Despite there being plenty of discussion regarding new and promised ‘mega-constellations’ either being launched or planned, the fact remains that O3b – a wholly-owned subsidiary of SES is alive and already in orbit with its cluster of satellites.

November 18th saw Gilat Satellite Networks announce that it has reached a major landmark with the selection by SES for development and deployment of a global multiple application VSAT platform for its O3b mPOWER Medium Earth Orbit (MEO) communications system.

“This multi-million-dollar contract establishes Gilat as a significant Non-Geostationary Orbit (NGSO) player through the technological innovation of its multi-orbit GEO/NGSO platform,” said Gilat.

“We are honoured to be partnering again with SES, this time for their next generation O3b mPOWER system,” said Ron Levin, VP Mobility and Global Accounts at Gilat.  “Gilat was selected due to our innovative ground segment design that significantly reduces cost per bit, our ability to deliver a step function in modem performance and our engineering capabilities to further optimise the platform to efficiently support SES’s O3b mPOWER communications system. We are proud to be at the forefront of ground networks for NGSO constellations together with SES, who paved the NGSO path with its O3b constellation and now continue to lead the pack with its O3b mPOWER network.”

Categories: Articles, Satellite