and at the poles of the earth. Although this is unlikely to cause permanent harm, airlines often re-route aircraft to avoid exposure.

The effects of this solar storm have even been felt here in Britain. Increased solar activity enhances the auroral oval in both the northern and southern hemispheres meaning that people in the north of the UK were able to witness the spectacular Northern Lights over the last few nights.

The Aurora Australis in the Southern Hemisphere

In severe cases very large CMEs can induce electrical fluctuations at ground level with the potential to blow out transformers in power grids, as happened in the 1989 Quebec blackout.

There’s little need to worry this time round though. This storm is likely to be only moderate as the magnetic polarity of the plasma is co-aligned with the Earth’s magnetic field. Severe solar storm effects only occur when it is cross-aligned.

Evidently, in an increasingly technological world, space weather is a serious matter. As a result, SSTL and the UK government are keen to monitor it. TechDemoSat-1 which is currently under construction in SSTL’s new Kepler facility, will carry a number of payloads collectively known as The Space Environment Suite to record radiation and ion levels. This suite will provide us with more comprehensive measurements and it is increasingly likely that such payloads will be carried on all missions in the future.

2011 in review: IAC to STRaND-1

nospam@example.com (Robin Wolstenholme) — Fri, 23 Dec 2011 10:28:31 +0000

We hope you enjoyed the first half of our year in review yesterday, but there’s more to cover and it is the season for giving after all…

In October the SSTL-50, SSTL’s new microsatellite platform, landed at The International Astronomical Congress (IAC) in Cape Town, South Africa. The SSTL-50 is a highly cost-effective satellite design that can be built and launched in just 12 months. Its small size also means that two SSTL-50’s can fit facing each other in a space head module – so double the amount of satellites can be launched in one go. It doesn’t just redefine cost effective space (again), but its dual-mode design also offers scientific missions state-of-the-art innovation with the piece of mind of SSTL’s heritage platform avionics.

UoSat-1 also celebrated its 30th anniversary during the Cape Town gathering. Very close to the hearts of many at SSTL (and apparently Evan Davis’ father) UoSAT-1 was the blueprint for all future SSTL missions, pioneering small cost-effective satellite designs that capitalised on the microcomputer revolution. SSTL was later founded by Sir Martin Sweeting based on the success of UoSAT-1 and its successors.

Exciting new technology, NovaSAR, was also launched at the IAC. NovaSAR uses synthetic aperture radar (SAR) that allows satellites to capture images in all conditions because they can see through clouds and at night. The UK government announced an investment of £21 million to support the first satellite, planting the seed for a new high-tech service industry in the UK built upon the provision of low-cost radar.

October also saw the successful launch of two first in-orbit validation (IOV) satellites that will become part of the fully-fledged European GNSS constellation. SSTL is currently building the first 14 payloads for what will become Europe’s equivalent to the American Global Positioning System (GPS). The Constellation will begin operation in 2014 as a free consumer navigation service once the remaining satellites are launched.

Alongside building satellites for its customers, SSTL remains as passionate about innovation as ever. One recent project has brought together researchers at the Surrey Space Centre and passionate SSTL engineers during lunch breaks to develop STRaND-1, a 30cm long nanosatellite which is powered by a common smartphone. During the summer the STRaND-1 team launched a SpaceApp Facebook competition that offered entrants the chance to run their App on the satellite’s Google Nexus One smartphone in orbit.

In the spirit of the mission, the SpaceApp winners were selected based upon their creativity, scientific benefit and ability to inspire young people. Winning Apps included iTesa which will record the magnitude of the magnetic field around the phone during orbit, and “Scream in Space” which will test the tagline from Ridley Scott’s film Alien 'in space no-one can hear you scream’ by playing videos and using the smartphone's microphone. One App even promises Postcards from space – well have you had one before? You can follow STRaND-1 and the SpaceApp competition winners on Twitter @SurreyNanosats and Facebook www.facebook.com/nanosats

It’s not just the number of satellites that is increasing in 2011: SSTL itself has grown dramatically. This year an incredible 116 staff joined, bringing total numbers to 447.

We would like to wish all our readers a Merry Christmas and a happy New Year. Stay tuned to find out more about space, the universe and everything in 2012. Don’t want to miss a blog? Subscribe here.

2011 in review: From UKSA to Kepler

nospam@example.com (Robin Wolstenholme) — Thu, 22 Dec 2011 12:19:04 +0000

In 2011 Europe has launched its first satellites into its future GNSS constellation, America has found Earth-like planet Kepler-22b while China has dominated space news, and Russia’s stricken Phobos-Grunt has brought the year to a close.

Following the formation of the UK Space Agency in 2010, the UK has also had a busy year – especially here at SSTL. We have seen important projects reach major milestones, celebrated anniversaries, and unveiled some very exciting new space technologies to the world.

In February, the Disaster Monitoring Constellation celebrated its 10th birthday. This unique international collaboration was set up to gather and distribute images of disaster zones anywhere in the world, and assisted disaster relief during Hurricane Katrina, the Asian Tsunami and many other disasters. SSTL’s remote sensing subsidiary, DMCii, also led the International Charter of Space and Major Disasters for 6 months from May to November, taking the reins as the world reeled from the devastation caused by the earthquake in Japan. Servicing its members’ national programmes, disaster relief and commercial imaging campaigns, the constellation has continued to grow this year with the launch of two Nigerian satellites.

NigeriaSat-2 and NigeriaSat-X were launched from Yasny, Russia on the 17th August. They are the tangible outcome of a comprehensive programme that included the training of some 26 Nigerian engineers – in fact, NigeriaSat-X was the first satellite to be built by Nigerians for Nigeria. NigeriaSat-2 was the first satellite using the new SSTL-300 platform to be launched, further pushing the price/performance boundaries for small observation satellites with its unrivalled agility. Apart from super-clear high resolution imaging NigeriaSat-2 can uses its off-pointing to acquire stereoscopic images and build a 3D picture to map terrain. Nigeria has big plans for its new satellite, from monthly crop monitoring for increased food security, and keeping tabs on the country’s rapid urban growth.

In June, DMCii signed an impressive £110 million deal with Beijing-based company 21AT during the Chinese premier’s visit to the UK to lease the imaging capacity of three high-resolution satellites for applications such as disaster response and urban planning. The SSTL-built satellites, which are based upon the SSTL-300 platform but carry a higher resolution 1m imaging payload, will form a constellation named DMC3. The deal addresses growing demand for images from the small imaging satellite Beijing-1 which was built by SSTL and launched for 21AT in 2005.

2011 also marked the opening of SSTL’s new £10 million world-class technical facility, The Kepler Building, providing assembly, testing and integration of satellite platforms and payloads. Co-located with SSTL’s headquarters, this secure building, with its state-of-the-art cleanrooms, laboratories and testing facilities, provides enhanced abilities to design, build, and test spacecraft for customers around the world in one place – and looks good in the process!

TechDemoSat-1 is one of the projects underway in Kepler. A pioneering small satellite showcasing some of UK industry’s most promising space technologies, it will give participating academia and companies early flight heritage – the lack of which has previously been a barrier to market acceptance. We’re expecting some TechDemoSat-1 updates very soon so watch this space!

It’s been such a busy year for SSTL, you’ll have to tune in tomorrow for the second half of SSTL’s Year in Review. In the meanwhile, why not treat yourself this Christmas and subscribe to Space Blog by opening your present above and make sure you don’t miss it (or any other blog) again!

Evan Davis reveals a soft spot for SSTL

nospam@example.com (Robin Wolstenholme) — Mon, 05 Dec 2011 13:58:14 +0000

Broadcast journalist Evan Davis is a busy man of many hats. When he’s not on Radio 4’s Today Programme he can be spotted presenting Dragon’s Den or Made In Britain – both of which share his passion for British entrepreneurism and innovation. It therefore comes as no surprise that the Open University has appointed Evan Visiting Professor of the Public Understanding of Business, where he recently delivered his first public lecture, Reflections on the British Economy.

Made in Britain viewers’ eyes were opened to a hidden world of British high-tech manufacturing and engineering that Britain is actually very good at – banishing the view that nothing is made in Britain anymore. It was a refreshing look at the positives amidst the UK PLC’s current economic woes. Evan’s lecture on 1st November follows same theme high-tech British manufacturing in the international arena, focusing specifically on three key areas:

the continuing contribution of manufacturing.

the UK’s comparative advantage in intellectual property

the threats from emerging economies as they develop tradable services.

SSTL’s Stephen Gibson enjoyed his lecture, but little did he know that when he posed a question that Evan Davis would share a “soft spot” for SSTL. It turns out his father was not only an electronic engineer at the University of Surrey, but moreover the Phd supervisor to SSTL founder Sir Martin Sweeting as he designed the first low cost small satellites that our University spin-out has pioneered for the last 25 years. As a teenager, Evan even saw the original UoSAT in the University of Surrey and he is said to be a keen follower of SSTL’s progress.

You can watch Evan’s lecture on the Open University website, and followers who are interested can also hear Evan’s response – and revelations! – in this video from the Q&A session.

SpaceApp winners worlds apart but orbit together

nospam@example.com (Robin Wolstenholme) — Fri, 21 Oct 2011 13:14:55 +0100

After some tough judging, engineers at SSTL and the Surrey Space Centre (SSC) have chosen the four winning Apps to go up in space on STRaND-1, the smartphone satellite. Entering a competition through Facebook, the four winners were chosen for their Apps’ scientific benefits, their creativity, or the App’s ability to get young people enthusiastic about science and technology.

Smartphones today are incredibly powerful, and whilst they share many features with conventional satellites such as cameras and sensors, a smartphone payload also means that STRaND-1 is packed with unique features. One of the main challenges for the Space App winners was to find an innovative way to incorporate some of the smartphone features, like the camera, screen, loudspeaker or microphone, in an App designed to run in the very different environment onboard a satellite. The winning Apps are diverse in nature, but all make smart use of the smartphone - enabling STRaND-1 to do things in space that no one has done before.

The different parts of STRaND

As any fan of the 1979 sci-fi classic ‘Alien’ will know, ‘in space no one can hear you scream’, but has anyone ever actually tested this hypothesis? That’s exactly what the student-run team Cambridge University Spaceflight group plans to do with their winning App. Their ‘Scream in Space!’ App uses the smartphone’s display, microphone and speakers to play videos of people screaming on a youtube video and record it in space. Aiming to interest young people in scientific methodology, the public are invited to upload videos of themselves to a website, from which the most popular screams will be played on the phone when the satellite is in orbit. Visitors to the website will later be able to view (and maybe hear!?) the results of this experiment.

Continue reading "SpaceApp winners worlds apart but orbit together"

EO satellites outlive their design

nospam@example.com (Robin Wolstenholme) — Fri, 30 Sep 2011 11:13:23 +0100

Nigeriasat-1 and UK-DMC-1, part of the Disaster Monitoring Constellation coordinated by DMCii, have this week reached their 8th operational year in orbit. Launched on September the 27th 2003 from the Plesetsk Cosmodrome on board a Kosmos 3-M rocket, Nigeriasat-1 and UK-DMC-1 have been providing imagery to their respective operators, NASRDA in Abuja, Nigeria and SSTL in Guildford, Surrey for the last 8 years.

UK-DMC-1 moved to adapter before launch

In addition to its remote sensing payload, UK-DMC-1 also carries three experimental payloads which have in their own ways proven to be revolutionary: The Cisco router in Low Earth Orbit (CLEO) was a pioneering implemention of an internet link in space. Working together, NASA Glenn Research Center, SSTL and Cisco Systems used UK-DMC-1 to demonstrate a prototype of the future Interplanetary Internet - being the first to evaluate the delay-tolerant networking bundle protocol in space.

The GPS Reflectometry experiment was the first dedicated experiment to demonstrate the feasibility of using GPS and GNSS reflections off the surface of the Earth to measure geophysical parameters, such as the roughness of the ocean surface. For the first time, spaceborne reflections were received from reflections off sea, ice, snow and land. A follow-on instrument has recently been designed and will be flying on TechDemoSat-1. The water Resistojet experiment was the first flight of this kind of technology. Water based propulsion avoids the complications and infrastructure required in using hazardous propellants at high pressures, and results in a useful level of thrust and efficiency at a very low cost.

SSTL prepares all its missions for End of Mission as a precautionary measure. UK-DMC-1 initiated its preparations in September 2010 and Nigeriasat-1 in June this year, which meant using up the remaining propellant to passivate the satellites. Using up the propellant also lowers the orbit and is an efficient way of reducing their remaining time in orbit. Since this work was completed, both satellites have continued their respective missions and will continue to provide imagery until End of Mission. The first satellite in the constellation Alsat-1, which was built by SSTL for the Algerian Space Agency (ASAL) and launched in 2002, completed its mission last year having exceeded its original 5-year design lifetime by 50% to a remarkable 7 years and 9 months.

Sir Martin Sweeting at the UK Space Conference

nospam@example.com (Robin Wolstenholme) — Thu, 01 Sep 2011 14:48:24 +0100

The annual UK Space Conference was recently held at Warwick University and SSTL founder Sir Martin Sweeting attended the event as one of the speakers. The UK Space Conference was formally opened by The Rt Hon David Willetts MP, Minister of State for Universities and Science, and attracted leading figures from Europe’s space sector, providing an opportunity for an exchange of information between government, industry and the research community.

The UK Space Conference had an extra focus on key innovations and research outputs to help shape the space sector, highlighting the connections between the space sector and other sectors in the UK economy. As one of the speakers at the Innovation – Science, Business, Technology session, Sir Martin Sweeting highlighted the innovation and technological advances in small satellites and how these can change the economics of the space sector.

Interviewed at the conference, Sir Martin Sweeting talks about recent developments in SSTL, such as the new innovative leasing capacity contract with China and the new advanced technical facility in Guildford. Sir Martin said: “SSTL is one of Guildford’s best kept secrets. We’re in Guildford building satellites!”.

Inside SSTL’s new Kepler building

nospam@example.com (Robin Wolstenholme) — Tue, 12 Jul 2011 15:53:35 +0100

For anyone visiting the SSTL headquarters in Guildford UK during the past year, it’s been hard to miss the construction of the new state-of-the-art Kepler Building just opposite. True to SSTL’s approach, the building, that was just blueprints months ago, is now ready for business and is already filling up with people and equipment.

With projects such as the European GNSS payloads and the DMC3 Earth Observation constellation on the go, SSTL has far outgrown their original facilities at University of Surrey and there have been plans of a new completely customised building for some time. Space Blog caught up with SSTL Facility Manager Tim Gilbert, who oversaw the design and build of the new facility, from planning to construction. Tim pointed out how they used all their previous experience when planning and designing the Kepler building. Capitalising on input from engineers and employees whilst taking production workflow into consideration, was essential to make the new facility as functional and efficient as possible.

Tim Gilbert said “We needed to predict not only the future increased size but also the handling challenges associated with the future generations of satellites. As SSTL is moving towards producing larger and heavier satellites, we don’t want to be constrained by the size of the building in which we’re working. With the Kepler building we’re able to meet our 5-10 year business plan”.

The new facility’s cleanrooms, laboratories and testing facilities total 3,700sqm (40,000 sqft), a huge step change upwards in production capacity. Satellites as big as GIOVE-A can easily fit through the cleanrooms with 11 metre high ceilings, wide doors and large access corridors. The Kepler Building will accommodate typically 40 permanent staff, and anything up to 100 further project specific staff from across the company at peak test and integration periods.

New world-class Assembly, Integration and Test halls are integral to the new facility, providing two 125 cubic metre walk-in thermal chambers, a seismic test platform, monorail and gantry cranes ranging from 3,200kg to 15,000kg and reinforced floors - providing the greatest possible flexibility for integration and testing of both small and larger spacecraft simultaneously.

The Kepler Building is also assessed as Very Good through the Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method (BREEAM), evaluating a range of issues from the building’s user friendliness to it’s environmental impact.

Work’s already underway in the new Kepler facility

Satellites currently being assembled and tested in the new world-class test halls include TechDemoSat-1 and the Kazakhstan medium resolution satellite for Astrium. Six SSTL satellite missions are scheduled for launch this year: NigeriaSat-2 and NigeriaSat-X for NASRDA, KANOPUS 1 and 2 spacecraft for VNIIEM, ADS-1B for COM DEV, and SAPPHIRE for MacDonald Dettwiler Associates (MDA). The new capacity also plays an important role in SSTL’s contract to supply the first 14 European GNSS payloads in partnership with OHB Technology, which will be assembled in the secure facility.

Sir Martin Sweeting is first for new award

nospam@example.com (Robin Wolstenholme) — Fri, 01 Jul 2011 14:52:20 +0100

SSTL founder, Professor Sir Martin Sweeting, yesterday received a prestigious new honour recognising and celebrating local innovation, creativity and commitment. The Guildford Roll of Honour is the result of collaboration between local partners the University of Surrey and Guildford Borough Council and will go on permanent display at the historic Guildhall in Guildford’s town centre.

Sir Martin Sweeting, Prof Chris Snowden, Vice Chancellor of Surrey, and the Chief Executive of GBC, David Hill with the new Roll of Honour.

Sir Martin was nominated in recognition of his contribution to the economy and the profile of Guildford worldwide, winning both national and international acclaim for his work spanning three decades. The inaugural award was presented at a special celebratory black tie dinner on Thursday 30th June with an audience of guests drawn from the worlds of business, education and public service.

David Cameron, Wen Jibao witness DMC3 signing

nospam@example.com (Robin Wolstenholme) — Thu, 30 Jun 2011 15:22:35 +0100

Earlier this week, UK Prime Minister David Cameron and Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao witnessed the signing of a £110m satellite imaging deal between SSTL subsidiary DMCii and Beijing-based company 21AT during the UK-China trade summit at 10 Downing Street.

Mme Wu Shuang and Sir Prof. Martin Sweeting (left) sign agreement

China’s rapid growth has prompted unparalleled demand for satellite imagery, which can be used for urban planning, change detection and disaster monitoring.

In a new way of requiring satellite imagery, 21AT will be leasing 100% of the DMC3 constellation’s capacity from DMCii, giving them the flexibility to quickly receive the images they need, but without the complexity associated with operating three satellites.

DMC3 will be powered by three SSTL-300S1 satellites, SSTL’s new smallsat design which provides unparalleled 1 metre high resolution imagery with high speed downlink and 45 degrees off-pointing.

Space-savvy MPs visit Kepler technical facility

nospam@example.com (Robin Wolstenholme) — Wed, 29 Jun 2011 16:04:36 +0100

Yesterday was a busy day at SSTL's HQ in Guildford. As the £110m DMC3 satellite constellation contract was being agreed with Chinese company 21AT, SSTL was also delighted to host a visit by three Members of Parliament with strong interests in space and what space applications can do for the "man on the street".

Simon Wright, MP for Norwich South, is vice-chairman of the Parliamentary Space Committee with a particular interest in Earth Observation and Climate Change. David Morris, MP for Morecambe and Lunesdale in Lancashire, is also a vice-chairman of the Parliamentary Space Committee with a particular interest in Space Science and Satellite Broadband access.

It’s genuinely exciting to see the high tech space industry working and growing here in Surrey. A facility like SSTL deserves a high level of Government support.

commented Jonathan Lord MP, who was interested in visiting SSTL given the proximity of the company's Guildford Headquarters to his Woking constituency.

L-R Paul Brooks (SSTL), David Morris MP, Steve Young (SSTL), Simon Wright MP, Jonathan Lord MP, Ruth Gripper (office of Simon Wright MP), Tom Gunner (PSP), Chris Veck (office of Simon Wright).

During the visit the MPs met SSTL's founder and board chairman, Sir Martin Sweeting. Sir Martin commented:

SSTL is primarily an exporting company and needs to work closely with the government in many of our export activities. In addition to working closely with the newly formed UK Space Agency, the Parliamentary Space Committee provides an excellent forum for space companies like SSTL to discuss, with members of Parliament, the means by which the government can support our export activities.

Continue reading "Space-savvy MPs visit Kepler technical facility"

Reaching out to future space cadets

nospam@example.com (Robin Wolstenholme) — Mon, 20 Jun 2011 15:47:31 +0100

SSTL’s very own Mission and Systems Team Leader Kathryn Graham not only inspires Space Blog readers, but also motivates young people of all ages to become interested in careers within science and engineering as a STEM ambassador. Kathryn reaches out to young people by, for example, visiting schools, where she shares her real-life experience of how exciting a career in Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths (STEM) can be. Not all of us can say that we are employed to come up with new ideas for technologies to be put up in space!

Recently Kathryn engaged with 75 female students age 12-13 at the Warwick School in Redhill, a specialist technology college. Students from five schools in Surrey took part in the event, which was all about ‘Women into Science and Engineering’ (WISE). The day started off with a careers ‘speed dating’, where Kathryn met up with the students one-on-one to answer questions about her job and other STEM careers, such as: What does your job involve? Why did you choose your career? How important are STEM subjects in your job? What qualifications do you have?

The students were set an engineering task in the afternoon to create a self-propelled vehicle containing an egg - which proved to be more difficult than expected to avoid the much-feared ”scrambling effect”!

WISE women at the Warwick school

Continue reading "Reaching out to future space cadets"

Space experiment competition stars announced

nospam@example.com (Robin Wolstenholme) — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 09:14:19 +0100

Congratulations to the team from Shrewsbury School who have won the Space Experiment Competition with their proposal for an ionospheric scintillation experiment called POISE. The team beat off competition from 5 other teams of schoolchildren in the UK to develop their experiment with SSTL and fly their entry a small satellite that will be launched by SSTL in 2010.

POISE team awarded (click to enlarge)

Shrewsbury School, in Shropshire, beat five other groups from around the UK in the final stage of the competition which was announced at an awards ceremony at the International Astronautical Congress in Glasgow (IAC) today (Friday 3 October).

The competition, launched earlier this year, challenged teams of 14 – 19 year olds to design and build a small, compact satellite instrument. The POISE experiment is expected to measure variations in the ionosphere, which can affect the accuracy and safety of satellite navigation systems, and might also help to provide indications of impending earthquakes.

The POISE team had to overcome significant challenges to design their experiment within the tight constraints of the competition. Their instrument could be no larger than the size of a lunch box, weigh no more than one kilogram and operate on less than one Watt of power.

Ian Pearson, the Minister for Science and Innovation was impressed with the results.

We have some fantastically creative and talented young people in the country. It’s staggering to see the effort and imagination that has been generated by this competition.

The competition has been sponsored by the British National Space Centre (BNSC), a cross-Government organisation that co-ordinates civil space activities in the UK.

Professor Sir Martin Sweeting, founder of SSTL, emphasised the educational potential of the mission:

SSTL was founded by the University of Surrey and we have always had very strong links with academia, so we’re delighted to extend this opportunity to UK schools. I hope that the experiment will encourage more of our young people to take up careers in science and engineering.

Dr David Williams, Director General of BNSC

The UK has a fantastic capability in the space arena and ambitious plans for exciting programmes such as the lunar exploration mission, MoonLITE. We hope this competition will help to inspire the next generation of space scientists who will make those plans a reality.

The judging panel included Professor Colin Pillinger and Keith Mans, the Chief Executive of the Royal Aeronautical Society.

The winning team was announced at IAC by South Korea's first astronaut, Soyeon Yi. She recently returned from a trip to the International Space Station, having been chosen from about 36,000 applicants for the mission.

Satellites respond to Mississippi floods

nospam@example.com (Robin Wolstenholme) — Fri, 20 May 2011 08:23:16 +0100

DMCii, SSTL’s imaging subsidiary, has been responding to an International Charter: Space and Major Disasters emergency activation for the flooding of Mississippi river in Central Midwest USA. The current flooding is approaching records set 84 years ago and it’s the first time in 40 years the level of the Mississippi has forced the floodgates to be opened. The UK has just taken over the chairmanship of the International Charter, and we take a closer look at the emergencies around the world that DMCii is providing satellites images for right now.

Fed by rainwater and the spring thaw, the Mississippi river and its tributaries have caused massive flooding upstream, and officials have said the flooding in Louisiana is the worst since 1927. About 25,000 people and 11,000 buildings could be adversely affected and the disaster’s Project Manager in the USA is using data from Charter members, including DMCii, to assess the situation. The flooding in the Mississippi delta has required an extended imaging campaign as the floods develop.

The dry and unusually warm spring has brought wild fires to several parts of the UK and DMCii has recently been “called in” to image a fire that broke out at the Belmont moor in Lancashire. On the other side of the World Mexico has also recently experienced raging fires, causing an activation of the International Charter. DMCii responded by tasking UK-DMC2 to image the area. Wild fires are common in Mexico at this time of year, but high temperatures and strong winds have meant that the country has experienced the worst fire season in 30 years, with the northern part of the country hit especially hard.

DMCii operates the Disaster Monitoring Constellation, a currently five-strong commercial satellite constellation made available on behalf of the UK as part of the Charter satellite fleet. Emergency on-Call Officers (ECOs) make themselves ready on a rotation basis to respond to International disasters on a 24/7 basis and task the Charter’s combined satellites in the event of an activation.

DMCii also has a place on the International Charter’s Executive Secretariat, which implements the day-to-day operation of the Charter.

The Constellation recently celebrated its 10-year anniversary at a Consortium meeting in London, focusing on how the constellation can be developed in the future, which you could read about here on the Space blog.

UK takes over international disaster relief effort

nospam@example.com (Robin Wolstenholme) — Thu, 12 May 2011 08:41:36 +0100

The time has come for the UK to take up leadership of the International Charter: Space and Major Disasters for a second time. Each member space agency takes it in turn to lead the Charter for a six-month period, and from yesterday Wednesday 11 May, DMCii together with the UK Space Agency will host and chair meetings, develop operational protocols and solve any problems that arise.

The Charter is a unique cooperation between space agencies worldwide, coordinating the acquisition of satellite images over disaster-stricken regions as quickly as possible. These images used to create up to date disaster response maps that are delivered to the relevant civil protection authorities as soon as they come in to help guide response efforts and save lives.

Initiated by the European, French and Canadian space agencies (ESA, CNES, CSA), the Charter has been activated more than 300 times since it was declared formally operational in 2000, with activations currently averaging once per fortnight. This year’s disasters have triggered 10 activations to date, including flooding in Australia, Brazil and Namibia, landslides in Turkey, earthquakes in New Zealand and the tsunami in Japan.

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"Poyekhali" – Off we go! Words made famous by Yuri Gagarin

nospam@example.com (Robin Wolstenholme) — Mon, 18 Apr 2011 09:10:11 +0100

50 years ago, on the morning of 12 April 1961, Russian cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin accomplished the feat of becoming first man in space - an event followed closely by people all over the world. The 50th anniversary of this pioneering space travel didn’t go unnoticed and as London is waiting for its very own Yuri Gagarin statue, donated by the Russian Space Agency (Roscosmos), we take a closer look in what was to become a great milestone in space history.

Yuri Gagarin

In the backdrop of the Cold War, the United States and Russia had both experimented with sending up animals in space, but until 1961 there had been no humans. As the Americans were training cosmonaut Alan Shepherd, the Russians speeded up their launch of the ball-shaped Vostoc 1 spacecraft, positioned on top of the R-7 rocket. As the rocket blasted off in the morning of 12 April, Gagarin famously exclaimed: "Poyekhali", or "off we go". His spaceflight lasted 108 minutes and ended in a Russian field where Gagarin safely stepped out in front of curious onlookers.

Continue reading ""Poyekhali" – Off we go! Words made famous by Yuri Gagarin"

Satellites improving UK emergency response

nospam@example.com (Robin Wolstenholme) — Fri, 01 Apr 2011 15:35:05 +0100

You may have heard of the severe flooding taking place in the UK within the last few weeks, fortunately only as part of a simulation conducted by the Environment Agency for the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs and the Welsh Assembly. Known as ‘Exercise Watermark’, the exercise was conducted to test the arrangements and response to severe, wide-area flooding across England and Wales.

The simulation formed the perfect opportunity for a DMCii led team of space experts to observe and participate in the practical aspects of a disaster to see how data and services from space could be used to improve UK emergency response.

During a disaster, such as severe flooding, space-based services can provide disaster response teams with up-to-date satellite maps and asset tracking capabilities to improve their situational awareness. Damaged or overloaded communications infrastructure on the ground can be reinforced using satellite telecommunications. ‘Exercise Watermark’ provided the team with a unique first-hand view of how a disaster is handled on the ground. Adina Gillespie, DMCii Project Manager pointed out:

“We know the contingency community doesn’t need to understand whizzy gadgetry, so now we’re asking ourselves how can we incorporate information from space assets seamlessly into their existing disaster response procedures”.

Rescue workers during the Bala lake simulation

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A decade of disaster monitoring

nospam@example.com (Robin Wolstenholme) — Fri, 25 Feb 2011 15:27:51 +0000

Celebrating 10 years of success, members of the Disaster Monitoring Constellation (DMC) and representatives from 12 different countries, the European Space Agency and six UK government departments met up in London last week for the 13th DMC Consortium Meeting. The UK Space Agency, SSTL and DMC International Imaging (DMCii) jointly hosted the day – the theme ‘Vision for the next Decade of the Disaster Monitoring Constellation’.

Halilu Ahmad Shaba, Nigeria and Eleni Paliouras, ESA in a panel discussion at the Consortium Meeting

DMCii works with the world’s space agencies and the United Nations (UN) within the International Charter: Space and Major Disasters to provide multi-spectral and panchromatic optical imagery during disasters. The constellation responds to disasters frequently and has played an important role responding to disasters such as the Asian Tsunami (2004), Hurricane Katrina (2005), and the UK floods (2007). The constellation has also very rapidly supplied imagery for the recent earthquake in New Zealand.

SSTL’s cost effective approach to satellite design lowered the price tag of Earth Observation to the point where governments and organisations throughout the world could own an independent satellite, providing cost effective sovereign remote sensing capability with shared ground segment, image processing and commercial distribution – and play an essential role in international disaster response.

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Matt Perkins accepts Coachmakers award

nospam@example.com (Robin Wolstenholme) — Thu, 27 Jan 2011 14:15:32 +0000

Dr Matt Perkins, CEO of SSTL, accepted a prestigious industry award for outstanding contributions to technological advancement in aerospace, also involving elegance and commercial significance on Monday 24th January. SSTL was given this award by the Worshipful Company of Coachmakers, that promote excellence in the development of the trade within the modern aerospace, automotive and rail industries, and has been bestowed on the likes of Rolls Royce. SSTL was nominated by Vice-Admiral Timothy James Hamilton Laurence, CB, MVO, CSM, ADC(P)(I), and Matt Perkins accepted the award at a ceremony held at a dinner at the Savile Club.

Dr Matt Perkins with Vice-Admiral Timothy James Hamilton Laurence, CB, MVO, CSM, ADC(P)(I) at the awards ceremony

Satellite images aid Colombian flood relief

nospam@example.com (Robin Wolstenholme) — Fri, 10 Dec 2010 14:40:36 +0000

Heavy rains have caused major rivers in the Sucre/San Marcos region in Colombia to burst their banks, leaving tens of thousands of people homeless. DMCii was activated via the International Charter: Space and Major Disasters to acquire images of the area giving rescue workers and officials a better estimate of the full impact of the flooding.

The image above was provided to Augustin Codazzi Geographic Institute (IGAC) which coordinates Earth observation imagery with Colombian organisations involved in disaster response such as IDEAM, COCLCIENCIAS.

The extreme weather further caused a hillside to collapse near the Colombian city of Medellin and according to BBC reports yesterday, 24 bodies were recovered with more than 100 people missing and feared dead. Several hundred people, including Red Cross rescue workers, soldiers and police, are digging through the deep mud in an effort to find survivors. More than 20 sniffer dogs have also been brought in.

View Larger Map The area seen from Google maps

The extreme weather is attributed to the La Nina climatic phenomenon, which is caused by water currents that are colder than usual along the Pacific coast. According to the Washington Post, Colombia's government says 1.6 million people have either lost their homes or had homes suffer partial damage. About 70 percent to 80 percent live in inundated flood plains and have not abandoned them "because they don't want to leave their homes and belongings for fear of losing everything," Luz Amanda Pulido, Colombia's national disaster management office, said.

DMCii regularly responds to disasters throughout the world, providing up to date imagery to help authorities and relief agencies to plan disaster relief efforts.

CHRIS captures images of Hungarian toxic sludge

nospam@example.com (Robin Wolstenholme) — Fri, 22 Oct 2010 09:31:22 +0100

The Compact High Resolution Imaging Spectrometer (CHRIS) recently captured telling images of red toxic sludge following the Ajka alumina plant accident in Devecser, Hungary that has recently been widely reported in the media. Unlike many satellite images of flooding disasters, there is no need to highlight the affected area in the image afterwards as the red sludge clearly stands out from the surrounding landscape.

Toxic sludge in Devecser, Hungary. Copyright ESA, CHRIS Imager, processed by DMCii

Emergency monitoring is just one of the applications that the high-resolution CHRIS imager has been used for during the past 9 years. In fact, today marks the 9th birthday of the CHRIS imager which was launched on-board the European Space Agency’s PROBA-1 mission in October 2001. The hyperspectral data from CHRIS remains in high demand from the international scientific community and its rich, high-resolution imagery is used for precision farming, air quality assessment and seabed classification and much, much more.

The image above was acquired on October 14th, showing the extent of the disaster in great detail. Not bad for a nine year old!

The toxic sludge spill followed a collapsed reservoir on October 4 and initially affected about 40 square kilometres of land. Read more about the accident on BBC’s website.

Satellites help flood-stricken Pakistan

nospam@example.com (Robin Wolstenholme) — Thu, 07 Oct 2010 13:25:14 +0100

DMCii is playing an important role in the continuing disaster relief operations in flood-affected areas of Pakistan. DMCii satellite images are providing detailed snapshots of the flooded areas that show the current extent of the flooding at present compared to the initial impact that was widely reported in the media in August.

As reported by the BBC only yesterday, the floods in Pakistan are far from over. The image to the left shows the widespread flooding on August 16th. The image to the right was taken just yesterday (October 6th) and reveals the vast areas still submerged.

Following a request from the European Space Agency (ESA) via the International Charter : Space and Major Disasters, the UK-DMC2 satellite acquired the above 22m resolution image.

The Pakistan floods began in July following heavy monsoon rains in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Sindh, Punjab and Balochistan regions of Pakistan. By United Nation estimates, over 21 million people have been affected by the flooding that at one point covered about one-fifth of Pakistan's total land area. Satellite images play a major part in estimating the extent of the disaster and aiding in the planning of relief efforts.

DMCii regularly responds to disasters throughout the world, providing up to date imagery to help authorities and relief agencies to plan disaster relief efforts.

Visit www.dec.org.uk/donate_now/ for more details on how to contribute to the disaster relief.

Algeria’s first satellite mission completed

nospam@example.com (Robin Wolstenholme) — Thu, 26 Aug 2010 10:49:26 +0100

Alsat-1, the first satellite launched in the international Disaster Monitoring Constellation led by SSTL, has finally completed its mission for the Algerian Space Agency (ASAL) having exceeded its original 5-year design lifetime by 50% to a remarkable 7 years and 9 months.

Engineer working on Alsat-1

Launched in November 2002 into a 700km sun-synchronous orbit on board a Kosmos 3-M rocket from the Plesetsk Cosmodrome in Northern Russia, Alsat-1 was Algeria's first national satellite - as well as being the first Disaster Monitoring Constellation satellite, it was also the first SSTL spacecraft to carry SSTL's newly developed Slim 6 Line Scan Imager payload.

Alsat-1 launch preparations

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UK and Russia sign space collaboration deal

nospam@example.com (Robin Wolstenholme) — Tue, 27 Jul 2010 09:50:42 +0100

At the Farnborough International Airshow last week, the UK signed a historic agreement with Russia leading the way to greater collaboration in space between the two nations. SSTL welcomes this great news, which promises to make it easier for the two nations to benefit from their respective strengths.

SSTL has had a long and successful collaboration with a variety of Russian organisations spanning 20 years, working with the UK and Moscow offices of Commercial Space Technologies (CST Ltd.) as representative and local partner. SSTL and CST have together been one of the major customers for Russian launch services. However, don't think it's a one way street - SSTL is also playing an integral role in the high resolution Kanopus Earth Observation constellation with its partner FSUE NPP VNIIEM.

Professor Sir Martin Sweeting OBE, Executive Chairman of SSTL, commented

We have built up a close relationship with our colleagues at CST and the Russian Space Agency over the last 20 years, successfully launching 21 satellites on-board Russian rockets over 11 launch campaigns. SSTL was the first customer and partner for the DNEPR launch vehicle, allowing Kosmotras to compete in the international market for launch services using this launcher and also the first customer for SSO services from Plesetsk on Cosmos LV. SSTL is extending this relationship into the future through significant participation in the Kanopus high resolution Earth Observation constellation with our partner FSUE NPP VNIIEM and the launch of three further satellites from Russia later this year. I hope that the signing of this MOU between UK Space Agency and the Russian Federal Space Agency will bring further commercial benefits to the space activities and space industries of both countries.

In October, SSTL will launch the NigeriaSat-2 and NigeriaSat-X satellites on behalf of the National Space Research and Development Agency (NASRDA) by a Dnepr launch vehicle from Yasny, Russia on 29th October 2010.

SSTL antennas destined for ISS resupply vehicle

nospam@example.com (Robin Wolstenholme) — Tue, 13 Jul 2010 10:27:51 +0100

Orbital Sciences Corporation (Orbital) has ordered nine GPS patch antennas from SSTL for the Cygnus™ advanced manoeuvring spacecraft – for those who don’t recognise the name, this is one of the forthcoming unmanned resupply spacecraft for the International Space Station (ISS)!

Orbital is the prime contractor for this spacecraft – which is one of the first truly commercial missions to be conducted for NASA.

GPS Patch Antenna

The Cygnus spacecraft is being developed by Orbital to demonstrate cargo delivery services under a NASA Commercial Orbital Transportation Services (COTS) agreement. In addition to the COTS development and demonstration program, Orbital will utilise the Cygnus to perform ISS resupply flights under the Commercial Resupply Service (CRS) contract. This NASA contract authorises eight missions between 2011 and 2015 carrying approximately 20,000 kg of cargo to the ISS, as well as disposal of ISS waste.

The coming together of the commercial space entrepreneurs and the world’s most established space agency is not the only story here. As you’d expect, flying cargo to the ISS has its challenges, not least of which is manoeuvring and docking with the space station and Cygnus in fact comprises a common service module and a pressurised cargo module.

See here is a Multipurpose Logistics Module (MPLM) berthed on the International Space Station. The Cygnus module will use a similar berthing mechanism. Courtesy NASA

Artist's image of the Cygnus spacecraft approaching the International Space Station. (Image courtesy of OrbitalSciences Corporation)

For more information, visit the Cygnus Factsheet

SSTL manufactures the majority of its sub-systems used in its own and third party missions, they are available to order and have been used extensively on a range of small and larger third party missions. For more details, visit www.sstl.co.uk/divisions/systems-and-services/subsystems

Gulf of Mexico oil slick captured by satellite

nospam@example.com (Robin Wolstenholme) — Thu, 03 Jun 2010 15:37:51 +0100

SSTL’s satellite imaging subsidiary DMCii has used its UK-DMC2 satellite to monitor the oil slick in the Gulf of Mexico.

Satellite imagery is being supplied to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (Noaa), and the US Geological Survey (USGS) following an activation of the International Charter : Space and Major Disasters.

UK-DMC2 Image (C) DMCii, 2010.

UK-DMC2 and its five siblings in the Disaster Monitoring Constellation (DMC) of satellites are able to provide daily imaging of the oil slick if required, detecting changes in the spill and tracking changes in direction. Current reports indicate that the oil click is moving towards the Florida coastline, having already reached land and affected Louisiana fisheries.

The DMC satellites use specially designed SSTL imaging payloads to image the Earth at resolutions between 4m and 32m across an ultra-wide 600km-plus swath (width).
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SST-US platforms get NASA seal of approval

nospam@example.com (Robin Wolstenholme) — Fri, 30 Apr 2010 11:18:14 +0100

Flight proven satellite platforms from Surrey Satellite Technology US LLC (SST-US) have been selected by NASA's Rapid Spacecraft Development Office (RSDO) for inclusion in the third NASA Rapid Spacecraft Acquisition Catalog (Rapid III).

SST-US’ Chief Executive Officer, Dr. John Paffett stated

It is a privilege for SST-US to have been selected by NASA for inclusion in the Catalog. It is recognition of the company’s capabilities, expertise and heritage. We believe that the Catalog provides an efficient route for SST-US to provide rapid, low risk, cost effective satellite solutions to NASA and other Government Agencies and we look forward to delivering future mission opportunities.

Through this contractual framework SST-US will be able to engage with NASA and other Government Agencies for the rapid provision of low risk, cost effective satellite solutions based on the SSTL 150, 300 and 600 platforms.

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Space security guru Stuart to advise government

nospam@example.com (Robin Wolstenholme) — Wed, 28 Apr 2010 14:12:32 +0100

SSTL’s military space expert Dr. Stuart Eves has accepted a year’s secondment to the new Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC) at the UK’s new Harwell facility to advise on space security. His principal responsibility will be as the authority on the Security and Resilience Unit (SRU) that will form part of the International Space Innovation Centre (ISIC).

Stuart Eves

Enough with the acronyms! ISIC is a joint venture between the UK Government and Industry, that is anticipated to evolve into a centre which supports both UK national requirements as well as international security-related space systems. The idea is to create a Hub of Innovation that will act as a seed-bed for innovation in the UK.

Stuart will also be expected to actively liaise with the newly formed UK Space Agency on space security matters in support of government policy making, since a close relationship between the policy and strategy aims of the agency and the executive elements at ISIC will clearly be essential.
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Will volcanic ash affect satellite communications?

nospam@example.com (Robin Wolstenholme) — Fri, 16 Apr 2010 14:04:05 +0100

This week, an enormous cloud of volcanic ash is sweeping over Northern Europe, grounding aeroplanes and bringing the jet-setters to a standstill. One could be forgiven for taking it all for a hoax – there’s nothing for the common Earth dweller to see – but it’s bringing some businesses to a standstill as they struggle to make their meeting’s commitments.

The reason this ash cloud cannot be seen is that the ash cloud is moving relatively high in the atmosphere, although meteorologists say there are signs some dust is settling at lower levels, which could begin affecting the health of those with respiratory conditions such as asthma. However the risk to aircrafts is very real as reported in the excellent BBC News online article: Icelandic volcanic ash alert grounds UK flights

NASA image by Robert Simmon, using ALI data from the EO-1 team. Instrument: EO-1 - ALI

But what about satellite communications? Could the dust in the atmosphere affect the control of space missions, your Sky receiver or GPS? Pete Garner, SSTL’s Radio Frequency (RF) team leader commented:

Satellite comms could easily be affected, but the impact would depend primarily on weather conditions, which would determine how the volcanic ash is dispersed in the air.

Additionally - it would also depend upon the robustness of the comms links in question. I know personally that my Sky signal degrades or even drops out periodically if there is heavy rain in our area and the volcanic ash could cause similar problems as the density and composition of the ash cloud would reduce the link margin and therefore affect the quality of any transmitted signals.

SSTL tracks and controls many satellites from its Guildford-based ground station, but Pete explained that their systems are designed to cope with environmental factors – even if no-one expects clouds of volcanic ash over the green hills of Surrey:

SSTL ensures its LEO [Low Earth Orbit] comms links are robust enough to cope with heavy rain in most cases by sizing the whole comms system appropriately for the mission including environmental factors. Making sure there is adequate additional margin in the link budget design is a key factor from the early stages of any mission to ensure SSTL can continually control the satellites and obtain the important image data when required.

In some cases there is also a level of redundancy. For example, Earth observation satellites such as Nigeria’s new NigeriaSat-2 satellite that is scheduled for launch in Q4 2010 have the facility to download images to multiple groundstations around the world. Some satellites can also be tracked and controlled from more than one groundstation when required.