US Satellite Company Plans SA Facility

US space company Tyvak Nano-Satellite Systems is set to establish a facility for the integration and testing of small space vehicles in Adelaide’s technology precinct.

The new deal was announced in October at the eighth space forum in Adelaide.

South Australian Premier Steven Marshall said Tyvak was a global leader in space technology and its decision to set up in Adelaide was further evidence that South Australia was Australia’s space state.

“It’s clear that South Australia is now driving the growth of Australia’s space sector and defence industry, creating high-tech jobs and generating interest from interstate and overseas,” he said.

“They join an incredibly active South Australian space sector with nearly 80 organisations, companies and educational institutions, and a workforce of roughly 800 people.

“More locally, Tyvak has unveiled their first Australian ground station antenna at Nova Systems in Peterborough and in February they entered into an agreement to build nanosatellites for South Australian company Myriota, another major boost to the local supply chain.”

Tyvak Australia director Dr Marco Villa said Tyvak looked forward to supporting more local organisations and continuing to provide solutions for Australia’s space needs.

 “By hiring local talent, tapping into local resources and applying our agile aerospace processes, we aim to accelerate commercial and defence space missions while growing the local supply chain and national space ecosystem,” he said.

Tyvak, based in California, is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Terran Orbital Corporation, a global leader in miniaturisation of space technologies.

The company’s website says more than 200 of its satellites have been launched around the world. Tyvak produces a range of CubeSats and larger microsats for different missions with prices starting at US$500,000 for the Trestles 6U CubeSat.

“We specialise in spacecraft development, launch services and on-orbit operations to deliver small satellites for critical missions across a variety of applications in LEO, GEO and beyond Earth orbit and vehicle classes, including nanosatellites and microsatellites,” the company said.

During the space forum, Premier Marshall urged more space companies to set up shop at the Defence and Space Landing Pad at Lot Fourteen.

That’s a dedicated building that is already home to the Australian Space Agency, SmartSat CRC, Mission Control Centre and Space Discovery Centre.

By: Max Blenkin

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