ILS International Launch Services has been awarded a contract from Asiasat to launch the Asiasat 4 satellite aboard an Atlas III booster in 2002. The Atlas III is ILS' latest commercial offering and made its maiden flight in May carrying Eutelsat's W4 satellite. Asiasat 4 will be at 122°E in geostationary orbit, offering 28 C-band and 20 Ku-band services, particularly to Hong Kong. It is a Hughes Space and Communications HS601 HP model.
Source: Flight International
China’s AVIC has secured a contract from the China Manned Space Agency to develop a winged, reusable spacecraft called Haolong.
The UK Space Command’s first owned earth observation microsatellite has been launched, providing the inaugural element of a planned space-based intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) constellation.
Orbital launch pioneer SpaceX is being contracted by the American space agency NASA to develop a so-called “US Deorbit Vehicle” that can safely return the International Space Station to Earth via controlled re-entry.
