On Orbit

Connectivity is the cornerstone of today's global economy and it will certainly be the case for the Future Space Economy, with even more complex, data-centric applications. We spent decades building the global satellite connectivity infrastructure around Earth, is it possible to replicate Earth's satellite connectivity infrastructure on the Moon, or on other planets? This episode of the On Orbit F...

In this week's On Orbit episode, we're joined by Patrick Shannon, CEO of TrustPoint. Patrick won the 2024 Startup Space pitch contest at SATELLITE in March, competing against nine other startups.   TrustPoint is building a commercial GPS system, and working toward its own constellation of around 300 spacecraft in Low-Earth Orbit (LEO) to offer GPS services that have more affordable precision, bett...

We have a special On Orbit episode from SATELLITE 2024 this week, a fireside chat with  Impulse Space  CEO Tom Mueller. Mueller is considered one of the world's leading spacecraft propulsion experts. As one of  SpaceX 's founding members, he led the development of propulsion systems for the Falcon 1, Falcon 9, and Falcon Heavy, as well as the Dragon line of spacecraft. His work was crucial in the...

A few weeks ago, space security issues took center-stage in the news after reports of a nuclear satellite weapon. This raised a lot of questions — What would a nuclear weapon mean in space? Why would Russia pursue this? In this week's On Orbit episode, we dig into these questions with Dr. Brian Weeden, chief program officer of the Secure World Foundation, an organization that works to promote secu...

We often take for granted how much of our modern lives are underpinned by GPS technology. This episode of On Orbit digs into GPS and the global landscape of GNSS, which stands for Global Navigation Satellite System. Dr. Sean Gorman, CEO of new startup Zephr, joins as this episode's guest.  We talk about how much economic value is supported by GNSS technology, the GNSS geopolitical landscape includ...

In this episode, On Orbit interviews Sonali Mohapatra, who works in quantum innovation at the National Quantum Computing Centre (NQCC) in the U.K. Sonali breaks down quantum technology and shares some of the future use cases that relate to the space industry. Read more about the quantum use cases for space in Sonali's cover story in the Via Satellite November edition.   In Sonali's role as Quantum...

There is always an inherent risk when doing anything in space. That said, a handful of space sustainability-minded companies are working hard to minimize those risks and prevent self-inflicted catastrophes. In this episode, we'll learn about the true scope of the threat posed by space debris, congestion and the lack of situational awareness and about the technologies and solutions being deployed t...

Space has a compelling story to tell, but it can be a challenge to craft the message. As Space is such a technical sector, it can be hard for leadership to communicate the value of what they do to investors, media, and the public.  It's Sarah Nickell's job to craft that message. As a PR professional with her own firm, Nickell works with companies like Voyager Space and York Space Systems to tell t...

2023 was a big year in news in the satellite industry. Nearly all the top operators saw a mix of leadership changes, mergers and acquisitions, and major constellation updates. In this episode, Via Satellite editors Rachel Jewett, Mark Holmes, and Jeff Hill recap some of the biggest announcements in the satellite sector of 2023, and how they set the stage for 2024. This is our last episode of the y...

SSC 's mission is: "We help Earth benefit from Space." For SSC — Swedish Space Corporation — fulfilling that mission involves its extensive ground network that supports launches with real-time TT&C data and communicating with payloads. This episode of On Orbit features a conversation with Erwin Mercado, president and CEO of the company's U.S. subsidiary, SSC Space US Inc, about the value of space...

What do satellite policy and space movies have in common? For starters, space debris often plays a key role in both. In this episode of On Orbit, we talk about regulation and space movies with Henry Gola, a partner in Wiley's Telecom, Media & Technology practice. Gola has been part of some of the biggest regulatory developments, like representing the C-Band Alliance before the FCC.  He gives a rev...

Over the course of this debut season of Future Space Economy, we've learned how dependent both private and public sector space investors are on startups to bring enabling technologies to life. Today's space startups are pitching their products as the glue that will hold the Future Space Economy together. In this episode, the leaders and founders of space startups across multiple applications join...

When we talk about sustainability in the space industry, we're usually talking to space sustainability issues like space traffic management and space debris. Amber Ledgerwood is trying to bring attention to sustainability issues here on Earth. Amber is the Senior Manager of Social and Environmental Impact at SES and she leads the operator's ESG strategy. In this episode, Amber talks about how envi...

Most of us understand the damage caused by cyberattacks on Earth. In space, the consequences of cyberattacks are even more dire. They can sabotage years of economic activity, threaten national security and the lives of astronauts and in-space personnel, and spark uncontrollable military action in an already dangerous environment. In this episode, we'll learn about how modern approaches to cyber an...

As it exists today, the space tourism "experience" relies on the thrill of just being in space for a select group of dedicated space enthusiasts. However, for this budding tourism industry to grow, it needs to appeal to a broader mainstream audience and to those who want more than a rocket ride and a view of the Earth. This episode of the On Orbit  Future Space Economy webcast series  features exp...

With 50 million downloads and 950,000 ratings, and an average rating of 4.8 stars, MyRadar  is one of the most popular weather apps, putting weather information directly in the hands of its customers. But this isn't an ad for MyRdar, it's the story of how and why a popular mobile app becomes a space company.  MyRadar orbital ambitions, and is working on a satellite constellation to quickly alert t...

Why are the world's space faring nations racing back to the moon? What is the value of establishing a new lunar economy? In this episode of On Orbit's Future Space Economy webcast series, host Jeffrey Hill speaks with Yale University's Emma Louden, Nanoracks' Mike Lewis, and former SpaceX leaders David Anderman and Sita Sonty about what's driving the new space race to the moon. The group explores...

Is space crowded? While space is infinite, space crowding is an important issue as the satellite industry launches more and more mass to orbit each year. This week, Chiara Manfletti, COO of space traffic management startup Neuraspace joins On Orbit to answer this and other critical questions about space sustainability.  In this episode, she digs into the specifics of the risks to satellite operato...

In the past year, the satellite industry has been a part of a slew of announcements about direct-to-device and satellite to cell. Now, major names in cellular industries and devices like Apple, Qualcomm, and T-Mobile are all working with satellite companies.  Tarun Gupta, chief product officer and co-founder of Skylo Technologies joins On Orbit this week to talk about the growth in the direct-to-d...

Space is an exciting new frontier for the global economy, but like all frontiers, it exists largely without a legal framework to guide and protect the people and businesses that would participate in this economy.  This webcast in the Future Space Economy series features policy experts Therese Jones senior policy director for the  Satellite Industry Association  (SIA); Chris Kunstadter, Global Head...

John Deere made headlines last year announcing a satellite project — looking for industry partners to connect thousands of agricultural machines beyond cellular networks — a major opportunity for the satellite industry.  In this week's episode, we talk to Chung Hsieh, senior infrastructure engineer at John Deere. Chung has long worked with the satellite industry on John Deere's StarFire GPS augmen...

The On Orbit podcast has reached 100 episodes! Thank to our listeners for tuning in over the past three years for engaging conversations with the people driving the business of space. In this episode, co-hosts Jeff Hill and Rachel Jewett commemorate the milestone by looking back on some of their favorite episodes, and share a highlight reel of clips. This episode's guest is Jacqueline Good, founde...

Ronda Schrenk has had a front-row seat to the evolution of geospatial intelligence in the United States. She started out as an imagery analyst for the National Photographic Interpretation Center (NPIC), just before it was combined into the new National Imagery and Mapping Agency (NEMA), which later became the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency.  Now, she is an advocate for the industry as CEO...

Today's modern global economy runs on data, and the world's most successful industries and organizations are defined by the speed and efficiency in which they access that data. Defining success in space will be no different – a vibrant, diverse, and productive economy in space will require massive amounts of data that can easily be accessed by facilities on Earth and shared between satellites, veh...

Michelle Parker recently took on a new role as vice president of Space Mission Systems at  Boeing . After  restructuring Boeing Defense, Space & Security last year , Boeing brought all satellite programs together under Space Mission Systems including commercial and government satellites, Spectrolab and Millennium Space Systems in one organization.  Michelle has a long career in the satellite indus...