26 July 2013
Cannes, July 26, 2013 The Alphasat telecommunications satellite, the largest geostationary satellite ever built in Europe, was successfully launched yesterday by Arianespace from the Guiana Space Center in Kourou, French Guiana, using an Ariane 5 rocket. Alphasat carries a telecom payload for the British operator Inmarsat, along with four technology demonstrators for the European Space Agency (ESA). Alphasat is the first satellite based on Alphabus, the extremely powerful platform that was developed with joint support from ESA and the French space agency CNES. Alphasat was built by Astrium, as prime contractor, while Thales Alenia Space is co-developing the Alphabus platform.
Inmarsat signed a public-private partnership (PPP) with ESA in 2007, becoming the first customer for the Alphabus platform, the basis of the Alphasat satellite launched today. Alphasat is Europes new premium, ultra-sophisticated satellite, fully competitive with the highest performance satellites from the United States. It will expand Inmarsats L-band mission capacity by 50%. The operator will provide BGAN (Broadband Global Area Network) mobile phone services to isolated users at sea (ship captains), on land (mining operations, military forces, etc.) and in the air. Positioned in geostationary orbit at 25 East, its coverage zone includes Africa, Europe, the Middle East and Asia. Alphasat weighed 6.65 metric tons at liftoff (14,630 lb). Its platform features a number of technological innovations, including electric propulsion, the highest capacity mechanical/thermal architecture in the world, and modular energy resources (solar panels, radiators for heat dissipation, etc.).
We are delighted to celebrate today the successful launch of this very large satellite, along with Arianespace, Inmarsat and Astrium, with whom we co-developed the Alphabus platform, as well as the French and European space agencies, who provided extensive support throughout this program, said Nathalie Smirnov, Director of Telecommunications at Thales Alenia Space. Alphasat is a premium satellite, incorporating a number of innovations that reflect the world-class telecommunications expertise of European industry. I also wanted to specifically thank Thales Alenia Spaces French, Belgian and Italian teams, who made such an important contribution to ensuring the success of this ambitious program.
About Alphabus
The Alphabus platform, co-developed by Thales Alenia Space and Astrium, was designed for telecommunications satellites with payload power of up to 22 kW. It is qualified for satellites weighing up to 8 metric tons at launch (17,600 lb) or up to 8.8 metric tons (19,360 lb) in the extended version. For platform production, Thales Alenia Space is responsible for the mechanical and thermal subsystems, the avionics (data processing and attitude control), and electric propulsion as well as the mechanical integration of the Alphabus Service Module structure and propulsion system. Astrium is in charge of the electrical power supply, solar panels, chemical propulsion, and the mating, integration and testing of satellites.
The most powerful platform on the market, Alphabus is Europes response to the growing demand for larger communications payloads, delivering more power to support direct TV broadcasting, digital radio broadcasting, and broadband/mobile services. With a propellant capacity of up to 4.2 metric tons, the platform can carry nearly 190 highpower transponders (230 in the extended version), along with a large antenna farm up to 12 main antennas.
About Thales Alenia Space
The European leader in satellite systems and a major player in orbital infrastructures, Thales Alenia Space is a joint venture between Thales (67%) and Finmeccanica (33%). Thales Alenia Space and Telespazio embody the two groups' Space Alliance . Thales Alenia Space sets the global standard in solutions for space telecommunications, radar and optical Earth observation, defense and security, navigation and science. With consolidated revenues of 2.1 billion euros in 2012, Thales Alenia Space has 7,500 employees in France, Italy, Spain, Germany, Belgium and United States. www.thalesaleniaspace.com
Thales Alenia Space Press Contacts
Sandrine Bielecki - Tel: +33 (0)4 92 92 70 94
sandrine.bielecki@thalesaleniaspace.com
Tarik Lahlou - Tel: +33 (0)4 92 92 68 45
tarik.lahlou@thalesaleniaspace.com
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26 July 2013
