Isle of Man, 24th April 2017 – Mark Dickinson, Vice President of Satellite Operations Inmarsat, has been elected as the new Chairman of the Space Data Association (SDA), an international non-profit association of satellite operators that supports the controlled, reliable and efficient sharing of space environment and RF spectrum data.
Dr Dickinson succeeds the outgoing SDA Chairman, Mark Rawlins, Eutelsat, who will continue as a Director of the group.
In his role at Inmarsat, Mark Dickinson is responsible for the operation of Inmarsat’s fleet of geostationary telecommunication satellites, as well part of the team defining the specifications and following the development of Inmarsat’s future satellites.
The SDA has also announced that Jean-Luc Froeliger is joining as a Director to represent Intelsat, replacing Mark Daniels.
The SDA was set up in 2009 by the international commercial satellite operator community to coordinate activity and safeguard space-based infrastructure in the space environment in which satellites are operating.
“The SDA has always taken steps to best ensure the future of the entire satellite industry” Mark Dickinson stated “I am happy to play a leading role in that future, especially at such an exciting time for the SDA. The upcoming launch of SDC 2.0 is an important step for the industry, helping us to secure the future of space safety.”
SDC 2.0 will be available to all members of the SDA, has a highly accurate, independently generated catalogue of space objects which will grow to include objects larger than 20cm, both in and traversing the geostationaryarc, allowing for transparent and actionable collision warnings. The service also features functionality to combat Radio Frequency Interference (RFI), including the construction of geolocation scenarios and a Carrier ID database.
About the SDA
The Space Data Association Limited (SDA) is a non-profit international association of satellite operators that supports the controlled, reliable and efficient sharing of data critical to the safety and integrity of the space environment and the RF spectrum. It maintains the Space Data Center, a database of high-accuracy orbital information, which is operated by Analytical Graphics, Inc. (AGI) of Exton, PA. Established in the Isle of Man the SDA is open to all satellite operators and other participants. Membership information can be found at www.space-data.org.
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