On Orbit: Recent Episodes
Jeffrey Hill
Hosted by Via Satellite's Executive Editor Jeffrey Hill, each On Orbit technology focused podcast provides in-depth information and discussion about the socio-economic value of space and satellite capabilities.
As AI is driving explosive growth in data center construction on Earth, there's accelerating interest in moving some of the computing infrastructure to orbit. The past few months have seen a flurry of announcements for future orbital data centers. Is this the latest hype cycle for the space industry, or a greenfield opportunity? The answer may be somewhere in the middle.
In this week's On Orbit episode, we're bringing you a recent discussion from Via Satellite's Tech Webcast series. It features JJ Jaworski, CEO and co-founder of Edge Aerospace; Rob DeMillo, CEO of Sophia Space; and Ronald Birk, principal director of the Space Enterprise Evolution Directorate for The Aerospace Corporation. The conversation digs into potential architectures for orbital computing, the technological developments and challenges, and realistic use cases and potential early adopters for in-orbit computing.
This conversation was sponsored by Edge Aerospace.
What can the hostile environment of the Arctic teach us about space? David Marsh recently returned from a first-hand journey to find out. He joins On Orbit this week after wrapping up an Arctic expedition where he spent 29 days skiing more than 560 kilometers across Greenland with a group of researchers.
Over the trip he worked on a number of research projects like investigating the use of LEO satellites for navigation, and using a new radio propagation technique to measure space weather. David shares what life was like on the expedition and how the trip took him inside an abandoned Cold War radar station.
As a space industry professional who previously worked for Voyager Technologies and is now a fellow at the Foreign Policy Research Institute, David has a particular focus on the relationship between the Arctic and space. His work on the subject includes a recently published piece for War on the Rocks that is referenced in the episode. While the region is critical for downlinking satellite data, David also believes the extreme environment of the Arctic can teach us something about surviving in the extreme environment of space.
Over just a few years, the ability to connect everyday cell phones to satellite has gone from a milestone tech demonstration to a feature that's deployed in millions of phones. Mindel De La Torre has watched this evolution closely and been a part of the regulatory advancements to make it possible. Formerly chief of the FCC's International Bureau, Mindel then led regulatory and international strategy for Omnispace before joining Skylo as head of Global Regulatory Affairs.
Mindel joins On Orbit this week to talk about the intersection of spectrum policy, international coordination, and the future of global connectivity. She shares how the regulatory landscape is evolving for D2D, and gives a preview of some upcoming spectrum issues for the WRC-27 conference. From her work in government to startups, Mindel says one through line has been a passion for finding ways to provide service to unserved and underserved communities, which she now gets to see firsthand as D2D expands around the world.
There's a lot of hype in the space industry and bold projections about how demand for satellite broadband, direct-to-device, and more. But every year, the Satellite Industry Association provides a clear view into the industry's financial performance in the annual State of the Satellite Industry Report.
This week I'm joined by SIA President Tom Stroup to dig into the 2026 report, which tracked rapid growth — the number of satellites launched to orbit in 2025 increased by 65%. Tom shares some of the broad trends the report has been tracking in recent years, and some of the interesting contrasts — like the number of satellites manufactured compared to the value captured.
The report comes at a key time when there's a bright spotlight on the space industry ahead of the SpaceX IPO, and Tom shares how it's used to educate policymakers on the broader satellite industry. We also talk about SIA's work to find consensus among members in its policy positions, and his perspective on the satellite telecom convergence, as someone with deep experience in the wireless industry.
Link to the 2026 SIA Report: https://sia.org/news-resources/state-of-the-satellite-industry-report/
SWAP — size, weight, and power — is a defining feature of space engineering constraints. As new technologies and designs have opened up options for size and weight, power is still a limiting constraint.
Longtime space executive Andrew Rush turned his attention to the issue of power in space with Star Catcher, the company he co-founded in 2024. Star Catcher has the bold ambition to break the constraints of power in space by deploying satellites that can function as a power grid in orbit and beam power to client satellites, on demand.
Andrew joined the On Orbit podcast just ahead of Star Catcher's Series A funding announcement. As former CEO of Made in Space and Redwire's first COO, Andrew has had a front row seat to the evolution of commercial space, and considers himself a student of the sector. That experience and hearing from industry colleagues informed the design and business model of Star Catcher.
In this episode, Andrew talks about why he sees power as a fundamental infrastructure need in space, similar to transportation and telecommunications, and how plans for the generation of infrastructure compares to the changes he's seen so far.
How do you future-proof your satellite network to thrive in an increasingly connected world? It's a key question that network operators are asking as they navigate new technologies like 5G, non-terrestrial networks (NTN), multi-orbit architectures, and AI-driven applications.
This week, Brian Jakins, senior vice president of Sales at ST Engineering iDirect joins the On Orbit podcast for a conversation about network modernization. Brian works closely with ST Engineering iDirect's customers, which gives him a unique viewpoint at the intersection from both the satellite side and the network operator perspective. In this episode, he talks about the tradeoffs operators are making, how they are approaching emerging technologies and what's truly responding as they look to build scalable, resilient networks.
This episode of On Orbit is brought to you by ST Engineering iDirect, a global leader in satellite communications providing technology and solutions that enable its customers to expand their businesses and optimize their satcom networks.
Based in Milan, Italy, SatEnlight is an optical communications technology company with a terminal that stacks multiple beams on top of each other, arranged in what looks like a multi-layered spiral staircase of lasers.
SatEnlight CEO and co-founder Matteo Vismara and his co-founder developed the product based on years of scientific research in Physics and work based at the CERN Large Hadron Collider in Geneva.
Matteo joins On-Orbit this week in a conversation with Via Satellite Executive Editor Jeffrey Hill after he won SATShow's 10th Annual Startup Space entrepreneur pitch contest. In this interview, he explains why he chose the risk of starting a private company over the safety of almost guaranteed university tenure and the details of a slide deck tip he received during pitch coaching that helped him win Startup Space.
Matteo also talks about how Italy is building off of its deep legacy in cutting-edge space science and why he believes the SatEnlight terminal could actually help create new standards for optical transmissions in space.
SSC Space has a mission to help its customers access space — whether that's spacecraft operations and engineering, operating the Esrange launch center in Sweden, or its global ground network. With 54 years of operations, SSC Space has deep experience in space missions.
Now, the company is expanding its ground systems business with SSC Space Go, designed for commercial companies with small satellites in LEO. This week, On Orbit hosts Jonas Åslund, product manager, and Viktor Pankov, product owner, of SSC Space Go to hear about how the service was designed to meet the needs of the evolving commercial space market.
Both Åslund and Pankov are ground segment experts, and they share the hardware and software upgrades that went into the service, and how it's designed to enable greater automation and flexibility.
This episode of On Orbit is brought to you by SSC Space, a leading global provider of advanced space services in science, ground segment, rocket test and launch services.
As a young electrical engineer at RCA Corporation, Shey Sabripour was inspired by the company's legacy of contributing to space missions, and he wanted to make his own mark by establishing a company that builds technology in the United States.
He went on to found CesiumAstro 10 years ago, which is now at a pivotal moment in its growth journey. He joins On Orbit this week after the company recently raised $270 million and secured $200 million EXIM financing to build out its manufacturing capabilities in Texas under the "Make More in America" initiative.
In this interview, he shares his deep passion for building in America, and how he sees a crucial link between strong commercial competition, resilient supply chains, and defense readiness. Sabripour also talks about how CesiumAstro has methodically grown from providing software defined radios to now, full-scale missions and previews the launch of the company's first Element satellite, targeted for later this year.
Emile de Rijk started Swissto12 with a simple goal — to make access to Geostationary Orbit (GEO) faster and more affordable. In order to achieve that, the company had to think smaller. From its origins as a startup, Swissto12 is now coming of age as a disruptive European satellite manufacturer.
This week, Swissto12 CEO Emile de Rijk joins On Orbit to talk about the company's cutting edge payload technology and the decision trade-offs that come with payload flexibility. De Rijk also talk about how Swissto12's approach to smaller, more flexible GEO satellites fits in with the issue of sovereign space, and how it might also fit into the future concepts of orbital data centers.
The company is at a critical juncture this year with satellite builds for both SES and Viasat underway. De Rijk shares the latest updates on the Hummingsat program.
This episode of On Orbit is brought to you by Swissto12, a manufacturer of advanced satellite radio frequency components, payloads, and systems.
Semiconductors are foundational to satellite operations, powering everything from communications payloads, to sensing, and propulsion control. As CEO of Spirit Electronics, Marti McCurdy's work is at the heart of the semiconductor supply chain.
Spirit Electronics offers semiconductor services that range from ASIC design and foundry, to wafer processing, and qualification. The company has always served a mix of defense and space, but is seeing growth in its space business in recent years with the uptick of growth in the industry. Marti says the work isn't new; it's just applying the company's expertise in semiconductors to a new customer base.
In this episode, Marti shares the ins and outs of semiconductor supply chains and the work that goes into being a trusted manufacturing partner. She also shares what's in store for Spirit Electronics in 2026 and how AI is impacting the company's work in test development.
This episode of On Orbit is brought to you by Spirit Electronics is a supplier of high reliability electronic components, engineering services, and superior supply-chain solutions.
Investment in space infrastructure hit a new record in 2025, reaching $22.2 billion, according to Space Capital's latest report. This level of investment surpassed the previous record of 2021.
Chad Anderson, CEO and founder of Space Capital, joins On Orbit this week to share his takeaways from 2025 from Space Capital's recent Space Investment Quarterly report, alongside predictions for 2026.
Anderson says the record levels of investment in 2025 show the market has transitioned from skepticism to industrial maturity and proven utility. He also shares some of the trends driving momentum for 2026, like the uptick of investment in geospatial intelligence capabilities aligning with AI investment, and how a SpaceX IPO in 2026 could impact the rest of the space investment landscape.
Data centers in space have been a hot topic in the last few months as a potential future solution to the limitations of running massive data centers on Earth. Ramon.Space, which builds edge computing and onboard processing systems has been preparing for this future for years.
In this episode, Ramon.Space CEO Avi Shabtai shares the concept of a distributed architecture data center in space, with many satellites acting as nodes in a mesh network. Avi envisions a fleet of satellites forming a large data center, with each satellite capable of computation, storage, and other capabilities. He explains the tech behind the headlines, and shares his predictions for how data centers in space might take shape over the next five to ten years.
This episode of On Orbit is sponsored by Ramon.Space
There's a growing understanding that space-based capabilities are critical for national defense strategies, and defense demand for commercial space systems has been a key trend in 2025 influencing both satellite communications, manufacturing, and imagery and sensing.
2025 brought the announcement of the Golden Dome planned missile defense architecture, and a steep ramp-up in space investment in nations around the globe. Nations are working to secure sovereign communications and access to space-based intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) data.
This episode of On Orbit shares a webinar Via Satellite editors hosted in December on space and defense trends for 2026. Experts from Lanteris Space Systems and BlackSky shared some of the key takeaways from this trend in 2025, how commercial companies are evolving their offerings to answer the call, and what's ahead in defense adoption of commercial satellite technologies in 2026.
This episode features Krupal Patel, senior director of National Security Space Business Development for Lanteris Space Systems and Scot Currie, vice president of Geospatial Solutions for BlackSky.
The webinar was sponsored by Lanteris and BlackSky.
Forecasts on the arrival time for quantum computing vary greatly – from "it will be here in a decade" to "it's already here." There is consensus on the fact that it's coming, and when it does, it will change the way we build and protect networks in space.
In this episode of our Future Space Economy webcast series, we're joined by experts in the field to help understand how quantum computing and quantum encryption will most likely work according to the research that is being conducted today. This episode covers the concept and definition of quantum resiliency and how that will be determined in an unknown future. Experts also discuss what quantum computing could accomplish in space if these powerful systems are able to survive the harsh environment.
This is hosted by Jeffrey Hill, executive editor of Via Satellite and features Capella Space CEO Frank Backes and Joe Touch, principal scientist in the Information Systems and Cyber Division of The Aerospace Corporation.
This is the last episode of On Orbit for 2025. See you next year!
Is space crowded? Although there's been such a large increase in satellites in orbit, it's not a simple question. On Orbit revisits the question with Chiara Manfletti, CEO of Portugal-based space traffic management company Neuraspace. Chiara emphasizes the need for better coordination on space situational awareness (SSA) and space traffic management (STM) and the evolving landscape of standards and regulations.
This episode also covers how nations have taken a greater interest in working with commercial operators for SSA capabilities, and why strong SSA is critical for ensuring peace as space becomes more contested.
Computing capability has advanced rapidly on Earth, but on-board computing in space is more challenging — as chips have to be hardened to function amid the radiation environment in space. Edward Ge, co-founder and CEO of three-year old startup Aethero, is working to tackle this challenge and enable higher computing power onboard satellites.
In this On Orbit episode, Ed explains some of the challenges with space-based computing, and why there's the push to improve on-board processing to support missions like space missile defense, space domain awareness, rendezvous and proximity (RPO) operations and even future targets like orbital data centers. He sees the space industry in the midst of a transition where on-board processing will become the default, rather than the exception.
While sovereign satcom systems are not a new idea, sovereignty has become a critical issue in the satellite industry over the last year as geopolitical trends push nations to want more control over their communications and space data. This episode of On Orbit features Keith Blanchet, vice president of Global Government for ST Engineering iDirect, to dig into this global trend.
Sovereignty can involve control over space and ground assets, spectrum, cryptography, and supply chains. Blanchet gives insight into the challenges that nations work through as they make decisions about sovereign networks like affordability, local expertise, and managing scope creep, and how commercial providers work closely to meet national needs. He also talks about how multi-orbit orchestration is playing a key role as nations look to build hybrid architectures and partner with their allies.
This episode of On Orbit is sponsored by ST Engineering iDirect
In-space manufacturing on a large scale is a capability that has seemed like science fiction but is now moving closer to reality. Rendezvous Robotics, which came out of stealth mode last month, is one startup working on the challenge of how we will build a future in space.
This episode of On Orbit features co-founder Dr. Ariel Ekblaw to hear more about the autonomous, modular tiles that Rendezvous Robotics is developing to dock and build structures in space, and what this could mean for structures like large phased array antennas, solar panels, or in-space manufacturing sites.
Ariel is also the founder of the Aurelia Institute, which works to democratize space access through education and outreach. She shares her passion for building the future of human life in space, which she gave a Ted Talk on earlier this year, and how she envisions a future in space where humans don't just survive, but thrive.
The satellite industry is going through a digital transformation. In this episode of On Orbit, we're joined by a group of experts representing RF manufacturing, and both parabolic and electronically scanned antennas for a look at digitization at the edge.
Guests include Simon Swift, engineering director of ETL Systems; Dave Nicoll, strategic business director of Holkirk Communications; and John-Paul Szczepanik, CTO of All.Space. The discussion covers what digitization at the edge looks like for both conventional antennas and ESA terminals, and how it allows users at the edge with small, portable terminals to have the resilience of multiple networks without the need for multiple physical modems.
This episode of On Orbit is sponsored by ETL Systems. For more information, visit etlsystems.com.
Back from Paris, Via Satellite Editor Mark Holmes joins On Orbit host Rachel Jewett to unpack some of the top takeaways from World Space Business Week. Two themes drove much of the conversation during the week — direct-to-device (D2D) and defense. Spectrum was a big topic of conversation with SpaceX’s big spectrum buy and Viasat and Space42 unveiling a new shared spectrum approach to D2D. And while defense demand is not new, it’s driving conversations from satellite connectivity, imagery, and manufacturing, as Europe in particular is working though what increased defense spending means for space capabilities.
Change was another theme this year with a new venue, and lots of new faces getting together to learn about the space and satellite industry. The editors cover some of the top storylines from the week, and their favorite parts of being in Paris in September.
Over the past year, Umbra has expanded its business from operating a commercial SAR constellation to also offering Mission Solutions — where it develops bespoke and custom space systems for the U.S., and its partners and allies.
This episode of On Orbit features Jason Mallare, vice president and general manager of Umbra’s Mission Solutions business. Jason describes Umbra’s culture as “customer-obsessed,” and talks about how his team takes the learnings from operating its own constellation and uses that experience to help customers fulfill their own unique missions. Jason sees rising demand for space systems from defense and intelligence around the world, and explains why sovereignty is an important issue for these customers.
This episode of On Orbit is sponsored by Umbra.
The relationship between the commercial space industry and the Space Force has evolved in recent years. While the Space Force using commercial capabilities is not new, the “buy before build” philosophy has marked a change in acquisition strategy.
Space Systems Command’s Commercial Space Office (COMSO) was set up two years ago to better integrate commercial capabilities. This week’s On Orbit podcast episode features Lt. Col. Tim Trimailo, director of the Commercial Space Office. Trimailo took the helm of COMSO in April.
Trimailo says that while COMSO has spent time seeding the landscape of commercial capabilities, the focus is shifting to delivering operational capabilities to the warfighter. He also shares the latest on the Commercial Space Augmentation Reserve, the Proliferated Low Earth Orbit, or PLEO IDIQ contract, and takeaways from a recent wargame around space domain awareness.
This interview was part of the GovMilSpace Digital Series, a virtual event that brought together U.S. and allied space, defense, and intelligence leaders to address the evolving threats and priorities shaping tomorrow’s missions. The series is available on-demand, with a panel discussion and video interviews featuring the Space Development Agency, UK Ministry of Defense, German BSI, and more. Registration is now open for GovMilSpace 2026, where these critical conversations continue in person during SATELLITE Week.
In this week’s episode, On Orbit interviews Beau Legeer, director of Imagery and Remote Sensing at Esri. While Esri doesn’t operate its own satellites, the company integrates commercial satellite data into its ArcGIS software offering, working to make satellite imagery accessible and user friendly for its customers.
Beau talks about how the barrier to entry to exploiting satellite imagery has dramatically decreased from his start in the industry, when images were still processed on tape. And now, advances in AI models and even business models and subscriptions are lowering that barrier to entry even further to allow for more widespread adoption of satellite imagery.
This episode is sponsored by AvL Technologies. AvL Technologies is a leading manufacturer of multi-band and multi-orbit satellite communications ground terminals, serving both government and commercial markets. With terminals ranging in size from 60 cm to 4.6 m AvL provides efficient, cost-effective solutions for voice, video, and data connectivity without the need for specialized training. AvL’s innovative and visionary approach to engineering and design ensures the critical requirements of today’s missions are met. For more information please visit avltech.com.
This episode of the Future Space Economy series focuses on how space is shaping the future of medicine. Host Jeff Hill is joined by Eascra Biotech CEO and co-founder Mari Anne Snow and Jana Stoudemire, senior executive, Barrios Technologies, to discuss some exciting new developments in bringing medical and pharmaceutical research to space.
Eascra Biotech is a nanomedicine company that was selected for NASA’s Igniting Innovation: Science in Space to Cure Disease on Earth program to study a new application for their Janus Base Nanoparticles (JBNps) on the ISS. The program just launched to the ISS this past May. Snow talks about what they’ve learned about the ISS mission and how the space industry can better communicate the value of space as a research environment for the pharmaceutical industry.
Stoudemire is working to establish a new business at Barrios Technologies supporting the development of economically sustainable and profitable uses of space. After a career in pharma, biotech and medical devices, Stoudemire transitioned to lead life science research in microgravity as part of the team managing the International Space Station U.S. National Laboratory, and roles with Space Tango and Axiom Space.
This episode is part of the Future Space Economy webcast series, sponsored by MDA Space.
The past few years have seen an uptick in partnerships between satellite and telcos as mobile operators look to expand the reach of their networks. Direct-to-device has garnered many of the headlines in this area, but the satellite-telco convergence also encompasses satellite broadband, backhaul, and IoT.
This week, we hear from Tim Hatt, head of Research and Consulting for GSMA Intelligence, with perspective from the mobile industry’s side of the satellite/telco convergence. GSMA Intelligence provides forecasts and research for the global mobile ecosystem. The mobile ecosystem is closely watching the rollout of satellite constellations, and GSMA Intelligence is now tracking more than 100 partnerships between mobile operators and satellite companies.
Tim talks about how mobile operators see working with satellite as a differentiator, some of the issues at play as direct-to-device begins to commercialize, and why we shouldn’t overlook the potential of standards-based satellite IoT.
While the satellite connected car has long been seen as a future market for the satellite industry, it hasn’t broken through into the mainstream yet. But recent developments in standards and technology are bringing this closer to reality. This week’s episode features two experts in vehicle connectivity from BMW Group, Olaf Eckart and Georg Schmitt, for a discussion on the path to integrating satellite connectivity into vehicles.
Eckart and Schmitt explain the use cases where satellite makes sense for vehicles, some of the challenges specific to the automotive industry, and the roadmap for integrating satellite into vehicles from narrowband, wideband, to broadband. The first mass market applications with non-terrestrial network (NTN), narrowband IoT applications are expected to be deployed from 2027 on.
They are part of the 5G Automotive Association (5GAA), and the discussion covers vehicle demonstrations that 5GAA recently hosted with satellite companies in Paris. The automotive industry is looking to benefit from the work that has been done to integrate satellite into mobile networks, and Eckhart and Schmitt talk about how standards have driven new momentum in the work between automakers, MNOs, and satellite players.
NASA's James Webb Telescope has captivated the public with incredible discoveries that include dying stars, distant galaxies, and signs of life on other planets. The telescope launched in December of 2021 after 25 years in development. In this episode, we explore the history of the James Webb project, its journey to space, its breakthrough findings, and potential follow-up programs that could build on its success.
Via Satellite Executive Editor Jeffrey Hill interviews Scott Willoughby, who served Northrop Grumman’s vice president and program manager for the James Webb Space Telescope, and Dr. Bhanu Sood, deputy chief technologist, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center. Sood has served as NASA's risk assessment process owner for microelectronics on a number of flagship programs including JWST.
This episode is part of the Future Space Economy webcast series, sponsored by MDA Space.
With the start of hurricane season fast approaching, recent reports show that cuts and staff vacancies at the National Weather Service and NOAA could impact public safety services. Earlier this month, CNN reported that a number of NWS weather forecast offices do not have a meteorologist-in-charge due to layoffs, early retirements, and vacancies.
In this episode, On Orbit interviews Dan Harkins, COO of Tropical Weather Analytics, about how the upcoming hurricane seasons could be impacted by cuts and vacancies, and the critical role that government weather satellites play in keeping the public safe.
While the U.S. is talking about investing in a massive-scale Golden Dome for missile defense, Harkins argues the country should consider a similar investment into weather monitoring capabilities — given how extreme weather events lead to loss of life, and disruption for both people and businesses. Aside from cutbacks, Harkins talks about what is missing in government weather monitoring capabilities, and how commercial companies play a role.
On Orbit interviews Femi Ishola, founder and CEO of Phemotron Systems, winner of the 2025 Startup Space competition at SATELLITE. Ishola is from Lagos, Nigeria, and has worked and studied all over the world including in Japan, Australia, and the U.S. Now he is taking his global experience developing space systems to use small satellites to solve challenges in Africa.
Phemotron Systems plans to launch its first satellite next year, an Earth observation satellite with an AI engine for onboard edge computing, called AI-Motherbox-1. Ishola wants to establish the company as a key satellite integrator in Africa, help grow the space industry, and expand Africa countries’ access to satellite solutions. He hopes his startup space win encourages more investment in the African space industry.
The third season of the Future Space Economy series kicks off with a discussion about the financial outlook for new and upcoming applications that fall under the “Future Space Economy” category. These include: space transportation, space stations, tourism, research, robotics, and Moon/Mars missions.
This episode features guests Dara Panahy, partner in the Milbank LLP Transportation and Space group; MDA Space CEO Mike Greenley; Meagan Crawford, managing partner of SpaceFund, Raphael Roettgen, general partner of E2MC Ventures; and Dave Diaz, a Loudon County, Virginia, economic development official.
This episode was recorded at SATELLITE 2025, and includes a live Q&A segment from the webinar rebroadcast. Check out some of the ideas for upcoming 2025 Future Space Economy webcast episodes.
As innovation has accelerated in satellite communications in the past five years, it has put pressure on hardware and software providers to deliver greater performance and more flexible capabilities. While technology in space tends to get a lot of attention, its hardware on the ground that makes delivering services from space possible.
Last month during SATELLITE, On Orbit interviewed Daniel Gizinski, president of Comtech’s Satellite and Space Communications Segment about changes happening in the satellite ground segment, and how Comtech is evolving its offerings along with those changes. This conversation digs into what’s new in Comtech’s Elevate 2.0 VSAT platform, and digital common ground modem line. Gizinski also talks about the customer needs that drove these products, like sovereign communications, and reconfigurability.
This episode of On Orbit is sponsored by Comtech. For more information, visit comtech.com
Navigating the space regulatory environment can be one of the biggest challenges for companies whether they are startups or established operators. Consulting firm River Advisers is trusted for its strategic regulatory advice to satcom operators, assisting with market access, licensing, and spectrum management.
On Orbit host Rachel Jewett spoke with River Advisers CEO Alexis Martin on the first day of the SATELLITE conference in D.C. about some of the most pressing regulatory issues impacting the satellite sector right now, like developing regulatory regimes for direct-to-device connectivity and differences in the international regulatory landscape. He also details growing interest in commercial communication services around the Moon and how this will require coordination at the next World Radiocommunication Conference, WRC-27. Martin also talks about how River Advisers, formerly known as ManSat, is evolving how it services clients.
This episode of On Orbit is sponsored by River Advisers. For more information, visit riveradvisers.com/
Space journalist and TV personality Sarah Cruddas joins the On Orbit podcast this week ahead of her appearance as guest host at SATELLITE 2025.
Sarah has had an exciting career in space journalism and communications from being a weather presenter and science correspondent to being a TV personality, industry consultant and author. She’s extremely passionate about how space technology can make life better on Earth, and wants to see the industry get out of its bubble and do a better job of communicating why space technology matters.
Sarah tells the story of how she covered the final Space Shuttle launch and landing in 2011 using a satellite dish to send a signal back to the BCC, and how she took a scientific look at reports of alien activity and UFOs as part of her work on two TV shows. We also talk about what she’s looking forward to at SATELLITE, from the keynotes, GovMilSpace program, and networking opportunities to connect with folks in the industry.
This episode is sponsored by AvL Technologies. AvL Technologies is a leading manufacturer of multi-band and multi-orbit satellite communications ground terminals, serving both government and commercial markets. With terminals ranging in size from 60 cm to 4.6 m AvL provides efficient, cost-effective solutions for voice, video, and data connectivity without the need for specialized training.
AvL’s innovative and visionary approach to engineering and design ensures the critical requirements of today’s missions are met. For more information please visit avltech.com, or visit AvL at the SATELLITE Show at Booth 2118 in the Exhibit Hall.
This week on On Orbit, we hear from Madeleine Chang, director of policy for the Satellite Industry Association about the policy priorities SIA is advocating for with the new Trump administration. SIA has put together a set of priorities with agreement from its more than 50 member companies, representing a broad swath of the satellite industry. These priorities include streamlining regulations, curbing space debris, and improving space procurement, and spectrum management.
The second Trump administration is widely expected to be bullish on space capabilities, but the outlook is changing day-by-day with issues like changes in federal funding and tariffs. Madeleine points out that when SIA advocates for the satellite industry, it’s not just to advance business in the satellite industry, but because of how satellite supports critical use cases that satellite supports like PNT, national security, reliable communications, disaster relief, and more.
We often hear space described as congested and competitive but Dr. Brien Flewelling likes to describe the situation in space as dense, dynamic, and deep. This means that space traffic is getting denser as there are more spacecraft in orbit; it’s deeper with spacecraft in more orbits; and more dynamic as spacecraft maneuver more frequently. It's "not your dad’s space domain awareness,” he says.
Brien is the director of Strategic Program Development at ExoAnalytic Solutions. He joins the On Orbit podcast this week for a conversation about space domain awareness (SDA) and how NATO coordinates SDA. He shares his takeaways from the NATO Edge and Spacepower conferences in December, about how NATO can have better coordination in space domain awareness with greater adoption of commercial capabilities.
He answers what really happens when a satellite breaks apart in orbit, how decision-making in space is evolving to be more autonomous, and what’s needed to keep pace with everything being launched to orbit today.
This episode of the Future Space Economy series explores the dangerous, yet increasingly likely hypothetical situation that a space-faring nation breaks the Space Treaty of 1967 and brings nuclear weapons into space.
Host Jeffrey Hill interviews space law and policy experts Senjuti Mallick, business operations manager for COMSPOC, and Tatiana Sainati, partner at Wiley Rein.
Senjuti and Tatiana weigh in on what governments are doing right now to expand space situational awareness (SSA) capabilities to protect commercial interests in space. And whether these dangerous developments change the way we view satellites and spacecraft as critical infrastructure, and why SSA is one of the key investments governments and industry can make in space.
More about the Future Space Economy series here: https://www.satellitetoday.com/content-collection/future-space-economy/
There’s never a slow news day in the space and satellite industry and there’s a lot to talk about from 2024 — from SES’s acquisition of Intelsat, Starlink’s commercial wins, challenges with some of the biggest manufacturers, and new launch vehicles coming online.
Host Rachel Jewett is joined by fellow Via editors Mark Holmes and Jeff Hill for a discussion of some of the biggest storylines of 2024. The discussion centers around the top storylines from operators, manufacturers, and launchers, and why these are the critical stories that we’ll be covering as they continue to develop in 2025.
Tech entrepreneur Baiju Bhatt, known for disrupting the investing landscape with Robinhood, has his sights on the space industry. The Robinhood co-founder left his role as chief creative officer in March of this year, and announced space solar startup Aetherflux in October.
Bhatt joins On Orbit this week to talk about why he wanted to start a space company, and tackle the goal of building a power grid in space. He shares his longtime passion for space that started with looking up to his dad who worked at NASA, and being inspired by the pace of innovation in the commercial space industry today.
Aetherflux is pursuing a vision of a power grid in space — one that’s not tied to the power grid on Earth, able to beam power down to remote locations. While space solar power is not a new concept, it’s a bold vision that has not been accomplished before.
Bhatt talks about Aetherflux’s approach to use satellites in LEO equipped with high power lasers to transmit solar power to ground stations down on Earth, and what kinds of opportunities a space power grid could make possible both on Earth and in space.
This episode is sponsored by AvL Technologies, a leading manufacturer of multi-band and multi-orbit satellite communications ground terminals.
In the latest episode in the Future Space Economy series, leaders from Rocket Lab, NASA, and Northrop Grumman explain how launch infrastructure is evolving to support an expanding space economy.
The discussion covers how industry is evolving to deliver payloads of all sizes beyond LEO/MEO/GEO orbits, and how launchers are scaling up their infrastructure to meet future demand, and the design innovations companies are pursuing to optimize performance and efficiency for beyond-LEO missions.
This episode’s guests include: Jeff Brink, flight systems engineer in Deep Space Logistics at NASA’s John F. Kennedy Space Center (KSC); Kurt Eberly, director of Space Launch for Northrop Grumman Space Systems; and Brian Rogers, vice president of Global Launch Services for Rocket Lab.
This episode is part of the Future Space Economy webcast series.
NASA Acres is working to bring the value of satellite imagery to farmers and the agriculture industry in the U.S. This episode features NASA Acres Deputy Director Mike Humber for a conversation about how NASA Acres is working to build trust and bridge the gap for greater adoption of satellite imagery within the agriculture industry.
Humber explains that a large part of this work is about building relationships — forming partnerships and hearing directly from farmers. NASA Acres recently conducted a survey of more than 1,000 farmers with Trust in Food and in collaboration with Ag Data Transparent (ADT) to find out how farmers view agriculture data privacy.
Humber shares how farmers use satellite imagery, explains why he sees great potential for increased adoption, and how NASA is trying to approach this work in a responsible way with agriculture data transparency.
This week’s On Orbit podcast is a topical look at space policy in the U.S. election. Host Rachel Jewett is joined by fellow Via editor Jeff Hill for a conversation with Svetla Ben-Itzhak, assistant professor of Space and International Relations and Deputy Director with the West Space Scholars Program at Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies.
Ben-Itzhak recently wrote a piece for The Conversation about the implications of Musk’s endorsement of Donald Trump for U.S. space exploration and defense. This is an increasingly pertinent issue as reports from national news outlets like the Associated Press show that Elon Musk donated $75 million to his own political action committee America PAC that is working to elect Trump. Musk has also been floated to lead a government efficiency commission in a Trump White House.
Ben-Itzhak gives her main takeaways of space policy during President Biden’s presidency and what space policy could look like in a Kamala Harris administration or a second Trump term. The podcast also digs into the idea of Musk working or advising in a second Trump administration and the conflict of interest issues that would bring up.
Read Ben-Itzhak's piece in The Conversation: theconversation.com/spacexs-elon-mu…e-policy-235747
This week Via Satellite editors Jeff Hill and Mark Holmes join the podcast to talk about their trip to Paris for the annual World Space Business Week. The annual September show was at a particularly interesting time this year, a month after the Olympics and just weeks before the U.S. presidential election.
One of the key themes from the week is just how much the industry is grappling with SpaceX’s dominance and how to compete with SpaceX in launch, satellite communications and even Earth observation with Starshield. There are so many interesting storylines in the works right now with new rockets coming online, satellite operator mergers, and evolving discussion about standards.
This episode is sponsored by AvL Technologies, an industry leading manufacturer of multi-band and multi-orbit satellite communications ground terminals for military, government and commercial applications. www.avltech.com/
In this week’s On Orbit podcast episode, we hear firsthand about the impact the Patti Grace Smith Fellowship is making. Patti Grace Smith was a pioneer in the aerospace industry who served as the head of the Federal Aviation Administration’s Office of Commercial Space Transportation. She broke many barriers as a Black woman and was an inspiration to many. The Patti Grace Smith fellowship honors her legacy by working to combat racial inequity in the aerospace industry.
In this episode we hear from two fellows about how they have been impacted by the fellowship. AJ Bekoe was a Patti fellow in 2022 with Ball Aerospace and is now a member of the fellowship’s executive team. A graduate of Syracuse University, AJ was hired by her host company and she is now a Systems Engineer at BAE Systems.
Spencer Roberts is a member of the class of 2024, interning at ABL Space Systems. He is studying Mechanical Engineering at Santa Clara University
AJ and Spencer share their experiences with the intern program and talk about the value of the community it builds, from the cohort of fellows who spend a week together in Washington, D.C., to the network of former fellows and mentors. They also share their perspectives on how companies can step up efforts to recruit a diverse workforce, and tips for students applying for the fellowship. Applications for the class of 2025 are due by Tuesday, October 1.
This episode in the Future Space Economy series highlights breakthroughs from leading space system manufacturers in building autonomous robots that inspect, service, assemble, build, and refuel in orbit. The discussion digs into advances in additive manufacturing, shares lessons learned from major in-space demonstrations, and outlines demand for commercially built robotics.
This episode’s guests include: Al Tadros, CTO of Redwire; Holly Johnson, vice president of Robotics and Space Operations, MDA Space; Kevin Smith, chief engineer, Orbit Fab; Joe Anderson, vice president of Space Logistics, a Northrop Grumman company.
On-board propulsion is one of the biggest decisions that satellite operators make in the process of designing their spacecraft. The decision impacts the cost, weight, and capability of a satellite. And it can be a challenging decision to make because of the technology and fragmented nature of the propulsion market.
In this episode of On Orbit, we talk to Dr. Daniel Perez Grande, CEO and co-founder of in-space mobility company Ienai Space. Daniel breaks down some of the ways the propulsion market is evolving. As the small satellite industry matures and the orbital environment in LEO gets more congested, its driving a greater need for mobility and onboard propulsion. He explains how prospective customers and investors look at the market, and some of the challenges startup propulsion companies are facing.
Ienai Space is developing the Athena thruster, and Daniel addresses the company’s approach and the importance of looking at mobility holistically versus just a propulsion system. Also, Ienai Space is based in Madrid, and he also shares some insight into Spain’s startup space industry.
You probably use Bluetooth every day to connect your phone to your car, speakers, and headphones. Now satellite startup Hubble Network is rethinking the bounds of Bluetooth to unlock low-cost IoT connections from space.
This week, Alex Haro, co-founder of Hubble Network, joins On Orbit. Hubble recently demonstrated a bluetooth connection from space. The company is working to build a satellite network that allows off the shelf bluetooth chips to be connected anywhere in the world via satellite.
Alex is also one of the co-founders of Life 360, a location-sharing app Life360 used by many families, and the app intends to use Hubble’s satellite technology for a global location-tracking network. In this episode, Alex shares the tech innovations that enabled Hubble to reach this milestone, the intersection of consumer and space technology, and what’s possible for individuals and industries with expanded low-cost IoT connectivity.
OneWeb is one of the most compelling stories of the New Space era. From its start as one of the first constellation ventures, and early success, to its fall in bankruptcy and rebirth under new ownership, the company has captured the space industry's attention for years.
Caleb Henry is working to catalog that story, writing a book about OneWeb. Henry is a very familiar face to Via Satellite readers — he is a former reporter for both Via Satellite and Space News, and he is now Director of Research for Quilty Space.
Henry joins On Orbit this week to talk about his OneWeb book project. He spent the last year conducting interviews and recently secured an agent. He shares an inside look at his process — from conducting more than 250 interviews to how he’s adapting his journalistic writing style to the long-form nature of writing a book. And, Henry shares why thinks it's so important to tell the story of OneWeb.
With the approaching retirement of the International Space Station (ISS), NASA has contracted several commercial companies to develop orbital facilities that will fulfill the need for a wide range of research and business activities in space.
In this episode, which is part of the Future Space Economy Series, we focus on NASA’s three contracted space station development partners – Axiom Space’s Axiom Hab One, Blue Origin’s Orbital Reef, and Voyager Space’s Starlab. Speakers from Voyager Space, Arkisys, and MDA Space compare and contrast deployment schedules, program costs, and capabilities of future commercial space stations in a discussion that maps out commercial space industry opportunities in a post-ISS world.
Wildfires have a devastating impact on human and animal life, property, biodiversity, and air quality, local economies, and so much more. In this week’s On Orbit podcast, we hear about a new coalition bringing together NGOs, philanthropy, and a satellite company to change wildfire response.
Satellite company Muon Space is working with the Earth Fire Alliance, a new non-profit to build and deploy FireSat — a satellite constellation purpose-built for global wildfire response. The full satellite constellation announced in May is planned for more than 50 satellites. It was designed with input from more than 200 members of the research and fire communities.
Our guests for this episode are Cathy Olkin, former NASA scientist and principal scientist for Muon Space, and Brian Collins, executive director of Earth Fire Alliance. They share how this coalition came together and why they turned to space technology to bring new and accessible data to first responders, climate scientists, and governments.
In this episode, we’re joined by Ashley Johnson, Planet CFO and president for a conversation about how satellite data contributes to transparency for peace and security, and how Planet works with partners to accelerate the impact of its data.
Ashley shares the successes of some specific partnerships that deal with reducing tropical forest loss and mapping the impact of climate change on vulnerable populations. When there are so many impactful use cases for satellite data, Ashley gives some insight into how Planet decides which ones to focus its resources on.
We talk about the business impact as well. As CFO and president, Ashley tells her team that they have to “do well in order to do good,” emphasizing that Planet needs to be financially sound in order to have the greatest impact for good.
This episode is sponsored by AvL Technologies, an industry leading manufacturer of multi-band and multi-orbit satellite communications ground terminals for military, government and commercial applications.
Connectivity is the cornerstone of today’s global economy and it will certainly be the case for the Future Space Economy, with even more complex, data-centric applications. We spent decades building the global satellite connectivity infrastructure around Earth, is it possible to replicate Earth’s satellite connectivity infrastructure on the Moon, or on other planets?
This episode of the On Orbit Future Space Economy series explores what deep space satellite networks will look like, and how they will be built to perform in extraordinary environments. We’ll also discuss the history of deep-space exploration and research satellites and what we’ve learned from those missions.
This episode features Matthew Harris, space focus area lead for QinetiQ; James Spicer, technical director of Kepler Communications US; and Sita Sonty, CEO of Space Tango. This episode was recorded live at SATELLITE 2024.
In this week’s On Orbit episode, we’re joined by Patrick Shannon, CEO of TrustPoint. Patrick won the 2024 Startup Space pitch contest at SATELLITE in March, competing against nine other startups.
TrustPoint is building a commercial GPS system, and working toward its own constellation of around 300 spacecraft in Low-Earth Orbit (LEO) to offer GPS services that have more affordable precision, better security, and greater availability. Patrick breaks down some of the the limitations of traditional GPS and why we are now seeing more commercial businesses like TrustPoint looking to provide new solutions to GPS issues.
He takes us inside the Startup Space experience, talks about the impact it has made on the company so far, and previews what’s next for TrustPoint. The company is shifting out of an internal R&D phase and into more demonstrations and testing with customers and partners.
This episode is sponsored by AvL Technologies, an industry leading manufacturer of multi-band and multi-orbit satellite communications ground terminals for military, government and commercial applications. Learn more at https://www.avltech.com/
We have a special On Orbit episode from SATELLITE 2024 this week, a fireside chat with Impulse Space CEO Tom Mueller. Mueller is considered one of the world’s leading spacecraft propulsion experts. As one of SpaceX‘s founding members, he led the development of propulsion systems for the Falcon 1, Falcon 9, and Falcon Heavy, as well as the Dragon line of spacecraft. His work was crucial in the development of reusable rocket technology.
Mueller spoke with Via Satellite editor-in-chief Mark Holmes during SATELLITE about his new company Impulse Space, an in-space transportation company working to deliver payloads to LEO, GEO, the Moon, Mars and beyond. Mueller describes his vision for Impulse Space to provide the transportation for the space economy of the future with Mira and the recently announced Helios kick stage.
Our next episode will also be from SATELLITE. We’ll share the kickoff for the 2024 Future Space Economy series, Building Deep Space Satellite Connectivity Networks. This discussion features experts from QinetiQ, Space Tango, and Kepler Communications. Expect that in your feeds on April 16.
A few weeks ago, space security issues took center-stage in the news after reports of a nuclear satellite weapon. This raised a lot of questions — What would a nuclear weapon mean in space? Why would Russia pursue this?
In this week’s On Orbit episode, we dig into these questions with Dr. Brian Weeden, chief program officer of the Secure World Foundation, an organization that works to promote secure, sustainable, and peaceful uses of outer space. Weeden is an expert on space security issues and conducts research on issues like space debris, protecting space assets, and space governance. He explains the physical and geopolitical consequences of detonating a nuclear weapon in space, implications for the Outer Space Treaty, and how this situation has raised awareness of security issues in space.
We often take for granted how much of our modern lives are underpinned by GPS technology. This episode of On Orbit digs into GPS and the global landscape of GNSS, which stands for Global Navigation Satellite System. Dr. Sean Gorman, CEO of new startup Zephr, joins as this episode’s guest.
We talk about how much economic value is supported by GNSS technology, the GNSS geopolitical landscape including China’s investment in the BeiDou constellation, private GNSS systems, and why this technology will be important for future use cases. Sean also talks about how Zephr fits into this landscape, and how working at Snapchat and dealing with GPS accuracy on mobile devices led to the idea for the company.
In this episode, On Orbit interviews Sonali Mohapatra, who works in quantum innovation at the National Quantum Computing Centre (NQCC) in the U.K. Sonali breaks down quantum technology and shares some of the future use cases that relate to the space industry. Read more about the quantum use cases for space in Sonali’s cover story in the Via Satellite November edition.
In Sonali’s role as Quantum Innovation Sector Lead at the center she works to encourage quantum readiness across different sectors including space, healthcare energy, and more. We talk about some of the human implications of the responsibility she feels to contribute to quantum technology development in a way that serves the greater good.
Sonali is a very creative person and deeply passionate about diversity and gender issues. We talk about how she brings all of that together in her work and the importance of a multidisciplinary approach, and mentoring and diversity initiatives she has been a part of.
Read the quantum article here: https://interactive.satellitetoday.com/via/november-2023/imagining-the-future-of-quantum-computing-for-space/
There is always an inherent risk when doing anything in space. That said, a handful of space sustainability-minded companies are working hard to minimize those risks and prevent self-inflicted catastrophes. In this episode, we’ll learn about the true scope of the threat posed by space debris, congestion and the lack of situational awareness and about the technologies and solutions being deployed to keep space clean. We’ll also explore the value of space sustainability economy itself, and how government and private investment in green space tech will pay off in the future.
This episode features Patricia Cooper, president and founder of Constellation Advisory; Audrey Schaffer vice president of Strategy & Policy for Slingshot Aerospace; and Kristin Shahady, business development manager for Astroscale U.S.
This episode is part of the Future Space Economy Series which brings together global industries, space leaders, governments, and educators to explore practical applications for space infrastructure and technologies. Season Two kicks off live at SATELLITE 2024 with the session, Building Deep Space Satellite Connectivity Networks, on March 20. Register for SATELLITE to attend in person.
Space has a compelling story to tell, but it can be a challenge to craft the message. As Space is such a technical sector, it can be hard for leadership to communicate the value of what they do to investors, media, and the public.
It’s Sarah Nickell’s job to craft that message. As a PR professional with her own firm, Nickell works with companies like Voyager Space and York Space Systems to tell their stories. She has worked with Via Satellite for years, and she has had stories placed in national publications like Bloomberg, ABC News, and Vice. In our first episode of 2024, Nickell gives a look behind the scenes at the world of space public relations.
This episode is an interesting journalism/public relations crossover about what it’s like to be on both sides of the conversation. It’s also a crash course for listeners that aren’t familiar with media and public relations. The conversation covers topics like building a messaging strategy, managing national security concerns in communications, and how Nickell manages running a small business.
2023 was a big year in news in the satellite industry. Nearly all the top operators saw a mix of leadership changes, mergers and acquisitions, and major constellation updates.
In this episode, Via Satellite editors Rachel Jewett, Mark Holmes, and Jeff Hill recap some of the biggest announcements in the satellite sector of 2023, and how they set the stage for 2024.
This is our last episode of the year and we’ll be back with new episodes in January. Thank you for listening to On Orbit this year!
SSC’s mission is: “We help Earth benefit from Space.” For SSC — Swedish Space Corporation — fulfilling that mission involves its extensive ground network that supports launches with real-time TT&C data and communicating with payloads. This episode of On Orbit features a conversation with Erwin Mercado, president and CEO of the company’s U.S. subsidiary, SSC Space US Inc, about the value of space communications.
Erwin talks about the company’s rich history in space. Formerly known as Universal Space Network, the company was founded by Pete Conrad, commander of the Apollo 12 mission and third person to walk on the Moon. Erwin shares how the company has built up a portfolio of ground stations around the world to form the link between Earth and space, and how these communications are critical to support space missions.
This episode of On Orbit is sponsored by SSC. For more information, visit sscspace.com/
What do satellite policy and space movies have in common? For starters, space debris often plays a key role in both. In this episode of On Orbit, we talk about regulation and space movies with Henry Gola, a partner in Wiley’s Telecom, Media & Technology practice. Gola has been part of some of the biggest regulatory developments, like representing the C-Band Alliance before the FCC. He gives a review of some of the top policy issues at the FCC right now, and we dig into the details of the regulatory framework for satellite-to-cell coverage.
Gola also leads the “Hosted Payload” series on the Wiley Connected podcast, where he talks about famous space movies with policy experts. We chat about some of his favorites like “2001: A Space Odyssey” and “Gravity,” and how movies have raised awareness of issues like space debris.
Hosted Payload link: https://soundcloud.com/wileyconnected
Over the course of this debut season of Future Space Economy, we’ve learned how dependent both private and public sector space investors are on startups to bring enabling technologies to life. Today’s space startups are pitching their products as the glue that will hold the Future Space Economy together.
In this episode, the leaders and founders of space startups across multiple applications join us to discuss what they feel are the strongest opportunities for their businesses to succeed in an expanding space ecosystem. We also ask them if investors are buying into the space economy for the long haul, and whether or not startups could play a leading role in shaping space policy.
When we talk about sustainability in the space industry, we’re usually talking to space sustainability issues like space traffic management and space debris. Amber Ledgerwood is trying to bring attention to sustainability issues here on Earth. Amber is the Senior Manager of Social and Environmental Impact at SES and she leads the operator’s ESG strategy.
In this episode, Amber talks about how environmental, social, and governance issues apply to SES and the satellite industry. These issues range from the climate impact of space companies on Earth, diversity and inclusion, how a company’s products and services impact society, and also responsible behavior in space. She hopes her role influences the industry beyond SES and challenges other space companies to take concrete actions to minimize climate impact and improve diversity among their workforce.
Most of us understand the damage caused by cyberattacks on Earth. In space, the consequences of cyberattacks are even more dire. They can sabotage years of economic activity, threaten national security and the lives of astronauts and in-space personnel, and spark uncontrollable military action in an already dangerous environment. In this episode, we’ll learn about how modern approaches to cyber and national security change when dealing with complex in-space infrastructure, and protecting human activity in space.
This episode is part of the On Orbit Future Space Economy webcast series. In Part 1 of this discussion, we discuss the legal framework and policies needed to protect the Future Space Economy. Part 2 of the discussion will focus on the software, tools, and technological solutions needed to protect space networks.
This discussion includes John Moberly, senior vice president of Space at SpiderOak. Moberly leads SpiderOak’s pivot to space leveraging the company’s zero trust and cybersecurity foundational capabilities. Prior to SpiderOak, he was a Lieutenant Colonel in the U.S. Army, from which he retired after 20 years.
Joining Moberly is Jonathan Swanson, director of Security Strategy for Krebs Stamos Group. Swanson is an ISC2 CISSP certified professional with over a decade of expertise in cyber security strategy and risk management.
As it exists today, the space tourism “experience” relies on the thrill of just being in space for a select group of dedicated space enthusiasts. However, for this budding tourism industry to grow, it needs to appeal to a broader mainstream audience and to those who want more than a rocket ride and a view of the Earth. This episode of the On Orbit Future Space Economy webcast series features experts who are working to build a more complete space tourism experience package that includes pre- and post-launch adventures, in-space activities and entertainment. Learn about your next potential vacation in space!
With 50 million downloads and 950 thousand ratings, and an average rating of 4.8 stars, MyRadar is one of the most popular weather apps, putting weather information directly in the hands of its customers. But this isn’t an ad for MyRdar, it’s the story of how and why a popular mobile app becomes a space company.
MyRadar orbital ambitions, and is working on a satellite constellation to quickly alert to wildfires. It currently has three satellites in space, with two more planned for next year. MyRadar CTO Sarvesh Garimella about how and why the mobile app is investing in its its own satellites. The story turns the traditional Earth observation model on its head, as MyRadar is already an end user of satellite data, and now its purpose-building satellites for its own needs. Sarvesh wants to take MyRadar’s mission of putting actionable information right in people’s hands to the next level, with more up-to-the minute frequency.
He also shares how a weather app helps its users deal with climate change, how AI models are impacting weather forecasting, and why a digital-first weather company still invests in the power of real, human meteorologists.
Why are the world’s space faring nations racing back to the moon? What is the value of establishing a new lunar economy? In this episode of On Orbit’s Future Space Economy webcast series, host Jeffrey Hill speaks with Yale University’s Emma Louden, Nanoracks’ Mike Lewis, and former SpaceX leaders David Anderman and Sita Sonty about what’s driving the new space race to the moon. The group explores the value of lunar materials and resources, research on the “dark side of the moon,” and the economic opportunities created by just getting there (as well as getting there first).
Is space crowded? While space is infinite, space crowding is an important issue as the satellite industry launches more and more mass to orbit each year. This week, Chiara Manfletti, COO of space traffic management startup Neuraspace joins On Orbit to answer this and other critical questions about space sustainability.
In this episode, she digs into the specifics of the risks to satellite operators, and different approaches to space traffic management, and how governments and even insurers have a role to play in sustainable in orbit operations.
Chiara has an interesting background in academia and government. Before getting involved with Neuraspace, She served as president of the new Portuguese national space agency, Portugal Space. We talk about that experience, the startup environment in Europe, and Chiara also shares about her beekeeping hobby.
In the past year, the satellite industry has been a part of a slew of announcements about direct-to-device and satellite to cell. Now, major names in cellular industries and devices like Apple, Qualcomm, and T-Mobile are all working with satellite companies.
Tarun Gupta, chief product officer and co-founder of Skylo Technologies joins On Orbit this week to talk about the growth in the direct-to-device market. Skylo had been working on its own tech stack to connect devices directly to satellite before 3GPP release 17 standards, but Tarun says that the standards release along with the iPhone 14 were both major catalysts in opening up this market.
In the past, OEMs didn't believe small devices could connect directly to satellite, and now companies are asking how fast devices can be brought online. In this episode, Tarun talks about trends in this market, the enabling technologies and developments, and use cases like remote power line monitoring for wildfires. We also talk about Skylo’s recent announcement with Qualcomm.
Space is an exciting new frontier for the global economy, but like all frontiers, it exists largely without a legal framework to guide and protect the people and businesses that would participate in this economy.
This webcast in the Future Space Economy series features policy experts Therese Jones senior policy director for the Satellite Industry Association (SIA); Chris Kunstadter, Global Head of Space for insurer AXA XL; and Dara Panahy, Milbank partner. These experts tackle tough questions related to space law like — What does it mean to own property in space? How does the insurance industry assess risks in space? How do we prepare for the legal challenges in the future when more people are working and living in space?
The Future Space Economy series is generously sponsored by SpiderOak, Sidus Space, and Kepler Communications.
John Deere made headlines last year announcing a satellite project — looking for industry partners to connect thousands of agricultural machines beyond cellular networks — a major opportunity for the satellite industry.
In this week’s episode, we talk to Chung Hsieh, senior infrastructure engineer at John Deere. Chung has long worked with the satellite industry on John Deere’s StarFire GPS augmentation network, and he has been working with participants in the RFP as well.
Chung gives an engineer’s perspective on data and connectivity in agriculture, and dealing with the reality of physics constraints of satellite antennas, and his perspective on working with the satellite industry. The StarFire network is a foundational technology in terms of the impact it has had on John Deere’s business, and Chung believes a satellite connectivity solution could have the same level of impact on John Deere’s future, especially with the future of autonomous vehicles.
Chung also gives an update on the RFP, and how Deere is testing and evaluating solutions from a number of finalists. This episode was recorded in-person in New Orleans at ConnectX after a panel that Chung and I were on about IoT and cellular connectivity, and there is a bit of background noise.
The On Orbit podcast has reached 100 episodes! Thank to our listeners for tuning in over the past three years for engaging conversations with the people driving the business of space. In this episode, co-hosts Jeff Hill and Rachel Jewett commemorate the milestone by looking back on some of their favorite episodes, and share a highlight reel of clips.
This episode’s guest is Jacqueline Good, founder of Magnestar and winner of the 2023 Startup Space competition. We talk with Jacqueline after her Startup Space win and dig into the issue of signal interference and how Magnestar is working to help with spectrum coordination and improve the resilience of space services. Jacqueline shares the story of going on a listening tour talking to satellite operators about the problems they face, and how those discussions led her to build a data solution to solve the issue of signal interference.
Jacqueline is also the first winner from Canada, and she has found a lot of value in the community of Canadian startup leaders. She gives her perspective on why Canada is such a robust proving ground for space startups, how playing competitive hockey influenced her approach to business.
Ronda Schrenk has had a front-row seat to the evolution of geospatial intelligence in the United States. She started out as an imagery analyst for the National Photographic Interpretation Center (NPIC), just before it was combined into the new National Imagery and Mapping Agency (NEMA), which later became the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency.
Now, she is an advocate for the industry as CEO of the U.S. Geospatial Intelligence Foundation. Ronda joins On Orbit this week ahead of USGIF’s annual GEOINT Symposium, to talk about how she has seen the industry evolve. She recounts how one of her first assignments was manually counting boats around a small island, and how much analyst work was done manually in spreadsheets at the time. She talks about the enabling technologies that have increased the speed of insights and made life easier on analysts, and shares context behind some of the recent headlines in the geospatial intelligence industry.
Today’s modern global economy runs on data, and the world’s most successful industries and organizations are defined by the speed and efficiency in which they access that data. Defining success in space will be no different – a vibrant, diverse, and productive economy in space will require massive amounts of data that can easily be accessed by facilities on Earth and shared between satellites, vehicles, and space stations in orbit.
In the fourth episode of On Orbit’s Future Space Economy webcast series, host Jeffrey Hill speaks with leaders from Mynaric, Ramon.Space, OrbitsEdge, Nebula Space Enterprise, and Avantus Federal to learn how they are building to support advanced applications and automation in the space environment. Learn about how these systems operate in space and are protected from the harsh environment. The group also explains how virtualized networks will work to transfer data from space to Earth, and how data is processed, transmitted, and protected in the future space economy.
Learn more about On Orbit’s hit new webcast by visiting www.onorbitspace.com
Michelle Parker recently took on a new role as vice president of Space Mission Systems at Boeing. After restructuring Boeing Defense, Space & Security last year, Boeing brought all satellite programs together under Space Mission Systems including commercial and government satellites, Spectrolab and Millennium Space Systems in one organization.
Michelle has a long career in the satellite industry, starting out more than 25 years ago with Hughes’ satellite division before it was acquired by Boeing, where she worked on the thermal design of the original 702 platform. Now she is tasked with integrating these teams and recognizing synergies across the business to present the best offerings to customers.
She spoke with On Orbit host Rachel Jewett on the first day of the SATELLITE show in Washington D.C., as Boeing prepared to ship the first ViaSat-3 satellite to Cape Canaveral for launch operations. In this wide-ranging discussion, Michelle talks about the demand environment for satellite manufacturing across government and commercial segments in the multi-orbit era. She discusses responding to competition in the manufacturing market, how she has seen Boeing and the industry evolve, and the market for talent.
In this webcast, NASA Deputy Associate Administrator for Business Operations Casey Swails is joined by speakers from Voyager Space, Spaceflight, Loft Orbital, and BCG for a discussion about how private businesses, industries, civil space agencies, government organizations, and commercial space companies form strategic partnerships and collaborate with each other to accomplish a mission. Host Jeffrey Hill kicks off the discussion by asking how existing commercial space industry business models work. For example: How do customers engage with launch services? How are satellites procured? How can an organization access space without having to build their own satellite or buy their own rocket? The group also takes a look at the International Space Station (ISS) as an example of a space-based economic hub involving a variety of business models and partnerships.
Please note: There are minor audio issues throughout the podcast related to speaker microphones captured during the livestream.
One of the most exciting things about the satellite industry is exploring how satellite can be used to improve life on Earth. Iridium and the Smithsonian have worked together on a particularly interesting example of that, tracking wildlife. The Smithsonian has an initiative called Movement of Life, that tracks the movement of certain species. The organization recently partnered with Iridium to use the operator’s satellite network to help track species like Asian elephants, Masai giraffes, jaguars, wildebeests, and bobcats.
In this episode of On Orbit, Jared Stabach, research ecologist at the Smithsonian's National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute and Dan Mercer, vice president and general manager for Iridium, talk about how satellite-enabled IoT furthers conservation efforts by tracking these species. Jared talks about the research projects that Iridium’s network has enabled, like analyzing the impact of human activity on animal populations, as well as the satellite tech involved with designing IoT trackers that different wild animals can wear.
The second episode of On Orbit’s Future Space Economy webcast features Sidus Space Founder and CEO Carol Craig, Kepler CEO Mina Mitry, Orbit Fab CDO Jeremy Schiel, SpaceRyde CEO Sohrab Haghighat, and BCG’s Sita Sonty in a discussion about financing, building, and networking complex infrastructure in space.
The Future Space Economy is, at its core, a massive infrastructure building project consisting of spaceports, rockets, satellites, and advanced spacecraft. These elements create the physical framework to support advanced space applications. In this episode, we’ll talk to the people who are building and investing in this new infrastructure about their plans for the future, as well as their greatest needs and challenges in completing their mission. We’ll also discuss mission planning, extending infrastructure on Earth and beyond Earth’s orbit, and the critical role that advanced computing and telecommunications will play in the building process.
On Orbit’s Future Space Economy Webcast is generously sponsored by SpiderOak, Sidus Space, and Kepler Communications.
NOTE: There is a very slight hum in the background of the webcast recording. This was due to a technical issue in the audio capture.
The space industry is in a race for talent, to hire bright and innovative people to propel companies forward to meet their bold growth projections. While working in the space industry used to be a more insular career path, the industry's rapid expansion with new startups and technologies is driving a push to bring more people into the industry’s workforce. Executives have been open about feeling the crunch for talent, and even the White House is getting involved.
Recruiting firm Evona is part of the solution. The recruiting firm specializes in space — especially bringing new people into the sector. Evona has grown rapidly since four tech recruiters banded together in Bristol, England a few years ago to start the company and has supported space companies like Iceye Finland, York Space Systems, and Isar Aerospace.
Co-founder Tom Kelly joins the podcast to talk to new host, Via Satellite Senior Managing Editor Rachel Jewett, about how specialized space recruiting works, how Evona makes an effort to hire from outside of the industry, and why that is important. Evona encourages everyone to ask the question — Can I work in space?
This is the very first episode of the On Orbit Podcast’s new “Future Space Economy” educational series – designed to educate audiences about the opportunities, challenges, risks, and rewards of expanding economic activity off-world. This webcast series will highlight specific activities in space, ranging from healthcare, research, mining, tourism, and energy.
In this debut episode, titled “The Next “Giant Leap” – How Industry, Technology, and People Move Off Earth to Create a New Economy in Space,” On Orbit host Jeffrey Hill is joined by: Dr. Alison Perez, Ventures Investment & Portfolio Manager, Lockheed Martin Ventures; Carolyn Belle, Director, Advanced Systems, Astroscale; Matt O’Connell, Operating Partner, DCVC; and John Moberly Sr. Vice President of Space, SpiderOak to discuss why we should be investing the infrastructure needed to expand the modern economy into space. This includes building new spaceports on Earth, space stations in orbit, and transportation corridors to the moon.
To accomplish this goal, the space industry must first convince private industry, policymakers, and the general public that they will benefit from this investment. Why bring the global economy into space? What is the short- and long-term vision for the space economy? How will this be managed? How will interests be protected in space? This webcast is the “101” session to get you started on the long journey toward the answers.
On Orbit’s Future Space Economy Webcast is generously sponsored by SpiderOak, Sidus Space, and Kepler Communications. Learn more here:
https://www.satellitetoday.com/content-collection/future-space-economy/
A wave of capital investment has poured into new space companies over the past few years, as investors searched for the next big disruptive space technology. It’s not yet known if the fragile state of today’s global economy has slowed this momentum. Do investors remain as hungry for space startups as they were five to 10 years ago? Are investors being more cautious and selective as they navigate through an unusual market environment?
In this episode, investor judges from this year’s Startup Space competition at SATELLITE 2023 will explain how their early-stage seed investment strategies have changed and how entrepreneurs can adapt their pitches to stand out in an increasingly competitive startup market. We are joined by Josephine Millward, partner at OpAmp Capital, David Anderman, co-founder & operating partner at Stellar Ventures, Terrence Craig, advisor at Toyota Ventures and Rafferty Jackson, co-founder of Jack Industries.
This all-star group of investors and startup experts provide invaluable answers to some of the most important questions for startups, including: Is it okay for startups to jump into markets with a lot of existing competition? When is an entrepreneur truly ready to seek their seed investment? What’s the checklist they need to complete? How are seed investment pitches evolving? How can entrepreneurs stand out?
Following the discussion, we reveal the 10 finalists for this year’s Startup Space competition. At the end of the episode, I reveal some exciting new changes that will be happening with the On Orbit podcast starting next month and into the new year.
The relationship between satellite operators and cellular wireless carriers has always been complicated, vacillating between being close business partners, fierce competitors, and regulatory rivals. Though dwarfed in size by its cellular wireless peers, satellite operators have endured and maintained a relatively stable co-existence in the telecommunications family.
However, something has changed recently that has put satellites in the spotlight, driving companies like T-Mobile and Apple to sign contracts and partnerships to utilize satellite services and integrate them with their own. There seems to be a renewed curiosity about space connectivity happening in the wireless world. To figure out the cause of this development and to discuss the impact of satellites breaching the iPhone, we’ve invited NSR Research Director Brad Grady on the podcast to share his wisdom on what’s happening in the market.
Brad explains the history of the fascinating relationship between the satellite and cellular industries, and explains how and why their interests are aligning now more than ever. He also outlines how the development of the 3GPP standard and direct satellite-to-cell connectivity, as well as the rising cost of infrastructure and the desperate need to find new customers drove these long-time “frenemies” to the negotiating table.
This episode of On Orbit is brought to you by a.i. solutions®, a company that has worked to provide innovative, cost-effective space engineering services, products and support to enable uninterrupted and reliable access to space for the past 25 years. Now, a.i. solutions is about to introduce FreeFlyer 7.8, built to optimize your space mission. FreeFlyer 7.8 is packed with new features to improve your mission’s success. Learn more about those features by visiting ai-solutions.com/onorbit.
The relationship between satellite operators and cellular wireless carriers has always been complicated, vacillating between being close business partners, fierce competitors, and regulatory rivals. Though dwarfed in size by its cellular wireless peers, satellite operators have endured and maintained a relatively stable co-existence in the telecommunications family.
However, something has changed recently that has put satellites in the spotlight, driving companies like T-Mobile and Apple to sign contracts and partnerships to utilize satellite services and integrate them with their own. There seems to be a renewed curiosity about space connectivity happening in the wireless world. To figure out the cause of this development and to discuss the impact of satellites breaching the iPhone, we’ve invited NSR Research Director Brad Grady on the podcast to share his wisdom on what’s happening in the market.
Brad explains the history of the fascinating relationship between the satellite and cellular industries, and explains how and why their interests are aligning now more than ever. He also outlines how the development of the 3GPP standard and direct satellite-to-cell connectivity, as well as the rising cost of infrastructure and the desperate need to find new customers drove these long-time “frenemies” to the negotiating table.
This episode of On Orbit is brought to you by a.i. solutions®, a company that has worked to provide innovative, cost-effective space engineering services, products and support to enable uninterrupted and reliable access to space for the past 25 years. Now, a.i. solutions is about to introduce FreeFlyer 7.8, built to optimize your space mission. FreeFlyer 7.8 is packed with new features to improve your mission’s success. Learn more about those features by visiting ai-solutions.com/onorbit.
World Satellite Business Week (WSBW) has wrapped up in Paris capping off what has been a very busy summer for the satellite industry. Via Satellite Managing Editor Rachel Jewett attended the week-long event, covering a number of executive panel sessions for the magazine’s e-newsletter. She joins us on the On Orbit podcast to outline the key takeaways from the conference and what she learned behind-the-scenes.
Rachel explains how the CEOs from the world’s largest satellite operators responded to some of the biggest news stories of the season, including Eutelsat’s combination with OneWeb, SpaceX’s Starlink partnership with T-Mobile, and Globalstar bringing emergency communication functions to Apple’s iPhone 14. She also shares insights from regional operators, imagery and sensing market leaders, space journalists, and a humorous story involving her newly adopted dog eating a souvenir she brought home.
If you want to learn more about how satellite operators are forming new partnerships with terrestrial and wireless carriers, come out to Mobile World Congress on Thursday, September 29th to attend SATELLITE’s SAT @ MWC conference program, featuring keynotes from SES, SpaceX, Intelsat, and Globalstar, as well as panel sessions on satellite-powered 5G, 3GPP compatibility, capacity pricing, and b2b and enterprise connectivity!
World Satellite Business Week (WSBW) has wrapped up in Paris capping off what has been a very busy summer for the satellite industry. Via Satellite Managing Editor Rachel Jewett attended the week-long event, covering a number of executive panel sessions for the magazine’s e-newsletter. She joins us on the On Orbit podcast to outline the key takeaways from the conference and what she learned behind-the-scenes.
Rachel explains how the CEOs from the world’s largest satellite operators responded to some of the biggest news stories of the season, including Eutelsat’s combination with OneWeb, SpaceX’s Starlink partnership with T-Mobile, and Globalstar bringing emergency communication functions to Apple’s iPhone 14. She also shares insights from regional operators, imagery and sensing market leaders, space journalists, and a humorous story involving her newly adopted dog eating a souvenir she brought home.
If you want to learn more about how satellite operators are forming new partnerships with terrestrial and wireless carriers, come out to Mobile World Congress on Thursday, September 29th to attend SATELLITE’s SAT @ MWC conference program, featuring keynotes from SES, SpaceX, Intelsat, and Globalstar, as well as panel sessions on satellite-powered 5G, 3GPP compatibility, capacity pricing, and b2b and enterprise connectivity!
On this episode of the On Orbit podcast, Orbital Sidekick Founder and CEO Dan Katz joins us to talk about the souped-up Global Hyperspectral Observation Satellite (GHOSt) constellation his company is launching to help global industry and government customers achieve their sustainability goals.
Hyperspectral imagery is yet another product of the rapid evolution of satellite data collection technologies we’ve seen during the past decade. Katz and Orbital Sidekick describe it as “the highest dimensional way of seeing.” Hyperspectral imagery systems can capture more than 500 narrow contiguous color bands and reflectance features in the visible and infrared light spectra, which allows data collectors to distinguish between material compositions and determine the molecular makeup of what it is seeing.
During our conversation, Katz explains how this all works in layman’s terms and how hyperspectral technology can serve as an invaluable source of environmental intelligence across multiple use cases and applications.
On this episode of the On Orbit podcast, Orbital Sidekick Founder and CEO Dan Katz joins us to talk about the souped-up Global Hyperspectral Observation Satellite (GHOSt) constellation his company is launching to help global industry and government customers achieve their sustainability goals.
Hyperspectral imagery is yet another product of the rapid evolution of satellite data collection technologies we’ve seen during the past decade. Katz and Orbital Sidekick describe it as “the highest dimensional way of seeing.” Hyperspectral imagery systems can capture more than 500 narrow contiguous color bands and reflectance features in the visible and infrared light spectra, which allows data collectors to distinguish between material compositions and determine the molecular makeup of what it is seeing.
During our conversation, Katz explains how this all works in layman’s terms and how hyperspectral technology can serve as an invaluable source of environmental intelligence across multiple use cases and applications.
On this episode of the On Orbit podcast, Orbital Sidekick Founder and CEO Dan Katz joins us to talk about the souped-up Global Hyperspectral Observation Satellite (GHOSt) constellation his company is launching to help global industry and government customers achieve their sustainability goals.
Hyperspectral imagery is yet another product of the rapid evolution of satellite data collection technologies we’ve seen during the past decade. Katz and Orbital Sidekick describe it as “the highest dimensional way of seeing.” Hyperspectral imagery systems can capture more than 500 narrow contiguous color bands and reflectance features in the visible and infrared light spectra, which allows data collectors to distinguish between material compositions and determine the molecular makeup of what it is seeing.
During our conversation, Katz explains how this all works in layman’s terms and how hyperspectral technology can serve as an invaluable source of environmental intelligence across multiple use cases and applications.
On this episode of the On Orbit podcast, Orbital Sidekick Founder and CEO Dan Katz joins us to talk about the souped-up Global Hyperspectral Observation Satellite (GHOSt) constellation his company is launching to help global industry and government customers achieve their sustainability goals.
Hyperspectral imagery is yet another product of the rapid evolution of satellite data collection technologies we’ve seen during the past decade. Katz and Orbital Sidekick describe it as “the highest dimensional way of seeing.” Hyperspectral imagery systems can capture more than 500 narrow contiguous color bands and reflectance features in the visible and infrared light spectra, which allows data collectors to distinguish between material compositions and determine the molecular makeup of what it is seeing.
During our conversation, Katz explains how this all works in layman’s terms and how hyperspectral technology can serve as an invaluable source of environmental intelligence across multiple use cases and applications.
Spaceflight has shipped its brand new fully integrated Sherpa-LTC orbital transfer vehicle to Cape Canaveral for launch on SpaceX’s Falcon 9 and signed a deal with Arianespace to launch on Vega missions as soon as next year.
Spaceflight CEO Curt Blake joined us on the podcast to talk about what these latest versions of Sherpa can do and the challenges of delivering satellites beyond LEO to trans-lunar, low-lunar, and GEO orbits.
We also talked about the benefits of green propulsion technology, the company’s relationship with SpaceX as it progresses toward a Starlink mission launch later this month, new launch costs for small satellite customers, and the impact of launch services adding satellite manufacturing and mission management capabilities on broadening access to space.
Editor's note: This podcast was released online on August 8. We apologize for the delay in getting the episode to your podcast feed.
News coverage of extreme weather events and flooding has brought climate change to the forefront of public consciousness. As this flooding displaces and endangers life on Earth and causes trillions of dollars worth of damage to the larger economy, the flood insurance industry finds itself on the forefront of a serious problem that requires it to evolve the way it utilizes data quickly to save both itself and the well-being of its customers.
In comes Cloud to Street — a company that is utilizing satellite imagery and data and integrating it with data on the ground to more accurately calculate flooding risks so that insurers, industries, and governments can take a proactive approach to insurance. Co-founded by friends with extensive backgrounds in hydrology and communication psychology research, Cloud to Street is enabling the parametric insurance model commonly used for hurricane insurance to the flood insurance world.
Cloud to Street co-founder and CEO Bessie Schwarz joins us on this episode of On Orbit to explain how parametric insurance data works and how satellite data plays a key role in its collection. We also talk about the psychology involved in one of the most common challenges faced by space data solutions providers — how do you translate space data in a way that snaps clients into action? What does ‘actionable’ data look like?
In order to have meaningful access to space to meet the demand for launch services, the world needs more spaceports and launch centers. British and European launch services could also use new spaceports. Flying payloads to launch facilities across the ocean in French Guiana or the United States can get expensive. Because of the war in Ukraine, Russia is no longer a viable option.
In this episode of Via Satellite’s On Orbit Podcast, we are joined by Satellite Applications Catapult COO Lucy Edge, who is working with partners to build the new spaceport in Cornwall, U.K. We are also joined by Andoya Space Orbital Admin Director Ingrid Hanssen, who is part of a team that is renovating and upgrading Norway’s Andoya Island space center so that it can launch more commercial and civil spacecraft. Lucy and Ingrid talk to On Orbit host Jeffrey Hill about the benefits of untapped launch sites, and the impact that an expanded spaceport network would have on costs, availability, and time to target orbit.
This episode is a preview of our Digital Forum webcast series that we produce exclusively for our Via Satellite and Satellite Group premium members. Learn more about our Satellite Group memberships and future Digital Forum events at https://www.satellitetoday.com/2022-digital-forums-for-satellite-group-members/
In this episode of Via Satellite’s On Orbit Podcast, John Deere’s Industry 4.0 lead Kiel Ronning joins us to talk about how his company is working to solve the global food shortage crisis through technology and education. John Deere is a trusted brand among farmers, who rely on the company to provide insights on crop yield efficiency and productivity. To fully utilize the tools that John Deere provides in their newest tractors and vehicles, farmers need access to high-speed bandwidth, sensing data, and imagery. Ronning and I discuss how the company is working with partners to facilitate that access.
We also discuss Ronning’s work in revolutionizing John Deere’s own production facilities. Through advancements in industrial IoT, John Deere has developed some of the most cutting edge private enterprise networks. Ronning explains how it has both led by example and followed other industries in rolling out these networks.
On this special episode of On Orbit, government satellite technology program directors from the United States, United Kingdom, and Argentina join us to explain how they are working directly with commercial providers to get connectivity directly in the hands of enterprise, civil service, and military end users.
During this conversation, we interview Dr. Daniel Massey, Operation 5G to NextG lead for the U.S. Department of Defense, Arfan Chaudhry, head of International Strategy for the U.K. government’s BEIS Space Directorate, and Pablo Recalt, head of the Steering Committee for Argentina’s Chamber of Internet, CABASE. Daniel, Arfan, and Pablo describe the needs of their end users in detail and share how they are leveraging unique partnerships with the space and satellite industries to meet their objectives. It was a fascinating discussion that we’re very excited to share with you today.
This episode is a preview of the new Digital Forum Events that we’re producing exclusively for SATELLITE Group Members. This is a subscription service that we offer in two levels – basic and premium. Basic level subscribers get access to Via Satellite content, webcasts, and these exclusive forums. Premium-level subscribers also receive a 100% discount on an Executive All-Access pass to attend SATELLITE 2023, and access to our new Satellite & Space Industry Financial Report Database. This podcast contains a promo code that will provide a 20% discount on any subscription purchase. Learn more and become a member today at www.viasatellite.com/membership
You may not realize it, but the distance between Low-Earth Orbit, where most small satellites reside, and Geostationary Orbit, where nearly all of the much larger satellites live, is pretty significant. At more than 21,000 miles above LEO, GEO is a challenging orbit for smallsats to reach and maintain effective operations.
Believing that there is a viable and profitable future for smallsats in GEO orbit, Isa Fritz co-founded GeoJump and took on the role of its chief technology officer. The company’s mission is to open the door to GEO for budget-conscious smallsat operators. By utilizing a Sherpa-ES orbital transfer vehicle developed by Spaceflight and employing a lunar fly-by trajectory, GeoJump says it can get customers to GEO safely in just two weeks… a huge improvement over the standard trip, which can take as long as six months.
Fritz was the runner-up in SATELLITE 2022’s Startup Space entrepreneur pitch contest in March by only a few points. Just after competing, she joined us for a chat about GeoJump’s origins and mission, her background as an engineer working on an impressive variety of spacecraft, lessons she’s learned while leading a startup, and why she sees massive opportunities for small satellites in GEO.
On this episode of On Orbit, we welcome the grand prize winner of the 2022 Startup Space entrepreneur pitch contest, Dr. Luisa Buinhas. She is the co-founder of Vyoma Space, a space debris mitigation technology company based in Germany. With a background in aerospace engineering specialized in space mission design and maneuver optimization, Buinhas leads the development of Vyoma’s space program in its ambition to become a trusted partner in protecting satellite operators and space-faring nations from dangerous debris.
To accomplish this, Vyoma is building a constellation of space debris tracking satellites equipped with sensor systems and on-board optical cameras that can observe debris up close and personal in space. The satellites also have an on-board global navigation satellite system (GNSS) receiver that allows companies to determine the orbit of observed space debris.
During this interview, Dr. Buinhas and I discuss the origin of Vyoma and how its intelligent algorithms and software solutions work. She explains how she prepared to go up against a very competitive field of entrepreneurs at Startup Space and how she is preparing for the potentially life-changing 30-minute pitch call with investors that she won as a grand prize. Buinhas also shares some valuable advice on establishing short- and long-term goals, hiring, and finding the right investors for new startups.
After a short break following the SATELLITE 2022 conference, Via Satellite’s On Orbit podcast returns with a very special interview with two of Argentina’s top science and technology government officials. Argentina’s Minister of Science, Technology and Innovation Daniel Filmus and his colleague Matías Kulfas, Argentina’s Minister of Productive Development, join On Orbit host Jeffrey Hill to explain why their nation is investing in building the largest space economy in South America.
Filmus and Kulfas share details about their plan to build a launch facility outside of Buenos Aires, the importance of their working relationship with Argentina’s civil space agency CONAE and other regional governments, as well as the socioeconomic and environmental benefits of satellite technology.
We apologize in advance for the sound quality of the interview, as it took place in the middle of Argentina’s very busy SATELLITE 2022 exhibit hall pavilion. We would also like to thank Filmus and Kulfas’ staff and translator for their assistance in setting up this fascinating interview.
Music in this episode is from Argentine producer Lagartijeando, courtesy of Wonderwheel Recordings.
On Feb. 24, 2022, Russia demolished the foundation of the world’s geopolitical and financial structure by commencing a military invasion of Ukraine. The West quickly responded in unison with a new form of strategic financial warfare and implemented a
wall of economic sanctions designed to isolate Russia from the global economy.
The war caught everyone off guard, including the commercial space industry, which found itself in the crosshairs of Russia’s first counterattack to the sanctions. In a bizarre Twitter rant, Dmitry Rogozin, head of Russia’s Roscosmos, announced he was essentially holding U.K. constellation operator OneWeb hostage on the Baikonur launch pad until the U.K. government divested from the company and made guarantees that the satellites would not be used for military purposes. The stunt couldn’t have come at a worse time for OneWeb, as it needs to complete its constellation and compete with SpaceX, which also has a dominating position in the launch market.
On this episode of On Orbit, NSR Consultant Claude Rousseau, a trusted veteran analyst of the global satellite and space industries, joins host Jeffrey Hill to talk about the immediate and long-term consequences of Russia’s war on the space industry. Rousseau explains how each of the space-faring superpowers will fare in this new environment and identify who stands to lose and who stands to gain most in a global commercial space market without Russia. We also break down how the war impacts the already fragile global tech supply chain, which continues to struggle in its recovery from the pandemic, as well as the increased risk of kinetic and cyber warfare in space.
Rousseau also gives listeners a preview of the SATELLITE 2022 Finance Forum program that NSR is producing in partnership with the event on March 21, 2022.
This episode of On Orbit is brought to you by a.i. solutions®, developers of FreeFlyer, a software application used for space mission design, analysis, operations, and support for the full lifecycle of your mission. With heritage on over 225 missions, FreeFlyer provides solutions for both civil and defense space agencies, as well as the commercial space industry. Learn more about a.i. solutions® and their new release FreeFlyer 7.7 application here.
The overall global demand for satellite-connected applications has been steadily increasing during the past decade, and market researchers expect this trend to continue. But this growth hasn’t been evenly distributed, especially the Asia Pacific region, which includes nations like China with vast and complex fiber networks and others like Indonesia, with some of the most robust backhaul markets in the world.
In this interview, On Orbit host Jeffrey Hill speaks with APT Satellite Co. Executive Vice President Huang Bauzhong about the state of the Asia Pacific and Chinese Ku-band markets, regulatory challenges in the East, and the operator’s plans to explore potential LEO and MEO offerings.
APT Satellite Co. operates the APSTAR satellite constellation and is headquartered in Hong Kong. The company currently has five in-orbit satellites — the APSTAR-7, APSTAR-9, APSTAR-5C, APSTAR-6C and APSTAR-6D. The fleet provides broadcasting, broadband, and backhaul to regions in Asia, Europe, Africa, Australia, and the Pacific Islands, serving approximately 75% of the world’s population.
This interview is part of a three-part series of exclusive interviews with three of the Asia-Pacific region’s leading commercial space companies in China, Japan, and Hong Kong. These interviews were produced in partnership with the Asia-Pacific Satellite Communications Council (APSCC).
The other two interviews conducted with Fu Ziheng, president of China Great Wall Industry Corporation (CGWIC) and Iwao Igarashi, vice president and general manager of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, are available to SATELLITE 2022 all-access pass holders and Via Satellite premium subscribers.
This episode of On Orbit is brought to you by a.i. solutions®, developers of FreeFlyer, a software application used for space mission design, analysis, operations, and support for the full lifecycle of your mission. With heritage on over 225 missions, FreeFlyer provides solutions for both civil and defense space agencies, as well as the commercial space industry. Learn more about a.i. solutions® and their new release FreeFlyer 7.7 application.
One of nine startup entrepreneurs will soon find themselves on a 30-minute pitch call with some of the most powerful investors in the space sector, including Tess Hatch, Seraphim Capital, Toyota Ventures, and the former mayor of Washington D.C., now at MaC Venture Capital. To earn this phone call, they must beat out the other eight competitors in this year’s Startup Space pitch competition taking place on Tuesday, March 22 at the SATELLITE 2022 conference.
On this episode of On Orbit, we’re joined by competition organizer Rafferty Jackson of Jack Industries to talk about the impact Startup Space has made in its six years of existence, helping cultivate fast-growing companies such as Astroscale, LeoLabs, Ursa, Orbit Fab, and dozens more. Rafferty has been a Startup Space judge since its very first year and she has assembled an impressive line-up of competitors and judges participating in this year’s event. During this interview, Rafferty and I detail the range of technologies and people that will take the stage at SATELLITE 2022 to convey their potential during a brief, but grueling five-minute pitch.
Rafferty and host Jeffrey Hill also discuss how she came into the space industry from a successful career as an executive at Beats by Dr. Dre, during which she helped push forward the company’s business partnership with Apple. She now helps startups overcome the challenges shared by most new entrants in the space sector — the uber-technical nature of their products and the difficulty in communicating the need for these products in the market. Rafferty shares some tips that have helped her clients succeed in an increasingly competitive landscape.
As more and more commercial space companies go public and their technologies become more entwined with other industries, the demand for accurate and detailed information on how these businesses prosper has never been higher. This has made veteran space sector analysts like today’s guest, Carissa Christensen, founder and CEO of BryceTech, so valuable to everyone from the common shareholder to the largest global investment firms. She’s been quoted in several media outlets, including The New York Times, The Washington Post, and Wired. Her data plays an important role in establishing realistic expectations for her clients, the greater business community, and the general public.
In addition to her role as leader of BryceTech, Carissa is a member of the National Research Council Space Technology Industry-Government-University Roundtable, which advises NASA. She also serves on the World Economic Forum Global Future Council, the Advisory Council of the Aerospace Corporation’s Center for Space Policy and Strategy, and as an adviser to the annual U.S. Air Force Schriever Wargame.
In this episode of On Orbit, Carissa takes us behind the scenes to explain the methodology of her analysis, which involves creating industry simulations and a comprehensive understanding of how space technology evolves. We talk about her role in creating the Satellite Industry Association’s annual state of the satellite industry report, as well as how the two-year long COVID-19 pandemic factors into her equations and the stability of the space industry throughout the crisis. Finally, we talk about why and how she established BryceTech, and why she describes it as both an analysis and engineering firm.
We hope this interview explains how much work space industry analysts put into their reports and encourages you to seek out their help if you’re in need of information.
As more and more commercial space companies go public and their technologies become more entwined with other industries, the demand for accurate and detailed information on how these businesses prosper has never been higher. This has made veteran space sector analysts like today’s guest, Carissa Christensen, founder and CEO of BryceTech, so valuable to everyone from the common shareholder to the largest global investment firms. She’s been quoted in several media outlets, including The New York Times, The Washington Post, and Wired. Her data plays an important role in establishing realistic expectations for her clients, the greater business community, and the general public.
In addition to her role as leader of BryceTech, Carissa is a member of the National Research Council Space Technology Industry-Government-University Roundtable, which advises NASA. She also serves on the World Economic Forum Global Future Council, the Advisory Council of the Aerospace Corporation’s Center for Space Policy and Strategy, and as an adviser to the annual U.S. Air Force Schriever Wargame.
In this episode of On Orbit, Carissa takes us behind the scenes to explain the methodology of her analysis, which involves creating industry simulations and a comprehensive understanding of how space technology evolves. We talk about her role in creating the Satellite Industry Association’s annual state of the satellite industry report, as well as how the two-year long COVID-19 pandemic factors into her equations and the stability of the space industry throughout the crisis. Finally, we talk about why and how she established BryceTech, and why she describes it as both an analysis and engineering firm.
We hope this interview explains how much work space industry analysts put into their reports and encourages you to seek out their help if you’re in need of information.
This past December, the CEO members of the EMEA Satellite Operators Association (ESOA) announced that the organization was changing its name to the Global Satellite Operators’ Association (GSOA) — the second evolution in the near 30-year-old industry alliance. Emerging out of the infancy of the European Union in the ‘90s, the organization pushed to educate the continent’s new governance of the capabilities of satellite connectivity systems. It has since grown to include more than 30 member organizations, including most recently Amazon, APT, ARSAT, Intersputnik, Lockheed Martin, Omnispace, and Star One.
On this episode of Via Satellite’s On Orbit, we spoke to GSOA Secretary General Aarti Holla-Maini, who has led the organization since 2004 and has remained dedicated to its mission of bridging the digital divide, creating an essential role for satellites in the 5G future, and achieving the United Nations’ Sustainable Development goals.
Host Jeffrey Hill asks Holla-Maini to explain the history of the organization, how it functions today, the benefits for members, and why the organization decided to grow from a regional to a global alliance. We also talk about the greatest challenges facing today’s established and emerging satellite operators and the upcoming fight for spectrum rights at the WRC-23 conference.
This past December, the CEO members of the EMEA Satellite Operators Association (ESOA) announced that the organization was changing its name to the Global Satellite Operators’ Association (GSOA) — the second evolution in the near 30-year-old industry alliance. Emerging out of the infancy of the European Union in the ‘90s, the organization pushed to educate the continent’s new governance of the capabilities of satellite connectivity systems. It has since grown to include more than 30 member organizations, including most recently Amazon, APT, ARSAT, Intersputnik, Lockheed Martin, Omnispace, and Star One.
On this episode of Via Satellite’s On Orbit, we spoke to GSOA Secretary General Aarti Holla-Maini, who has led the organization since 2004 and has remained dedicated to its mission of bridging the digital divide, creating an essential role for satellites in the 5G future, and achieving the United Nations’ Sustainable Development goals.
Host Jeffrey Hill asks Holla-Maini to explain the history of the organization, how it functions today, the benefits for members, and why the organization decided to grow from a regional to a global alliance. We also talk about the greatest challenges facing today’s established and emerging satellite operators and the upcoming fight for spectrum rights at the WRC-23 conference.
The very first On Orbit podcast episode of 2022 features a discussion about the possibilities and challenges related to our future in space with one of the most influential physicists in the world today. Dr. Michio Kaku, science correspondent for “CBS This Morning,” and an international best selling author of 10 books, was recently awarded a lifetime achievement award by The Arthur C. Clarke Foundation for “exceptional contributions as a theoretical physicist, futurist, and science popularizer.”
Just moments before receiving the award, Kaku joined us for a discussion about humanity’s recent accomplishments in space and his role in popularizing science education. We chat about his latest book, “The God Equation: The Quest for the Theory of Everything and Future of Humanity, and The Future of the Mind,” – his ambitious quest to realize Einstein’s dream of a “theory of everything.”
We also talk about the need for new global space policy in the wake of recent Russian anti-satellite weapon tests and the need to update 60-year-old treaties that have kept the space environment neutral and cooperative for generations. Finally, we talk about the significance of the James Webb Space Telescope launch and how it could force us to rewrite our science textbooks! (Note - the interview was conducted before the James Webb Space Telescope launch, so we talk about it in the future tense).
Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) initiatives are transforming the modern workplace culture to more accurately reflect the reality of its workforce. It hasn’t been an easy transition for today’s fast-paced, high-tech global industries, especially compacted with the impact of COVID-19 on business operations.
The increased focus on DEI is a natural result of the increasingly diverse modern workforce, the expansion of STEM education programs, globalization of the tech industry, increasing demand for young talent, and increased awareness of wage gaps between different demographic groups of people.
The space industry has been addressing DEI workforce issues for some time. Throughout the past decade, it has made progress in attracting more young professionals and putting women in more senior executive-level positions. But, it has also seen its share of struggles in regards to hiring people of color, diversifying executive boards, and employee burnout.
In this episode of On Orbit, we’re joined by the leaders of two of the space industry’s most prominent industry organizations – Kim Macharia, chair of the Space Frontier Foundation, and Robert Bell, executive director of the Space & Satellite Professionals International (SSPI) – to talk about why space needs to put DEI front and center. We examine how and why the industry is succeeding and failing at certain DEI initiatives. We also talk about how industry organizations support industry DEI initiatives, the need for diversity in entrepreneurship, and the responsibility of executive leaders in cultivating healthy work environments.
This was a fantastic, productive, and inclusive discussion. Robert and Kim are both very honest and direct. This conversation provides helpful information for everyone, including companies that don’t have a strategy for DEI issues.
On this episode of On Orbit, C5 Capital’s Rob Meyerson explains how private investors define “space infrastructure” both as physical constructs and investment opportunities. Meyerson was one of the first employees of Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin launch company, serving as its president until 2018. Since leaving the launch industry, he has built a broad space sector investment portfolio. He also serves as the executive producer of ASCEND, a new platform created by the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) to promote space technology development and infrastructure investment.
Meyerson’s roots in the launch sector give him unique insight into how investors view commercial space as a financial opportunity. In this interview, he talks about his early days at Blue Origin, when it was more or less functioning as a commercial space think tank, and how his team created predictions for the long-term future of space.
He also outlines the biggest opportunities for private investors in space, but also what worries financiers about the future of private space. He stresses the importance of executives and entrepreneurs creating realistic timelines for the development of their commercial space systems, and how the recent wave of SPACs combined with COVID skewed those timelines. Meyerson also answers questions about whether or not investors will carry the weight in building infrastructure beyond launch services, a product people can see and understand.
On this episode of On Orbit, we are joined by the second of our two Startup Space 2021 entrepreneur pitch event winners, TMY Technologies (TMYTek) Co-Founder and Vice President Ethan Lin.
TMYTek is a millimeter-wave total solution and ground systems provider based in Taiwan. Lin and his team at TMYTek are dedicated to solving millimeter-wave challenges in the 5G era. The company incorporates phased array technology with what it calls its advanced “antenna-in-package” technology.
Lin leads TMYTek’s software technology and marketing teams and helps the company raise funding. A self-described serial entrepreneur who has founded three companies over the past 13 years, he previously worked for the smartphone maker HTC and collaborated with Microsoft and Qualcomm in developing software and wireless communication. In his first job out of college, he built the world's largest infrared telescope for CFHT in Hawaii.
On Orbit host Jeffrey Hill interviews Lin about his efforts in building tech for an interlinked 5G and Low-Earth Orbit (LEO) world, the company’s use of modular design for its products and why modular-based space technologies are attracting investors, and the role that Taiwan plays and could play in the future global space market.
This past September at the SATELLITE show, leaders from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the National Weather Service joined representatives from privately owned weather forecasting companies for a discussion titled “How State-of-the-Art Satellite Weather Forecasting Saves the World.” The group outlined how advancements in satellite weather forecasting technology are responsible for saving millions of lives every year and trillions of dollars in government and private industry costs. It was one of the more fascinating and informative discussions of the conference, and what made it so effective was that the concept for the conference session was conceived, and led, by an actual meteorologist.
Meredith Garofalo, former broadcast meteorologist at Weather Nation, is now heading to New York City for a top-tier weather broadcasting job that will also include space technology and STEM education reporting. Meredith is a true space enthusiast, who successfully integrated her love of satellites and rockets with her full-time career in an effort to educate the broader public about how our activities in space directly impact our lives on Earth.
Meredith joins On Orbit host Jeffrey Hill to talk about how she caught the space bug, what she learned from her panel at SATELLITE, how meteorologists play an important role in space education, the ever-increasing value of visual, analytical data, and her dream of being the first broadcast meteorologist to go to space.
Hawkeye 360 sees itself as unique among space-based data services. Instead of collecting data through imagery, or Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR), Hawkeye 360 maps Radio Frequency emissions to produce what they call space-based RF analytics. Unique solutions solve unique problems, and so, Hawkeye 360 has been able to carve out its own distinct business in a crowded field, while also partnering with a large number of its peers.
Another fascinating aspect of the company’s distinctiveness is its business model, and this is exactly why we invited Hawkeye 360 CEO John Serafini on the podcast. If you’ve listened to our recent discussions about space data providers, you’ve noticed that we’ve honed in on the massive scope and scale of their services. How do companies that can produce such a wide range of data insights for a wide range of customers find focus? Which vertical markets do you start with? How do you learn about those markets and where do you go from there?
Hawkeye’s Serafini doesn’t ask those questions, because he’s already answered them. In this episode, he tells us how he found the focus of his data business in government and national intelligence and why he believes you can’t serve major markets like his on a part-time basis. We also talk about Hawkeye 360’s rapidly expanding constellation and its ambitious upcoming 18-month launch schedule.
Finally, for those of you attending Euroconsult’s World Satellite Business Week event in Paris this December, listen to the episode to receive a special registration discount code to save up to 25 percent on the cost of admission.
On this episode of On Orbit, Via Satellite Managing Editor Rachel Jewett joins us to unpack what has been a whirlwind month for the space industry.
Blue Origin just sent actor William Shatner, Blue Origin Vice President Audrey Powers, former NASA engineer Chris Boshuizen, and Medidata CEO Glen de Vries 347,539 feet above ground level into space and safely returned the crew to Earth. This was the Jeff Bezos-founded launch company’s 19th consecutive successful crew capsule landing. The mission carries symbolic weight, as Shatner, known worldwide as Star Trek’s Captain Kirk, is responsible for bringing a significant amount of people into the space industry.
While being planned for some time, Shatner’s journey comes just weeks after Blue Origin was racked by serious allegations penned in a letter by current and former company employees regarding safety and workplace culture. During this conversation, Rachel and I will break down the story from the perspective of the satellite industry and what Blue Origin customers may want to know about the story – as well as it’s short- and long-term impact could be on the larger space community.
We also talk about the massive challenges facing space data analytics, imagery and sensing service providers in reaching their long list of target vertical markets, including the finance sector – all of which provides lots of opportunities for these companies to solve significant challenges. Finally, we take a look at Michael Sheetz’s report from CNBC about SpaceX reaching a $100 billion valuation with a “leaked” stakeholder stock offering and what that might mean in terms of boosting commercial space to a trillion-dollar-plus market.
Adisesh Yeragudi just graduated from Rutgers University... and also became Startup Space’s youngest-ever competition winner at SATELLITE 2021. His company, AV SpaceTech, is building a modular ion space propulsion engine — the Xe-1 — a disc composed of engine layers that can be added or removed to increase or decrease power. The concept image is stunning, but what’s even more stunning is how and where Adisesh first stumbled across the idea…
In this episode of On Orbit, host Jeffrey Hill talks to Adi about how he was inspired by his father (who is also an entrepreneur) to start this business, which is his second. We also talked about his experience at SATELLITE and Startup Space and how it felt to have a line of people waiting to talk to him about investing in his new company. He also shares tips for young entrepreneurs who may not be comfortable with public speaking. And, of course, Adi explains how he found the idea for the ion engine through NASA’s Technology Transfer Portal — where many other potentially valuable commercial technology concepts could exist.
Our second Startup Space 2021 winner was Ethan Lin of TMY Technologies, a phased array antenna technology developer in Taiwan. Ethan will appear on a future episode of On Orbit. Stay tuned!
Computer software has been an integral part of our lives and the global economy for at least the last 35 years. Interestingly, the space environment, by comparison, has only recently become “software-defined” — with programmable satellites, robotics, AI, and machine learning becoming more commonplace in orbit. The demand for significant processing power, storage and better intelligence has simultaneously created a huge new market for space tech companies.
In this episode, Ramon.Space CEO Avi Shabtai joins us to explain the software-defined space revolution. Shabtai, whose startup aims to bring supercomputing and a variety of new in-space applications to satellites, outlines the unique challenges that the harsh space environment presents to software developers.
Shabtai and I also discuss the benefits of reprogrammable space technology, the evolution of the satellite control center, new space-based applications, troubleshooting space software, and the job market for space software engineering talent.
If you’ve purchased a new car in the last decade, you probably also own a mobile satellite antenna – albeit for satellite radio. These antennas became standard issue for new automobiles because they are small enough and cheap enough to mass produce. Delivering radio services one-way is a lot less complicated than delivering satellite internet, and yet, the goal for satellite broadband antenna developers is the same – make an antenna system small and cheap enough to mass produce so that more industries and more consumers can afford to adopt them.
Our guest for today’s episode is the moderator of one of the most popular sessions at the SATELLITE show – How can the industry overcome design constraints and build the perfect low-cost antenna? Whitney Lohmeyer, assistant professor of engineering at Olin College and a research affiliate at MIT in aeronautics and astronautics, is an expert on ground systems development. Since becoming the very first engineer hired at OneWeb, she has worked closely with industry to advise on end-to-end system design, antenna systems, Radio Frequency (RF) power amplification, radiation tolerance, and spectrum strategy.
In this episode, On Orbit host Jeffrey Hill asks Whitney some of the most common questions Via Satellite receives about satellite ground systems. Whitney gives us her thoughts on how today’s modern antenna systems compare and perform, as well as a sneak peak at what she intends to cover at her session at SATELLITE.
With all the recent talk about space tourism and whether or not the “Overview Effect” — the personal change one experiences when seeing the Earth from space — is worth the money and risk of a ride to space, there is no better person to talk to than former NASA Astronaut and Air Force jet pilot Col. Ron Garan. He’s written multiple books on the subject.
For more than a quarter of a century, Garan flew on nearly every modern air and spacecraft under nearly every circumstance imaginable. He was one of the last astronauts to travel to the International Space Station (ISS) on the Space Shuttle, and one of even fewer to ride on both the Shuttle and Russia’s Soyuz rocket (a profound experience for a fighter pilot trained during the Cold War).
His acclaimed debut book, “The Orbital Perspective: Lessons in Seeing the Big Picture from a Journey of 71 Million Miles,” detailed the personal transformation he experienced while living on the ISS. His soon-to-be-published follow-up, “Floating in Darkness: A Journey of Evolution,” uses space exploration as a backdrop to conversations that transcend political, cultural, national, ethnic and religious divides, and focus on our shared responsibilities as a society. He’s also writing a children’s book, “Railroad to the Moon” about a young girl who helps create a community in space.
In this episode of On Orbit, Garan shares his experiences as a pilot, his thoughts on commercial space travel, and a powerful recollection of how he first experienced the overview effect. He also talks about the FAA’s recent change to its Astronaut criteria and attempts to answer the question — Why travel to space when we have so many problems to solve on Earth?
Recognizing the amount of change that the New Space movement delivered to the aerospace industry, ST Engineering iDirect wants to cultivate that same level of disruption in the complex world of ground systems. The company, which exists as the result of several merged legacy ground technology brands, is throwing its support behind a “New Ground” movement, which it hopes will catch on at the SATELLITE 2021 show in September.
ST Engineering iDirect CTO Frederik Simoens has seen ground-based space technologies evolve from gigantic physical structures to virtual programs in the cloud. The ground systems he oversees must work with satellites in multiple orbits, operating in multiple bandwidths. His customers expect these technologies to constantly evolve and become smaller, lighter, cheaper, and easier to operate. Achieving these things all at once, in today’s 24/7 connected environment, has never been more difficult.
And that’s perhaps why Simoens feels that the timing is perfect for a New Ground movement. In this episode of Via Satellite’s On Orbit podcast, Simoens explains why and how ST Engineering iDirect wants to change the way our industry approaches ground systems technology, and what it hopes to achieve by building the foundation for a New Ground movement. This episode is sponsored by Blue Sky Network - a supplier of satellite tracking and communication solutions for the aviation, land mobile and maritime industries.
In this episode, On Orbit host Jeffrey Hill joins Via Satellite Editor-in-Chief Mark Holmes and Managing Editor Rachel Jewett to reveal and explain the team’s picks for the magazine’s ultra-popular 10 Hottest Satellite Companies for 2021. This list includes what we feel are 10 of the most buzzworthy companies with a lot to prove, and a lot riding on what happens over the next 12 months. Executives of these companies will be featured as guests on future episodes. To access Via Satellite’s full list of the 10 Hottest Companies of 2021, visit http://interactive.satellitetoday.com/via/july-2021/the-10-hottest-satellite-companies-in-2021.
Very few people understand the realities of space like former NASA Astronaut Dr. Sandra Magnus. After all, she spent more than 150 days — nearly half a year of her life — living in space. Her perspective on what is and isn’t possible with space and satellite technology is uniquely grounded in experience.
Dr. Magnus is optimistic about the future of human spaceflight and satellite communications, but that excitement comes with some concern about the challenges we face in our rapid development of commercial space. She believes that we have the talent and capability in the private sector to solve these challenges, but that we need government leadership and guidance to ensure that space truly benefits all.
In this episode, Dr. Magnus talks to On Orbit host Jeffrey Hill about her new role on BridgeComm’s advisory board and her interest in the company’s optical wireless satellite technology and its mission to form the backbone of interconnected networks. She also talks about her work as an advisor to Virgin Galactic, her views on space tourism, and her memories of the Space Shuttle and how it compares to modern launch vehicles. She also expresses her opinion about how global and collaborative Space Situational Awareness (SSA) and space debris removal capabilities are both necessary and possible.
When it comes to science influencers, Emily Calandrelli is a household name for a new generation of space enthusiasts. If you have kids, you may know her from “Emily’s Wonder Lab” on Netflix, which brought DIY science experiments into viewers’ homes during the pandemic lockdown. She’s also the long-running host of “Xploration Outer Space,” and a speaker and the author of the Ada Lace children’s book series.
While Emily’s communication style is fun and accessible, she has a rigorous science and engineering background underpinning her work, with two master’s degrees from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
In this episode of On Orbit, guest host Via Satellite managing editor Rachel Jewett interviews Emily about how she went from interning at NASA to hosting a Netflix TV show, and how she strives to make science accessible to all. This episode also digs into the wild world of Tik Tok, where Emily has debunked science myths about falling rocket stages, and shared her own high-altitude experiment.
Before it became known as “Rocket City,” Huntsville, Alabama was more of a one stop-sign town. Things changed after World War II, when the U.S. Army recruited German scientists and other leaders to move to the area and develop rocket technology. Over the next 60 years, Huntsville would grow into the state’s second largest city, and home to a new generation of innovative space companies like Aevum.
The transformation of Rocket City had a profound influence on Aevum CEO Jay Skylus’ upbringing. “The city created a workforce of engineers that had to think about design and technology in ways they haven’t before,” he explains. “Space can establish local innovation economies because the task of building in space fundamentally requires outside-of-Earth thinking.”
In this second of the On Orbit podcast’s two-episode space cities focus (the first covering Quebec, Canada and the Lightspeed project), host Jeffrey Hill catches up with Jay Skylus five years after they first met in 2016 — when Aevum was still a brand-new startup in stealth mode — to talk about the company’s rapid success as a space logistics and automated launch systems company serving commercial, government, and military customers. Jay explains the role that the city of Huntsville played in that success, and talks about the decision Aevum must make on whether or not to leave the nest as it grows into a national business.
By investing in cities, the commercial space industry can work wonders for local economies by creating new jobs, attracting new talent, and establishing long-term, future-facing tech hubs. That’s exactly what Canadian satellite operator Telesat plans to do for the province of Quebec.
This past February, the government of Québec agreed to invest 400 million Canadian dollars ($316 million) in Telesat‘s new Low-Earth Orbit (LEO) satellite constellation in return for a $1.6 billion investment into Québec’s high-tech economy. Telesat will move most of Lightspeed’s manufacturing and operations to the Canadian province — a project that includes the establishment of a new network operating center; a satellite control center; a cybersecurity operations center; an engineering lab; an advanced landing station; and the creation of hundreds of new jobs.
In this episode of On Orbit, Telesat Government Affairs and Public Policy Manager Stephen Hampton sits down with host Jeffrey Hill to discuss why Telesat decided to find a government investment partner and how it came to choose Quebec. We also talk about the returns on government investment and the expected impact Telesat Lightspeed will have on both the local and national Canadian economy.
Our latest episode of the On Orbit podcast is all about design. Not spacecraft design, or satellite engineering, but graphic design in the space industry.
Visual and graphic design elements play an important, yet often overlooked role in our community’s ability to communicate. For an industry that basically lives at the cutting edge, the look and feel of it can sometimes be a little stagnant — lots of blacks, blues, and grays. Most people will tell you that this is due to either the strict and rigid requirements and culture of end-users, or the reliance on design contractors who don’t know exactly how space technology works.
That said, the industry is actively trying to change its look to attract new customers to commercial space services. To provide some perspective on this, we invited two space-focused graphic design experts who explain how visual design in the industry is evolving as access to space is expanding.
Both guests are full-time designers who came to the space industry from the world of fashion design. Our first guest is Erin Bonilla, creative director and co-founder of Harbinger Creative. Erin has been a graphic design expert for NASA for several years and talked to On Orbit host Jeffrey Hill about how the agency has worked to keep its already iconic branding fresh and relevant.
We are also joined by Jordan Klein, creative director at satellite antenna systems developer NXTCOMM. Jordan talks about the revolution in design that is happening among ground systems companies and explains how to keep product and visual design appealing for one of the most rigid and traditional customer segments – government and military.
Eric Berger, a soft-spoken Ars Technica journalist, meteorologist, and lover of all things space-related, has spent a lot of time with Elon Musk during the past few years. While watching the billionaire SpaceX founder closely as he sat in on board meetings and gathering with his family on flights to Texas, Berger discovered the formula behind the company’s two-decade ascension to space industry dominance.
It starts with Musk — an enthralling, passionate, laser-focused, relentless, moody, and sometimes difficult leader, with a unique gift for engineering. His greatest talent, according to Berger, may be his ability to locate and surround himself with the “right” people — those who mix well with his personality and can keep up pace for long periods of time. The people who helped Musk send his first Falcon rockets into space come into clear focus in Berger’s new book “Liftoff,” a widely-praised chronicle of SpaceX’s establishment in the early 2000s.
On this episode of On Orbit, Berger brings us behind the scenes of writing Liftoff. He explains the influence that people like Tom Mueller and Gwynne Shotwell (who just become Via Satellite’s most recent two-time Executive of the Year winner) had on SpaceX’s success, and who he enjoyed speaking with the most while conducting research. Berger also shares some insights that weren’t included in “Liftoff,” as well as thoughts on who might lead SpaceX after Musk.
Betty Bonnardel and I share a unique connection to the Alps. In 2015, I traveled to Northern Italy’s Dolomites to research my family history. Before coming to the United States, my ancestors tended small apple orchards and vineyards carved into the side of steep mountains. At the same time I was conducting this research, Betty Bonnardel was visiting apple orchards on the French side of the Alps — a trip that would inspire the creation of her new space-based smart agritech startup, Farmer Charlie.
A 25+ year space industry veteran and chair of SSPI’s U.K. chapter, Betty found a passion to bring state-of-the-art, low-cost connectivity to farms that grow crops for sustenance and local distribution. This connectivity will provide farmers with vital information about their fields — information that is impossible to access using traditional farming methods passed down through generations. By providing this access to space, Betty believes farmers can grow healthier, higher-quality crops and sell their produce at a better price.
During this episode of On Orbit, I spoke with Betty about the challenges of delivering space-based connectivity to local farmers, such as convincing farmers to trust new and unfamiliar tools, the lack of connectivity infrastructure in these regions, and getting tech partners to invest in direct communication with individual end users.
We’ve talked about the benefits of smart agriculture in past episodes on a much larger scale. In this interview, Betty shares incredible stories about how her space technology platform has already improved the lives of individual farmers in Africa and Europe.
Farmer Charlie is currently looking for partners in software and app development and satellite service. If you’re interested in helping Betty’s cause, visit Farmer Charlie’s website, read the case studies and contact the team directly.
Space vacations are a real thing! If you want to see the Earth from a brand new perspective, and experience weightlessness like a real astronaut, and you have a few million dollars to spare, you can sign up right now! Space Adventures will take you to Low Earth Orbit and beyond on a SpaceX Falcon 9. Virgin Galactic and Blue Origin will also start opening up space tourism lines in the near future.
But, what is the space tourism experience really like? Is it safe? How long is the trip? Will they serve food? Do I have to go through astronaut training? Do I have to be a multimillionaire to afford all this?
On this episode of On Orbit, I’m joined by two space experts who try to answer all of my silly space tourism questions. The first interview is with NASA planetary science mission expert Laura Seward Forczyk, also founder of space consulting firm Astralytical, and the author of Rise of the Space Age Millennials.
Laura and I have a fun and informative conversation about how space companies have been working to create the ideal, safe leisure space travel experience. She outlines the preparation process for passengers, which varies based on the length of each trip. What was most informative for me was her explanation of how the experience of taking off and landing will be different between different rockets and for different people.
The second interview is with E2MC Ventures Founder Raphael Roettgen, space advisor to institutional investors and governments, author of European best-seller “Hoch Hinaus,” and space tourism investor (Space Perspective). He’s also the host of Space Business Podcast, which I highly recommend if you like On Orbit!
Raphael and I discuss the economics of the space tourism market. We answer these questions: How many people would sign up for a space vacation right now? How many people could afford it? How many more people would be interested if the price was lower (in the thousands range)? What are the safety risks and who is liable when accidents happen?
Learn everything you need to know about your future space vacation in this unique and exciting episode of On Orbit!
Satellite builders form a unique bond with their spacecraft. In-Space CEO Doug Liddle described his start-up’s first satellite, Faraday-1, as a ‘precious child’ that he raised for 18 months before turning it over to the launch gods. This past July, the gods proved to be especially cruel to Liddle and the In-Space team, as the satellite was lost during a failed launch on Rocket Lab’s Electron rocket. In this episode, Liddle takes us behind the scenes of the Faraday-1 loss, and explains how he was able to pull himself, and his team together to bounce back from the incident.
Virgin Orbit’s LauncherOne spacecraft is like a Russian matryoshka doll. A plane takes off carrying a rocket, which is carrying a satellite payload. Once in air, the rocket then takes off from the plane and flies toward space. When it reaches orbit, the rocket dispenses its satellites to their intended destinations…
Watching this all happen on the ground is Kendall Russell, Virgin Orbit’s communication officer, who will spend the next few moments trying to figure out how to explain this complicated process to journalists and space watchers around the world. Three years ago, he was writing about launches as historical records, cataloging the who, what, where, when, why, and how for the Via Satellite news feed.
Via Satellite executive editor Jeffrey Hill returns as the host of On Orbit and sits down with Russell for a chat about creative and effective storytelling in the space industry. Russell talks about his transition from news reporter to media relations, his big adventure moving west for his new job, meeting and working with Richard Branson, and how the space industry can take cues from other forms of mass media in its efforts to appeal to the larger public.
Khristian Jones is a senior aerospace engineering student at Wichita State University, and one of the co-founders of the Patti Grace Smith Fellowship.
The Patti Grace Smith Fellowship, an official spin-off of the Brooke Owens Fellowship, provides Black undergraduate students with paid summer internships at aerospace companies and nonprofits. The fellowship was launched in 2020, and is named after Patti Grace Smith, an aerospace industry leader who ran the Federal Aviation Administration‘s (FAA) Office of Commercial Space Transportation.
In this episode, we talk to Khristian about what sparked her passion for STEM, and how the Patti Grace Smith fellowship is empowering Black excellence in aerospace.
In this episode, Maxime Puteaux, principal advisor at Euroconsult, gives us the rundown of satellite trends in 2020, as well as what he sees happening in the decade ahead. Puteaux reviews a forecast of satellite manufacturing and launch services, pegged to a recent Euroconsult report on the subject.
Looking back at 2020, Puteaux notes it was the first time in a single year that more than 1,000 satellites were launched — 70% of those were from SpaceX’s Starlink — a number will become a new standard, driven by the replacement of the commercial constellations. Moving forward, Euroconsult expects 50% of the demand for new satellites to be concentrated by four of the mega constellations for broadband, but a third of the market will still be retained by Geostationary (GEO) satellites.
Space startup Orbit Fab is working to establish gas stations in space. The company announced plans to launch its first operational fuel depot into orbit and secured additional seed funding from Munich Re Ventures.
For CEO Dan Faber, this isn’t his first rodeo, as he’s built startups before. But with Orbit Fab, he’s hoping that by enabling satellite refueling, it will lead to a bustling in-space economy for new industries like space tourism, manufacturing, and mining. He also believes that this is an important step in allowing humans to move beyond Earth.
In this episode, we talk about how he started Orbit Fab, what a gas station in space actually means, and how he envisions a thriving market in space.
Therese Jones is the senior director of policy at the Satellite Industry Association (SIA). She works on issues such as universal access to broadband, as well as more recently, space policy as it pertains to the Biden administration transition.
She’s also one of the co-founders of the Zed Factor Fellowship, a fellowship announced in November which aims to provide opportunities for underrepresented aerospace professionals. She had the idea for a while, but finally had the resources and team to make it a reality.
In this episode we talk about her transition from astronomer to space policy specialist, her current work at SIA, and what motivated her to create this new fellowship.
Carolyn Belle has held a variety of jobs in the space industry, but her vision remains the same: a future that focuses on building space-based infrastructure to enable a dynamic in-space economy. She recently started her current gig, where she’s the director of advanced systems at Astroscale US, and works on supporting the move toward a more sustainable future in space.
She’s also passionate about diversifying the culture of the space industry. Incorporating women, People of Color (POC), and people of all abilities — including those with hidden disabilities — will only positively benefit our advancement in space.
In this episode, Belle discusses her new role, her sustained vision, as well as the most important question — Star Trek vs. Star Wars?
What would a second Trump administration or new Biden administration mean for space policy? In this episode, we talk to Via Satellite Managing Editor Rachel Jewett and SATELLITE Chairman and Via Satellite Executive Editor Jeff Hill and about each candidate’s plans for space. What has been said, and what are the pros and cons of each candidate for the space industry?
We discuss Jewett’s election preview in Via’s October issue, as well as speculate about what the FCC could look like under continuing Ajit Pai leadership, or if potential Biden pick Jessica Rosenworcel chaired the commission. What would a change or continuation in leadership mean for 5G or Low-Earth Orbit (LEO) developments?
While the general public may not go into the voting booth with future space policy in mind, the next president will face decisions that could influence billions of dollars in government investments, countless jobs, public/private partnerships, and a decade worth of research and development. Can space remain a bipartisan issue?
We bring back previous co-host and guest Grace Graham, student at Utah State University. She catches us up on her summer internship with ULA, her firsthand experience with rocket launches, and the secret to Tory Bruno’s social media success.
Rolling into a Q&A from Twitter, we talk about Space Force the show, the nitty gritty on the Artemis announcement, why learning to code is essential, and more.
Have questions you want answered on an episode? Email us at editors@viasatellite.com to submit questions, topic ideas, and potential guests.
So you’re interested in the space industry, but how do you land an internship? As someone who’s interned at NASA, GE Aviation, and OneWeb, Josh Ingersoll has some tips and tricks to share.
Ingersoll is currently a graduate space policy student at George Washington University, and also serves as recruitment chair for the Matthew Isakowitz Fellowship. The fellowship connects undergrad and graduate students with paid internships in commercial spaceflight and mentorship. It is modeled after the Brooke Owens Fellowship.
In this episode, Ingersoll shares tips and tricks for landing internships, how his experience has shaped his career, and musings about his current studies in mega-constellation space policy.
Aravind Ravichandran is a Senior Strategy Consultant at PwC’s space practice, and a self-proclaimed Earth Observation data aficionado with a passion for blockchain. He sees EO as just another source of data, available and ready to be unlocked. In addition, blockchain technology can be useful when applied to EO data.
As a former software engineer at Amazon, he comes to the space industry from the software industry. He gives insight into ways our industry can learn from the software side of things, including Agile methodology.
On this episode, Aravind talks about transferable learnings from the software industry, popping the space industry bubble, and use cases for blockchain.
Chris Bellant is an operations planner for the International Space Station (by day, but by night, he’s the executive director for the Mars Initiative. Through this nonprofit, he’s able to help humanity get closer to exploring Mars through both grant programs and its Mars Prize Fund.
Citing a childhood love for Star Trek, Chris Bellant was driven to get a degree in aerospace engineering. Eventually, he was able to work on his passion project — getting humanity further into the cosmos.
In this episode we talk to Bellant about his passion for space exploration, his work at the Mars Initiative, how he landed that gig, and why humans should land on Mars.
Victor Stephanopoli is the COO of MzansiSat, South Africa’s first private prospective satellite operator focusing on telecom. The company focuses on the South African market, and aims to deploy Geostationary Orbit (GEO) satellites, with the goal providing internet connectivity anywhere inside the country by 2025.
In this episode, Stephanopoli shares his uncommon path to the space industry. He got a degree in film in London, then took a vacation to South Africa and never left. Stephanopoli went to work in the telecom industry, which then led him to working in space. Stephanopoli also talks about the ins and outs of the African market, and his take on GEO vs. LEO.
In this episode we talk to Alba Orbital CEO and Founder Tom Walkinshaw about building a pocketqube startup, applications for tiny 5 cm satellites, making space more accessible, and being named the 39th coolest person in Scotland.
Naia Butler-Craig is a NASA space technology graduate research fellow and a PhD student at the Georgia Institute of Technology, focusing on electric propulsion. She’s not only involved in gateway Artemis projects, but as a self-proclaimed thrill-seeker, aspires to be an astronaut.
Beginning at the age of 13, she’s been on a journey to become an aerospace engineer. Since then, she has been honored with many accolades, including the 2020 Modern Day Technology Leader Award, Black Engineer of the Year.
In this episode Naia talks about her journey in the space industry, her research, the importance of the smallsat renaissance, and the importance of tackling racism in STEM.
Luc Riesbeck is a space policy research analyst at Astroscale U.S., and wants to make our orbits a safer place.
Riesbeck started their career with an undergraduate degree in international relations, then interned at NASA, and quickly realized their interest in space policy. Now with a masters degree and a space policy internship under their belt, Riesbeck is eager to work alongside other industries to put space on the map for the “green” environmental movement.
In this episode, Riesbeck talks about the importance of space sustainability, keeping our orbits clean, and what space policy could look like in the years to come.
Julie Sage is an aspiring astrophysicist, science communicator, and the host of SuperNova Style Science News. At just 16-years-old, she’s been doing some real science with running a variety of different experiments on cubesats, including material testing.
But with her age comes obstacles, including issues with funding and a lack of access to materials. Regardless she perseveres, and with that, has a unique perspective on doing science.
In this episode we talk about her various cubesat experiments, the challenges she’s faced as a young scientist, as well as making science more accessible for young folks.
What is space medicine? Although the answer can vary, it focuses on ways to keep humans in homeostasis while they endure extreme environments. There’s also ways that the space environment can benefit researchers studying diseases.
Dominic Tanzillo is an intern at NASA, a member of SEDS, as well as a mathematics and neuroscience student at Duke University. Although his NASA internship focuses on engineering, he’s interested in pursuing medical school. His interest led him to develop a space medicine course at Duke, which will be offered in the fall.
In this episode, we talk to Dominic about the history of space medicine, what it encompasses, and what we can learn during the COVID-19 pandemic.
What does “space is for everyone” really mean? Nicole Chase tackles this question in her work. In order to make the space industry accessible for everyone, it’s important to understand what the phrase truly means.
A woman with many titles, Nicole is the Director of Projects for SEDS, Director of the Student Space Ambassador Program for The Mars Generation, and a Database Administrator for Made in Space. She recently submitted an abstract about the importance of young leadership in the space industry, and why it is crucial to foster an environment that young leaders thrive in. Additionally, she presented about the concept of “space is for everyone” at the SpaceUp Unconference and the Space Science in Context 2020 conference.
In this episode, we talk to Nicole about what “space is for everyone” means, how to foster young leadership, and how to make the industry an inclusive space (no pun intended) for all.
With the world around us constantly changing, next-generation space leadership is more important than ever. But, what does it mean? What does it look like?
SEDS Rice Chapter President Ryan Udell gives us an example of next-gen space leadership. An engineering major eager to connect his fellow students with the greater space industry, Ryan has taken it upon himself to revamp the SEDS chapter at his university, transforming the club from a single member to over 30!
From there, he founded and hosted the inaugural Owls in Space Symposium event, which featured attendees such as NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine and NASA astronaut Dr. Peggy Whitson. Additionally, he led Rice University’s entry in the NASA CubeSat launch initiative project, which was 1 of 18 winners to be launched into space.
In this episode, On Orbit talks to Ryan about the similarities and differences in leading (and launching) two very different projects, and what it takes to be a next-gen space leader.
There have been only a handful of places fit for fiber installation — underwater, underground, or strung up on utility poles — until a new tech startup based in Virginia emerged with robotic tractors that are opening up a new world of possibilities for broadband infrastructure on the ground.
On Orbit caught up with Startup Space-winner Daniel Turner, CEO and Co-Founder of TRAXyL, a company that is developing an automated, tractor-powered fiber deployment solution. Instead of crops, Daniel’s automated tractor plants fiber broadband lines along highways and existing paved infrastructure. The goal is to bring high-speed connectivity to millions of municipalities, small businesses, hospitals, school campuses, event complexes, and government and military facilities.
TRAXyL installs optical fiber lines along existing roadways without digging deep trenches. The company’s patented driverless FiberTRAXtor vehicle installs a fiber line on the surface of the road and then covers and protects the line with the company’s FiberTRAX resin. In this episode, Daniel shared the company’s origins, how he and his partner came up with the idea of using an automated tractor, and how technologies like the FiberTRAXtor can benefit the satellite and space sectors and, hopefully, the deployment of 5G wireless.
The topic of this episode — our first live podcast — is more or less a question. What exactly do we, people in the space and satellite industry, mean when we use the term 'New Space'? New Space is often used to describe new companies, new ideas, and new technologies. Is New Space a technical term? Or, is it a cultural identity?
This episode was recorded during the SATELLITE 2020 show in Washington D.C., and it’s co-hosted by our good friends Grace Graham (Brooke Owens Fellow, Utah State University, Via Satellite contributor) and Brian Garret-Glazer (Avionics Magazine). Our special guest panelists are Dr. Tanya Harrison (Planet), Charlie Nitschelm (Students for the Exploration and Development of Space — SEDS), Rafferty Jackson (Jack Industries, Astia) and Ali Younis (Astranis). Via Satellite also covered the panel during SATELLITE.
We’d like to thank Charlie and SEDS for sponsoring this episode. SEDS is a non-profit that empowers young people to participate and make an impact in space exploration. Visit SEDS’ website for more information about how you can join or volunteer for SEDS and their many causes and events throughout the year.
Finally, the Via Satellite team would like to send our best wishes to all of our listeners as we deal with this global health crisis. We hope all of you stay safe and healthy, and we also thank you for listening to this podcast. We may be stuck inside, but thanks to modern technology, we can still talk to people all around the world. So, if you have an idea for an episode, or are interested in participating in a discussion, please follow us and message us on Twitter (@OnOrbitPodcast). Enjoy the show!
And now for something completely different! Steven Drozd, multi-instrumentalist and songwriter with the world-famous Oklahoma City-based rock band, The Flaming Lips joins us on On Orbit for a discussion about how space and technology has influenced not only his music, but of the music of a generation.
Over the course of their nearly 37-year existence, the Flaming Lips have drawn inspiration for their music from the most fascinating and unique corners of science fiction, as well as some of the most important moments in space exploration history. Steven talks about how the NASA Moon landing, Voyager program, Mars mission, visual artist Moebius, David Bowie, the films “2001: A Space Odyssey” and “Logan’s Run,” and composers Gustav Holst, György Ligeti, and Igor Stravinsky all helped shape the Flaming Lips’ signature sound. We even discuss the musical instruments and tools that Steven used to recreate the space environments in his songs.
Escape the daily pandemic news for a moment and enjoy this conversation about the songs and sounds of space!
This episode also features samples of Flaming Lips songs, which are available through Warner Brothers, on all streaming services, online and retail record stores. The band’s new album, American Head, will be released this summer. For more information on the band, visit flaminglips.com.
This episode of On Orbit is sponsored by the Students for the Exploration and Development of Space (or SEDS). SEDS is a non-profit that empowers young people to participate and make an impact in space exploration. Thank you so much to SEDS and all of their members for supporting this episode of On Orbit.
For our sixth and final episode of our special podcast series, “Connecting the Unconnected,” we’re joined by Hughes Vice President of Corporate Marketing Arunas Slekys and Senior Vice President of Engineering John Corrigan for a conversation about the future of global satellite communications.
During the conversation, we discuss how broadband connectivity is more than just a technology issue – it’s a fight for global economic equality. We also talk about how the rollout of 5G services could impact the development of satellite hardware and ground terminals.
“Connecting the Unconnected” was generously sponsored and co-produced by Hughes. If you’ve been following along with us during this series, then you’ve heard from several different executives at Hughes about the many projects they have around the world using satellite to connect people. We’ve covered satellite internet, cellular backhaul, community Wi-Fi, emergency response communications and the regulatory environment. If you haven’t done so, please go back and listen to the five previous episodes.
We’ll return to our regular bi-weekly schedule after next week’s episode. Our guest will be grammy-award winning musician and songwriter with The Flaming Lips Steven Drozd, who took some time in between recording and shooting a music video to talk about the music and songs of space!
After that, we’ll be releasing our On Orbit Live podcast from SATELLITE 2020 – What is NewSpace? With guest hosts Brian Garrett-Glaser and Grace Graham, speaking with Tanya Harrison, Rafferty Jackson, Ali Younis and Charlie Nitschelm about what defines this new movement happening in the space industry. We’ll also be releasing a best of SATELLITE 2020, including an excerpt from my fireside interview with SpaceX Founder Elon Musk.
For everyone working at home, there will be plenty of On Orbit podcasts to keep you company!
Satellite is an important part of bringing connectivity to users wherever they are. The regulatory choices that are made by governments can assist in bringing connectivity to users. Satellite spectrum is an invisible asset that is invaluable to us as a society. While it covers the planet, spectrum is actually scarce. How is the spectrum supply managed?
In this special episode of our six-part podcast series, “Connecting the Unconnected,” EchoStar Senior Vice President of Regulatory Affairs Jennifer Manner and I will examine the spectrum, funding, and other decisions that impact the ability of satellite providers to meet the demands of users on both sides of the digital divide.
Connected the Unconnected is a special six-episode podcast series focused on bridging the digital divide. The series is sponsored by Hughes Network Systems. The sixth and final episode of Connecting the Unconnected, The Future of Connectivity, will be published next week.
Just a few years ago, recent college graduate Karina Perez Molina met her first true mentor — former NASA Deputy Administrator Lori Garver, who inspired her to launch full force into a space policy-focused career. Karina landed internships with the U.S. House of Representatives’ Committee on Science, Space, and Technology, and the Los Angeles Mayor’s Office of Economic Development, where she focused on aerospace and STEM initiatives for women.
Karina joined the Space Generation Advisory Council (SGAC) in 2017, and is now in charge of producing the organization’s SGx Keynote Series program at SATELLITE. Over the course of just a few years, SGx has become one of the most popular and beloved programs hosted at the SATELLITE show. The program, co-produced by SGAC and the Future Space Leaders Foundation (FSLF), consists of a series of short TEDx-style keynotes that connect the ideas of students and young professionals with the experience and insight of aerospace industry leaders.
Karina has been managing SGx for a couple of years now, and she’s done a fantastic job bringing together a diverse and interesting group of speakers for the program. One of those speakers is Lori Garver. Karina knows Lori’s speech at SATELLITE 2020 will be just as influential on new audiences as it was on her several years ago.
During this episode, Karina and I talk about how and why she got involved with SGAC, how SGx is designed to inspire and keep young professionals motivated, and how she landed the leading actor of hit sci-fi series “The Expanse” as this year’s emcee.
For those of you who are interested in learning more about how you can get involved with SGAC, visit the organization’s FAQ website.
It’s nearly impossible to recall a time before technology advances, broadband enhancements and widespread use of connected devices hurtled us into hyper-connectivity. But, not that long ago, if you were on an airplane or a cruise ship, you were, at least temporarily, one of the “unconnected.”
According to a July 2019 Pew Research study, more than a quarter of Americans report being online “constantly,” and another 45% of Americans go online several times per day. Hyper-connectivity behavior follows consumers wherever they go. More than 23,000 commercial aircraft will offer connectivity to passengers by 2028, according to analysts at Euroconsult, who are essentially predicting a 200% increase in connected aircraft during the next eight years.
On the ocean, the Asia-Pacific Satellite Communications Council calculated that there are 80,000 merchant, cruise, and government vessels currently at sea. The maritime Very Small Aperture Terminal (VSAT) connectivity market has surpassed $1 billion, and, also according to Euroconsult, is expected to grow by approximately 10% over the next four years, as shipowners transition to the next level of broadband connectivity powered by High Throughput Satellites (HTS).
In our latest in the series “Connecting the Unconnected,” I’m joined by Hughes Network Systems Reza Rasoulian and Royce Hernandez for a look at the latest developments in connectivity solutions for aero and maritime customers, the advantages and limitations of current technologies, what’s emerging, and how Geostationary (GEO) and Non-Geostationary (NGSO) technologies can work together in the new, always-on environment.
Dr. Hannah Kerner develops machine learning solutions for NASA Harvest, a program led by the University of Maryland, in which a group of international partners use satellite data to make decisions related to food security and agriculture in the U.S. and around the world. Dr. Kerner said she appreciates the real-life implications of her work — for example, her team is responding to a locust infestation in Kenya, which has been called the worst in decades and is threatening farmland.
But Dr. Kerner's background in machine learning is out of this world, specifically on Mars and other planets with the Mars Science Laboratory, and she has also worked on commercial remote sensing at Planet. Dr. Kerner talks about how and why she made the choice to change the focus of her work from exploring other worlds to protecting and maintaining our own. “Earth is definitely the best planet, and we need to really really pay attention to this one,” she says.
Hannah is also on the board of advisors for Students for the Exploration and Development of Space, an organization that she led in undergrad. She shares her experience navigating academia as a first-generation college student, how space companies are attracting young engineers, and ways the next generation looks at the industry differently.
In the wake of natural disasters, functioning communications services and infrastructure can mean the difference between life and death. Flooding, seismic activity, wildfires, high winds, downed trees — even recovery construction projects — can disrupt power and damage fiber and cable wires. If the local network infrastructure is compromised, first responders have to bring a network with them to share what they’re seeing on the front lines with central command posts and to coordinate rescue and recovery efforts in the aftermath.
In the third episode of our special podcast series, “Connecting the Unconnected,” Hughes Network Systems’ Tony Bardo and Dan Brown join me for a discussion about the vital role that satellite technology plays in emergency services and disaster recovery, and the difference it has made in some of the most infamous disaster situations in recent years.
One of those instances is Hurricane Michael, which hit Florida in October 2018. During the storm, portable VSAT systems were deployed to help establish mission critical communications in high impact areas, allowing first responders to transfer data and coordinate rescue and recovery efforts. Tony and Dan explain how Hughes worked with federal emergency managers to provide connectivity to assist recovery efforts and help residents communicate with the outside world, and contact family members.
We also talk about the importance of creating resiliency in vulnerable communities and how it facilitates mission critical communications for first responders and emergency crews in disaster situations.
Kerbal Space Program (or KSP as it’s more commonly known by fans) is a tremendously successful space flight simulator. It has been hailed by game industry critics and space industry leaders such as ULA’s Tory Bruno and SpaceX’s Elon Musk as providing the "perfect blend of science and slapstick,” as well as for its ability to create fun out of failure.
Grant Gertz is a game producer for Private Division, the company developing KSP’s much-anticipated sequel. Gertz is unique in his industry in that he doesn’t come from a computer programming background. He was once an aerospace engineer working at Aerojet Rocketdyne. When the opportunity arose to shift gears in his career and indulge in his love of video games, he took the leap.
During our conversation, we discuss his unique path to a career in video games, the influence of space technology on pop culture, the educational value of video games, and how developer Private Division plans to build on the success of the first release with Kerbal Space Program 2. Grant very generously took time out of his busy schedule to talk to us (as you can literally hear his team play testing the sequel in the background of the interview).
Identifying affordable options to connect to the internet remains a challenge for billions across the globe. In urban areas, internet connectivity is usually provided by a high-speed cable or fiber direct to each home or business. However, a single-user-per-terminal model is not economically justifiable in areas unserved or underserved by terrestrial access.
This is due to two primary obstacles to building out infrastructure for expanding broadband Internet access. First, capital costs of terrestrial fixed or wireless networks are directly proportional to distance. Second, the typical business model for deploying broadband to communities with a lower median income base ultimately equates to an unaffordable service as subscription revenue has to exceed the expansion investments.
In our second episode in the series “Connecting the Unconnected,” we’re joined by Wilson Azevedo, Hughes Network Systems’ Wifi Product Manager in Brazil, John Holguin, a Hughes Application Engineer in Colombia, and Hughes’ Senior Director of International Networks, Vinay Patel for a deeper dive on satellite-enabled community Wi-Fi solutions and how they are creating affordable internet access in South America and around the world.
Vinay, Wilson, and John will examine the challenges and benefits to bringing remote communities online, the various models for community Wi-Fi, share stories/testimonials from communities and discuss the role Facebook is playing to expand access.
Bandwidth is by no means an unlimited resource. Your family’s smartphones, your in-home WiFi, and the dozens of Bluetooth devices in your automobile all take bites of different slices of the larger bandwidth pie. The rollout of 5G wireless is like someone walking up to that pie and shoveling a big scoop out of the center with both hands.
Who determines how to split the remainder of the pie? Who determines who should be compensated for the pie that was lost? OmniSpace Chief Regulatory and International Strategy Officer Mindel De La Torre joins us for this episode — a primer for those who don’t understand how the ITU’s World Radiocommunications Conference (WRC) works and an explanation of how it impacts the everyday consumer.
According to the ITU’s The State of Broadband 2019 report released in late September, the world achieved greater than 50% global broadband Internet penetration in 2019 — a major milestone. However, significant challenges remain, and a significant portion of the population remains disconnected from even the most basic form of internet connectivity.
We’ve been exploring the topic of bridging the Digital Divide from different angles over several episodes of On Orbit. With billions of people around the world, including in the U.S., living in rural and hard to reach places, building technologies to meet connectivity’s growing demand is a multifaceted challenge. In the first episode of our special podcast series, “Connecting the Unconnected,” sponsored by Hughes, we’re joined by Hughes Network Systems Dave Rehbehn and Mark Weimer to define connectivity challenges in rural and remote regions and address the viability, potential, timing, and impact of specific solutions.
In this episode, we define the challenges of connecting those in rural and “hard to reach” locations. Dave and Mark explain why satellite broadband is considered core to achieving higher and improved penetration to these regions, owing to its benefit of reaching remote areas at lower CAPEX than fiber.
We also discuss how connectivity challenges are only going to increase in the near future. According to the Cisco Visual Networking Index: Global IP traffic will triple over the next 5 years to 4.8 ZB per year (1 zettabyte = 1 trillion Gb) by 2022. The number of devices per person will average more than three by 2022. And, there will be three times as many devices as people on the planet. Adding to this demand, implementation of rising technologies like AI, ML, and IoT in homes, businesses, and on planes, ships, and cars requires a ubiquitous and interoperable network. People in rural and remote regions cannot be left behind! Global economic equality is at stake!
As a holiday gift, we’re bringing our last On Orbit episode of the year a day early! Via Satellite Editor-in-Chief Mark Holmes and Managing Editor Annamarie Nyirady join us to discuss the biggest space and satellite news stories of 2019. It definitely wasn’t a boring year! Constellations, C-band drama, 5G, 3D printing, and mergers and acquisitions are just a few of the items that made the final list of 12.
Via Satellite will publish the entire list, along with write-ups about each news story, in the following edition of the Daily News Feed, which will be the last edition before the new year.
As soon as we get back from the holiday break, we’ll be posting the first episode of our special six-episode series on how satellites can help bridge the digital divide - “Connecting the Unconnected.” Co-produced with our series sponsor, Hughes Network Systems, Connecting the Unconnected will bring Hughes engineers and executives together with partners in Brazil and Colombia to talk about the important role that broadband connectivity plays in remote healthcare, education, disaster response, public safety, small business development, and quality of life. The first episode, “Defining the Divide,” will post on Tuesday, January 7. Each of the following five episodes will post every other week between our regular episodes.
The Via Satellite team and I would like to thank all of you for listening to and supporting the On Orbit podcast! We’re very happy that we were able to produce 19 quality episodes for you during our first year. If you have some time during the holidays, check out our archives to listen to past episodes and subscribe to the podcast on your favorite podcast platforms.
Have a pleasant and relaxing holiday and a Happy New Year! We’ll see you in 2020!
-Jeffrey Hill, On Orbit Host and Producer
Microsoft Azure wants to craft its own space business vertical. But instead of building their own satellites, they’ve opted to build the business through partnerships. William Chappell, CTO of Microsoft Azure Global, is the innovation leader behind the software giant’s efforts to provide satellite operators with a powerful, automated, and secure cloud layer to their networks.
Microsoft recently announced a major partnership with SES and its O3b constellation, and is looking to expand to different layers of the satellite supply chain. William joins On Orbit host and Via Satellite Executive Editor Jeffrey Hill for a conversation about how secure cloud systems allow satellite operators to support many new and exciting applications at the edge – applications that define business evolution in the age of IoT.
NOTE - Please excuse the unusual audio quality of the interview with William. We didn’t have our usual tech set-up for this interview, so we had to record from a smartphone. You can still easily understand what’s being said, and it’s a very good conversation that we hope you enjoy!
Following this interview, we play an excerpt from one of Jeff’s favorite keynote speeches of the year, delivered by David Holmes, Chief Technology Officer of Dell Technologies' Global Energy Program. In the presentation, David explains how digital innovation has enabled global businesses to re-orient to a new economic reality. At the same time, he warns that this reality will very quickly be redefined by challenges faced by Millennials and Generation Z and that we must prepare for this future by putting young leaders in the driver’s seat sooner, rather than later.
If you think your maritime satellite terminal is safe from hackers, give Ken Munro a call to make sure. He’s probably already found a backdoor to your system on the internet.
Ken is the founder of Pen Test Partners, a network security consultancy firm, as well as a widely respected and very entertaining public speaker on all topics cybersecurty. His presentations include live hacks on local devices, hotel keycards, keyless cars and a range of Internet of Things (IoT) devices, including wearable children’s toys. Ken travels the world, sharing his disdain for device vendors that fail to secure their technologies in order to protect their potential customers.
We sat down with Ken following his keynote at the 2019 OilComm conference in Houston, Texas, to discuss his recent fascination with the commercial space industry, specifically due to what he sees as a concerning lack of security for satellite ground systems. Ken explains his recent work with the commercial satellite industry and shares some ideas on how satellite companies can help better secure their networks in the constantly evolving IoT ecosystem.
The episode also features a replay of the second half of Ken’s keynote at OilComm, which presented the results of a satellite terminal hack for the oil and gas industry. It’s a funny, enlightening, and at times, terrifying presentation packed with some good advice for those who are unsure of their ground systems’ cyber defenses.
NanoAvionics CEO Vytenis Buzas defines his small satellite-building business as an homage to the smart industrial practices of the American automobile industry. What emerged as a spinoff of Lithuania’s Vilnius University, NanoAvionics is now thriving and Buzas sees an opportunity to achieve success in the land that inspired his business.
He hired industry veteran Frank Abbott as his U.S.-based CEO, who will oversee the company’s preparations to move its research, development and manufacturing business to the United States in 2020. Earlier this year, the company purchased the former Midland, Texas headquarters of XCOR Aerospace and refurbished it into a new smallsat manufacturing plant in Midland, Texas.
In this episode of On Orbit, co-host Grace Graham and I spoke with Vytenis and Frank about the company’s move to the USA, the way the company differentiates itself from other space startups, the future outlook of small satellite-powered IoT, and the design of the company’s unique logo. (Side note - Vytenis’ definition of “New Space” in this episode inspired the chosen topic of what will be our first episode recorded in front of a live audience at the SATELLITE 2020 conference in March).
With the unveiling of the SATELLITE 2020 Conference Program this week, we have a very well-timed episode of On Orbit featuring an interview with Scott Chase, Chairman Emeritus of SATELLITE and former Editor-in-Chief of Via Satellite, detailing the evolution of the commercial satellite industry through the late 20th and early 21st century.
Scott tells On Orbit host Jeffrey Hill the SATELLITE show’s origin story. The annual event was created in 1981 as a small gathering of innovative minds and invested leaders, determined to realize their visions of a global voice, video, and data network. Scott shares his insights from his many years as chair of the event, and the lessons that the industry learned along the way from technologies and companies that failed despite great expectations.
We also have a very honest conversation about mentorship and industry diversity. Scott served as Jeff’s mentor in the years leading up to and during the hand-off of the SATELLITE chairman role. Jeff asks Scott about his thoughts on how the next generation of professionals will lead the industry and cultivate new innovation, the impact of private investors and STEM education, and the relatively recent surge in public interest for space exploration.
While innovative industries like commercial space are in constant states of change, with disruptive technologies changing the rules of the road, lessons from the past remain relevant, which we hope becomes clear after listening to this fascinating conversation with the former chair of the SATELLITE show. Enjoy!
How important are precision agriculture and global food and water supply monitoring applications to our future? Via Satellite’s On Orbit podcast takes a look at the numbers: The world’s population will go from 7.5 billion to 9 billion people in 30 years. Because of this, American farmers alone will be tasked to increase food production by 80 percent to 100 percent over a very short period of time, and for purposes of sustainability, they have to use less seed, less land, and less water.
The only way farmers will be able to meet those expectations is through technology – space-based technologies, such as GPS, Imagery and Sensing, alongside high-speed connectivity, which is stunningly absent, even in the United States. It’s a monumental issue – perhaps the most important of our generation — and to discuss this issue, we’re honored to host U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Commissioner Brendan Carr, GPS Innovation Alliance (GPSIA) Executive Director David Grossman, and Jeff Jorgenson, director of the Iowa Soybean Association and owner and operator of one of Iowa’s largest soybean farms.
The episode begins with an introduction by On Orbit host Jeffrey Hill and GPSIA Executive Director David Grossman about the connectivity resources needed to power precision agriculture businesses. We then sit down with FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr to talk about the FCC’s new Precision Agriculture task force, and how high-speed connectivity can help American farmers increase the efficiency of their day-to-day work, plan for the future, and most importantly, improve the sustainability of their businesses.
The episode concludes with an interview with Iowa Soybean Association’s Jeff Jorgenson, who tells us how farmers are learning about new precision agriculture technologies and how the farming community is interacting with technology providers — a conversation that includes a stunning revelation about the amount of interactivity with the satellite industry.
Virgin Orbit’s LauncherOne is a rather unique launch vehicle. It’s a rocket that deploys, or drops, from a customized Boeing 747 -- a “Flying Launchpad," so-to-speak. One of those aircraft, a former passenger airliner operated by Virgin Atlantic, was purchased by Virgin Galactic in 2015, renamed “The Cosmic Girl” and designated to be used as the first stage launch platform for the Mark II LauncherOne. Why design a launch service this way? What are the benefits and unique capabilities?
In this episode of On Orbit, co-hosts Jeffrey Hill and Grace Graham sit down with Sirisha Bandla, Business Development & Government Affairs Manager at Virgin Orbit, who supports the development of the company’s LauncherOne and SpaceShipTwo programs. Sirisha explains how LauncherOne works and talks about the results of its most recent drop test. She said the company is moving full speed ahead, with its eye firmly on the prize - first launch. Sirisha also takes time to give advice to young people looking to establish themselves in the industry, and explains why she views setbacks as a chance to evolve goals - not abandon them.
It’s frustrating for environmental scientists to watch politicians mangle and regurgitate climate change data into stump campaign speeches. When Capella Space CEO Payam Banazadeh co-founded the San Francisco-based satellite constellation company in 2016, he set out on a mission to tell a clear, visual story about how our planet is changing, directly to the people who would be most impacted by those changes. Images are a universal language.
In this episode, we caught up with Payam, a National Science Foundation fellow, NASA Mariner Award winner and entrepreneur recently named to Forbes “30 Under 30” list, about the unique capabilities of Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) data, specifically when used for environmental monitoring.
By using SAR data operating in the X-band, Capella’s constellation can see through clouds and in the dark, monitor stress points in physical infrastructure, extract critical soil and crop data for precision agriculture, prevent illegal fishing, and save lives. Once fully deployed, the Capella constellation will be able to monitor the entire planet, and provide a searchable data archive based on an in-house platform. We also spoke about Capella’s recent partnership with AddValue and Inmarsat and what new opportunities the constellation’s full deployment will bring to its global end-users.
Connecting the world’s disconnected is a mission we take to heart at On Orbit. After all, our debut episode focused on bridging the digital divide. We like to think of this endeavor as satellites enabling global economic equality.
In this episode, Hughes Network Systems’ Dave Rehbehn and Peter Gulla join On Orbit host Jeffrey Hill for a granular look at the global effort to bring the world online. Dave and Peter provide a boots-on-the-ground viewpoint on the role of both existing and new constellation satellites for providing affordable access – from cellular backhaul to community Wi-Fi to the deployment of new GEO and LEO assets. The trio also talks a bit about Hughes’ own community Wi-Fi program and its utilization of community advocates and entrepreneurship, as well as how the industry as a whole can advance understanding of the value of satellite in the connected future.
ATTENTION MUSICIANS! Like most new podcasts, we use public-use music tracks for our opening and commercial break themes. The stuff we use now is suitable for now, but we’d like to switch things up a bit. If there are any musicians out there who want to contribute theme songs or music tracks to our show, send us an email at editor@viasatellite.com and we’ll let you know how you can send us your tracks. We’ll give you full credit on the show, share links to the rest of your music, and we’ll throw in a few extras to make it worth your time. Again, if you’re interested, email us at editor@viasatellite.com
Episode Links & Notes:
Hughes' Community WiFi Program (more info here)
Pew Research Statistics on Digital Divide
FCC 2019 Report on Digital Divide
Dave Rehbehn on LinkedIn
Hughes Connect on LinkedIn
On this episode of On Orbit, we’re joined by Melissa Wuerl, Vice President Business Development for Spaceflight Industries, and Jason Armstrong, Director of Small Satellites for TriSept, for an episode dedicated to rideshare launch services and the impact they’ve made on opening access to space.
Rideshare launching is like the carpooling of launch services. By placing very small satellites in the spaces between larger satellites on larger rockets, rideshare providers is able to provide low-cost options for satellite operators, while providing additional business to traditional launchers and increasing access to space.
On Orbit special guest co-host Grace Graham and I spoke with Melissa Wuerl about Spaceflight’s historic SSO-A: SmallSat Express mission, which successfully launched more than 80 small satellites for a wide variety of operators, research organizations and universities on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket in December 2018. Melissa shares stories from her team’s experience of assembling and executing on the mission, as well as a look forward to Spaceflight’s recently announced follow-up mission with New Space India.
After the break, I’m joined by Jason Armstrong, Director of Small Satellites for TriSept, for a chat about the company’s unique, one-of-a-kind rideshare mission partnership with Rocket Lab and Millennium Space Systems to test cutting-edge orbital debris removal technology, including a new space-tether that will latch on and deorbit inoperable spacecraft. We hope you enjoy our first dedicated episode/love-letter to rideshare launching!
As global space activity expands and accelerates, our space environment, naturally, becomes more congested. There have been nearly 9,000 satellites launched to date. Out of those 9,000, only 5,000 are currently maintaining orbit, and out of those, only 1,950 are operational – leaving a lot of unknowns. Efforts to maintain our orbital environment aren’t keeping pace, and an upcoming wave of constellation satellites about to launch to Low-Earth Orbit has sprung many into action.
On this episode, Astroscale COO Chris Blackerby talks about how his company turned crisis into opportunity and developed a technological solution to remove dangerous space debris from orbit. Chris and I also discuss the economic consequences of ignoring space debris congestion, the global responsibility for action and collaboration, Astroscale’s sharp and sudden rise as a leader in the field, and its search for new ideas and talent in the workforce. We’re very grateful that Chris, who is on Japan standard time, woke up very early in the morning to join us for this very important conversation about space sustainability.
Mechanical Aerospace Engineer Grace Graham does it all! In addition to being a 2019 Brook Owens Fellow and full-time student Utah State University, she also interns at The Aerospace Corporation, and helps run her own startup Elements Meals – a company she co-founded that creates healthier snack foods for athletes.
Like many emerging space professionals of her generation, Grace is combining engineering knowhow with entrepreneurial ambition to establish a strong foothold in our community. In this interview, however, Grace explains why it’s equally important for young space industry professionals to master economics, and how understanding market and supply chain economics can help you become a better engineer and entrepreneur. This career-focused discussion also includes tips on how to get the most out of mentor/mentee relationships, and how to deal with rejection in the early stages of your career.
What does it mean when people say that the satellite industry is becoming more “software-defined?” Does it mean that physical infrastructure is being replaced with more flexible, adaptive software? Does it mean that the satellite industry is becoming a lot more like the software industry? Or both?
On Orbit Host Jeffrey Hill interviews Kratos Defense and Space Vice President of Product Management Greg Quiggle, who is leading his company’s effort to host satellite ground stations and teleports in secure cloud networks. Greg will explain why transitioning certain ground systems to the cloud can optimize and benefit the entire space industry.
We then speak with Alain Guigui, Chief Technologist at Hewlett Packard Enterprise at 5G World in London. Alain and Jeff explore the evolution of the cloud, and the applications they power, and discuss HPE’s recent 5G partnerships, including with Samsung. The discussion is an excellent primer on how clouds have grown beyond simple storage spaces.
The telecommunications sector is at an inflection point between the peak of the 4G LTE market and the on-ramp for next-gen 5G wireless services. Does the roll out of 5G services change the market landscape for satellite operators?
SES Networks’ Karl Horne sees 5G as a tremendous opportunity not only to drive innovation and create new business opportunities, but also as a way to collaborate with terrestrial competitors on rolling out the network. Why collaborate? The answer lies in the unique relationship between future virtualized 5G and present-day satellite networks. Horne joins On Orbit Producer and Host Jeffrey Hill for an interview recorded live at TechXLR8 London.
Inseego CMO Ashish Sharma then joins Jeff to answer these questions from a terrestrial perspective, and also discuss why enterprise end-users will maintain pace with consumers in driving 5G adoption.
LISTEN HERE:
This episode will be the first of a pair of two-part episodes featuring satellite and terrestrial perspectives on 5G-enabled technologies. For our next episode, we’ll be joined by Greg Quiggle, Vice President of Product Management at Kratos Defense and Space, and Alain Guigui, Chief Technologist of Business Solutions for Hewlett Packard Enterprise, for an in-depth look at cloud networking!
EPISODE NOTES:
Interested in learning more about 5G? DC5G 2019, our 5G technology and infrastructure conference, will be held on Monday November, 4th and Tuesday, November 5th 2019 at the Ritz-Carlton in Arlington, Virginia. Now in its third year, DC5G hosts more than 400 professionals working in the wireless industry, transportation, city government, healthcare, finance, travel, insurance, energy, and construction sectors. Register for the event at www.dc5g.com DM us on Twitter @OnOrbitPodcast all one word, to receive a special discount promo code.
Congratulations to Tara Halt, Aerospace Analyst at Bryce Space, for being our first On Orbit T-Shirt drawing winner! @cant_HALT_me Every Friday, Via Satellite will randomly select one listener to receive a free On Orbit T-Shirt. These are the cool black T-shirts with the On Orbit satellite imagery logo. To enter your name for the drawing, all you have to do is either retweet our episode posts on Twitter, or leave a comment or review on Apple, Google Play, Soundcloud, Stitcher, or any of our podcast platforms, or email your suggestions for an episode topic or guest to editor@viasatellite.com
We’ll hold this drawing weekly for as long as supplies last!
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Most people are aware of the Trump administration’s plans for a “Space Force,” but few are clear on how it will fit within DoD structure, how it operate differently than existing organizations like the Air Force Space Command, and what it will look like if and when it survives scrutiny in Congress. To explain everything you need to know about Space Force, and other recent government/military space policy developments, we invited our good friend, Defense Daily space and Capitol Hill reporter Vivienne Machi, (@VivienneMachi) to join us for an interview. Vivienne takes us through the basics, answers my questions about the political and operative functions of a space force, and explains developments in space technology acquisition such as the establishment of the Space Development Agency.
Via Satellite will be holding a drawing for free On Orbit podcast T-shirts! These are black T-shirts with the cool satellite imagery On Orbit Podcast logo. To enter for a chance to win, all you have to do is one of the following: leave a review of the podcast on iTunes, follow us on Twitter @OnOrbitPodcast (all one word, no spaces) and retweet one of our episode links, or email us at editor@viasatellite.com with a suggestion for a future episode. We’ll be drawing winners every week on Fridays and will continue while supplies last.
For more information, visit www.viasatellite.com/podcast or visit Via Satellite on Twitter @Via_Satellite
At SATELLITE 2019, Jeff hosted a fireside chat on 3D Printed rockets with Tim Ellis, CEO and Founder of Relativity, a unique launch service company that aims to print and launch entire rockets within 60 days. Tim tells the story of why he left a promising career as a 3D printing specialist at a major launch company to disrupt 60 years of established aerospace industry practices. He explains why investors like Marc Cuban are so excited about how 3D printing can help us get to Mars, and provides a detailed look into Relativity’s in-house technology and Terran launch vehicle.
Jeff asks Spire's launch manager Jenny Barna why the satellite industry can't just sent satellites into orbit whenever they want. This episode addresses the launch bottleneck faced by operators looking to put tens of thousands of constellation satellites into space during the next few years. Jeff also speaks to Via Satellite editorial director Mark Holmes about the highlights of the first two days of the SATELLITE 2019 exhibition and conference in Washington D.C.
NOTE - Please excuse the background noise during the interviews. We were recording on the SATELLITE 2019 show floor during operating hours.
Deloitte's Specialist Leader in Space Jeff Matthews sits with On Orbit host Jeff Hill to explain why all of these new industries are interested in investing in space. Commercial space customers used to be limited to military, broadcast networks, and ISP resellers. Now, insurance companies, manufacturers, transporters, retail, city planners, farmers... the list of commercial space "customers" is growing more diverse as new space-based capabilities evolve. What value do these new industry customers see in space?
Our inaugural episode of On Orbit, titled “Building Bridges Across the Digital Divide: Hybrid Satellite Networks,” focuses on the growing economic disparities between those with and without access to “affordable” high-speed internet. Host Jeffrey Hill opens the episode with a comparative review of the latest digital divide statistics from the ITC, FCC, and Microsoft, and a clear explanation of how organizations define “affordable broadband” and “reasonable access.”