A Forecast International blog about the arms trade, geopolitics, defense and security, and military spending.
By Bill Ostrove, Space Systems Analyst, Forecast International. Cybernaut, a Chinese investment fund, has signed an agreement with Russian satellite builder Dauria Aerospace to provide $70 million in financing. Under …
Read MoreBy Bill Ostrove, Space Systems Analyst, Forecast International. While small satellites and CubeSats are becoming increasingly popular, large geosynchronous Earth-orbiting (GEO) communications satellites maintain an important role in the space …
Read MoreBy Bill Ostrove, Space Systems Analyst, Forecast International. Virgin Galactic recently announced upgrades to its LauncherOne launch vehicle. When Virgin Galactic initially announced development of LauncherOne, the company said it …
Read MoreBy Bill Ostrove, Space Systems Analyst, Forecast International. The Wall Street Journal reports that Aerojet Rocketdyne is discussing an acquisition of United Launch Alliance (ULA) with owners Boeing and Lockheed …
Read MoreBy Bill Ostrove, Space Systems Analyst, Forecast International. Thales Alenia Space has signed a new phase of the contract for the COSMO-SkyMed Second Generation (CSG) satellite program with the Italian …
Read MoreBy Bill Ostrove, Space Systems Analyst, Forecast International. China has conducted a ground test of the Long March 5 (CZ-5) power system. The engines were fired for the final ground …
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By Bill Ostrove, Space Systems Analyst, Forecast International. The European Space Agency on August 12 signed contracts for the development of a new launch vehicle designated Ariane 6, its launch …
Read More by Bill Ostrove, Space Systems Analyst, Forecast International. AT&T Inc has completed its $49 billion acquisition of direct-to-home (DTH) satellite television provider DirecTV. DirecTV will be folded into AT&T’s Entertainment & …
Read More by Bill Ostrove, Space Systems Analyst, Forecast International. A partnership between ESA, Eutelsat, and Airbus Defence and Space has introduced a commercial communications services satellite platform that utilizes new technology. The …
Read Moreby Bill Ostrove, Space Systems Analyst, Forecast International. The average size, or launch mass, of commercial communications satellites is declining. After the average launch mass reached a peak of 4,424 kilograms …
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