EchoStar XVI is an American geostationary

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 ...

which is operated by

EchoStar EchoStar Corporation is an American telecommunications company, specializing in satellite communication, wireless telecommunications, and internet services. Echostar also provides multichannel video programming and mobile services through its ...

. It is positioned in

geostationary orbit A geostationary orbit, also referred to as a geosynchronous equatorial orbit''Geostationary orbit'' and ''Geosynchronous (equatorial) orbit'' are used somewhat interchangeably in sources. (GEO), is a circular orbit, circular geosynchronous or ...

, and will be located at a

longitude Longitude (, ) is a geographic coordinate that specifies the east- west position of a point on the surface of the Earth, or another celestial body. It is an angular measurement, usually expressed in degrees and denoted by the Greek lett ...

of 61.5° West, from where it is intended to provide direct broadcasting of

high-definition television High-definition television (HDTV) describes a television or video system which provides a substantially higher image resolution than the previous generation of technologies. The term has been used since at least 1933; in more recent times, it ref ...

services to the United States for

Dish Network DISH Network L.L.C., often referred to as DISH, an abbreviation for Digital Sky Highway, is an American provider of satellite television and IPTV services and wholly owned subsidiary of EchoStar Corporation. The company was originally establ ...

. EchoStar XVI was built by

Space Systems/Loral SSL, formerly Space Systems/Loral, LLC (SS/L), of Palo Alto, California, is a wholly owned manufacturing subsidiary of Maxar Technologies. SSL designs and builds satellites and space systems for a wide variety of government and commercial cust ...

, and is based on the

LS-1300 The SSL 1300, previously the LS-1300 and the FS-1300, is a satellite bus produced by Maxar Technologies. Total broadcast power ranges from 5 to 25 kW, and the platform can accommodate from 12 to 150 transponders. The SSL 1300 is a modular platf ...

satellite bus A satellite bus (or spacecraft bus) is the main body and structural component of a satellite or spacecraft, in which the payload and all scientific instruments are held. Bus-derived satellites are less customized than specially-produced satelli ...

. It is equipped with 32 J band (IEEE K_u band)

transponder 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 ...

s. At launch it had a mass of . It has a design life of fifteen years. It has a common configuration with EchoStar XI and

EchoStar XV EchoStar XV is an American geostationary communications satellite which is operated by EchoStar. It is positioned in geostationary orbit, and located at a longitude of 61.5° West, from where it provides direct broadcasting of high-definition tel ...

. The launch of EchoStar XVI was conducted by

International Launch Services International Launch Services, Inc. (ILS) is a joint venture with exclusive rights to the worldwide sale of commercial Angara and Proton rocket launch services. Proton launches take place at the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan while Angara is l ...

, using a

Proton-M The Proton-M, (Протон-М) GRAU index 8K82M or , is an Expendable launch system, expendable Russian heavy-lift launch vehicle derived from the Soviet Union, Soviet-developed Proton (rocket family), Proton. It is built by Khrunichev State R ...

carrier rocket 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 multistag ...

with a

Briz-M The Briz-K, Briz-KM and Briz-M ( meaning ''Breeze-K, KM and M'') are Russian liquid-propellant rocket orbit insertion upper stages manufactured by Khrunichev State Research and Production Space Center and used on the Proton-M and Angara A5. T ...

upper stage. The launch occurred on 20 November 2012, 18:31 UTC from Site 200/39 at the

Baikonur Cosmodrome The Baikonur Cosmodrome is a spaceport operated by Russia within Kazakhstan. Located in the Kazakh city of Baikonur, it is the largest operational space launch facility in terms of area. All Russian Human spaceflight, crewed spaceflights are l ...

Kazakhstan Kazakhstan, officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a landlocked country primarily in Central Asia, with a European Kazakhstan, small portion in Eastern Europe. It borders Russia to the Kazakhstan–Russia border, north and west, China to th ...

. The arts organization

Creative Time Creative Time is a nonprofit arts organization based in New York City. Founded in 1974, it supports the commissioning, production, and presentation of site-specific and socially engaged public art projects. History Creative Time was founded i ...

launched an archival

disc Disc or disk may refer to: * Disk (mathematics), a two dimensional shape, the interior of a circle * Disk storage * Optical disc * Floppy disk Music * Disc (band), an American experimental music band * ''Disk'' (album), a 1995 EP by Moby Other ...

created by artist Trevor Paglen called ''The Last Pictures'' into orbit on EchoStar XVI. Made of ultra-archival materials, the disc is expected to orbit the planet

Earth Earth is the third planet from the Sun and the only astronomical object known to Planetary habitability, harbor life. This is enabled by Earth being an ocean world, the only one in the Solar System sustaining liquid surface water. Almost all ...

for millions of years and possibly up to several billion years affixed to the exterior of the communications satellite if left untouched. The silicon wafer disc, protected by a gold-plated aluminum cover bolted to the satellite's exterior, contains one hundred black-and-white photographs selected to represent the artist's take on modern human history.

References

External links

"The Last Pictures: Contemporary Pessimism and Hope for the Future", by Larry Klaes, Centauri Dreams, January 18, 2013"A Temporal Map in Geostationary Orbit: The Cover Etching on the EchoStar XVI Artifact", J. M. Weisberg, T. Paglen, Submitted on 22 August 2012
{{EchoStar satellites Spacecraft launched in 2012 Communications satellites in geostationary orbit Satellites using the SSL 1300 bus Spacecraft launched by Proton rockets E16

See also

References

External links