Tag: satellites

The Intelsat EpicNG platform is an innovative approach to satellite Intelsat S.A has introduced the Intelsat EpicNG satellite platform, a new series of satellites based upon a high performance, open architecture design.Intelsat EpicNG will be deployed for wireless and fixed telecommunications, enterprise, mobility, video and government applications requiring broadband infrastructure across the major continents.The Intelsat EpicNG platform is an innovative approach to satellite and network architecture utilizing multiple frequency bands, wide beams, spot beams and frequency reuse technology. A complementary overlay, Intelsat EpicNG will be fully integrated with Intelsat's existing satellite fleet and global IntelsatONESM terrestrial network.Combining Intelsat's spectral rights in the C-, Ku- and Ka-bands with the technical advantages of high throughput technology, the Intelsat EpicNG platform will be fully open architecture. Intelsat's customers, the world's leading communications and media companies and government entities, will be able to use existing hardware and network topologies, and in many cases, define their own service characteristics, enabling them to offer customized solutions to their end users and build upon their current business success."The Intelsat EpicNG platform represents the next generation of satellites, a progressive evolution of the Intelsat fleet," said Intelsat Chief Executive Officer Dave McGlade. "As the global demand for bandwidth ...

Broadband for applications at sea is a rapid growth area Broadband for applications at sea is an area that is experiencing rapid growth and one that demands increasingly fast data transfer speeds.Levels of use are blossoming as communication, control and monitoring are increasingly being carried via onshore operative nodes. Inmarsat and Iridium, the two transmission systems currently in use, have reached their saturation point, and the next generation of satellite communication for the maritime industry is now starting to take shape.Several satellite operators are on the verge of launching global capacity to cover the world's seas. In order to obtain higher bandwidths, frequency has to be increased. This places more stringent demands on the communications equipment on board ships.Gothenburg-based Satcube AB is in the process of developing terminals to handle the next generation of satellite capacity. "These satellite terminals need to be more accurate and demonstrate greater efficiency than the old L-band system terminals they replace," says Jakob Kallmér, Satcube's CEO. "Availability and robustness requirements continue to be extensive. However, customers aren't prepared to pay much more for the hardware. That's why you need to take a new approach when developing this type of terminal," he continues.Satcube has developed a ...

$3million on satellite technology Google is set to track the world's warships and make the data available to billions of internet users, raising concerns over the security of the American naval fleet.The search engine plans to offer the coordinates and identity of virtually all vessels at sea on Google Maps after spending around $3million on satellite technology.The company continues to consult with the U.S. Navy over the plans, as well as with the defence departments of countries around the world.Google has claimed that it is better placed to track the military boats than most governments.Ship-shape: Google will soon be able to show the location of every vessel at sea and maps of the ocean floorMichael Jones, who is chief technology advocate at Google Ventures, told Aol: 'I watch them and they can't see themselves. It angers me as a citizen that I can do this and the entire DoD can't.'Google is not the first to track ships at sea, but claims to have improved on previous technology.All large vessels are fitted with the Maritime Automatic Identification System (AIS) - a series of transponders that transmit the boat's position to avoid collisions when it is dark or there is bad weather.At ...

VesselTracker to globalise its service VesselTracker GmbH, a provider of global coastal AIS data and maritime information, has agreed a partnership deal with space-AIS company exactEarth, under which VesselTracker will market services deploying exactAIS satellite data into the global commercial applications market through its web services platform.VesselTracker's current customers include Port Authorities, fleet management operators, insurance companies and ship brokers. The new deal will enable VesselTracker to globalise its service and provide visibility into ship movements out of the range of existing coastal stations.A new custom data solution will also be made available to provide solutions based on XML Web Service data delivery."We are excited to sign this deal with VesselTracker," said Peter Mabson, president of exactEarth."This agreement is a great step forward for exactEarth and means a whole new set of customers worldwide will now have access to our exactAIS data and will see the value of truly global coverage of maritime traffic.""We see this as a new chapter in the evolution of satellite AIS and look forward to working even more closely with VesselTracker in the future to deliver premium services to our joint markets."In other news, exactEarth has also announced that it has been awarded a new ...

Satellite technology provides accurate information about life on Earth From tracking icebergs in the Arctic to counting penguins in Antarctica, satellite technology continues to provide ever more detailed and accurate information about life - and its risks - on Earth.Improvements in data-acquisition and more sophisticated software mean that even in crowded shipping lanes it is easier to single out an individual ship and an Emperor penguin can be distinguished from a shadow on the ice. With miniaturised satellites now available, the much lower costs involved have helped launch a swarm of such space-based monitors feeding data to scientists, governments and commercial interests.The pros and cons of satellites have been recently identified in the detection of icebergs in the North Atlantic region where the Titanic had its fateful encounter. The International Ice Patrol (IIP), the iceberg-monitoring service that was established following the disaster 100 years ago, is currently evaluating them and, while they offer a cheaper version than that provided by aerial surveillance, they have yet to pass the test with flying colours.The IIP found radar-based satellite surveillance had failed to meet its demanding requirements, with one of the main problems the inability to detect small icebergs. Getting satellites to distinguish ...

New capabilities available Iridium Communications has released details of its second-generation maritime broadband platform, known as Iridium Pilot, and based on the Iridium OpenPort service, which is claimed to offer fully global marine broadband.Iridium says that Pilot is engineered to withstand maritime conditions, while being packaged in a small, lightweight antenna. The electronically-steerable, phased-array antenna is designed to maintain connectivity in rough seas. Iridium Pilot offers broadband connectivity plus three independent phone lines, all of which work simultaneously, with data speeds up to 134kbps.New capabilities available with the Pilkot platform include a built-in firewall for traffic management and a bulk configuration capability to assist in managing large volumes of units. Additionally, the company says that its Iridium Global Service Program offers the industry's only standard five-year limited warranty.The company believes that the systems will provide an attractive value proposition for low- and medium-end markets, including safety communications, ship operations, crew welfare and provision of complementary services for VSAT. Iridium Pilot is designed for compatibility the company's next generation satellite constellation, and will be supported beyond 2020.Source: The Motorship

For the supervision and survey of maritime environment China has successfully launched a new satellite from the Taiyuan Launch Center to monitor the maritime environment.The orbiter 'Haiyang-2' was boosted by a Long March-4B carrier rocket from the launch centre in the city of Taiyuan in Shanxi Province.The satellite, the second in the past four days to have been launched, is for the supervision and survey of maritime environment and an important measure for prevention and reduction of maritime disasters.Source: PTI