SSC to support OHB Heinrich Hertz mission with critical ground segment services
Swedish Space Corporation (SSC) has been contracted by OHB System AG to provide TT&C, LEOP and Emergency S-Band support for Germany’s new communications satellite Heinrich Hertz, also known as “H2SAT”. The spacecraft is scheduled the be launched on Friday 16 June 2023 from Kourou, French Guiana.
“We have considered buying GSaaS from day one as we knew that we would not invest in the ground infrastructure, used for short but critical periods, ourselves. We prefer to augment our network as needed through a service approach that offers flexibility. Now we have found a ground segment provider that can support our growing requirements over time,” says Alan Moorhouse, Head of Satellite Operations at OHB-DC.
The Heinrich Hertz mission is managed by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy (BMWi), while the Space Administration of the German Aerospace Center (DLR) is responsible for planning and implementation of the project. The development and operation of the spacecraft is performed by OHB on behalf of DLR.
As a subcontractor to OHB, SSC will provide satellite control and traffic monitoring for the spacecraft through TT&C, LEOP and Emergency S-band support. Six SSC CONNECT ground stations will support the mission: Esrange in Kiruna, South Point in Hawaii, Santiago in Chile and WASC in Australia, as well as Bangalore in India and Hartebeesthoek in South Africa.
“Sweden and Germany have always had strong ties in space, and SSC’s close relationship with OHB has continued to grow over the years. The contract that we announce today is a milestone illustrating this. Our long experience, worldwide ground station locations and global network capabilities is what makes us able to meet the high requirements of this mission,” says Nicholas Priborsky, President of the Satellite Management Services division at SSC.
With a design life of 15 years, H2Sat is set to explore and test new communications technologies in Space under extreme conditions. The aim is to understand how to expand commercial satellite communications for geostationary satellites. It will help, for instance, to determine how broadband communications can result in high data rates for mobile end-users. The spacecraft will also provide secure and independent communications for the German Armed Forces.
Contact: Philip Ohlsson, Head of Communications, +46 (0)70 721 70 26, philip.ohlsson@sscspace.com
About SSC: Swedish Space Corporation (SSC) helps Earth benefit from Space. Since the 70’s, SSC has helped space organizations, companies, other commercial actors and research institutes to get access to Space. Our products and services enable successful space projects within Earth observation, telecommunications, security, meteorology, navigation and positioning, scientific research and other applications. Through our local presence on all continents and 650 committed employees, we offer specialist expertise in satellite communications, spacecraft operations, rocket and balloon systems, launch services, flight test services and data analytics. Among our strongest assets are Esrange Space Center in northern Sweden, set to become first to launch satellites from continental Europe in 2023, as well as one of the world's largest commercial ground station networks for satellite communications. Via our subsidiary GlobalTrust, we also leverage satellite data and analytics applications to help companies, organizations and governments to develop and deliver sustainability strategies. https://sscspace.com/
