Community hub
Recent from talks
Knowledge base stats:
Talk channels stats:
Members stats:
Mission Extension Vehicle
The Mission Extension Vehicle (MEV) is a spacecraft that extends the functional lifetime of another spacecraft through on-orbit satellite servicing. They are 2010s-design small-scale in-space satellite-refueling spacecraft first launched in 2019. The MEV spacecraft grew out of a concept proposed in 2011 by ViviSat, a 50/50 joint venture of aerospace firms US Space and Alliant Techsystems (ATK). The joint venture was created in 2010 for the purpose of designing, producing and operating the MEV program.
Since the original conception of the MEV program by the ViviSat company, the Vivisat venture was shut down for a time, and the company was dissolved by Orbital ATK in April 2016. The MEV program continued on as a solo-project of Orbital ATK, which was subsequently purchased by Northrop Grumman in 2018. The MEV program continued under Northrop Grumman and in 2019, launched MEV-1 to dock and reposition Intelsat 901, an objective reached in April 2020. Servicing an on-orbit satellite in this way was a space industry first for a telerobotically operated spacecraft, as satellite servicing had previously been accomplished only with on-orbit human assistance in the several missions to service the Hubble Space Telescope.
ViviSat proposed the Mission Extension Vehicle (MEV) concept in 2011. At that time, the project was planned to be a 50/50 joint venture of aerospace firms US Space and Alliant Techsystems (ATK), to operate as a small-scale in-space satellite-refueling spacecraft. In the joint venture, ATK was to be responsible for the technical design, production and operation of the satellite, and US Space would be responsible for the financing and business-side of operations.
By March 2012, ViviSat was finalizing its design and was "ready to build" the servicing spacecraft, but had announced no customers for the Mission Extension Vehicle services.
In April 2014, ATK announced that it would merge its Aerospace and Defense Groups with Orbital Sciences Corporation.
In the timeframe 2013–2016, the partners ATK and US Space fell out concerning the joint ViviSat-venture. The situation ended with ATK (which in the meantime in 2015 had merged with Orbital Sciences Corporation to become Orbital ATK) taking control and dissolving the ViviSat-company on 5 April 2016. The MEV program continued as Orbital-ATK only project.
In December 2017, the US telecommunications regulator approved a plan submitted by Orbital ATK to use an MEV to service an Intelsat satellite, Intelsat 901, that was originally launched to geostationary orbit in June 2001 for a planned in-service life of 13 years. That satellite had already been replaced in orbit. The first MEV, MEV-1, was then planned to launch with Eutelsat's Eutelsat 5 West B commsat, no earlier than 2019. MEV-1 also needed a licence from National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). The NOAA license is required because the MEV-1 has cameras for docking that could also image the Earth, thus necessitating a remote-sensing license.
In 2018, Orbital ATK was acquired by Northrop Grumman to become Northrop Grumman Innovation Systems. The MEV program continues under this new company.
Hub AI
Mission Extension Vehicle AI simulator
(@Mission Extension Vehicle_simulator)
Mission Extension Vehicle
The Mission Extension Vehicle (MEV) is a spacecraft that extends the functional lifetime of another spacecraft through on-orbit satellite servicing. They are 2010s-design small-scale in-space satellite-refueling spacecraft first launched in 2019. The MEV spacecraft grew out of a concept proposed in 2011 by ViviSat, a 50/50 joint venture of aerospace firms US Space and Alliant Techsystems (ATK). The joint venture was created in 2010 for the purpose of designing, producing and operating the MEV program.
Since the original conception of the MEV program by the ViviSat company, the Vivisat venture was shut down for a time, and the company was dissolved by Orbital ATK in April 2016. The MEV program continued on as a solo-project of Orbital ATK, which was subsequently purchased by Northrop Grumman in 2018. The MEV program continued under Northrop Grumman and in 2019, launched MEV-1 to dock and reposition Intelsat 901, an objective reached in April 2020. Servicing an on-orbit satellite in this way was a space industry first for a telerobotically operated spacecraft, as satellite servicing had previously been accomplished only with on-orbit human assistance in the several missions to service the Hubble Space Telescope.
ViviSat proposed the Mission Extension Vehicle (MEV) concept in 2011. At that time, the project was planned to be a 50/50 joint venture of aerospace firms US Space and Alliant Techsystems (ATK), to operate as a small-scale in-space satellite-refueling spacecraft. In the joint venture, ATK was to be responsible for the technical design, production and operation of the satellite, and US Space would be responsible for the financing and business-side of operations.
By March 2012, ViviSat was finalizing its design and was "ready to build" the servicing spacecraft, but had announced no customers for the Mission Extension Vehicle services.
In April 2014, ATK announced that it would merge its Aerospace and Defense Groups with Orbital Sciences Corporation.
In the timeframe 2013–2016, the partners ATK and US Space fell out concerning the joint ViviSat-venture. The situation ended with ATK (which in the meantime in 2015 had merged with Orbital Sciences Corporation to become Orbital ATK) taking control and dissolving the ViviSat-company on 5 April 2016. The MEV program continued as Orbital-ATK only project.
In December 2017, the US telecommunications regulator approved a plan submitted by Orbital ATK to use an MEV to service an Intelsat satellite, Intelsat 901, that was originally launched to geostationary orbit in June 2001 for a planned in-service life of 13 years. That satellite had already been replaced in orbit. The first MEV, MEV-1, was then planned to launch with Eutelsat's Eutelsat 5 West B commsat, no earlier than 2019. MEV-1 also needed a licence from National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). The NOAA license is required because the MEV-1 has cameras for docking that could also image the Earth, thus necessitating a remote-sensing license.
In 2018, Orbital ATK was acquired by Northrop Grumman to become Northrop Grumman Innovation Systems. The MEV program continues under this new company.