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When Arianespace placed two communications satellites into geostationary transfer orbit, the CSIR Satellite Applications Centre provided tracking, telemetry and command for the SPACEWAY 3 satellite in the early hours of 15 August 2007.
An Ariane 5 ECA launcher lifted off with a double payload from Europe's Spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana on 14 August 2007 (23:44 Greenwich Mean Time). Boeing's Mission Control Center in El Segundo, California, reported spacecraft acquisition five hours 46 minutes later, when signals were received at the CSIR ground station at Hartebeesthoek. All data showed that SPACEWAY 3 was healthy and operating normally.
SPACEWAY 3 is a Ka-band satellite manufactured by Boeing. Fitted with 68 Ka-band transponders, SPACEWAY 3 has been positioned at 95 degrees west. It will be operated by leading US operator Hughes Network Systems, LLC, as part of a new broadband satellite network to provide multimedia services for corporations, small businesses, government agencies and individuals throughout North America, Alaska, Hawaii and parts of Latin America. Its innovative design includes onboard dynamic multibeam switching to deliver bandwidth on demand and direct site-to-site mesh networking.
The other communications satellite on-board the launcher was BSAT-3a, a satellite in Japan's BS series.
Read more about the launch:
- SPACEWAY 3 Satellite Operational after Successful Launch
- The successful Ariane 5 mission in photos |
