Third time (un)lucky? Hotbird 7A launch 9th March-> 10th March

Zaphod

ARIANESPACE: launch of SPAINSAT - HOT BIRDTM 7A postponed to Thursday, March 9, 2006

Following the postponement of the launch slated for Friday, February 24, 2006, Alcatel Alenia Space has performed a complete verification of the telemetry signal system of Eutelsat's HOT BIRDTM 7A satellite. As a result the satellite was confirmed to be in perfect health and ready for launch.

Furthermore, on Saturday, February 25, the disconnection of a cryogenic purging umbilical line between the launch table mast and the launch vehicle led Arianespace to roll back the launch vehicle to the Final Assembly Building for the change of the connector.

The launch is now scheduled during the night of Thursday, March 9, 2006, as soon as possible within the following launch window:
GMT: From 22h06 to 23h13 on March 9, 2006

11.304, H, 27500, 3/4 on Hotbird 13E.
Business TV: Apid 341, Vpid 340, PCR 340
Possibly covered by Euronews as well.

Zaphod

Currently delayed by 20 min or so.

Live webstream:
http://www.videocorner.tv/index.php?langue=en

Zaphod

Leaking helium or something. The Frenchies are off to buy a few rolls of gaffer tape. Tune in tomorrow evening, same bat time, same bat channel.

Shortage of gaffer tape in Kourou:

Arianespace will not try today to launch the Ariane 5 rocket. The
company says the next attempt has been rescheduled for Saturday at 2205
GMT (5:05 p.m. EST). The launch window will extend 67 minutes to 2312
GMT (6:12 p.m. EST).

Zaphod

Fáilte arís a chairde Gael to the latest installment of "Will they? Won't they?" sponsored by Arianespace.

Systems 'vert' and countdown started.

Zaphod

Dix minutes.

Zaphod

Top!

Zaphod

Separation of both birds successful & now placed in geostationary transfer orbit.

HB7A will be moved to 9.8E, tested and then placed at 13E to replace HB1.

HB8 scheduled for launch in May. HB4 due to be moved from 13E to 7W along with NileSat 101 and 102.

watty

Highest BW web video I've seen 450k

Zaphod

Evry, France, March 11, 2006

Another successful Ariane launch:
SPAINSAT and HOT BIRDTM 7A in orbit

On Saturday evening, March 11, Arianespace placed two satellites into geostationary transfer orbit: SPAINSAT for the Spanish military operator Hisdesat, and HOT BIRDTM 7A for the European operator Eutelsat.

First launch of 2006: 22nd successful Ariane 5 launch, 12th in a row

Today's successful Ariane 5 launch, the 12th in a row and 22nd overall, shows that Arianespace launch services are more than ever the best fit with the needs of operators around the world.

In just over six months, Arianespace has used five Ariane 5s to launch nine satellites - sending more than 33 tons of total payload into geostationary transfer orbit!

Today, Ariane 5 is the only commercial launcher in service capable of simultaneously launching two payloads and giving customers the performance, flexibility and competitiveness they expect.

Launches for two prestigious operators

Following the launch of XTAR-Eur in February 2005, Hisdesat once again called on the European launcher for its new SPAINSAT satellite. Spainsat will take over for the Secomsat military payloads launched by Arianespace in 1992 and 1993 on the Hispasat 1A and 1B satellites. SPAINSAT is the 25th military payload to use an Ariane launcher.

Arianespace and Eutelsat have built up a very fruitful, uninterrupted partnership over the last 22 years. More than half of Eutelsat's fleet has been orbited by the European launcher. Hot Bird 7A is the 21st Eutelsat satellite launched by Arianespace.

SPAINSAT /HOT BIRDTM 7A mission at a glance

The mission was carried out by an Ariane 5 ECA launcher from Europe's Spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana. Liftoff was on Saturday, March 11 at 07:32 p.m. local time in Kourou (05:32 p.m. in Washington, D.C., 22:32 GMT and 11:32 p.m. in Paris and Madrid).

Provisional parameters at injection of the cryogenic upper stage (ESC-A) were:
Perigee: 248.7 km for a target of 248.6 km (±3)
Apogee: 35,938 km for a target of 35,966 km (±160)
Inclination: 4.98 degrees for a target of 5.00 degrees (±0.06º)

SPAINSAT is the first Spanish satellite dedicated to secure government communications. Its operator is Hisdesat, a company founded in 2001 by Hispasat, INSA (a wholly-owned subsidiary of INTA), EADS CASA Espacio, Indra and Sener. Its first customer is the Spanish ministry of defense. Weighing about 3,700 kg at launch, SPAINSAT was built by Space Systems/Loral in Palo Alto, California. It will be positioned at 30 degrees West, over the Atlantic, and will have 13 X-band transponders and one Ka-band transponder. Spanish industry will supply several major subassemblies, plus the ground segment.

HOT BIRDTM 7A will be located at 13 degrees East, Eutelsat's flagship orbital position for TV and radio broadcasting. Built by Alcatel Alenia Space, HOT BIRDTM 7A will weigh about 4,100 kg at launch. Fitted with 38 Ku-band transponders, it is designed to renew current capacity and provide redundancy for the HOT BIRD family at this orbital position. Eutelsat now transmits more than 850 television channels and 550 radio stations from this spot to some 110 million households in Europe, the Middle East and North Africa.

http://www.arianespace.com/site/news/releases/06_03_11_release_index.html

Ulsterman 1690

Does this mean more channels at 13E or is it a replacment for an existing bird ?

L1011

Ulsterman 1690 wrote:

Does this mean more channels at 13E or is it a replacment for an existing bird ?

A little of column A, a little of column B

Hotbird 8 is also arriving by the summer. After that, HB1 and HB4 are going at the very least, but 7A and 8 have much more capacity than that.

Zaphod

Plans for moving HB3 from 13E as well:

"This means that the planned Hot Bird 9 will be dramatically advanced from a planned 2008-2009 schedule, allowing Eutelsat to relocate Hot Bird 3 sooner than expected. Eutelsat will mostly finance HB9 from its own resources, other than about €80m of net capital expenditure split between 2007-2009. HB3, when relocated, will go to one of three possible locations. One option is “near 13 deg East in such a way that a [double LNB] could receive broadcasts from both locations. Other options are being studied and a decision will be made in the next month or so, although nothing will be moved much before June or July this year. Our preferred option is not to be too far from 13 deg East
[Eutelsat’s major ‘Hot Bird’ position], which gives us additional security,” said Berretta."

www.satmagazine.com