Intelsat 706 (also known as IS-706 and Intelsat 7-F6) is a
geostationary
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 geosynchronous orbit in altitud ...
communication
Communication is commonly defined as the transmission of information. Its precise definition is disputed and there are disagreements about whether Intention, unintentional or failed transmissions are included and whether communication not onl ...
satellite
A satellite or an artificial satellite is an object, typically a spacecraft, placed into orbit around a celestial body. They have a variety of uses, including communication relay, weather forecasting, navigation ( GPS), broadcasting, scient ...
that was built by
Space Systems/Loral (SSL). It is located in the orbital position of 157 degrees east longitude and it is currently in an
inclined orbit. The same is owned by
Intelsat
Intelsat S.A. (formerly Intel-Sat, Intelsat) is a Luxembourgish-American multinational satellite services provider with corporate headquarters in Luxembourg and administrative headquarters in Tysons, Virginia, United States. Originally formed ...
. The satellite was based on the LS-1300 platform and its estimated useful life was 15 years.
The satellite was successfully launched into space on May 17, 1995,
at 06:34, using an
Ariane 4
The Ariane 4 was a European expendable rocket, expendable launch vehicle in the Ariane (rocket family), Ariane family, developed by the (CNES), the Government of France, French space agency, for the European Space Agency (ESA). The manufacturi ...
vehicle from the
Guiana Space Centre
The Guiana Space Centre (; CSG), also called Europe's Spaceport, is a spaceport to the northwest of Kourou in French Guiana, an Overseas departments and regions of France, overseas region of France in South America. Kourou is located approxim ...
,
Kourou
Kourou (; ) is a commune in French Guiana, an overseas region and department of France in South America. Kourou is famous for being the location of the Guiana Space Centre, the main spaceport of France and the European Space Agency (ESA). It ...
,
French Guiana
French Guiana, or Guyane in French, is an Overseas departments and regions of France, overseas department and region of France located on the northern coast of South America in the Guianas and the West Indies. Bordered by Suriname to the west ...
.
It had a launch mass of 4,180 kg.
The Intelsat 706 is equipped with 26 transponders in
C band and 10 in
Ku band
The Ku band () is the portion of the electromagnetic spectrum in the microwave range of frequencies from 12 to 18 gigahertz (GHz). The symbol is short for "K-under" (originally ), because it is the lower part of the original NATO K ban ...
to provide broadcasting, business-to-home services and
telecommunications
Telecommunication, often used in its plural form or abbreviated as telecom, is the transmission of information over a distance using electronic means, typically through cables, radio waves, or other communication technologies. These means of ...
. It was positioned over the
Atlantic Ocean
The Atlantic Ocean is the second largest of the world's five borders of the oceans, oceanic divisions, with an area of about . It covers approximately 17% of Earth#Surface, Earth's surface and about 24% of its water surface area. During the ...
and has the transponder capacity to relay 110,000
telephone
A telephone, colloquially referred to as a phone, is a telecommunications device that enables two or more users to conduct a conversation when they are too far apart to be easily heard directly. A telephone converts sound, typically and most ...
calls simultaneously.
Specifications
* Payload power: 3612 W
* Power:
Equinox
A solar equinox is a moment in time when the Sun appears directly above the equator, rather than to its north or south. On the day of the equinox, the Sun appears to rise directly east and set directly west. This occurs twice each year, arou ...
: 5326 W,
Solstice
A solstice is the time when the Sun reaches its most northerly or southerly sun path, excursion relative to the celestial equator on the celestial sphere. Two solstices occur annually, around 20–22 June and 20–22 December. In many countries ...
: 4884 W
* Stabilization: 3-axis
*
Solar array: 25.7 m span
* Propulsion: R-4D-11
Location in orbit
* 56° W (May 1995 - June 1995)
* 53° W (July 1995 - September 2004)
* 50.25° E (October 2004 - April 2009)
* 54.85° E (April 2009 - July 2010)
* 72.1° E (August 2010 - October 2011)
* 72.1° E inclined (October 2011 - August 2012)
* 157° E inclined (February 2013 - November 2014)
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 ...
* Mass of the transponders:
* Mass of the antennas:
;
C band
* Power: 10, 20 and 30 W
*
Bandwidth
Bandwidth commonly refers to:
* Bandwidth (signal processing) or ''analog bandwidth'', ''frequency bandwidth'', or ''radio bandwidth'', a measure of the width of a frequency range
* Bandwidth (computing), the rate of data transfer, bit rate or thr ...
: 10 transponders of 36 MHz, 2 transponders of 41 MHz and 16 transponders of 72 MHz
*
EIRP: Global beam (36 & 41 MHz): 29 dBW / Hemispheric beam (8x72 MHz & 2x36 MHz): 33 dBW / Zone beam (8x72 MHz & 2x36 MHz): 33 dBW / Spot beam (36 & 41 MHz): 36.1 dBW
Polarization: circular R/L
;
* Power: 5 transponders of 49 W and 5 transponders of 73 W
* Bandwidth: 6 transponders of 72 MHz and 8 transponders of 112 MHz
*
EIRP: ''Spot 1'': 47 dBW, ''Spot 2'': 47 dBW and ''Spot 3'': 42.8 dBW
* Polarization: linear
* Frequency: Downlink 10.95 GHz - 11.20 GHz, 11.45 GHz - 11.70 GHz, 11.70 GHz - 11.95 GHz and 12.50 GHz - 12.75 GHz
See also
*
1995 in spaceflight
This article outlines notable events occurring in 1995 in spaceflight, including major launches and EVAs.
First Shuttle-''Mir'' mission
Orbital launches
, colspan="8",
January
, -
, colspan="8",
February
, -
, colspa ...
External links
Intelsat 706TBS satellite
Intelsat 706SatBeams
References
Spacecraft launched in 1995
Intelsat satellites
{{US-spacecraft-stub