Iridium, a publicly owned American company headquartered in McLean, Virginia, United States, was founded in 2000 and employs approximately 940 individuals. The company operates the Iridium satellite constellation, a system comprising 80 satellites, with 66 active and 14 functioning as in-orbit spares. Iridium Satellites provide worldwide voice and data communication, supporting handheld satellite phones, satellite messenger communication devices, and integrated transceivers. They also enable two-way satellite messaging service for supported conventional mobile phones. The system leverages a nearly polar orbit and inter-satellite links to ensure global service availability.
