France
2011 – Mobile Satellite Service (MSS) Space Activities
Iridium’s LEO constellation of ## active and ## spare satellites relay signals to each other directly, unlike other systems that require multiple hops between space and the ground to send signals around the world. In June 2010, the company named France’s Thales Alenia Space as prime contractor to construct the communications payload for Iridium’s second-generation, ##-satellite constellation Iridium NEXT.
2011 – Fixed Satellite Service (FSS) Space Activities
GEO satellites provide a wide fixed coverage area, making them ideal for sending one signal to a large number of stationary antennas. There were ## fixed satellite services (FSS) satellites in orbit during 2011, providing DTH video, satellite radio, broadband internet, broadcast video distribution, and corporate network connectivity. The dominant providers of international FSS are Intelsat (## satellites), SES (##), Eutelsat (##), and Telesat (##).
2011 – Trends That Are Shaping Space Activity
The outlook for space activity is largely positive, in spite of the challenges facing many of the governments and agencies most active in space. In many ways, 2011 was a pivotal year as governments re-evaluated their human spaceflight plans and examined their portfolio of space activities in light o… Thank you for visiting The Space…
2011 – Satellite Radio – Snapshot
The estimated revenue for satellite radio increased ##% from $## billion in 2010 to $## billion in 2011. Sirius XM is the sole contributor to the sector’s revenue for 2011, since WorldSpace exited the market in 2010 amid bankruptcy. Sirius XM continues to leverage its North American subscriber base through auto installations, while expanding into installations for homes, businesses, restaurants, and overseas.
2011 – Israeli Government Space Budget – Snapshot
Israel’s civil space budget remains small, estimated at ## million New Israeli Shekels (NIS) (US$## million) in 2011. This accounts for roughly ##% of the country’s 2011 national budget of ## billion NIS (US$## billion).
Economy: Space Economy – TSR 2011
Protecting Global Heritage with Open Initiative
The Open Initiative on the Use of Space Technologies to Support the World Heritage Convention is a program sponsored by ESA and the U.N. Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). The Open Initiative focuses on the use of satellite imagery to identify and protect U.N.-designated world heritage sites and alert local authorities to changes that could pose a threat to those sites.
Better Soccer Through Satellite Services
During the FIFA World Cup 2010, worldwide audiences were able to visit DigitalGlobe’s Flickr gallery or Spot Image’s website, which showed satellite views of all 10 of the venues in South Africa. These galleries provided high-resolution satellite imagery for global audiences.
2010 – European Space Industry Employment – Snapshot
he number of European space workers counted has expanded by 20% over five years, from 28,584 full-time equivalent (FTE) employees at the end of 2005 to 34,334 FTE employees in 2010. While some of the changes in European space workforce by sector reflected in Exhibit 4l are attributable to Eurospace methodology changes, they also underscore the shifting composition of the European space workforce.
2010 – Europe Launch Efforts – Snapshot
In 2010, Europe launched ## rockets, as compared to ## in 2009. Although a higher launch rate was planned, along with the debut of the Russian-built Soyuz from the European launch complex in Kourou, French Guiana, the European launch industry experienced a series of setbacks which kept it from meeting these goals.