SmallSat GEO sees Terran Orbital enter geosynchronous orbit market

The satellite manufacturer – based in Boca Raton, Florida – says SmallSat GEO is aimed at the communications market and will provide higher power and performance than may have been needed in low-earth orbit (LEO). The company is also promising a significantly lower cost with a faster delivery timeline than traditional GEO systems.

Terran highlights that the geosynchronous market is moving more towards small satellites with more GEO spacecraft being ordered in the small size class.

“We can bring our LEO small satellite heritage to GEO and provide the agile customization that our customers have come to expect and value,” said Marc Bell, Co-Founder, Chairman, and CEO at Terran Orbital.

SmallSat GEO

In terms of its adaptable payload, SmallSat GEO system allows for independently steerable multi-beam arrays and supports multiple reflectors.

With a nominal lifetime of seven years, the plug-and-play modular design can support a 300kg payload with 3kW of power. It is compatible with multiple launchers and launch options such as dedicated, rideshare, or upcoming Orbital Transfer Vehicles, reports Terran. You can read more details here.

The craft will be unveiled this week at the SATELLITE 2024 trade show in Washington DC.

Enterprise satellites

Last November, Terran Orbital announced additional configurations of its new, largest Enterprise satellite platform, for LEO, aimed at large constellation deployment.

The company highlighted a new power storage system to reduce weight and increase the power available to the payload.

Specifically, there were three configurations: A, B, and C. Each configuration coming standard with Optical Inter-Satellite Link (OISL) functionality and a large, flat deck optimised for communication and RF payloads.

Image: Terran Orbital

See also: Terran Orbital expands its production, supporting seven satellite buses