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Kepler Communications raised $16,000,000 to build and launch its first-generation constellation of up to 15 satellites.
Kepler Communications’ Ku-band satellite can reach downlink speeds of 40 Megabits per second and uplink speeds of 20 Megabits per second.
ÅAC Clyde is building a third prototype satellite for Kepler Communications with participation from the Satellite Applications Catapult for a planned spring 2019 launch on an unannounced rocket.
Kepler Communications plans a second generation of 50 satellites in orbit by the end of 2021.
Kepler Communications uses polar orbits for its satellites, producing store-and-forward latency around 90 minutes at the poles and 12 to 24 hours at the equator with a single satellite.
Kepler Communications plans the full 140-satellite constellation to be operational by the end of 2022.
The Kepler spacecraft launched in 2009 to search for exoplanets by detecting periodic dips in starlight from transits.
Kepler lost two of its four reaction wheels in 2013 and has used the spacecraft’s thrusters as an alternate control mechanism since then.
Kepler has a second of three prototype satellites from ÅAC Clyde scheduled to launch later 2018.
Kepler is planning a constellation of 140 Ku-band satellites by 2022 to connect Internet of Things devices and serve as an in-space relay for other spacecraft using intersatellite links.
Based on the tests, Kepler expects to achieve a 10 Mbps downlink and 10 Mbps uplink connection with a 30-square-centimeter Phasor antenna.
An alternative pointing approach using two functioning wheels, thrusters, and solar pressure allowed Kepler to resume operations under the K2 extended mission.
NASA is monitoring the health and performance of Kepler as the exact amount of remaining fuel is difficult to measure.
NASA put Kepler into a no-fuel-use safe mode in early July 2023 after detecting an anomalous drop in fuel pressure.
Removing the thruster from precision pointing will make Kepler less balanced against solar pressure.
Engineers revived Kepler in early August 2023 to transmit Campaign 18 data before returning it to safe mode.
NASA's Kepler spacecraft resumed observations on August 29, 2023.
One thruster on Kepler showed unreliable performance, but removing it from use was estimated to yield acceptable performance.
Kepler's Campaign 19 is a series of observations that spans nearly three months.
During its prime mission, Kepler discovered more than 2,300 confirmed exoplanets and many candidate exoplanets.