Arab Satellite Communications Organization
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
 |
This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding reliable references. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (June 2008) |
 |
|
| Founded | 1976 |
|---|---|
| Headquarters | Riyadh,  Saudi Arabia |
| Industry | Satellite communication |
| Website | http://www.arabsat.com// |
The Arab Satellite Communications Organization (often abbreviated as Arabsat or ASCO) is a leading communications satellite operator in the Arab World, headquartered in the city of Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Arabsat owns and operates five satellites platforms at orbital positions 26° and 30.5° East. Arabsat was created to deliver satellite-based, public and private telecommunications services to the Arab States, in accordance with International Standards. With more than 20 member countries, the organization plays a vital role[citation needed] of enhancing communications in the Arab World.[citation needed]
Contents |
[edit] History
The Arab Satellite Communication Organization (ARABSAT) was established on 1976 by the member states of the Arab League with a defined goal of serving in telecommunication, information, culture and education sectors. Arabsat has operated the Arabsat GEO telecommunications system since its first satellite launch in 1985.
[edit] Coverage
Arabsat's satellites provide coverage to more than 100 countries in the Middle East, Africa and the major parts of Europe.
[edit] Satellites Launch
[edit] Arabsat-1
Arabsat-1 are the first generation satellites built by an international team led by Aerospatiale of France. It is a three-axis stabilized Spacebus 100 spacecraft with two deployable solar array wings, making it almost 68 ft (20.7 m) long and over 18 ft (5.5 m) wide when deployed in orbit. It weighs about 2,800 lb (1,270 kg) in its initial orbit, but some 1,490 lb (675 kg) of this is propellant. It has an onboard low-thrust motor that utilizes hydrazine and nitrogen tetroxide, and transfers from an initial elliptical to geosynchronous orbit by firing this motor. The remaining propellant is then used for station-keeping or moving over the life of the satellite.
Arabsat-1A, the first satellite of Arabsat, was launched by Ariane on 8 February 1985. Shortly after launch it suffered a solar panel extension malfunction. Coupled with other failures, the satellite was soon relegated to backup status until it was abandoned completely in late 1991.
Arabsat-1B, the second flight model, was deployed on June 1985, from the Shuttle and placed into service near 26° East, and remained in operation until the summer of 1992.
Arabsat-1C the third satellite of the series, was launched by Ariane on 26 February 1992 and operated until 1994. As a stop-gap measure to maintain network services until the Arabsat second generation spacecraft became available, the organization leased the Canadian Anik D2 spacecraft in 1993.
Arabsat-1D was renamed from a Hughes HS-376 bus originally carriing 24 active C-band transponders and moved from the Western Hemisphere during April - August 1993 to a position at 20° E.
[edit] Arabsat-2
By the end of 1994, the Arabsat system had been reduced to only one satellite. A contract for two Arabsat second generation satellites was signed with Aerospatiale in April 1993 based on a Spacebus 3000A platform.
Arabsat-2A, the first model, was launched in 1996.
Arabsat-2B followed shortly thereafter in an ongoing effort to maintain a multiple satellite network.
[edit] Arabsat-3
On November 7, 1996 a contract was signed with Aerospatiale for the manufacturing of the first of the third-generation satellites, based on a Spacebus 3000B2 platform. BADR-3 (technically: Arabsat-3A) was launched to the orbit of 26° East, the same orbit of Arabsat-2A, in 1999 as the first satellite of the third generation.
[edit] Arabsat-4
On 22 October 2003, Arabsat held a contract signing ceremony for the manufacture and launch of the fourth generation of Arabsat satellites. The first of these, Arabsat-4A, was lost in space due to a launcher failure.[1][2][3] This led to the ordering of BADR-6 (technically: Arabsat-4C) on 31 May 2006. The second fourth generation satellite, named BADR-4 (technically: Arabsat-4B), was launched on 8 November 2006. BADR-6 was launched 2008-07-07 on an Ariane 5 to replace the lost Arabsat-4A.[4]
[edit] Arabsat-5
On 16 June 2007, Arabsat held a contract-signing ceremony for the manufacture and launch of the fifth generation of Arabsat satellites:
- The first of the fifth-generation satellites, Arabsat-5A, is to be launched at the 30.5° East orbital location by Q4-2009.
- The second fifth-generation satellite, named BADR-5 (technically: Arabsat-5B), is to be launched at Arabsat's 26° East Direct-to-Home television "Hot Spot" in 2010.
- The third of the fifth-generation satellites, Arabsat-5C, is to be launched at the new 20° East orbital location in 2011.
[edit] Services
- Direct To Home (DTH) television broadcasting
- Broadband & Telephony backbone connectivity
- Satellite Internet
- VSATs
[edit] Criticism
ArabSat has been criticized for broadcasting the Hezbollah controlled Al-Manar channel.[5][6]
[edit] Fleet
In orbit
Up coming
- BADR-5 (26° E)
- Arabsat-5A (30.5° E)
- Arabsat-5C (20° E)
[edit] See also
[edit] Notes
- ^ Spaceflight Now | Proton Launch Report | Proton rocket fails in Arab satellite launch
- ^ APOD: 2007 February 22 - Mystery Over Australia
- ^ APOD: 2007 February 26 - A Rocket Debris Cloud Drifts
- ^ "Another successful Arianespace launch: ProtoStar I and BADR-6 are in orbit". Arianespace. http://www.arianespace.com/site/news/releases/presrel08_07_07.html.
- ^ 'Anti-Semitic Hate Speech in the Name of Islam'
- ^ http://www.iht.com/articles/2004/12/10/t7_3.php 'Banning channel accused of hate speech could be difficult : France finds Beirut station a turnoff'
[edit] Bibliography
- (French)(English) Guy Lebègue, (trad. Robert J. Amral), « Arabasat 2: New generation, New Services », in Revue aerospatiale, n°100, January 1993.
- (French)(English) Guy Lebègue, (trad. Robert J. Amral), « Arabasat 2A: the new generation of Spacebus 3000 », in Revue aerospatiale, n°130, July 1996.
