After VINASAT-1, Any More To Be Launched

VINASAT-1.
by Staff Writers
Nhan Dan, Vietnam (VNA) 24/01/2009
Vietnam's first telecommunications satellite VINASAT-1 was successfully launched from the Kourou spaceport in Guyana on April 19, 2008 into the orbit at 132 degrees east and was officially put into service in a safe and effective manner on May 22, 2008.
This marked a great turning point for Vietnam's telecommunications and information technology. It is also served as a base to continue to do research and consider launching many more satellites in the future. Thu Ha writes.

The successful launch of the satellite VINASAT-1 was also a memorable landmark in the process of the country's development and integration.

Since its successful lift-off, the satellite has been operating stably and its actual parameters have equalled or exceeded the design indexes.

This satellite was produced with the advanced technology and was estimated to have the ever longest life span of up to over 20 years, enabling the Vietnam Post and Telecommunications Group to get the return of investment capital and yield profits.

With a transmission capacity of 10,000 Internet or mobile telephone channels and 120 digital TV programmes, VINASAT-1 will help Vietnam improve the national information infrastructure, quickly accomplish the provision of the telecommunications, internet and TV services for all of the remote and far-flung, island and border areas.

Noticeably, VINASAT-1 will effectively assist in providing information for the fishermen's fishing job and for improving their lives in particular and the marine economic development in general, for the prevention and emergency rescue in case of storms, floods and other natural disasters.

According to Deputy Minister of Information and Communications Tran Duc Lai, the biggest result of the project is that Vietnam's sovereignty is recognised at the geostationary satellite orbit. Operating its own satellite at the orbit shows that Vietnam is gradually keeping pace with countries in the region and the world as a whole.

There are currently about 280 commercial satellites in service, supplying a series of the telecommunications services in the international satellite information market. The Asian region alone currently owns some 80 satellites from 20 providers.

A lot of countries in the region have at least one satellite operating, such as Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore and the Philippines.

Deputy director of Vietnam Telecom International (VTI) Lam Quoc Cuong said that since the VINASAT-1 satellite was put into operation, VTI has co-ordinated with the Vietnam Television to successfully broadcast TV channels VTV1, VTV2, VTV3 and VTV4 across the country and to several countries in the Asia-Pacific region through using VINASAT-1.

Meanwhile, VTI has shifted VSAT channels using services provided by foreign satellites to using services supplied by the VINASAT-1 such as channels to Spratly archipelago and offshore oil rigs.

In addition, a series of memoranda of understandings on exploiting the satellite's transmission capacity have been signed by VTI and its customers including the Vietnam Multimedia Corporation (VTC), the Voice of Vietnam, the Binh Duong Television, the Voice of Ho Chi Minh City and the Global Telecommunications Corporation (GTel).

VTI is not only seeking domestic customers but also keeping contacts with the some potential foreign partners about the possibility of trading VINASAT-1 satellite services in the Asia-Pacific region.

So, apart from the satellite's capacity being reserved for the public activities, its total remaining capacity for trading is 9.5 Ku-band transponders and 3.4 C-band transponders. This remaining capacity has been basically registered thus far and will be put into service from the early second quarter of the year 2009.

Currently, the registered customers are in the phase of investment and technical upgrading so as to adapt to VINASAT-1 services. If these works are done in accordance with the approved implementation, it is estimated that the whole Ku frequency band will be completely exploited in 2009 and the whole C frequency band in 2010.

It can be seen that the prospect for doing business in services provided by the satellite VINASAT-1 is positive. This has created a foundation for Vietnam to continue to do research and consider launching the second telecommunications satellite into the orbit. Especially, Vietnam has just registered with the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) three more orbital positions.

So, at present, Vietnam has occupied four orbital positions in total at the geostationary orbit. These three new positions include 107 degrees east, 126 degrees east and 131.8 degrees east.

According to the stipulation for registering with the ITU, if no Vietnamese satellite is to be launched into the orbit from now to 2012, the said three positions will belong to other countries.

The experience from satellite service providers worldwide shows that it is necessary to have the next satellite generations at once so as to have a reserve as well as to deploy services. The four-year remaining period to prepare all documents for any registration for launching the next satellite is very short, so it is necessary to rapidly study the implementation of the VINASAT-2 satellite project.

This is an urgent and necessary work because it takes at least over two years to produce one satellite and at the same time, so doing, we can avoid any difficulties and risks caused by the possible implementation of the project in a hurry.

The mentioned three newly-registered positions are Vietnam's invaluable frequency band resources. Currently, many foreign partners are expressing their wish to lease these orbital positions

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Satellite to Study Global-Warming Gases Lost in Space

By Alex Morales, Bloomberg News,
Feb. 24 (Bloomberg) - A satellite launched from California failed to reach orbit today, crashing into the sea near Antarctica and dooming a $273 million mission to study global-warming gases.

“The mission is lost,” National Aeronautics and Space Administration spokesman Steve Cole said in a telephone interview from the launch site at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California.

The NASA satellite was to orbit 438 miles (705 kilometers) above Earth and observe how carbon dioxide enters and leaves the atmosphere, helping scientists predict future increases in the main greenhouse gas blamed for global warming. Instead, the satellite fell in the ocean near Antarctica though the mission manager said at no point did the craft pass over land.

“It’s a huge disappointment for the entire team who have worked very hard for years and years and years,” NASA Launch Director Chuck Dovale said in a briefing from California. “Even when you do your very best, you can still fail.”

Today’s malfunction follows a Feb. 11 collision of U.S. and Russian satellites almost 500 miles above the planet, the first crash of its type, which created a space debris field of more than 300 pieces that could damage other satellites.

The Orbiting Carbon Observatory satellite didn’t reach orbit after a 1:55 a.m. launch because the “payload fairing” failed to separate, NASA said. The fairing covers the top of the satellite during launch and needs to come off so the satellite can detach from the rocket and enter orbit.

“It’s disappointing because it was giving us novel information to help us move our understanding forward on global warming,” Alan O’Neill, science director of the Reading, U.K.- based Centre for Earth Observation, said in an interview.

Orbital Sciences
Both the satellite and launch rocket were built by Dulles, Virginia-based Orbital Sciences Corp. John Brunschwyler, Orbital Sciences’s mission manager, said “over the past 10 years, we’ve flown a nearly perfect record — 56 out of 57 vehicles and we’ve not had any problems with this particular fairing design.”

NASA’s investment was $273 million for the design, development and launch operations. Insurance details on the mission may be given later today, NASA said.

The craft contained a monitoring device designed to collect 8 million measurements every 16 days. Scientists hoped to use the data to find out how much CO2 is absorbed by the forests, grasslands and oceans, which are collectively known as “sinks.”

Man-made CO2, which traps heat in the atmosphere, is largely produced by power plants, vehicle engines and factories.

The data gleaned from the satellite was intended to help guide government global-warming policy, NASA said.

Understanding ‘Carbon Sinks’
“An improved understanding of carbon sinks is essential to predicting future carbon-dioxide increases and making accurate predictions of carbon dioxide’s impact on Earth’s climate,” NASA said on the mission Web site. “If these natural carbon-dioxide sinks become less efficient as the climate changes, the rate of buildup of carbon dioxide would increase.”

On Jan. 23, Japan launched what it said was the world’s first satellite, Gosat, to measure greenhouse gases from 56,000 points around the globe over five years.

Today’s satellite was expected to have a minimum three-year life. Similar spacecraft have lasted five to 10 years, David Steitz, a NASA spokesman, said yesterday.

While launch and separation of the rocket’s first stage went as planned, a clamshell-shaped “fairing” covering the satellite failed to open, meaning it was too heavy to reach orbit, Brunschwyler said on NASA’s online television station.

“As a direct result of carrying that extra weight, we could not reach orbit,” Brunschwyler said. Indications are the satellite “landed just short of Antarctica, in the ocean.”

Earlier this month, the collision of Russian and U.S. satellites destroyed an Iridium Satellite LLC communications craft and a defunct Russian Cosmos 2251, NASA said.

At least 18,000 satellites, debris and other space objects orbiting the Earth are tracked by the U.S. Joint Space Operations center. The Soviet Union put the first satellite, Sputnik 1, into space in 1957.

Source : http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601103&sid=av6QSiI5BuOI&refer=us#

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PRNewswire
BETHESDA, Md.
"Reliability to the Rescue" Offer Again Provides Credits Up to $700 For Customers Switching to Iridium

BETHESDA, Md., Feb. 19 /PRNewswire/ -- Iridium Satellite LLC announces that it is re-launching its popular "Trade-Up to Iridium" program, which provides pricing incentives for customers trading up from Globalstar to Iridium handsets and service. Iridium is re-initiating the program due to the much-publicized degradation of Globalstar's voice service. This follows the success of the initial Trade-Up to Iridium offer, which ran from January to September 2008, and responds to continued demand from Service Providers and customers.

"Iridium's goal is to ensure that satellite phone users have access to consistently reliable global satellite communications services," said Don Thoma, executive vice president, Marketing, Iridium. "Our network is now recognized to be the only satellite communications service that dependably provides a critical communications lifeline everywhere."

Effective February 20 to September 30, 2009, any Globalstar satellite phone user is eligible to trade in his or her handset for an Iridium satellite phone. The original program, which Iridium offered to government users, first responders, educational institutions and relief organizations, is now open to any end user from any market sector due to wide interest from non-public sector customers.

Through the Trade-Up to Iridium program, participating Iridium Service Providers based in North America will offer a credit of up to $400 on a new Iridium 9505A satellite phone to customers turning in an existing Globalstar handset. Participating Service Providers will also offer up to $300 in airtime credits when signing a customer for a qualified Iridium calling plan. Participating Service Providers outside of North America will be able to offer similar incentives available through regional Trade-Up to Iridium programs.

"Iridium users have satellite phones because they often live, work and play in areas that lack adequate ground communications infrastructure," said Thoma. "Many are public safety and service organizations that rely on satellite links for mission-critical communications when disasters strike, and many large organizations have integrated Iridium into their business operations and emergency response plans. This is an excellent opportunity to trade-up to Iridium if your satellite phone must serve as a reliable, critical lifeline."

About IridiumIridium Satellite LLC (www.iridium.com) is the only mobile satellite service (MSS) company offering coverage over the entire globe. The Iridium constellation of low-earth orbiting (LEO) cross-linked satellites provides critical voice and data services for areas not served by terrestrial communication networks. Iridium's subscriber growth has been driven by increasing demand for reliable, global communications. Iridium serves commercial markets through a worldwide network of hundreds of distributors, and provides services to the U.S. Department of Defense, and other U.S. and international government agencies. The company's customers represent a broad spectrum of industry, including maritime, aeronautical, government/defense, public safety, utilities, oil/gas, mining, forestry, heavy equipment and transportation. Iridium has launched a major development program for its next-generation satellite constellation, Iridium NEXT, which will result in continued and new Iridium MSS offerings. The company is headquartered in Bethesda, Md. and is currently privately held.

SOURCE: Iridium Satellite LLC
Web site: http://www.iridium.com/

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from: RussiaToday
Russia is monitoring the wreckage of two communications satellites that collided in space above Siberia. NASA says neither the earth nor the International Space Station are at risk from the debris of the Russian and American satellites. But what caused the accident and whos to blame?

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(NASA photo)

Russian and US communication satellites collided in space today at the height of over 800 kilometers above the territory of Russia’s Krasnoyarsk region, an official spokesman for NASA Kelly Hamphries said. The incident occurred Tuesday, February 10, Itar-Tass reports.

It goes about Russia’s defunct satellite launched in 1983 and a US communication satellite launched in 1997. The US craft was a part of Iridium global mobile communication network owned by Motorola. Each of the satellites weighed more than 500 kilograms.

The accident marked the first-ever collision of undamaged spacecraft in orbit. At least two large clouds of debris were formed as a result of the collision. The fragments of the satellites pose no danger to the International Space Station, because the station sits on a lower orbit, NASA officials said.

Russia’s Roscosmos Space Corporation told RIA Novosti that the collision did not result in any losses for the company.

Four other similar incidents were reported last year, when small satellites collided with space garbage, NASA said.

The accident occurred on the altitude used by weather, communication and scientific satellites. The collision did not result in any technical problems for customers, although some of them may experience difficulties in using their cell phones.

The US satellite was launched into space on board a Russian booster rocket in 1997. The Russian craft, which was launched in 1983, stopped operating about five years ago, specialists said.

Orbits of many other satellites will have to be changed to protect them against similar accidents.

Russia’s Cosmos 2251 military communication satellite was not operating for many years. It was living out its days in orbit like many other old satellites.

Cosmos 2251 satellite weighs about 800 kilos. It was used as a communication satellite for military purposes. The satellite lasts for only three years.

Iridium 33/24946 is a commercial communication craft weighing about 700 kilos. It lasts from five to eight years. There were 66 Iridium satellites in near-Earth orbit before the collision. Iridium Holdings LLC will replace the damaged satellite during the upcoming 30 days.

Iridium satellites have been in use since 1989 to provide mobile communication via Iridium satellite phones that cover the planet entirely. The number of Iridium customers amounts to over 330,000.

Iridium telephones are twice as large as conventional cellular phones. Iridium satellites are capable of moving at a very low orbit, unlike other satellites that can operate only on high altitudes.

Source: agencies, http://english.pravda.ru/

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Indosat TV Link is a broadcast quality Audio/Video channel that has both Domestic and International coverage, delivered via Fiber Optics and Satellites (Intelsat, Panamsat, Asiasat, Palapa and others).

Benefits
Booking, up-link and down-link time flexibility.
High-speed transmission.
Robust, high-quality device that has been certified with a number of satellites.
Easy satellite access with a robust, high-quality connection.

Configuration
Principally, INDOSAT TV Link is to transmit television signal from abroad to Indonesia or on the contrary.

In its process, the broadcaster from abroad contract the telecommunication organizer and it will be spread through the geo station in his country where after it will be transmitted via satellite Indosat will receive the signal via geo station, the using FO/M/W at Indosat head quarter, the signal will be transmitted to the TV station where this station will distribute it to all TV set around Indonesia. But the TV program can also accepted in the TV station via TVRO.

Alternatively, INDOSAT TV Link can perform the same function in reverse, taking a signal from a broadcasting facility in Indonesia and transferring it to an equivalent facility abroad.

Satellite
Digital Satellite :
Intelsat:
- IOR - 57
- IOR - 64
- IOR - 66
Panamsat 02 & 08
Asiaset II
Palapa

Analog Satellite :
Intelsat:
- IOR - 60
- POR - 174
- POR - 177


Transmission Services
Fixed Stations : Located in Jakarta, Surabaya, Bandung, Denpasar, Medan and others.
Mobile Stations : SNG (Satellite News Gathering) and OB VAN.
Support Systems

Indosat TV Link provides the following support systems :
- Digital Fixed Earth Station.
- Flyway Earth Station (Satellite News Gathering Service).
- OB VAN

source from Indosat Multi Media

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JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) _ The U.S. government is concerned that a television channel backed by the Hezbollah militant group is using an Indonesian satellite to broadcast to the Asia-Pacific region, an American Embassy spokesman said Thursday.

Al-Manar TV has rented Indonesia's Palapa C2 satellite through operator PT Indosat on a contract due to expire in April 2011, according to Indosat spokeswoman Adita Irawati.

The U.S. government declared Al-Manar a "terrorist entity" in 2006.

"Al-Manar and its partners and affiliates form a recognized arm of Hezbollah," said Tristram Perry, a public diplomacy officer at the U.S. Embassy in Jakarta.

Perry said the station incites violence and hatred. The U.S. government has informally "shared concerns" with authorities in Jakarta about Al-Manar broadcasting from Indonesia, home to the world's largest Muslim population, he said.

Those concerns were dismissed by Communication and Information Minister Muhammad Nuh, who called the broadcasts "a pure business to business deal." He noted that stations such as the BBC also use the satellite. The government holds about 14 percent of Indosat's shares and has a veto right over strategic decisions.

"The U.S. government has no right to intervene in Indosat's affairs," Nuh said. "It is up to Indosat."

Irawati said the deal would only end if the government ordered its cancellation. "We will follow whatever the regulator decides," she said.

The Indonesian satellite is used to beam Al-Manar's often anti-Israeli and anti-American programs to China, Southeast Asia and Australia.

In January, a Thai satellite company stopped airing broadcasts of the Middle East-based television channel after learning it was tied to the Shiite militant group Hezbollah.

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Ambassador Cameron R. Hume met Ibu Tinung Sulistyani, Corporate Account Manager for PT Indosat, before leaving for the U.S. to take part in the FORTUNE/U.S. Department of State Women Leaders Mentoring Partnership. Ibu Tinung is one of 35 women selected from among hundreds of nominees submitted by U.S. Embassies worldwide. During her one-month program, she will “shadow” Jan A. Bertsch, Vice President and Chief Information Officer of Chrysler LLC. The U.S. Embassy is hosting Ibu Tinung's blog, so Indonesian business students learn about her activities during her program. (source http://jakarta. usembassy. gov/)

About PT. Indosat
PT Indosat Tbk was established in 1967 as a foreign investment company to provide international telecommunications services in Indonesia, commencing its operations in 1969 with the inauguration of the Jatiluhur earth station.
Satellite Connection and Transponder Rental
Indosat provides satellite technology to fulfill the high corporate demand for reliable broadcasting telecommunication technology for both technology applications and wide coverage. This satellite service involves rental of a specified bandwidth from the Palapa C2 satellite to companies in Indonesia.

One of Indosat’s services that is based on this technology is the Indosat Telecast that allows customers – especially news agencies, news broadcasters and event organisers – to send on-field news faster to national and international correspondences.
Satellite is not only for broadcasting but also for smooth corporate data transmission.

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