Page 89 - SAMENA Trends - October 2019

SATELLITE UPDATES SAMENA TRENDS

Swarm Gets Green Light from FCC for Its 150-Satellite Constellation

Swarm Technologies aims to connect smart devices around the to have satisfied the FCC completely — “We find that Swarm has
world with a low-bandwidth but ever-present network provided taken the appropriate steps to address SpaceX’s concerns,” and it
by satellites — and it just got approval from the FCC to do so. granted the application with the condition that the company abide
Apparently the agency is no longer worried that Swarm’s sandwich- by any upcoming orbital debris rules. Swarm has clearly moved
sized satellites are too small to be tracked. The company’s well past the black mark on its FCC record when it launched test
SpaceBEE satellites are tiny things that will provide a connection satellites without the proper approvals. The red tape involved in
to devices that might otherwise be a pain to get online. Think soil space operations is voluminous and it’s not uncommon to fall
monitors in the middle of corn fields, or buoys in the middle of afoul of it — especially when your competitors, as evidenced
the ocean. Their signals don’t need low latency or high bandwidth by the above, are making more of it for you. Now that it has its
— so the requirements for a satellite that serves them are much paperwork in order, Swarm plans to get its entire constellation in
lower than for consumer broadband. Consequently, Swarm’s orbit by the end of the year. “The FCC grant of Swarm’s spectrum
satellites are small — so small, in fact, that the FCC was worried and launch approvals is a big milestone for the company. Swarm
that they would be difficult to track and might be a danger to other is now poised to be first to market for an entire global satellite
satellites. Part of the company’s responsibility in its application data communications constellation before the end of 2020,” said
was to show that isn’t the case. The FCC approval is just one CEO and co-founder Sara Spangelo in a statement to TechCrunch.
step in the long process of getting approved to go to space for “This is an important moment for the satellite industry, for US
commercial operations, but it’s a big one. In addition to granting innovation in space, and for the large number of IoT customers
Swarm permission to send up its planned 150 satellites (and up world-wide that Swarm is excited to support with 2-way data
to 600 if it decides to spread out a little), the FCC assigned Swarm services,” added CTO and co-founder Ben Longmier.
the wireless spectrum it needs to operate. No use being in space
if you’re forbidden from transmitting on the frequencies you need,
right? Longtime satellite communications provider ORBCOMM
had objected that Swarm would be taking over some parts of the
spectrum it has been assigned — but the FCC found that wasn’t
actually the case, and, in fact, the company was in a way making
a sort of power play that would have extended its control over
those frequencies. So their concerns were dismissed. SpaceX
also filed a comment suggesting that Swarm had not adequately
considered its orbital debris footprint, neglecting in particular to
include its satellites’ antennas in various calculations. It also said
the satellites might be a risk to the International Space Station.
But documents filed by Swarm addressing these questions seem

ESA Signs Arianespace to Launch the Earth Explorer Biomass Satellite

Arianespace and the European Space in French Guiana (South America). Vega 50 to 100 meters. The global mass of trees
Agency have signed a launch services is part of the Arianespace launcher family, is not obtainable by ground measurement
contract with a Vega launch vehicle for along with the Ariane 5 heavy launcher techniques. Other innovative applications
the Earth Explorer Biomass. This is the and the medium-lift Soyuz; all three are that can be explored for the first time
seventh mission in ESA’s Earth Explorer operated from the Guiana Space Center. from space with the Biomass radar are
program and will provide global maps of The industrial prime contractor for Vega the mapping of topography under dense
the amount of carbon stored in the world’s is Avio, based in Colleferro, Italy. The vegetation and subsurface geology in
forests and how it changes over time, satellite will have a mass at liftoff of deserts. Biomass will spend at least five
mainly through absorbing carbon dioxide approximately 1,200 kg. and will be placed years making detailed observations and
from fossil fuel burning, deforestation in a dawn-dusk, SSO at an altitude of 666 witnessing at least eight growth cycles in
and change in land use. Biomass also km. Forest type and forest cover worldwide the world’s forests. Observations from this
will provide essential support to United can be detected by today’s satellites, but new mission will also lead to better insight
Nations treaties on the reduction of Biomass will take the information to the into the rates of habitat loss and, as a result,
emissions from deforestation and forest next level. The satellite will carry the first the effect this may have on biodiversity in
degradation. The Biomass mission will P-band synthetic aperture radar (SAR), the forest environment. Airbus Defence
use a Vega launch vehicle, with the launch able to deliver accurate maps of tropical, and Space (UK) is developing and
period starting in October 2022 from the temperate and boreal forest biomass in building the Biomass spacecraft using a
Guiana Space Center, Europe’s Spaceport terms of tons/hectare with a resolution of bespoke structure embedding the AS250

89 OCTOBER 2019