The SPORT system will be used to transfer small satellites from the orbit provided by Ariane to their final operational orbits.

Dr. Rick Fleeter, President and CEO of AeroAstro, said, "We are very excited about the combination of SPORT with the Ariane ASAP [Ariane Structure for Auxiliary Payloads] accommodation to offer a unique path to orbit for small spacecraft.

This agreement between AeroAstro and Arianespace enables small spacecraft operators to use existing assets and technology to get to the orbit they want for the right price," added Fleeter.

"Arianespace continues to be committed to providing access to space to a wider range of potential users," said Phil Balaam, Marketing Director at Arianespace.

"The real beneficiary of the AeroAstro-Arianespace partnership is the small spacecraft community. One more barrier to effective missions has now been removed. We are looking forward to working with AeroAstro and benefiting from their 12 years of experience in satellite and mission design."

In the past 20 years, Arianespace has orbited more than 34 auxiliary payloads to serve the scientific and research community.

The SPORT system can be used from any number of initial orbits for orbit transfers and plane changes. It consists of a propulsion unit integrated with an electronics and navigation package, based on the Bitsy microspacecraft core module developed by AeroAstro under NASA funding for flight on the Space Shuttle in 2001.

SPORT takes up a small portion of an auxiliary payload launch slot, leaving room for the payload and enabling delivery to equatorial Low Earth Orbit (LEO) or transfer to other final orbits.

AeroAstro and Arianespace will work together in both technical and business areas to offer this solution to the small satellite community. The two companies plan to release a common user's guide for the ASAP 5/SPORT combination.

The agreement was signed by Jacques Rossignol, Chief Operating Officer of Arianespace, and Rick Fleeter, President and CEO of AeroAstro, Inc. The final deal was finalized between Arianespace and, on AeroAstro's behalf, the London Satellite Exchange team, a satellite industry online marketplace (www.e-sax.com). The agreement was finalized at last week's International Launch Summit in Paris.

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Satellite Launch To Boost DTH In India
Calcutta, India (SPX) Dec 28, 2005
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