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Space Intel Report • Peter B. de Selding

Viasat to buy Swissto12’s 7th small-GEO satellite, growing HummingSat orders to four after Inmarsat deal

Swissto12 says the undisclosed customer for its 7th small-GEO satellite is Viasat. The order expands Viasat’s Swissto12 HummingSat backlog to four spacecraft, following Viasat’s purchase of Inmarsat—adding another GEO node to its connectivity-focused satellite plans.

2026-06-01T07:41:14.725344-07:00

Runway Girl

DFS, DSNA, EUROCONTROL MUAC and Skyguide sign pacts with ESSP to accelerate Iris next-gen satcom datalink for European ATM

2026-06-01T07:58:04.195042-07:00

Payload

Bellatrix Aerospace teams with TelePIX on Korean VLEO optical-payload demo satellite, targeting NET 2028

2026-06-01T06:13:12.588154-07:00

Space Intel Report

Business Finland approves €28.3M continuation grant for ICEYE to scale SAR manufacturing and expand into optical/RF sensing and

2026-06-01T05:00:29.707267-07:00

News Timeline

Runway Girl

DFS, DSNA, EUROCONTROL MUAC and Skyguide sign pacts with ESSP to accelerate Iris next-gen satcom datalink for European ATM Four major European ANSPs—DFS (Germany), DSNA (France), EUROCONTROL MUAC (Multinational ATM Operations Centre) and Skyguide (Switzerland)—have agreed with ESSP (Iris Service Provider) to drive adoption of satellite-enabled ATM datalink communications across Europe. The move is designed to support broader, next-gen datalink uptake tied to Europe’s Iris connectivity architecture.

2026-06-01T07:58:04.195042-07:00

DFS, DSNA, EUROCONTROL MUAC and Skyguide sign pacts with ESSP to accelerate Iris next-gen satcom datalink for European ATM

Space Intel Report

Viasat to buy Swissto12’s 7th small-GEO satellite, growing HummingSat orders to four after Inmarsat deal Swissto12 says the undisclosed customer for its 7th small-GEO satellite is Viasat. The order expands Viasat’s Swissto12 HummingSat backlog to four spacecraft, following Viasat’s purchase of Inmarsat—adding another GEO node to its connectivity-focused satellite plans.

2026-06-01T07:41:14.725344-07:00

Viasat to buy Swissto12’s 7th small-GEO satellite, growing HummingSat orders to four after Inmarsat deal

Payload

Bellatrix Aerospace teams with TelePIX on Korean VLEO optical-payload demo satellite, targeting NET 2028 Bellatrix Aerospace is partnering with Korean optical payload maker TelePIX to build a Very Low Earth Orbit (VLEO) demonstration satellite. The satellite is slated to launch in 2028 (NET), extending Bellatrix’s push into sustained VLEO operations with an optical payload element via TelePIX.

2026-06-01T06:13:12.588154-07:00

Bellatrix Aerospace teams with TelePIX on Korean VLEO optical-payload demo satellite, targeting NET 2028

Payload

Opinion: Commercial space’s rising conjunction and debris signals outpace the data-to-decision channel A new opinion argues that the commercial space boom is generating more operational signals—launch and orbital cadence, debris accumulation rates, and conjunction alerts—than decision-makers can effectively process. The core problem isn’t sensing, but a broken mechanism for converting those signals into timely, actionable decisions.

2026-06-01T05:12:35.156159-07:00

Opinion: Commercial space’s rising conjunction and debris signals outpace the data-to-decision channel

Space Intel Report

Business Finland approves €28.3M continuation grant for ICEYE to scale SAR manufacturing and expand into optical/RF sensing and Business Finland has approved a €28.3 million continuation grant for ICEYE, as the final tranche of a prior R&D investment decision. The funding is aimed at expanding manufacturing capability and accelerating development of next-generation SAR plus optical and radio-frequency (RF) sensor capabilities for AI-enabled satellite intelligence.

2026-06-01T05:00:29.707267-07:00

Business Finland approves €28.3M continuation grant for ICEYE to scale SAR manufacturing and expand into optical/RF sensing and

SpaceNews.com

China debuts reusable Long March 12B with surprise first flight, delivering Qianfan satellites to orbit China conducted the maiden launch of the reusable Long March 12B without advance warning, placing operational payloads into orbit on its debut flight. The mission delivered Qianfan satellites, underscoring continued expansion of China’s reusable launch capability and near-term satellite deployment cadence.

2026-06-01T03:58:16.476284-07:00

China debuts reusable Long March 12B with surprise first flight, delivering Qianfan satellites to orbit

SpaceWatch Global

Marble Imaging signs Taiwan MoU and Japan partnership to expand dual-use Earth observation for maritime security Marble Imaging is expanding its footprint in Asia via a Taiwan memorandum of understanding and a Japan partnership with JSI. The effort targets growing demand for maritime security and dual-use Earth observation services, linking regional partners to Marble’s remote-sensing capabilities.

2026-06-01T03:19:24.579933-07:00

Marble Imaging signs Taiwan MoU and Japan partnership to expand dual-use Earth observation for maritime security

SpaceNews.com

China uses Long March-2D launches to place four direct-to-device broadband test satellites in orbit China launched networking and direct-to-device (D2D) test satellites into orbit on new Long March missions, including a Long March-2D flight carrying a phone-to-satellite broadband research payload and another launch delivering four additional D2D test satellites to validate connectivity upgrades and new technologies.

2026-06-01T02:58:54.203300-07:00

China uses Long March-2D launches to place four direct-to-device broadband test satellites in orbit

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Satellite News

Viasat to buy Swissto12’s 7th small-GEO satellite, growing HummingSat orders to four after Inmarsat deal

DFS, DSNA, EUROCONTROL MUAC and Skyguide sign pacts with ESSP to accelerate Iris next-gen satcom datalink for European ATM

Bellatrix Aerospace teams with TelePIX on Korean VLEO optical-payload demo satellite, targeting NET 2028

Business Finland approves €28.3M continuation grant for ICEYE to scale SAR manufacturing and expand into optical/RF sensing and

News Timeline