The new year kicked off with a bang as one of their Falcon 9 rockets blasted into orbit from Florida on Wednesday night. This was their first commercial launch of 2024 and get this – it came less than a day after another Falcon 9 launch in California. Now, this latest rocket was carrying a special satellite called Ovzon-3, built by Ovzon, a Swedish company. Ovzon-3 is actually the first ever privately funded Swedish satellite to be launched, which is a huge milestone. It’s headed to geosynchronous orbit about 22,200 miles up where it’ll match Earth’s rotation and stay parked above one spot.
Once it gets there in a few months, Ovzon-3 will undergo testing before getting to work by mid-2024. Its job is to provide secure communications for defense, national security, and public safety customers. The satellite has steerable beams to deliver targeted bandwidth and works with Ovzon’s own terminals.
According to Ovzon’s Chief Marketing Officer, Kristofer Alm, Sweden has a long history in satellites, but this is a first that they’re really proud of. He said secure comms are especially critical right now with conflicts like in Ukraine showing the need for resilient networks.
A little background on Ovzon – the company started in 2006 leasing satellite capacity before deciding to build their own satellite to expand capabilities. Ovzon-3 is the first of 3 planned satellites for them. It faced some challenges with delays and even having to switch from an Ariane 5 to SpaceX after the Ariane retired.
But Ovzon is pumped about the unique service their new satellite can offer. And the SpaceX launch starts them off strong in 2024 as they work toward getting their next satellites Ovzon-4 and 5 up there too. The future is looking bright and spacey for this Swedish satellite startup!
