By Gina Chery & Pawan Dokhe
A satellite delivered to Kennedy Space Center by an Airbus Beluga
On Friday 14th of October 2022,
the Airbus Beluga ST left Toulouse to deliver HOTBIRD 13G satellite at the
Kennedy Space Center at Cape Canaveral in Florida for their customer Eutelsat.
Its
twin HOTBIRD 13F has been launched by a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, few hours
before the HOTBIRD 13G deliver. There are the first members of the “Eurostar
Neo” family of Airbus telecommunications satellites. These technologies have
been developed also with the support of the European Space Agency ESA, the
Centre National d’Etudes Spatiales (CNES), the UK Space Agency (UKSA) and
others.
The
goal of these two satellites is to broadcast more television channels in
different regions including Europe, the Middle East and Northern Africa. They
are more efficient than previous
ones,
currently in orbit ,used before by Eutelsat. 135 million people will be
concerned by this connectivity
improvement.
“It is a true honor to consecutively showcase two satellites for our customer Eutelsat: two pieces of European technology at the iconic Kennedy Space Center,” said the Head of Space Systems at Airbus. It is a great pride for Airbus to participate to this mission. Moreover, it was the first time the Beluga has visited the USA since 2009.
The Beluga used 30% Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) for this flight. This allows to show Airbus’ decarbonization ambitions. Indeed, it is a major challenge of that time, Airbus tries to involve in this way by different decisions. Such as developing the world’s first zero-emission commercial aircraft by 2035 preprogram for the Zero Emission aircraft.
Sources:
https://www.airbus.com/en/newsroom/press-releases/2022-10-airbus-beluga-deliversairbus-satellite-to-kennedy-space-center
https://simpleflying.com/airbus-beluga-transatlantic-satellite-transport/
LEADING THE NEWS
Indian Rocket LVM3 Launches Set Of OneWeb Satellites
The launch of a set of OneWeb satellites on an Indian rocket could be the harbinger of a greater role India will play in a commercial launch industry straining to satisfy demand.” A rocket called LVM3 has launched a payload of 36 OneWeb satellites. The launch is the first that OneWeb acquired from NewSpace India (The Indian space agency ISRO’s commercial arm)
“After the suspension of commercial launches on Russia’s Soyuz rocket earlier this year, OneWeb has resumed deploying satellites for its global internet network with an Indian GSLV Mk.3 launcher, one of five OneWeb missions planned before mid-2023 to finish the company’s first-generation constellation.”
ISRO stepped in to keep the orbital constellation growing after a months-long interruption related to the war in Ukraine.” OneWeb now has 462 satellites in orbit, which is over 70% of what the company says it requires in order to provide global broadband services.
AVIATION AND AERONAUTICS
Airbus Shows Off New A350 Standard.
Airbus has revealed new production standards for both versions of its A350 widebody that include changed interior layouts, substantial weight savings, performance enhancements and higher maximum takeoff weight (MTOW).” The jet’s maximum takeoff weight is rising by 3.5 tons to 283 tons total.
SPACE AND ASTRONAUTICS
ISS Adjusts Course To Avoid Russian Space Debris
This ‘Pre-Determined Debris Avoidance Maneuver’ (PDAM) was performed in order to ‘provide the complex an extra measure of distance away from the predicted track’ of the debris fragment”
It was due to The Russian satellite destroyed by a missile strike in a weapons test last year. “Officials have previously warned about the risks of the proliferation of debris in space, caused by a dramatic increase in the number of satellites in orbit and several instances of governments intentionally destroying satellites and creating new plumes of junk.”
The missile test was criticized by global space agencies and policy experts. The ISS had to make a similar maneuver in June of this year from another Cosmos 1408 fragment.
LEGISLATION AND POLICY
Ukrainian Conflict Shifts European Priorities
“European civil and military space organizations are revising budgets, programs and policies in light of the war in Ukraine.” Defense agencies are realizing the value of commercial services built around space applications.
As Europe’s space sector deals with the consequences of Russia’s Ukrainian invasion, Roscosmos announced it would stop Soyuz launches from French Guiana because of European sanctions, which left ESA working to find alternatives for satellite launches.
Sources:
https://oneweb.net/resources/36-oneweb-satellites-successfully-launched-isro-nsilsriharikota
https://aviationweek.com/defense-space/space/international-space-station-maneuversavoid-asat-debris
https://www.bain.com/insights/war-in-ukraine-is-shifting-priorities-in-aerospace-anddefense/
