The company LuxSpace, based in Luxembourg, announced on 9 January 2012, the successful launch of VesselSat2, an Automatic Identification Service (AIS) enabled satellite. VesselSat2 was launched by the China Great Wall Industry Corporation from the Tiayuan Satellite Launch Center (TSLC) in the Shanxi Province of the People’s Republic of China on 8 January 2012 at 10:17 PM EST.

VesselSat2

The satellite was successfully deployed from the Long March launch vehicle into its proper polar orbit. AIS data is used for ship tracking and other maritime navigational and safety efforts. VesselSat2 has already undergone all checkouts and is now expanding ORBCOMM’s satellite AIS service globally, providing complete global coverage, including the North and South Poles. VesselSat2 is the second of two VesselSat spacecrafts. VesselSat1, which was launched into an equatorial orbit on 12 October 2011, is providing full commercial service and significantly outperforming prior space-based technologies. VesselSat1 and VesselSat2 will provide higher probability of vessel detection, greater refresh rates, and improved message delivery speeds for AIS users worldwide.

LuxSpace

LuxSpace provides know-how, expertise as well as products and services to the European and global institutional and industrial market in the fields of space and defense system engineering and application development with focus on:

• Space systems and subsystem design, specification, procurement, manufacturing, integration and test, and quality assurance. This includes: structure, electronics, RF, power supply, simulators, on-board software, GSEs and all major elements of satellites
• Space applications and service development and operation with focus on Earth Observation & Telecommunication Applications & Services