Harris Corporation announced that it has signed a licensing agreement with Iridium Satellite LLC for long-term use of the Harris OS/COMET satellite command and control system, an advanced satellite telemetry tracking and command (TT&C) solution that features commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) design and high levels of flexibility.
The agreement gives Iridium the right to use OS/COMET for the life of the Iridium satellite network, and provides options for use of future upgrades to OS/COMET. The announcement was made during ITC/USA 2002, held October 21-24, at the Town and Country Resort and Convention Center in San Diego.
“OS/COMET’s advanced architecture and features have allowed Iridium to automate the command and control of its constellation of satellites so that only two operators are required to control the entire fleet,” said Bruce Buckley, director of Information Technology and Integration Systems (ITIS) programs for Harris Technical Services Corporation (HTSC).
“This new agreement between Iridium and HTSC solidifies our relationship with Iridium and provides a pathway to continue enhancing the only industry solution that controls a constellation of 66 satellites, plus spares, from a single control center.”
Designed for government and commercial applications, OS/COMET is used to support both single-satellite missions, and the largest and most complex satellite networks deployed today, including Iridium. OS/COMET’s open architecture enables users to grow and maintain an OS/COMET system without the need for additional software or services from the COTS provider.
OS/COMET v4.2, the newest version of the product, incorporates the latest satellite command and control technology while maintaining the proven OS/COMET architecture which has the capability of flying large and diverse fleets of satellites with multiple mission types and platforms.
