GUILDFORD, England, July 30 /PRNewswire/ --     With the successful launch last night of the UK-DMC2
and Deimos-1 satellites, SSTL has expanded the capability of the
world's only spaced-based disaster monitoring system, the Disaster
Monitoring Constellation (DMC). The British built satellites were
launched onboard a Dnepr rocket from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in
Kazakhstan at 18:45 UTC on Wednesday, 29th July 2009.

Following confirmation of separation from the launch vehicle,
ground stations in Guildford and Spain established contact with UK-DMC2
and Deimos-1 respectively and commissioning of the satellites is now
progressing.

Both satellites will bring significant enhancements to the DMC,
which provides Earth observation imagery for a range of commercial and
environmental applications as well as to the International Charter:
Space and Major Disasters. The first satellite in the DMC, AlSAT-1,
was launched in 2002 and with the addition of these further two
satellites the total number of operational DMC "eyes in the sky" has
been increased to six.

UK-DMC2 and Deimos-1 were designed and built by SSTL at the
Company's state-of -the-art facilities in Guildford UK. Deimos-1 was
manufactured for Spanish customer, Deimos Space, while UK-DMC2 is owned
by SSTL and will be operated by the Company's subsidiary, DMCii. The
latest spacecraft continue SSTL's rapid advances in innovative space
solutions with each satellite having ten times the capability of the
satellites launched just five years ago.

SSTL's Chairman, Sir Martin Sweeting, commented: "These latest two
satellites will advance the capability of the DMC, an international
constellation conceived and established by SSTL to provide affordable
Earth observation space assets to all, and continue to demonstrate the
commercial value of space as evidenced by SSTL's investment in UK-DMC2.
The launch is also timely as the UK Government has just launched the
Space Innovation & Growth Team (IGT) tasked with creating a 20-year
strategy for the space industry that will build Britain's leadership in
space. SSTL welcomes the initiative and is represented on the team."

   UK-DMC2 and Deimos-1 were launched alongside four other satellites
onboard the Dnepr launch vehicle: DubaiSat-1, AprizeSat-3, AprizeSat-4
and Nanosat-1B.

To find out more about UK-DMC2, its future role in disaster relief
and Earth observation visit http://www.sstl.co.uk/Missions/UK-DMC2 

   About SSTL

   http://www.sstl.co.uk/About_SSTL

   Notes to Editors:  

   This press release can be downloaded as a Word or Pdf document at the
following url: http://www.ballard.co.uk/sstl/

SSTL Contact:
    Audrey Nice, Surrey Satellite Technology Limited
    Tel: +44(0)1483-804200, Email: a.nice@sstl.co.uk

    Press Contact:
    Robin Wolstenholme, Ballard Communications Management (BCM)
    Tel: +44(0)1306-882288, Email: r.wolstenholme@ballard.co.uk