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Responsibility for Chinese space activities is shared by several agencies including the China National Space Administration (CNSA) and the People’s Liberation Army (PLA), which operates the country’s human spaceflight program and its launch centers. Data on the Chinese national space budget is difficult to obtain and estimates vary widely. During an April 2006 speech in Washington, DC, CNSA Vice Administrator Luo Ge stated that the CNSA budget was approximately US$## million per year. While this figure is credible for the CNSA as an agency by itself, it is likely too low to represent the full extent of space spending in China.
Read MoreLaunch sites, commonly called spaceports, host the launches of orbital and suborbital vehicles and, in some cases, the return of spacecraft from space. Spaceports take many forms, from sprawling, dedicated complexes such as Baikonur in Kazakhstan, to specialized ships floating in the Pacific Ocean, such as Sea Launch’s Odyssey.
Read MoreThe dominant providers of international fixed satellite services (FSS) are Intelsat, SES, Eutelsat, and Telesat. These four companies collectively own nearly half of all GEO commercial communications satellites (125 satellites, or 47% of the total), and represented 49% of total FSS market revenues in 2010.
Read MoreThe Canadian Space Agency (CSA) managed an FY 2010 budget of C$## million (US$## million), including a planned contribution of C$## million (US$## million) to the European Space Agency. The CSA-only budget of C$## million (US$## million) represents a ##% decrease from the previous year’s CSA-only budget of C$## million (US$## million). The CSA focused its funding in three main activity areas: Earth observation; space science and exploration, which includes robotic and human spaceflight; and satellite communication and navigation systems.
Read MoreRevenue from satellite radio broadcasting in 2010 is estimated to be $## billion, a ##% increase over 2009. Following the bankruptcy and liquidation of WorldSpace, which had provided services globally, satellite radio is available only in North America. U.S.-based Sirius XM announced in November 2010 that it has more than 20 million subscribers despite operating in a difficult financial environment. The company attributes its…
Read MoreThe estimated 2010 revenues for DTH television increased to $## billion in 2010 from $## billion in 2009. DTH comprises ##% of the revenue within the commercial space products and services sector. North American DTH providers DirecTV and DISH Network are the two largest operators, with combined 2010 revenues estimated at $## billion. As of September 2010, DirecTV and DISH Network had a combined total of ## million subscribers. Other DTH television providers contributed the…
Read MoreMobile satellite services (MSS) providers enable users to connect phones and other handheld devices directly to a satellite to provide near-constant coverage, even in places underserved by terrestrial facilities, such as ships at sea, isolated rural villages, polar settlements, or other remote sites. Although they also provide a wide range of routing services to major users such as the U.S. Navy fleet, MSS is particularly useful in the aftermath of natural and man-made disasters when regular forms of communication are often unavailable.
Read MoreThe commercial space products and services sector remains the largest component of the space economy. Total revenue for commercial space products and services in 2010 is estimated at $## billion, #% more than the 2009 total of $## billion. This estimate includes revenues from satellite broadcasting, satellite communications, and Earth observation products and services. Geolocation and navigation-related revenues are included in the ground equipment sector due to the fact that the majority of revenue is generated by…
Read More The National Congress of Brazil’s 2011 Federal Budget authorizes ## million reais (US$## million) for activities associated with the National Program of Space Activities (PNAE), a decrease of ##% from the authorization for the previous year. This authorization includes ## million reais (US$## million) for the Brazilian space agency,
Agência Espacial Brasileira (AEB), and ## million reais (US$## million) in capital investment associated with the Alcântara Space Centre.
Bigelow Aerospace has been working for several years to develop commercial orbital habitats using expandable modules. This approach, leveraging technology licensed from NASA, involves launching modules in a compact form and inflating them once in orbit, creating much larger volumes than would be possible with traditional metallic structures.
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