Satellite’s Year 2020...Virtually Experienced
by Martin Jarrold
London, UK, December 4, 2020--The GVF-Satellite Evolution 2020 Webinar Series draws to a close the day following my writing the final words of this column. With 15 events in the main webinar series and a further five produced for embedding within partner online events, it has been an interesting and rewardingly successful response to the practicalities and realities of the limitations on our opportunity to move around the globe physically as governments’ policies have responded to the pandemic.
Various COVID-19 vaccines are now nearing regulatory approval and, in time, the joys of visa applications, airport security queues, busy departure lounges, and boarding delays will be with us again, though I doubt a full return to the world as was – a busy schedule of international travel to attend exhibitions, contribute to meetings, and address conferences. Consequent on recent experience of lockdown and wqork from home (WFH), the realization of effective alternatives to travel that employ the ether to convey ideas and enable exchanges of knowledge will mean a somewhat different world. But, when we do travel, we will be able to get more done because while on the way to one event we will be able to (virtually) attend another via ever improving inflight connectivity… No more competing calendar clashes!
The 2020 Series of GVF Webinars brings a notable year to a notable end, looking at NewSpace, or Space 2.0 if you prefer, and we have one of the big names in space and satellite to moderate on 3 December.
October this year saw the publication of the ‘Handbook of Small Satellites: Technology, Design, Manufacture, Applications, Economics and Regulation’ edited by Dr. Joseph N. Pelton and Scott Madry, to which David Meltzer, GVF’s Secretary General, and I contributed a chapter entitled Small Satellites and Innovations in Terminal and Teleport Design, Deployment, and Operation. Maintaining this connection with Dr. Pelton – award-winning author and editor of some 50 books and over 300 articles in telecommunications and networking, space systems, and future technologies, Founding President of SSPI, and amongst a host of other achievements, Dean Emeritus at the International Space University and member of the Executive Board of the International Association for the Advancement of Space Safety – we were delighted that he agreed to moderate ‘Building NewSpace: Enterprise & Application in a Rapid Growth Ecosystem’.
As we reflect on the events in the series gone by, and move on to plan for the 2021 series, it is important to note that the importance of the various thematic dialogues we have created and produced can still be experienced through the webinar archive on the GVF’s YouTube channel and accessed through the GVF website at https://gvf.org/webinars/. Live audiences for the Zoom broadcasts have ranged in size from around 150 up to more than 500. Overall, the webinars have attracted a total of more than 6,500 views of the combined live events and archived recordings, and the audiences have been spread across 134 countries.
The 2020 series has been thematically wide-ranging, and for details of some of these webinars you can consult some of my previous columns for this publication. Here is the complete archive (reverse chronology) with links, so you don’t miss out:
Building NewSpace: Enterprise & Application in a Rapid Growth Ecosystem
Panel: Telesat; OneWeb; QuadSAT; and Celestia-UK. Moderated by Dr. Joseph N. Pelton, Dean Emeritus, ISU
https://gvf.org/webinar/building-newspace-enterprise-application-in-a-rapid-growth-ecosystem/
Airborne Again? The Future Post-Pandemic Mobility Horizon
Panel: Global Eagle; Intelsat; PJT Partners; and KenCast. Moderated by Colin Thomson, Head of Practice, Infrastructure, Access Partnership
https://gvf.org/webinar/airborne-again-the-future-post-pandemic-mobility-horizon/
Satellite’s Resilience Evolution | Challenging Markets, Robust Connections
(GVF @ Virtual CABSAT)
Panel: Integrasys; Talia; and Telesat. Moderated by David Meltzer, Secretary General, GVF
https://gvf.org/webinar/satellites-resilience-evolution-challenging-markets-robust-connections/
Satellite’s Disruptive Evolution | In Orbit, On Earth
(GVF @ Virtual CABSAT)
Panel: Hughes; Eutelsat; SES; and SpaceBridge. Moderated by David Meltzer, Secretary General, GVF
https://gvf.org/webinar/satellites-disruptive-evolution-in-orbit-on-earth/
In Conversation with ITU: The GVF Asks…
(GVF @ Virtual CABSAT)
An interview of a representative of the ITU Radiocommunication Bureau Space Services Division with David Meltzer, Secretary General, GVF
https://gvf.org/webinar/in-conversation-with-itu-the-gvf-asks/
Humanitarian Assistance & Disaster Response: The Evolving Role of Satellites in Disaster Response
Panel: Eutelsat; Inmarsat; Thuraya; and Knight Sky. Moderated by Riaz Lamak, GVF Lead in Humanitarian Assistance & Disaster Response
https://gvf.org/webinar/humanitarian-assistance-disaster-response-the-evolving-role-of-satellites-in-disaster-response/
The Regional Satellite Operators’ Voice
Panel: ABS; Arabsat; and Yahsat. Moderated by Brent Prokosh, Senior Affiliate Consultant, Euroconsult
https://gvf.org/webinar/the-regional-satellite-operators-voice/
A Regional Perspective on C-Band – The Next Battleground?
Panel: Intelsat; TV Globo; Sentech; and Hispasat. Moderated by Agostinho Linhares, Manager of Spectrum, Orbit & Broadcasting, ANATEL.
https://gvf.org/webinar/a-regional-perspective-on-c-band-the-next-battleground/
C-band: Today & Tomorrow
(GVF @ ConnecTechAsia)
Panel: Intelsat; AsiaSat; Encompass Digital Media; and ISRO. Moderated by Gregg Daffner, CEO, GapSat.
https://gvf.org/webinar/c-band-today-tomorrow/
The Role of Satellite in 5G
(GVF @ ConnecTechAsia)
Panel: GEOshare; MEASAT; and Gilat Satellite Networks. Moderated by Blaine Curcio, Senior Affiliate Consultant, Euroconsult
https://gvf.org/webinar/gvf-connectechasia-the-role-of-satellite-in-5g/
Global Transitions: Digital Economy, Digital Infrastructure, Connected Communities, Digital Planet
Panel: Isotropic Networks; Telstra; and the Digital Transformation Task Force, of the United Nations Environment Program. Moderated by Paul Febvre, CTO, Satellite Applications Catapult
https://gvf.org/webinar/global-transitions-digital-economy-digital-infrastructure-connected-communities-digital-planet/
GEO/MEO/LEO – Satellite in the Finance Markets
Panel: Quilty Analytics; Melody Investment Advisors LP; and Seraphim Space Fund. Moderated by Dara Panahy, Partner, Milbank LLP
https://gvf.org/webinar/geo-meo-leo-satellite-in-the-finance-markets/
Serving Underserved Communities
Panel: Kacific Broadband Satellites; Gilat Satellite Networks; ViaSat; and SES. Moderated by Martin Jarrold, Vice President, International Program Development, GVF
https://gvf.org/webinar/serving-underserved-communities/
Ground Segment: Transformational Antennas II – Will Terminals Realize the Promised LEO Connectivity Revolution?
Panel: OneWeb; Isotropic Systems; ThinKom; SatProf/GVF Training; and Kratos. Moderated by Stéphane Chenard, Senior Consultant, Euroconsult
https://gvf.org/webinar/ground-segment-transformational-antennas-ii-will-terminals-realise-the-promised-leo-connectivity-revolution/
Ground Segment: Transformational Antennas I – End of the Parabolic Paradigm?
Panel: AvL Technologies; Kymeta; Integrasys; and Alcan Systems. Moderated by Jeremy Rose, Partner, COMSYS
https://gvf.org/webinar/ground-segment-transformational-antennas-i-end-o...
5G & Satellite: Driving Forward the ‘Network of Networks’
Panel: Norsat; Liquid Telecom; SpaceBridge. Moderated by Mauro Cordani, 5G & IoT Future Programs, ESA
https://gvf.org/webinar/5g-satellite-driving-forward-the-network-of-networks/
The Satellite Integral Factor II: Will Working from Home Render the Cloud a Different Animal?
Panel: Hughes; SES Networks; and ST Engineering iDirect. Moderated by David Meltzer, Secretary General, GVF
https://gvf.org/webinar/the-satellite-integral-factor-ii-will-working-from-home-render-the-cloud-a-different-animal/
Space Segment Disruptive Evolution: GEO, MEO & LEO – Does a Global Crisis Make a Difference?
Panel: SES; Hughes; and Telesat. Moderated by Richard Hooper, Publisher, Satellite Evolution
https://gvf.org/webinar/space-segment-disruptive-evolution-geo-meo-leo-does-a-global-crisis-make-a-difference/
WRC-23: Spectrum Dialogues in a Post-pandemic World
Panel: Inmarsat; Intelsat; Eutelsat; and ITU. Moderated by David Meltzer, Secretary General, GVF
https://gvf.org/webinar/wrc-23-spectrum-dialogues-in-a-post-pandemic-world/
The Satellite Industry’s Response to the COVID-19 Pandemic
Panel: GVF and GVF Training. Moderated by Richard Hooper, Publisher, Satellite Evolution
https://gvf.org/webinar/the-satellite-industrys-response-to-the-covid-19-pandemic/
Returning to ‘Building NewSpace: Enterprise & Application in a Rapid Growth Ecosystem’, the 3 December moderator-led discussion centers around the interlinked questions “Where are we going in space?”, “Where is NewSpace taking us?”, and “What does NewSpace mean?”If broadly defined as the radical and rapid change away from the now decades-old historical model of the business of how we fund, design, build, launch, and operate satellites, and new ground segment infrastructure and technologies, for communications and Earth observation applications, based on a private sector-led growth cycle which encompasses a space business incubation culture that comprises hundreds of new business units and entrepreneurial ventures serving evolving vertical market segments with new generations of orbital assets, it sounds very grand.
This webinar will look at the concrete realities behind these words. To begin with the panelists will tackle the questions: What does NewSpace or Space 2.0 mean to you and how does it involve your business? Does it mean that you are pursuing technology, clients, and your strategic approach to the future differently? Is it a really big, and radical, change for you, or not? For the following questions and answers, see the video at https://gvf.org/webinar/building-newspace-enterprise-application-in-a-rapid-growth-ecosystem/ -- you will find it 60-minutes well invested.
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Martin Jarrold is Vice-President of International Program Development of GVF. He can be reached at: martin.jarold@gvf.org
