Russia’s Fregat: What Mission Assurance?

Placing a satellite in the wrong orbit. It’s what the delightful world of mission assurance is supposed to prevent. If you talk to any space operator, mission assurance is the sexiest profession in the space realm…JK–not really! If anything, the typical space operator falls asleep at the first fishbone chart presented in the omnipresent and snore-inducing […]

Find that Airplane–FREE!!

Earlier this year, I wrote a little post about how Harris Corporation and Aireon were working together to make accurate global aircraft tracking a reality. They’re doing this by placing GPS signal receivers and transmitters as an extra payload on board Iridium NEXT satellites. This allows GPS equipment to send a message through a special radio transmitter from […]

Is Space Becoming More Accessible for Terrorists?

Part 1 Well, somebody has to mention it to sell the papers sometime, and this time it was the Times of India. The story is that the United Kingdom’s Ministry of Defence (MoD) is predicting bad guys are going to be able to launch their own nefarious satellites on rockets owned by private companies. Even […]

Satellites Protect Fish from Filchers

If your livelihood involves fishing illegally, your chosen profession looks like it might become a little more interesting, soon. A partnership has been established among the Pew Charitable Trusts, the United Kingdom’s Satellite Applications Catapult, and exactEarth Europe. Their mission is to turn the tables on those fishermen illegally attempting “Deadliest Catch” re-enactments in protected waters. It […]

Czech Yourself in to GNSS University

Summer’s right around the corner, so universities are offering a few summer classes to those who are interested and can afford to be travel. One summer class, held at the Technical University in Ostrava, Czech Republic, lasts about ten days, starting 21 July 2014. The class is called the “ESA International Summer School on GNSS.” The […]