Tag: satellites

Axelspace to Launch Seven Next-Generation Earth Observation Microsatellites

Axelspace Corporation (“Axelspace”), which designs, manufactures and operates microsatellites, and conducts business to promote a society where space is accessible to people around the world, today announced plans to launch seven next-generation Earth observation microsatellites, “GRUS-3,” in 2026. This will expand the company’s microsatellite constellation to include more than ten satellites, enabling observation of broader areas with increased frequency.

Axelspace aims to meet growing demand across a wide range of fields, including environmental protection, financial product development, and real estate management, in addition to precision agriculture, forest monitoring, and map creation, to promote use of Earth observation data.

GRUS-3 will build upon Axelspace’s existing constellation of five microsatellites, “GRUS-1,” which provides services to government agencies and private companies in more than 30 countries worldwide.

The seven GRUS-3 microsatellites will capture images of the Earth’s surface at the same location and nearly the same time every day for locations north of 25 degrees latitude, under stable sunlight conditions year-round from a sun-synchronous orbit at an altitude of 585 km. Each satellite has an effective swath of 28.3 km and a maximum capture length of 1,356km. With a combined daily capture capacity of 2.3 million km² across seven satellites, and our unique tasking capabilities that enables targeted area imaging, Axelspace supports timely information gathering and decision-making.

GRUS-3 satellites feature a spatial resolution (GSD) of 2.2 meters. In addition to capturing visible light, these are equipped with sensors capable of monitoring plant growth conditions, coastal seaweed beds and landscape.

Yuya Nakamura, President and CEO of Axelspace Corporation, said, “With the launch of seven GRUS-3 microsatellites, we will be able to observe a wider area more frequently than ever before. By adopting new observation equipment, the image quality will be improved compared to GRUS-1. We will provide enhanced services to our existing customers and continue developing solutions to meet emerging needs, further expanding the use of space.”

Axelspace also plans to launch a microsatellite “GRUS-3α” no earlier than June 2025 to verify the performance of the versatile satellite platform, a standardized platform for satellite function and structure across diverse missions, and the telescope used in GRUS-3.

About GRUS-3

Number of satellites: 7

Name: GRUS-3A/3B/3C/3D/3E/3F/3G

Satellite wet mass: Approximately 150kgSatellite envelope: 96cm x 78cm x 126cm

Spatial resolution: 2.2m

Effective swath: 28.3km

Maximum capture length: 1,356km

Band: Panchromatic, Coastal Blue, Blue, Green, Red, Red edge, Near infrared

Orbit altitude: 585km

Orbit type: Sun-synchronous

 

About GRUS-3α

Name: GRUS-3α

Satellite wet mass: Approximately 150kg

Satellite envelope: 96cm x 78cm x 126cm

Orbit altitude: 585km

Orbit type: Sun-synchronous

 

Launch details for GRUS-3α

Date: No earlier than June 2025

Site: Vandenberg Space Force Base, California, USA

Vehicle: Falcon 9

Mission: Transporter-14

Launch Provider: SpaceX

 

To host the missions of GRUS-3 and GRUS-3α, Axelspace’s General-purpose (Versatile) satellite bus is based on results obtained from the following projects subsidized by the New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization (NEDO). 

Development and Demonstration of General-Purpose CubeSat and Microsatellite Buses (FY2023- 2026)

*This project is implemented by the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry from FY2021 to FY2022

 

About GRUS

GRUS is a series of optical Earth observation microsatellites, each weighing 100 kg-class, developed for Axelspace’s Earth observation business, AxelGlobe. The first satellite of GRUS-1 was launched in December 2018, followed by 4 satellites in March 2021, bringing the current total to five satellites in orbit. The name “GRUS” comes from the constellation Grus to symbolize the way satellites orbit the Earth like a flock of cranes.

 

About Axelspace

With the vision of “Space within Your Reach,” we have been pioneering the development of microsatellites since our founding in 2008. We have two businesses: AxelLiner, where we develop and operate microsatellites for customers’ space missions, and AxelGlobe, where we provide Earth observation data through our proprietary optical satellite constellation. Leveraging our unique technology in microsatellite design, manufacturing, and in-orbit operations, we offer solutions to meet the needs in a variety of industries. Through these businesses, we aim to create a society where space is accessible to people around the world.

 

Axelspace Corporation Profile

Headquarters: Tokyo, Japan

President and CEO: Yuya Nakamura

Founded: August 2008

https://www.axelspace.com/en/

Vodafone makes first space video call

Vodafone has successfully made the world’s first space video call using normal 4G/5G smartphones and satellites that will allow multiple users in areas of no mobile coverage to make and receive video calls, access the Internet and use online messaging services. It is the only satellite technology of its kind built to offer a full mobile broadband experience and paves the way for universal digital connectivity and the closure of mobile coverage gaps.

Unlike today’s satellite-based services, users do not need a special dish, terminal or expensive satellite phone to benefit from full mobile broadband connectivity. The service they will receive mirrors the experience of existing 4G and 5G mobile networks, enabling them to use everyday smartphones to switch between space and ground-based networks automatically.

Astronaut Tim Peake and Margherita Della Valle, Vodafone Group Chief Executive, marked this significant milestone at Vodafone’s new space-to-land gateway, which receives and channels all the signals sent from a user’s smartphone via the BlueBird satellites of Vodafone’s partner, AST SpaceMobile. Vodafone engineer Rowan Chesmer put it to the test when he made the historic space-based video call to Margherita from a remote mountainous location in mid-Wales – where there has never been mobile broadband before. Rowan, who joined Vodafone’s graduate scheme in 2017, is now developing cutting-edge satellite technologies that will improve global connectivity.

Margherita Della Valle said: “Vodafone’s job is to get everyone connected, no matter where they are. Our advanced European 5G network will now be complemented with cutting-edge satellite technology. We are bringing customers the best network and connecting people who have never had access to mobile communications before. This will help to close the digital divide, supporting people from all corners of Europe to keep in touch with family and friends, or work, as well as ensuring reliable rural connectivity in an emergency.”

Operating from low Earth orbit, it is the only satellite service in the world today that offers mobile broadband directly to multiple 4G or 5G smartphones by working seamlessly as an extension of Vodafone’s leading land-based networks. Satellite is a complementary, bolt-on technology providing valuable coverage where no feasible mobile or fixed alternative exists at present. Together, the satellite service and terrestrial network will give Europe a communications infrastructure for use in any location, including mountains, or out at sea, at any time, as well as boosting overall resilience.

VistaMilk uses Satellites to Help Irish Dairy Farmers Manage the Land

Using measurements from space to help Irish farmers manage their farms may sound like science fiction but it’s actually science fact. Real-time information about soil moisture is an essential tool for farmers when planning and managing the efficient use of their land and a VistaMilk study is using satellites in earth’s orbit to collect that information.

The research project is utilising imagery from the Europe Space Agency’s Sentinel satellites to map soil moisture in Ireland, with the capability of focusing in on areas as small as 10 square metres. The data gathered could be used to help farmers make decisions about which fields to allow their livestock feed while maintaining optimal grazing and grass growth, which fields require drainage or even wetting, and potentially when to add or reduce use of fertilisers and slurry.

Rumia Basu, a VistaMilk PhD student from Teagasc, at the University of Galway, who is running the project said:

“The importance of understanding the soil moisture levels both historically and on a given day is an essential part of daily farming particularly as decisions made can impact not only production outputs but also the environment. The models we are developing that will provide real time information to assist farmers in their decision making is leading-edge and – due to Ireland’s climate – quite unique.

“Using high resolution satellite radar data which is available in all weather, day or night, combined with optical observation data allows us to provide daily information that one day we hope will be available on an app that farmers can use on what we know to be one of their most valuable pieces of equipment – their phones. As we are able to home in on an area as small as 10 metres square, we will be able to provide farmers with data on a field-by-field basis. “

According to VistaMilk, the satellite soil moisture data has the potential to become part of the farm management toolkit which will help Irish farmers manage their farms more efficiently and in an increasingly environmentally friendly way.

Pat Tuohy, Funded investigator, VistaMilk, said “As well as daily moisture reports we can also look back at historical data to identify areas of a farm that are adversely affected by prolonged periods of wet or dry weather. This will inform farmers where land management strategies may be required.

“Complemented by weather forecasting data the information could potentially influence decisions on where, when and how to apply fertilisers and slurry and what interventions may be required to prevent runoff from the land into watercourses.

“The satellite data could also influence other research projects.  For example, there is ongoing research  into carbon sequestration levels on Irish farms. The possibility of combining results from such projects – as well as others looking at grass growth, for example – could give us a picture of how best to manage soils to increase carbon absorption without affecting productivity.

“Four years on, since the VistaMilk Research Centre was created, it is encouraging to see that our research is making a real contribution to ensuring a sustainable future for dairy farming in Ireland, preserving a traditional way of life, providing significant employment, and making a considerable contribution to the Irish economy. “

A podcast about Rumia Basu’s ongoing research can be found at  https://www.vistamilk.ie/podcasts/