India
2014 – Positioning, Navigation, and Timing Systems
Note: The exhibit in this section is from The Space Report 2015. Please refer to this year’s exhibits for the most current data as numbers may have been revised since this edition was published.
2014 – Meteorology
Weather satellites are a major segment of remote sensing satellites, using a mix of electro-optical, atmospheric, gravimetric, SAR, and other sensor payloads to detect fully formed weather systems as well as precursor conditions. Most weather satellites are in GEO or polar LEO orbits and have traditionally been operated by national governments for near-term weather forecasting and long-term climate modeling.
2014 – Launch Industry
Attempted orbital launches increased from ## in 2013 to ## for 2014. Of these ## launches, ## successfully placed their primary payloads into orbit. There were ## launch attempts for commercial payloads and the other ## were for government payloads. Eurospace, the European space industry association, estimates that the global market value for orbital launches in 2014 was $## billion, ##% higher than the 2013 value of $## billion.
2014 – Satellite Television
DTH television continues to be the biggest single revenue contributor in the commercial space products and services market, providing ##% of the market’s revenues in 2014, estimated at $## billion. Two U.S. DTH providers, DIRECTV and DISH Network, earned ##% of 2014’s total estimated DTH television revenues. Combined, the total revenue for the two companies increased by #%, from $## billion in 2013 to $## billion in 2014. The remaining $## billion was generated by DTH providers in other regions.
2014 – Workforce
The space industry operates at the cutting edge of technology and requires a highly skilled, highly trained workforce to build, launch, and utilize space assets. Trends in the size and composition of this workforce provide insight into ongoing dynamics and future health of the sector.
2014 – IRNSS
India continued with plans for its regional PNT constellation, the Indian Regional Navigational Satellite System (IRNSS), launching ## more IRNSS satellites in 2014. With a total of ## PNT satellites in geosynchronous orbit, India is nearly halfway toward completing its ##-satellite IRNSS constellation. Even with ## IRNSS satellites, the Indians will continue to rely on GPS for their GPS-Aided Geo Augmented Navigation (GAGAN) system, which became operational in 2014.
2014 – India Launch, Payload
India conducted ## orbital launch attempts in 2014, all of which were successful. The vehicle used for ## of the launches was the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV), which deployed ## PNT satellites into inclined geosynchronous orbits, and ## French imagery satellite into polar orbit. The ## launch, which carried a communications satellite into geostationary orbit, used India’s bigger Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV).
Conversations of Space Robots and Explorers in Social Media
Social media and space agency public relations worked together to bring awareness of space program activities by endowing personality to robots flying through space. “Namaste, @MarsOrbiter!” displayed a playful tenor in one of the first friendly greetings given to India’s Mars Orbiter Mission (MOM) satellite from NASA’s ground-hugging Mars Curiosity rover.
2014 – Positioning, Navigation, and Timing Systems
The military and commercial value of positioning, navigation, and timing (PNT) systems has gained such prominence that PNT systems are often considered to be critical infrastructure. The proliferation of smartphones and other consumer devices that rely on PNT services has spread this dependence… Thank you for visiting The Space Report! The Authoritative Guide to Global…
2014 – Orbital Human Space Launch
It is relatively simple to place a satellite into orbit when compared with launching humans to space. Humans have more complex needs, such as breathable air, food, staying warm, staying cool, and protection from the space environment. Humans must also be able to return safely to Earth from their trip to space. Over the years, a variety of spacecraft were specifically designed to fulfill these requirements. Rockets, originally designed to return to selected points of the Earth quickly and destructively, began to incorporate changes for human needs and requirements as well. Two nations, the United States and Russia, pioneered the development of space systems to launch humans into space more than half a century ago.