17 - Space-Library

Systems Inc. in Beltsville, Md.; Miltec Corp. in Huntsville, Ala.;
Northrop Grumman Systems Corp. in Redondo Beach, Calif.; PnP
Innovations Inc. in Albuquerque, N.M.; and Sierra Nevada Corp. in
Sparks, Nev., to help develop multi-mission modular space
vehicles. This is an indefinite-delivery, indefinite-quantity,
cost-plus fixed-fee multi-award contract that begins Wednesday.
The contract consists of a five-year period of performance.
Under the terms of the contract, the companies will provide
support for the ORS Office located at Kirtland Air Force Base,
N.M. In partnership with the Department of Defense, NASA will
All five companies will be awarded the innovation, standards and
architecture task order. Northrop Grumman Systems Corp. will
be awarded the multi-mission modular bus development task
order. Sierra Nevada Corp. will be awarded the multi-mission
modular payload development task order. NASA released a
Request for Proposals to industry on Feb. 1, to solicit two
individual requirements, including the Modular Space Vehicles
contract and a Rapid Response Space Works (RRSW) contract,
which was awarded earlier this year. The RRSW and MSV
contracts share a maximum value of $500 million.
help facilitate planning, acquisition, and operations for the ORS.
http://www.nasa.gov/home/hqnews/2010/nov/HQ_C10-067_MSV.html
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Nov 9, 2010 www.aviationweek.com/aw By Neelam Mathews New Delhi
インドは 衛 星 技 術 で 高 い 目 標 を 狙 う
India Aims High With Satellite Technology
India is becoming a power in satellite development and a
significant player in the use of space for military as well as civil
needs. A number of Indian-built military satellites with
surveillance, imaging and navigation capabilities are planned for
launch in the next few years, to both keep “a watch on the
neighborhood and help guide cruise missiles” should the need
emerge, says V. K. Saraswat, scientific adviser to the defense
minister. “[The satellites] will have tremendous applications.”
Saraswat’s statement confirms that India is becoming a space
power. The Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO), however,
refuses to comment about military satellites, saying its space
program is for civilian purposes only. This position has its origins
in the fact that some of its programs were stymied when the U.S.
imposed trade sanctions against India in 1992 for missile
proliferation. Some sanctions remain, and the U.S and India,
despite talk of trust and confidence, have yet to sign the Joint
Space Cooperation pact. Nevertheless, Saraswat confirms that a
“roadmap [for development of military satellites] has been given
to the ISRO,” and India has launched satellites under this
program. “Defense satellites are locally built and launched from
home soil given the security sensitivity,” he says. “The army,
navy and air force have their requirements, and it’s not
appropriate to say how many satellites each requires, due to
security considerations.” According to a Defense Ministry official,
ISRO will launch the first dedicated military surveillance satellite,
for the navy, late this year or in 2011. The multi-band satellite
will weigh 2,330 kg. (5,137 lb.), be lofted into a geostationary orbit
1,000 nm. above the Indian Ocean, and network warships,
submarines, aircraft and land-based operation centers through
high-speed data links. Coverage will be 600-1,000 nm. “Maritime
threats can then be detected and shared in real time to ensure
swift action,” a naval officer says. The projected cost of the
satellite is $212 million. A new aerospace command is standing
up that will provide a space-based military capability for
monitoring a vast region, from the Strait of Hormuz in the west
to the Strait of Malacca in the east, and from China in the north
to the Indian Ocean in the south. Many observers say the
military is not ready to handle such a capability. “The space
command should be consistent with a strategic aim. We should
not venture into it until we cross the threshold of a critical mass,
as we are still immature and training is not enough,” a senior
military official says. It will be some time, of course, before the
fledgling aerospace command rivals similar commands of more
experienced militaries, such as the U.S. It will, however, oversee
surveillance, tracking, early warning and related areas, according
to a representative of the Indian Defense Strategic Studies think
tank. While initially the air force was to head the command, the
three forces will jointly manage it. India has been launching
dual-use—military and civil—satellites for a while. One satellite
with military uses, but not acknowledged as such by ISRO, was
the Earth Observation Technology Experiment Satellite, with
1-meter (3.2-ft.) resolution, weighing 1,108 kg., and put into orbit
from Sriharikota Range in 2001 by the Polar Satellite Launch
Vehicle. Cameras in the remote sensing satellite mapped terrain
across the northern border of India for possible deployment of
troops and weapons. When Cartosat-2A, the 13th Indian Remote
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