Eutelsat Prepares Its Largest Satellite, W3A, for March Launch

SPACEMART

W3A Vital Statistics Spacecraft: Eurostar E3000 Main body dimensions Height: 5.8 m Length: 2.4 m Width: 2.9 m Solar Array Span deployed: 35 m Launch mass: 4,250 kg DC Power / End of life: 9 600 W Operational lifetime: 15 years + Orbital position: 7 degrees East Frequency bands: Ku and Ka Number of transponders: Full payload of 58 Ku-and Ka-band transponders (50 operational simultaneously) Coverage: Europe, Africa, Middle East

Washington - Feb 13, 2004
Eutelsat S.A., one of the world's largest satellite operators, today announced that the construction of its latest communications satellite, W3A, is complete. The satellite will be delivered today by EADS Astrium to the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan, where it is scheduled to be launched by a Proton rocket supplied by International Launch Services on March 16, 2004.

W3A will enhance Eutelsat's coverage over Europe and into sub-Saharan Africa, and will also introduce innovative new technologies to the company's 7 degrees East location, including Skyplex on-board processing and Ka-band frequencies.

W3A will be positioned in orbit at 7 degrees East, now occupied by Eutelsat's W3 satellite. This is one of Eutelsat's most longstanding and strategic orbital positions, from which the company can provide single-hop and extended access to Europe, Africa, and the Middle East.

In assuming this coveted location, W3A will feature a mix of technologies and coverage zones, so it can continue to deliver all of the services currently provided by the W3 satellite while at the same time opening substantial new opportunities for geographic and service expansion. The W3 satellite, which was launched in 1999 with an expected performance of 4 years, will continue in full commercial service at another orbital location.

Combining Ku-band and Ka-band frequencies as well as Skyplex on-board processing, W3A is the largest satellite ever launched for Eutelsat. It is designed to serve Europe, the Middle East, and North Africa through a high-power footprint optimized for direct-to-home pay TV, video exchanges, VSAT networks, and broadband services.

Eutelsat's 7 degrees East location already serves a blue chip client base which includes the European Broadcasting Union, the Digiturk pay-TV platform with 700,000 subscribers in Turkey, and corporations and service providers such as Reuters, Hughes Network Systems, and Volkswagen for international business networks. Eutelsat also operates consumer broadband services through its OPENSKY(TM) DVB/IP platform at 7 degrees East.

W3A will also feature a new Ku-band beam over sub-Saharan Africa, strengthening and diversifying Eutelsat's capacity for regional African communications, and for connectivity between Africa and Europe for VSAT corporate networks, GSM trunking, broadband services, voice over IP, and video contribution and distribution.

W3A's full payload of 58 transponders (of which 50 can be simultaneously operated) is divided into four missions:

- 35 Ku-band transponders for Europe, the Middle East and North Africa, to assume the full range of services currently carried by W3. This capacity can also be used in conjunction with Eutelsat's Skyplex on-board processing facility, which enables individual digital carriers to be uplinked to the satellite and multiplexed on-board. Up to 11 of the 35 transponders can be connected on the downlink into the widebeam over Europe, North Africa and the Middle East, or into a high-power beam optimized for Southeast Europe and Turkey, and reaching south into Ethiopia and Somalia.

- Up to 12 new Ku-band transponders over Europe, the Middle East, and North Africa to provide additional capacity for broadband services, and can also be used with the Skyplex on-board processing facility.

- Up to eight transponders for two-way communications between Europe and Africa. Six are forward-link transponders providing communications from Europe to Africa; two are return link transponders for communications from Africa to Europe. Communications over Africa are in the Ku-band and over Europe in Ka-band, with switching managed by the satellite. This is ideally suited for access networks with hub stations in Europe and terminals in Africa. Possible applications for this capacity include broadband Internet access, WAN/LAN interconnection, voice over IP, distance-learning, and videoconferencing services for businesses, government, and aid agencies.

- Up to 3 Ku-band transponders for regional telecommunications in sub Saharan Africa, also with possible access to Skyplex.

SPACEMART

Alcatel Signs Contract With Worldsat

Paris - Feb 09, 2004
Alcatel Space announced the signature of a contract to build and deliver, in orbit, a new telecommunications satellite for WORLDSAT, LLC, a SES GLOBAL company. This advanced, high-powered hybrid C/Ku-band satellite, named WORLDSAT-3, will operate over the pacific region.

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