Japan plans to host an American Space Situational Awareness (SSA) sensor payload on their QZSS satellites. American and Japanese officials are expected to sign a Memorandum of Understanding by the end of the year.
By Paul McLeary and Theresa Hitchens“I see no reason why a satellite the size of a shoebox, with the life expectancy of a guinea pig, should be regulated the same way as a spacecraft the size of a school bus that will stay in orbit for centuries,” says FCC Chairman Ajit Pai.
By Theresa Hitchens“The external and internal communication regarding [DoD] smallsat strategy is not consistent and not clear,” Carissa Christensen, CEO of Bryce Space and Technologies, said wryly.
By Theresa HitchensUPDATED WASHINGTON: US commercial satellite sales to AsiaSat, and the company’s leasing of communications bandwidth to China, are not threats to US national security, say experts — contrary to charges by Republican Senators Charles Grassley and Joni Ernst. Instead, US export control law very deliberately has been crafted to encourage such sales in a…
By Theresa HitchensThe fact that the Defense Innovation Unit is even considering the idea of a space station in orbit is a pretty big deal — and an even bigger deal if it grows over time to accommodate a human crew.
By Theresa Hitchens“Physics are physics,” says Rick Ambrose, executive vice president of Lockheed Martin Space. “There are still some things for which a geostationary approach makes more sense. There are other areas that a Low Earth Orbit makes more sense, and everything in between.”
By Theresa HitchensSDA Director Fred Kennedy steps down, amid turmoil within the Office of the Undersecretary of Defense for Research and Engineering Mike Griffin.
By Theresa HitchensThe senators’ draft of the annual defense bill puts a new emphasis on technological competition, including industrial policy moves to strengthen US companies.
By Theresa HitchensHouse appropriators rejected Trump’s plan to put satellite regulation under the Commerce Department and chide Secretary Wilbur Ross for his refusal to testify on the 2020 budget request.
By Theresa HitchensNewly proposed licensing rules for commercial remote sensing will eliminate automatic DoD review rights for of a majority of applications.
By Theresa Hitchens“Security in space is different than security on Earth,” says Jeb Linton of IBM Watson. “If you lose command and control for even five minutes, your satellite could be completely shut down.”
By Theresa Hitchens“I think it will be incumbent on governments pretty soon to force operators to have some way to get their satellite out of the way [when it fails] and get it into a proper graveyard orbit,” says Michael Pollack, who does business development for Effective Space.
By Theresa HitchensThe sea services have their own space specialists, but those personnel don’t only work on space — so who stays and who goes?
By Sydney J. Freedberg Jr.“President Trump has made it clear that the race to 5G is a race America will win,” Pence said.
By Theresa Hitchens