Astrocast
editAstrocast is a Swiss company, based in Chavannes-Près-Renens Switzerland in the Satellite IoT (SatIoT) industry operating a nanosatellite constellation in Low Earth Orbit (LEO). The Astrocast SatIoT Service uses bidirectional, direct-to-orbit, L-Band frequency communications to IoT devices and sensors. Astrocast currently has 5 of the 80 satellites of its service in orbit. Two launches, scheduled in 2021 will bring the constellation to 20 satellites.
History
editAstrocast was founded in 2014 by Fabien Jordan and Federico Belloni, graduates of EPFL, contributors at the Swiss Space Center and developers of the SwissCube-1 CubeSat which is the longest functional nanosatellite in orbit to date. Astrocast developed the Astronode S with Airbus,[1] CEA/LETI, the European Space Agency, and Thuraya. [2]In December of 2018 Astrocast launched its first test satellite onboard the SpaceX mission SSO-A. In April of 2019 Astrocast launched a second test satellite with ISRO's PSLV launch vehicle. In September of 2019 Astrocast announced a $9.2M Series A round[3]. Total Astrocast funding is $30M with $16.8M in investor monies and an additional $14M in awards and grants. In January 2021 Astrocast launched 5 commercial satellites onboard SpaceX's SXRS-3 mission[4] signifying the official launch of its service. Additonal Astrocast partners include Leaf Space, [5]D-Orbit[6], Ksat, Cysec,[7] and Vertical M2M[8]
Technology
editAstronode S - ground communication module with low profile, L-band antenna, low power consumption, and a small form factor. Astrocast constellation of nanosatellites including bi -directionality, low power, 3U satellites capable of propulsion and de-orbiting. Astrocast Customer Web Portal, API integration, 256-bit encryption.
Launches
edit- Kiwi Mission 12/4/19 at Vandenberg Air Force Base, via Spaceflight aboard SpaceX Falcon 9
- Hawaii Mission: 4/1/19 at Satish Dhawan Space Center via Spaceflight aboard Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV)
- Commercial Mission: 1/24/21 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, Florida, via Spaceflight aboard SpaceX Falcon [9]9
Awards
edit2020 - Top 100 Swiss Startup[11]
- ^ "Astrocast raises $9.2 million, grows target IoT constellation size to 80 satellites". SpaceNews. 2019-09-04. Retrieved 2021-03-24.
- ^ "Meet Else, the Thuraya-backed smallsat startup that wants to connect things with cubesats". SpaceNews. 2017-06-09. Retrieved 2021-03-24.
- ^ "Astrocast raises $9.2 million, grows target IoT constellation size to 80 satellites". SpaceNews. 2019-09-04. Retrieved 2021-03-24.
- ^ Sheetz, Michael (2021-01-24). "SpaceX launches a 'rideshare' mission carrying 143 spacecraft, a record for a single launch". CNBC. Retrieved 2021-03-24.
- ^ "Astrocast secures dedicated ground network for IoT satellites". Via Satellite. 2019-10-30. Retrieved 2021-03-24.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ "D-Orbit to launch 10 Astrocast satellites on Vega rocket". SpaceNews. 2018-08-07. Retrieved 2021-03-24.
- ^ "CYSEC to secure Astrocast's global IoT network Startupticker.ch | The Swiss Startup News channel". www.startupticker.ch. Retrieved 2021-03-24.
- ^ "Astrocast, Vertical M2M partner on industrial IoT through nanosatellites". www.telecompaper.com. Retrieved 2021-03-24.
- ^ "SpaceX launches record-setting cluster of smallsats". SpaceNews. 2021-01-24. Retrieved 2021-03-24.
- ^ "Astrocast". PERL (in French). 2019-04-23. Retrieved 2021-03-24.
- ^ "Astrocast SA". www.top100startups.swiss. Retrieved 2021-03-24.