Intelsat VA F-15

Intelsat VA F-15 → Columbia 515
Mission typeCommunication
OperatorIntelsat / Columbia Communications Corporation
COSPAR ID1989-006A [1]
SATCAT no.19772
Mission duration7 years (planned)
Spacecraft properties
BusIntelsat VA
ManufacturerFord Aerospace
Launch mass1981 kg
Dry mass1098 kg [2]
Dimensions1.66 x 2.1 x 1.77 metres
Power1800 watts
Start of mission
Launch date27 January 1989,
01:21:00 UTC[3]
RocketAriane 2 V28
Launch siteKourou, ELA-1
ContractorAérospatiale
End of mission
DisposalGraveyard orbit
DeactivatedNovember 2002
Orbital parameters
Reference systemGeocentric orbit
RegimeGeostationary orbit
Longitude60.0° East (1989-1992),
18.0° West (1992-1996),
21.5° West (1996-1998),
37.8° West (1998-2002)
Epoch27 January 1989
Transponders
Band29 C-band
6 Ku-band
Intelsat V

Intelsat VA F-15 or Intelsat 515, then named Columbia 515, was a communications satellite operated by Intelsat and which was later sold to Columbia Communications Corporation. Launched in 1989, it was the fifteenth of fifteen Intelsat V satellites to be launched. The Intelsat V series was constructed by Ford Aerospace, based on the Intelsat VA satellite bus. Intelsat VA F-15 was part of an advanced series of satellites designed to provide greater telecommunications capacity for Intelsat's global network, from an orbital station at 60.0° East.

Satellite

The satellite was box-shaped, measuring 1.66 by 2.1 by 1.77 metres; solar arrays spanned 15.9 metres tip to tip. The arrays, supplemented by nickel-hydrogen batteries during eclipse, provided 1800 watts of power at mission onset, approximately 1280 watts at the end of its seven-year design life. The payload housed 29 C-band and 6 Ku-band transponders. It could accommodate 15,000 two-way voice circuits and two TV channels simultaneously. It also provided maritime communications for ships at sea.[1]

Launch

The satellite was successfully launched into space on 27 January 1989, at 01:21:00 UTC, by means of an Ariane 2 vehicle from the Crentre Spatial Guyanais, Kourou, French Guiana. It had a launch mass of 1981 kg.[4]

Columbia 515

From 1 April 1998, the satellite was used by Columbia Communications Corporation and renamed Columbia 515. The Ku-band payload was not used anymore. Columbia Communications was granted the right to operate a C-Band satellite by the FCC as a replacement at the location, 37.8° West. It was deactivated in November 2002.

References

  1. ^ a b "Display: Intelsat 5A F-15 1989-086A". NASA. 14 May 2020. Retrieved 20 June 2020. Public Domain This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
  2. ^ "Intelsat 5A". Gunter's Space Page. Retrieved 23 April 2017.
  3. ^ McDowell, Jonathan. "Launch Log". Jonathan's Space Page. Retrieved 23 April 2017.
  4. ^ "INTELSAT 515". TSE. Retrieved 23 April 2017.
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