RIYADH, April 29, 2022 (ARABSAT PR) – ARABSAT, the leading regional satellite operator in the Middle East and Africa, and Thales Alenia Space, the joint venture between Thales (67%) and Leonardo (33%), have signed a contract to build ARABSAT-7A, a fully flexible Software-Defined Satellite (SDS) based on the Space Inspire (INstant SPace In-orbit REconfiguration) platform by Thales Alenia Space.

With this contract, ARABSAT joins the exclusive club of geostationary satellite operators who have chosen this revolutionary technology to empower their business and transition from traditional bent-pipe GEO satellites to the highly agile and adaptable SDSs which are expected to change the face of the geostationary satcom industry. Indeed, the Space Inspire platform will enable seamless telecom mission and services reconfiguration of the ARABSAT-7A satellite, instant in-orbit adjustment to broadband connectivity demand, and superior video broadcasting performance while maximizing the effective use of satellite resources.

• New multi-mission satellite to deliver broadcast, broadband and telecommunications services over Europe, Middle East, Africa and central Asia
• TELEO payload for new generation optical communications
• Eighth Eurostar satellite for Arabsat and first Eurostar Neo

RIYADH, 18 August 2020 (Airbus PR) – Airbus has been contracted by Arabsat, one of the world’s top satellite operators, to build BADR-8, their new generation telecommunications satellite. BADR-8 will replace and increase Arabsat’s capacity and augment its core business at the BADR hotspot 26°E.

The BADR-8 satellite will be based on the-state-of-the-art Airbus Eurostar Neo electric orbit raising platform giving access to a wide range of launchers.

SpaceX’s Falcon Heavy launched its first commercial satellite on Thursday, with its three first stage boosters successfully landing for later reuse.

The world’s most powerful booster lifted off from Launch Complex 39A (LC-39A) at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida at 6:35 p.m. EDT. The rocket successfully orbited the Arabsat 6A communications satellite.

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SpaceX scrubbed the launch of the Falcon Heavy rocket with the Arabsat 6A communications satellite on Wednesday due to high upper level winds. The next window opens at 6:35 p.m. EDT on Thursday, April 11. The launch will be conducted from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

SpaceX has rescheduled the second launch of its Falcon Heavy rocket from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida for Wednesday, April 10. The nearly two-hour window opens at 6:36 p.m. EDT  (2236 GMT). The booster will launch the Arabsat 6A communications satellite, which will provide Ku-band and Ka-band communications services for  the Middle East, North Africa a part of South Africa. This will be the first Falcon Heavy rocket to […]

Sultan bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud (Credit: NASA)

Saudi King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud has appointed his nation’s first – and thus far, only – astronaut to head up a newly created national space agency.

Prince Sultan bin Salman, who flew into orbit aboard the space shuttle Discovery in 1985, was appointed to the position. Salam, 62, is one of the king’s second son.

As a payload specialist aboard the flight, Salam helped to deploy the ARABSAT-1B satellite from the shuttle’s cargo bay for the Arab Satellite Communications Organization (ARABSAT). His flight marked the first time an Arab, a Muslim and a member of a royal family traveled to space.

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Artist’s conception of a Falcon Heavy launch. (Credit: SpaceX)

ViaSat has moved a satellite from Falcon Heavy to Ariane 5 as a result of delays in launching SpaceX’s heavy-lift booster. Arianespace plans to launch the ViaSat-2 spacecraft during the first quarter of 2017.

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Dragon capsule separated from Falcon 9 launch vehicle.

By Douglas Messier
Managing Editor

With the failure of the Falcon 9 on Sunday, SpaceX’s only launch vehicle will be grounded for an unknown number of months while engineers identify the cause of the crash and make necessary changes to ensure that failure won’t happen again.

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