DFS Kopernikus-3 (or Deutscher Fernmelde Satellit-3 and Hellas Sat 1) was a

communications satellite A communications satellite is an artificial satellite that relays and amplifies radio telecommunication signals via a Transponder (satellite communications), transponder; it creates a communication channel between a source transmitter and a Rad ...

operated by

Deutsche Telekom Deutsche Telekom AG (, ; often just Telekom, DTAG or DT; stylised as ·T·) is a partially state-owned German telecommunications company headquartered in Bonn and the largest telecommunications provider in Europe by revenue. It was formed in 199 ...

Satellite description

The

DFS Kopernikus DFS Kopernikus (meaning ''Deutscher Fernmeldesatellit Kopernikus'') was the name of three geostationary satellites of Deutsche Bundespost and later Deutsche Telekom AG. They are no longer in use. DFS Kopernicus-3 When DFS Kopernikus-3 was near ...

series of satellites debuted in 1989 with the third being launched in 1992. Ordered in 1983 and produced by the GESAT consortium of MBB (flight segment prime contractor),

Siemens Siemens AG ( ) is a German multinational technology conglomerate. It is focused on industrial automation, building automation, rail transport and health technology. Siemens is the largest engineering company in Europe, and holds the positi ...

(overall prime contractor),

ANT Nachrichtentechnik Ants are eusocial insects of the family Formicidae and, along with the related wasps and bees, belong to the order Hymenoptera. Ants evolved from vespoid wasp ancestors in the Cretaceous period. More than 13,800 of an estimated total of 22, ...

(payload),

Standard Elektrik Lorenz C. Lorenz AG (1880–1958) was a German electrical and electronics firm primarily located in Berlin. It innovated, developed, and marketed products for electric lighting, telegraphy, telephony, radar, and radio. It was acquired by ITT in 1930 an ...

(digital switching equipment), and Dornier Systems (ground control system), DFS spacecraft are smaller than TV-Sat: on-station mass is 850 kg with a 15.4 m solar array span providing up to 1.5 kW of electrical power. The satellite also used a propulsion system S400. The communications payload includes ten 14/11-12

GHz The hertz (symbol: Hz) is the unit of frequency in the International System of Units (SI), often described as being equivalent to one event (or Cycle per second, cycle) per second. The hertz is an SI derived unit whose formal expression in ter ...

transponders In telecommunications, a transponder is a device that, upon receiving a signal, emits a different signal in response. The term is a blend of ''transmitter'' and ''responder''. In air navigation or radio frequency identification, a flight trans ...

with five spares and one experimental 30/20 GHz transponder with one spare. At the end of 1994, DFS 1-3 were stationed at 33.5° East, 28.5° East, and 23.5° East, respectively. Like TV-Sat, the DFS Kopernikus series has been concluded.

Hellas Sat 1

DFS 3 was leased to the

Greek Greek may refer to: Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor of all kno ...

company

Hellas Sat Hellas Sat Consortium Ltd (Hellas Sat) is the owner and a wholesaler of capacity and services of the Greek/Cypriot Hellas Sat 2 satellite, an Astrium Eurostar E2000+, which was launched successfully on 13 May 2003 to the 39th eastern meridian or ...

in 2002 as a stop-gap measure. It was retired in February 2003.

Launch

DFS-Kopernikus 3 was launched by a

Delta II Delta II was an expendable launch system, originally designed and built by McDonnell Douglas, and sometimes known as the Thorad Delta 1. Delta II was part of the Delta rocket family, derived directly from the Delta 3000, and entered service in ...

launch vehicle A launch vehicle is typically a rocket-powered vehicle designed to carry a payload (a crewed spacecraft or satellites) from Earth's surface or lower atmosphere to outer space. The most common form is the ballistic missile-shaped multistage ...

from

Cape Canaveral Air Force Station Cape Canaveral Space Force Station (CCSFS) is an installation of the United States Space Force's Space Launch Delta 45, located on Cape Canaveral in Brevard County, Florida. Headquartered at the nearby Patrick Space Force Base, the sta ...

(CCAFS),

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

, at 09:47:00

UTC Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) is the primary time standard globally used to regulate clocks and time. It establishes a reference for the current time, forming the basis for civil time and time zones. UTC facilitates international communica ...

on 12 October 1992.

References

Spacecraft launched in 1992 Communications satellites {{Germany-spacecraft-stub

Satellite description

Hellas Sat 1

Launch

See also

References