Hispasat
Encyclopedia
Hispasat is a group of Spanish communication satellites . They were developed by the Instituto Nacional de Técnica Aeroespacial
(National Institute for Aeronautical Technology) and the European Space Agency
. It now belongs to Eutelsat
(27.69%) and other private shareholders from Spain.
First satellite to be launched was the Hispasat 1-A, in 11 September 1992 using an Ariane
4, from the Centre Spatial Guyanais, in Kourou
, (French Guiana
) and put into geostationary orbit
36.000 km height of Equator
at 30° West
.
Hispasat-1C and Hispasat-1D were built by Alcatel Space, based on a Spacebus
3000B2 platform.
Amazonas 2 was built by Astrium based on its Eurostar E3000
satellite bus
, for on-orbit delivery in 2009. Arianespace
launched the satellite on October 1, 2009 from ELA-3 at the Guiana Space Centre using an Ariane 5
ECA launch vehicle. The same launch vehicle also carried the COMSATBw-1 communications satellite used by the Bundeswehr
for secure military communications.
Amazonas 2 is operated at 61° West, providing relay services with 54 Ku band
and 10 C band
transponders.
(Digital+) and Portugal
(ZON
and Meo), as well as Spanish and Portuguese speaking countries from Latin America
, such as Cotelsat.
Instituto Nacional de Técnica Aeroespacial
The Instituto Nacional de Técnica Aeroespacial is Spain's space agency. It was founded in 1942, as the Instituto Nacional de Técnica Aeronáutica , and has its headquarters in Torrejón de Ardoz, near Madrid....
(National Institute for Aeronautical Technology) and the European Space Agency
European Space Agency
The European Space Agency , established in 1975, is an intergovernmental organisation dedicated to the exploration of space, currently with 18 member states...
. It now belongs to Eutelsat
Eutelsat
Eutelsat S.A. is a French-based satellite provider. Providing coverage over the entire European continent, as well as the Middle East, Africa, India and significant parts of Asia and the Americas, it is one of the world's three leading satellite operators in terms of revenues.Eutelsat’s satellites...
(27.69%) and other private shareholders from Spain.
First satellite to be launched was the Hispasat 1-A, in 11 September 1992 using an Ariane
Ariane (rocket)
Ariane is a series of a European civilian expendable launch vehicles for space launch use. The name comes from the French spelling of the mythological character Ariadne....
4, from the Centre Spatial Guyanais, in Kourou
Kourou
Kourou is a commune in French Guiana, an overseas region and department of France located in South America.Kourou is the location of the Guiana Space Centre, France and ESA's main spaceport.-Geography:...
, (French Guiana
French Guiana
French Guiana is an overseas region of France, consisting of a single overseas department located on the northern Atlantic coast of South America. It has borders with two nations, Brazil to the east and south, and Suriname to the west...
) and put into geostationary orbit
Geostationary orbit
A geostationary orbit is a geosynchronous orbit directly above the Earth's equator , with a period equal to the Earth's rotational period and an orbital eccentricity of approximately zero. An object in a geostationary orbit appears motionless, at a fixed position in the sky, to ground observers...
36.000 km height of Equator
Equator
An equator is the intersection of a sphere's surface with the plane perpendicular to the sphere's axis of rotation and containing the sphere's center of mass....
at 30° West
30th meridian west
The meridian 30° west of Greenwich is a line of longitude that extends from the North Pole across the Arctic Ocean, Greenland, the Atlantic Ocean, the Southern Ocean, and Antarctica to the South Pole....
.
Past
- Hispasat 1A and 1B: analogue television. End of lifetime reached in 2003, although some transponders on 1B are still active.
- Hispasat 1A was launched Sep 9 1992 by an Ariane 4Ariane 4Ariane 4 was an expendable launch system, designed by the Centre National d'Etudes Spatiales and manufactured and marketed by its subsidiary Arianespace. Ariane 4 was justly known as the ‘workhorse’ of the Ariane family. Since its first flight on 15 June 1988 until the last, on 15 February 2003, it...
rocket.http://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/spacecraftDisplay.do?id=1992-060A - Hispasat 1B was launched Jul 22 1993, also by an Ariane 4.http://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/spacecraftDisplay.do?id=1993-048A
Present
- Hispasat 1C: 24 transponderTransponderIn telecommunication, the term transponder has the following meanings:...
s for uplink and downlink from/to Europe and America. Provides digital television and radio services, as well as VSAT networks. - Hispasat 1D: 28 transponderTransponderIn telecommunication, the term transponder has the following meanings:...
s in Ku bandKu bandThe Kμ band is a portion of the electromagnetic spectrum in the microwave range of frequencies. This symbol refers to —in other words, the band directly below the K-band...
, they replaced Hispasat 1A and 1B for civil services.
Hispasat-1C and Hispasat-1D were built by Alcatel Space, based on a Spacebus
Spacebus
Spacebus is a satellite bus produced at the Cannes Mandelieu Space Center in France by Thales Alenia Space. Spacebuses are typically used for geostationary communications satellites, and fifty-two have been launched since development started in the 1980s. Spacebus was originally produced by...
3000B2 platform.
- Amazonas: launched by a Proton rocketProton rocketProton is an expendable launch system used for both commercial and Russian government space launches. The first Proton rocket was launched in 1965 and the launch system is still in use as of 2011, which makes it one of the most successful heavy boosters in the history of spaceflight...
, located at 61º West61st meridian westThe meridian 61° west of Greenwich is a line of longitude that extends from the North Pole across the Arctic Ocean, Greenland, North America, the Atlantic Ocean, South America, the Southern Ocean, and Antarctica to the South Pole....
with 63 transponders equaling to 36 MHz operating in Ku and C bands.
Amazonas 2
Amazonas 2 was built by Astrium based on its Eurostar E3000
Eurostar (spacecraft)
Eurostar is the brand name for a satellite bus made by Astrium which has been used for a series of spacecraft providing telecommunications services in geosynchronous orbit . More than 60 Eurostar satellites have been ordered to date, of which 45 have been successfully launched since October 1990...
satellite bus
Satellite bus
A satellite bus or spacecraft bus is the general model on which multiple-production satellite spacecraft are often based. The bus is the infrastructure of a spacecraft, usually providing locations for the payload .They are most commonly used for geosynchronous satellites, particularly...
, for on-orbit delivery in 2009. Arianespace
Arianespace
Arianespace SA is a French company founded in 1980 as the world's first commercial space transportation company. It undertakes the production, operation, and marketing of the Ariane 5 rocket launcher as part of the Ariane programme....
launched the satellite on October 1, 2009 from ELA-3 at the Guiana Space Centre using an Ariane 5
Ariane 5
Ariane 5 is, as a part of Ariane rocket family, an expendable launch system used to deliver payloads into geostationary transfer orbit or low Earth orbit . Ariane 5 rockets are manufactured under the authority of the European Space Agency and the Centre National d'Etudes Spatiales...
ECA launch vehicle. The same launch vehicle also carried the COMSATBw-1 communications satellite used by the Bundeswehr
Bundeswehr
The Bundeswehr consists of the unified armed forces of Germany and their civil administration and procurement authorities...
for secure military communications.
Amazonas 2 is operated at 61° West, providing relay services with 54 Ku band
Ku band
The Kμ band is a portion of the electromagnetic spectrum in the microwave range of frequencies. This symbol refers to —in other words, the band directly below the K-band...
and 10 C band
C band
The C band is a name given to certain portions of the electromagnetic spectrum, including wavelengths of microwaves that are used for long-distance radio telecommunications. The IEEE C-band - and its slight variations - contains frequency ranges that are used for many satellite communications...
transponders.
Future
On July 6 Hispasat chosen Space Sytems/Loral as a manufacturer of the Amazonas-3 satellite.Content
Hispasat usually carries television and radio streams from SpainSpain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
(Digital+) and Portugal
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
(ZON
Zon
Żoń is a village in the administrative district of Gmina Margonin, within Chodzież County, Greater Poland Voivodeship, in west-central Poland. It lies approximately south-east of Margonin, south-east of Chodzież, and north of the regional capital Poznań....
and Meo), as well as Spanish and Portuguese speaking countries from Latin America
Latin America
Latin America is a region of the Americas where Romance languages – particularly Spanish and Portuguese, and variably French – are primarily spoken. Latin America has an area of approximately 21,069,500 km² , almost 3.9% of the Earth's surface or 14.1% of its land surface area...
, such as Cotelsat.