17 Facts About Iridium Communications

Iridium Communications Inc is a publicly traded American company headquartered in McLean, Virginia.

The first Iridium Communications call was made by Vice President of the United States Al Gore to Gilbert Grosvenor, the great-grandson of Alexander Graham Bell and chairman of the National Geographic Society.

Iridium Communications derives its name from the chemical element iridium, which has an atomic number of 77, equaling the initial number of satellites which were planned to be deployed.

Iridium Communications encountered programming problems on Iridium's website, and a "run-around" from the company's representatives.

In December 2000, the US government stepped in to save Iridium Communications by providing $72 million in exchange for a two-year contract and approving the fire-sale of the company from US bankruptcy court for $25 million, in March 2001.

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Iridium Communications service was restarted in 2001 by the newly founded Iridium Communications Satellite LLC, which was owned by a group of private investors.

On February 10,2009, Iridium Communications 33 collided with a defunct Russian satellite, Kosmos 2251,800 kilometres over Siberia.

Iridium Communications replaced its original constellation by sending 75 new Iridium Communications satellites into space on SpaceX Falcon 9 rockets.

In June 2010, Iridium Communications announced a fixed-price contract with Thales Alenia Space for the design and construction of the next-generation satellites for the upgraded constellation.

Two weeks later, Iridium Communications announced a $492 million contract designating the Falcon 9 as a major provider of launch services for the Iridium Communications NEXT campaign, becoming the largest single commercial launch deal ever signed.

Iridium Communications manages several operations centers, including Tempe, Arizona and Leesburg, Virginia, United States.

Iridium Communications is a founding member of the Hosted Payload Alliance, a satellite industry alliance program.

In January 2020, the Iridium Communications constellation was certified for use in the Global Maritime Distress and Safety System.

Iridium Communications system requires 66 active satellites in low Earth orbit to complete its constellation and spare satellites are kept in-orbit to serve in case of failure.

In January 2017, Iridium Communications began to launch its next-generation satellites through its $3 billion launch campaign, Iridium Communications NEXT.

Iridium Communications offers four satellite handsets: the 9555,9575A, the Extreme, and the Extreme PTT.

Several other Iridium Communications-based telephones exist, such as payphones, and equipment intended for installation on ships and aircraft.