Foxconn has officially inked a Launch Services Agreement (LSA) with Exolaunch to secure mission management, orbital hardware deployment, and associated services for its inaugural fleet of low Earth orbit (LEO) satellites.
Exolaunch, a prominent player in the emerging space industry, is renowned for its rideshare launch services and expertise in space logistics, with a primary focus on deploying a variety of small satellites, ranging from cubesats to microsatellites. Armed with a decade of spaceflight experience and a track record of over 320 satellite deployment as of October 2023, Exolaunch is well-equipped to ensure the seamless launch and orbital placement of Foxconn's two satellites, named PEARL-1H and PEARL-1C.
The Pearl is a substantial 6U CubeSat, weighing in at 8.8 kilograms. Its design serves the purpose of validating concepts in B5G and 6G satellite communication and experimentation. The Pearl is destined to orbit in a Sun-synchronous pattern at an altitude of 525 kilometers.
These satellites are set to ascend into orbit as part of SpaceX's Transporter-9 mission, slated to take place at the Vandenberg Space Force Base in California on the Space Launch Complex 4E (SLC-4E), with the launch anticipated no earlier than November 2023.
This significant development not only underscores Foxconn's unwavering commitment to a comprehensive low Earth orbit satellite strategy but also serves as a testament to Taiwan's potential to establish itself as a "satellite systems integration company." This strategic move positions Taiwan to venture into the international space industry by efficiently merging the components of the satellite industry's supply chain.
A successful launch and the completion of the payload mission could propel Taiwan's low Earth orbit satellite industry chain, enabling it to establish a solid presence in the ground segment where it already enjoys an advantage. Furthermore, it offers an entry point into the space segment, which typically carries a higher threshold for engagement, and paves the way for capitalizing on satellite service opportunities.
This launch experiment not only facilitates the conceptual validation of low Earth orbit satellite broadband communication but also exemplifies an outstanding industry-academia collaboration, demonstrating Foxconn's readiness to meet the challenges of the innovative new space industry. The inaugural satellite project is designed to showcase its ability to meet the demands of this dynamic sector, encompassing critical components, subsystems, and assembly integration testing.
