GeoEye Antenna Issue Could Limit Data Delivery in 2010
An irregularity with the antenna, detected on Dec 11 caused the company to suspend collection for a time. The official statement of the problem: "The irregularity appears to limit the range of movement of GeoEye-1’s downlink antenna, which may in turn affect GeoEye-1’s ability to image and downlink simultaneously."
While some customers who get direct downlinks the company confirmed there would be no impact on imagery delivery to the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency and GeoEye regional affiliates.
The information comes from an SEC filing made on Wednesday. Estimates suggest that if the malfunction is not corrected, it could reduce the company’s total revenue by up to 10 percent for the fourth quarter of 2009 and for all of 2010.
The company scheduled a conference call for early Thursday to discuss operation.
