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ORBCOMM has started commercial service of its first six next-generation OG2 satellites, launched on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket in July.

The OG2 satellites are designed to offer M2M messaging and automatic identification system (AIS) service for ship tracking and other maritime navigational and safety efforts.

The six satellites have undergone in-orbit testing, and have been spaced within their orbital planes.

ORBCOMM said it is now accumulating more than 13 million AIS messages from over 130,000 vessels each day.

ORBCOMM technology and operations executive vice-president John Stolte said: "Customers are experiencing significantly improved service, particularly during parts of the day when we previously had limited satellite coverage.

"The versatility of the OG2 satellites will also enable us to further improve communication capabilities to ensure we are providing our customers with the highest levels of reliability, coverage, service and performance."

In order to provide optimum coverage, the company has carried out satellite thrust manoeuvres to position five OG2 satellites within their plane, referred to as Plane K, while the sixth satellite will be placed in a lower elliptical orbit and will be the first member of Plane L.

ORBCOMM chief executive Marc Eisenberg said: "While we’ve come a long way with the inaugural launch of OG2 service, we are now focused on the second phase of the OG2 constellation and launching the last 11 satellites as part of our second mission, which will enable us to provide new OG2 features and services around the clock and continue to bring AIS ship visibility down from hours to minutes."

Image: ORBCOMM’s OG2 satellites were lifted-off in July SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket. Photo: courtesy of Space Exploration Technologies Corp.

Defence Technology