Enlarge / The SARah-1 mission is seen on the launch pad in June 2022. (credit score: SpaceX)
On the day earlier than Christmas final 12 months, a Falcon 9 rocket launched from California and put two spy satellites into low-Earth orbit for the armed forces of Germany, that are collectively referred to as the Bundeswehr.
Initially, the mission appeared profitable. The German satellite tv for pc producer, OHB, declared that the 2 satellites had been “safely in orbit.” The addition of the 2 SARah satellites accomplished a next-generation constellation of three reconnaissance satellites, the corporate mentioned.
Nonetheless, six months later, the 2 satellites have but to turn out to be operational. In line with the German publication Der Spiegel, the antennas on the satellites can’t be unfolded. Engineers with OHB have tried to resolve the difficulty by resetting the flight software program, performing maneuvers to vibrate or shake the antennas free, and extra to no avail.
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