Iridium? NEXT constellation now fully deployed… and we did it together!

The eighth and last batch of Iridium? NEXT satellites has just been launched, and I still have a hard time realizing we’ve come all this way. Between January 14, 2017 and now, 75 satellites, each weighing 850 kg, were orbited by SpaceX in eight different launches, equal to an average of three satellites a month!

Just like the very first launch, this last one was especially important for me. Right up to the separation of the last satellite, the 75th in the series, I can tell you that everybody involved in the Iridium NEXT program was on tenterhooks. The few minutes we had to wait to make sure that telemetry was being received and the solar arrays of the 10 satellites had been deployed seemed very long indeed. For everybody involved in this program, these satellites are their “babies”, priceless in their eyes. So when the 10 lights lit up green, all of our teams were overjoyed. The satellites are operating well and the constellation is now fully deployed in orbit - at last!

The Iridium? NEXT Dream Team

Together we faced all our difficulties and met technological challenges that a lot of folks told us were impossible. This success is due to a tight-knit international team, bridging Europe and the United States. I would like to extend my warm thanks to all of our partners who helped us meet this unprecedented industrial challenge, and I would also like to personally thank Matt Desch, CEO Iridium, for entrusting us with this mission.

The most sophisticated communications system in the world

Iridium? NEXT is the largest low-orbit satcom constellation in the world, comprising 66 interconnected satellites, operating from an altitude of 780 kilometers. These satellites were designed to gradually replace the original Iridium constellation, which had come to the end of its life. A global network providing unparalleled capacity for communications on the move, whether for individuals, land vehicles, ships or planes, Iridium NEXT offers true planetary coverage, including the oceans and poles.

A robust, global and sophisticated communications system

For Thales Alenia Space, prime contractor for the program on behalf of Iridium, the challenge was not just to deliver the satellites, but above all to implement a complete turnkey system and to ensure that the old and new satellite generations were compatible. Iridium NEXT marked a major world first, with an operator and manufacturer working hand in hand to replace the first constellation by a new one, satellite by satellite, without interrupting user service!

Furthermore, the system is independent from local ground infrastructure, which guarantees secure communications, including protection against intrusion and piracy. This complex communications system, recognized for its robustness and sophistication, is the only one of its kind capable of functioning over oceans and seas, which cover 70 percent of our planet. In the case of hurricanes, tsunamis and other natural disasters, the constellation can provide significant help in keeping vital communications links open. In fact, this happened in the fall of 2017 when the constellation provided critical communications after the terrestrial network in Puerto Rico was largely destroyed by Hurricane Maria.

Iridium NEXT, the custom-tailored constellation

Thales Alenia Space and partners have always worked in synergy with Iridium to deliver the satellites in orbit as quickly as possible, while meeting the highest quality standards. To deliver such a large and complex constellation – each of these satellites weighs 850 kg at launch – we had to rethink both our supply chain management and our industrial processes. The revamped supply chain encompassed not only components and subassemblies, but also integration of the satellites themselves so we could ensure a delivery rate of five satellites per month, an unrivaled performance in this class. Over and above the technological aspects, Thales Alenia Space also teamed up with Iridium during the satellite positioning and in-orbit testing phases, from their Satellite Network Operations Center (SNOC), in Leesburg, Virginia.

The global benchmark in communications constellations

With 125 satellites built as prime contractor for three different constellations (Globalstar 2, O3b and Iridium? NEXT), Thales Alenia Space is clearly the world’s preferred partner in low and medium orbit communications satellite constellations. We’re ready and willing to meet new challenges and build the communications constellations that will define the future.

Artistic views: ?Thales Alenia Space/Master Image Programmes; key figures panel: ?Thales Alenia Space/Marchioro