D-Orbit, a space logistics company, announced today the signing of a multiple launch and deployment contract with Astrocast, a leading Swiss IoT-focused nanosatellite company.
According to the agreement, D-Orbit will launch twenty of Astrocast’s satellites aboard ION Satellite Carrier, D-Orbit’s versatile and cost-effective orbital transfer vehicle (OTV) designed to precisely deploy satellites and perform technology demonstrations of third-party payloads in orbit. The satellites, which will join Astrocast’s constellation of satellites for the Internet of things (IoT), will be delivered to space over a period of three years, through multiple missions.
The first launch, scheduled no sooner than November 2022 aboard SpaceX’s Falcon 9, will deploy a batch of four 3U satellites on a 500-600-kilometer Sun Synchronous Orbit (SSO).
“We are proud to continue this long-term collaboration with Astrocast, a leading European IoT company,” said Renato Panesi, D-Orbit’s Chief Commercial Officer (CCO). “Missions like these are establishing the ION Satellite Carrier as an essential technology to enable innovative space applications that have the potential to revolutionize how we do business here on Earth.”
Two following batches of spacecraft, which include six 6U satellites and ten 6U satellites, will be released in 2023 and 2024 respectively.
Astrocast’s existing low latency nanosatellite IoT network offers customers bidirectional communication between their devices and the company’s global network. As they continue to scale, with these launches Astrocast is investing in their network to carry on providing organizations with a high-quality and reliable SatIoT experience. This investment prepares Astrocast for the future and builds further robustness, reliability and resilience into customers’ network.
“We are delighted to work with D-Orbit to extend the Astrocast constellation over the next three years. Our relationship dates back several years and we are pleased with the flexibility and different launch options that D-Orbit has provided us. It is important for European space companies to work together to find solutions that increase the competitiveness of European space, and we believe that working with D-Orbit enables this for Astrocast. We are looking forward to the launch on Falcon-9 and potential future missions on European rockets,” said Fabien Jordan, CEO and Co-Founder, Astrocast.
About D-Orbit
D-Orbit is a market leader in the space logistics and transportation services industry with a track record of space-proven technologies and successful missions. Founded in 2011, before the dawn of the New Space market, D-Orbit is the first company addressing the logistics needs of the space market. ION Satellite Carrier, for example, is a space vehicle that can transport satellites in orbit and release them individually into distinct orbital slots, reducing the time from launch to operations by up to 85% and the launch costs of an entire satellite constellation by up to 40%. ION can also accommodate multiple third-party payloads like innovative technologies developed by startups, experiments from research entities, and instruments from traditional space companies requiring a test in orbit.
About Astrocast
Astrocast SA operates a leading global nanosatellite IoT network, offering services in industries such as Agriculture & Livestock, Maritime, Environment & Utilities to name a few. The Astrocast network enables companies to monitor, track, and communicate with remote assets from anywhere in the world. It relies on superior L-band spectrum through a strategic alliance with Thuraya. In partnership with Airbus, CEA/LETI and ESA, Astrocast developed Astronode S, an ultra-low power and miniaturised module compatible with inexpensive L-band patch antennas. Founded in 2014 by a renowned team of experts, Astrocast develops and tests all its products inhouse, from the satellites to the modules. Astrocast is listed on Euronext Growth Oslo and recently announced the acquisition of Hiber. For more information visit www.astrocast.com
