ITT's Commercial Imaging Payload Passes Major Milestone

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by Staff Writers Rochester NY (SPX) Apr 18, 2011

ITT reached a key milestone with the successful completion of the Critical Design Review (CDR) for the imaging payload for WorldView-3, DigitalGlobe's high-resolution commercial Earth imaging satellite. WorldView-3 will combine the most productive high resolution commercial sensor subsystem available with a highly accurate and stable optical telescope unit. "ITT has been recognized as the aerospace industry's leading imaging payload provider for more than 50 years," said Rob Mitrevski, vice president and general manager of ITT's Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance systems business area.
"Our design for the WorldView-3 imaging payload, which will provide improved imagery resolution, is now authenticated. We look forward to moving into the next phase of assembling, building and testing the WorldView-3 payload."

Rear Admiral Craig Steidle Named President Of Commercial Spaceflight Federation

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by Staff Writers Washington DC (SPX) Apr 18, 2011

The Commercial Spaceflight Federation is pleased to announce that Rear Admiral Craig E. Steidle (U.S. Navy, Ret.) has been named as President, effective May 15. Admiral Steidle was approved for the position by a unanimous vote of the Commercial Spaceflight Federation's board of directors and will serve full-time in this capacity working from the organization's headquarters in downtown Washington, D.C. Admiral Steidle has a long and distinguished track record in aerospace as a former senior NASA official, flag officer, program manager, aerospace engineer, Naval aviator and combat veteran, and technology innovator. At NASA, Adm. Steidle served as the first Associate Administrator for Exploration Systems, one of the most senior positions in the agency.
In 2004 and 2005, Adm. Steidle built the Exploration Systems Mission Directorate from the ground up into a $3 billion a year organization, personally initiating several innovative programs including efforts to foster commercial space transportation to the International Space Station, the Centennial Challenges prize program, and a far-ranging program of advanced technology development.
During his tenure at the Navy, Admiral Steidle became most well known for serving in the mid 1990's as Director of the Joint Strike Fighter Program - the single largest Department of Defense development program in history. As program manager, he implemented the innovative "fly-off" competition between the X-32 and X-35 prototype aircraft. Under his command, the Joint Strike Fighter Program was awarded the David Packard Excellence in Acquisition Award.

Astrium GEO-Info Services Looks Back On The Chernobyl Disaster 25 Years Later With EO Technologies

To view the Astrium GEO-Info Services Chernobyl flipbook of images form the last 25 years please go here.

by Staff Writers Paris, France (SPX) Apr 18, 2011 The first satellite image of the Ukrainian site was acquired by SPOT1 only ten days after the explosion, demonstrating the value of Earth-imaging satellites in responding to natural and man-made disasters. Technology has evolved in the 25 years since the Chernobyl explosion, and Astrium GEO-Information's satellites continue to keep a watchful eye on the zone.
Astrium GEO-Information Services (formerly Spot Image) has released satellite imagery of the Chernobyl nuclear site covering the 25 years since the disaster in 1986.
From the first satellite image acquired by SPOT1 on April 26th 1986 to the high performance radar imagery taken only days ago of the affected area, Astrium GEO-Information Services has effectively monitored Chernobyl for a quarter of a century using the vast data archive containing more than 100 billion square kilometres of imagery.
Since 1986, satellite imagery has played a crucial role in managing disaster zones by providing teams on the ground with comprehensive information for decontamination efforts as well as mapping the resulting reforestation of the area.
Astrium GEO-Information Services has published an online flipbook presenting the multi-source, multi-resolution imagery of the Ukrainian site acquired over the past 25 years. The flipbook illustrates the changes to the area and demonstrates how satellite technology has brought new insights to site monitoring, management and mitigation of disasters since the 1980s.
Taking full advantage of the fully-integrated combined resources and skills of its Spot Image and Infoterra subsidiaries, the GEO-Information division of Astrium Services has become a recognised world leader in the geo-information market by offering decision-makers sustainable one-stop-shop solutions to increase security, protect the environment, and better manage natural resources.
It has exclusive access to SPOT and TerraSAR-X satellite data, while also calling on a full gamut of space data sources and airborne acquisition capabilities, enabling it to offer an unrivalled combination of Earth observation products and services. Its portfolio spans the entire geo-information value chain.
Source: http://www.spacedaily.com