TAMPA, Fla. — Iridium Communications is looking into using small satellites to demonstrate advanced Positioning, Navigation and Timing (PNT) capabilities, CEO Matt Desch said Feb. 4 during the Smallsat Symposium in Silicon Valley.
“Maybe we need to be in the smallsat business for a while,” Desch mused, “even in just an experimental stage [putting up] a few satellites.”
He said small satellites could also support efforts to develop a very high-frequency (VHF) radio system for improving pilot communications with Aireon, which already provides aircraft surveillance services using hosted payloads on Iridium’s satellites.
The company operates 66 Iridium Next spacecraft in low Earth orbit (LEO) for L-band connectivity services, plus additional spares, and expects the current constellation to perform well to at least 2035 following an engineering assessment last year.
“The nice thing is we don’t have to invest a lot of money for a while,” Desch said during the conference.
At about 860 kilograms, Iridium Next satellites are significantly larger than the small satellites typically used for LEO communications, which tend to range from a few dozen to a few hundred kilograms.
While smaller satellites enable faster and more cost-effective deployment for specific missions, Iridium’s larger satellites are designed for extended operational life, supporting its global, cross-linked network.
However, Desch emphasized plans to deploy spacecraft before Iridium Next’s successor are still in very early stages.
“No new constellations at this point,” he added via email.