Astra 2B
| Mission duration | 15 years |
|---|---|
| Spacecraft properties | |
| Bus | Eurostar E2000+ |
| Manufacturer | Astrium |
| Launch mass | 3,315 kilograms (7,310 lb) |
| Power | 7,800 watts |
| Start of mission | |
| Launch date | September 14, 2000 UTC |
| Rocket | Ariane 5G V130 |
| Launch site | Kourou ELA-3 |
| Contractor | Arianespace |
| Orbital parameters | |
| Reference system | Geocentric |
| Regime | Geostationary |
| Longitude | 27° east (testing) 28.2° east 19.2° east |
| Slot | Astra 28.2°E (2000-2013) Astra 19.2°E (2013-) |
| Transponders | |
| Band | 30 Ku band (to be reduced to 28 by end of life) |
| Bandwidth | 33 megahertz |
| TWTA power | 109 watts |
| EIRP | 51 decibel-watts |
Astra 2B is one of the Astra communications satellites owned and operated by SES. Launched in 2000 to join Astra 2A at the Astra 28.2°E orbital slot providing digital television and radio broadcast services to the UK and Republic of Ireland, the satellite was moved in February 2013 to the Astra 19.2°E position.
The satellite provides two broadcast beams, each with horizontal and vertical polarisation, across two footprints - 2B North (covering central Europe and Scandinavia) and 2B South (covering Central Europe and the Iberian peninsula and Canary Islands).[1]
While at 28.2°E, TV signals could be received with a 43 cm dish across the majority of the British Isles with a 60 cm dish required in the extreme north and west, although the official footprint maps now show a 60cm dish as required across all of western Europe.[2] At 28.2°E 17 transponders on Astra 2B were used by BSkyB to provide the Sky Digital TV services of standard and high definition TV and digital radio.[3]
Astra 2B can also provide backup capacity, substituting for one or more transponders across the whole 10.70-12.75 GHz range used by Astra satellites in the Astra 19.2°E and Astra 28.2°E orbital positions.
A third, steerable beam provides 8 transponders in the 12.50-12.75 GHz range for Internet and telecommunications services in West Africa. This aspect of the satellite was originally the commercial responsibility of SES New Skies (now incorprated into SES).
Following the launch of Astra 2F to 28.2°E, in February 2013 Astra 2B started its planned move to Astra 19.2°E, to serve alongside Astra 1KR, Astra 1L, Astra 1M, and Astra 2C,[4] arriving at the position by February 27, 2013.[5]
See also[edit]
- Astra 1KR co-located satellite
- Astra 1L co-located satellite
- Astra 1M co-located satellite
- Astra 2C co-located satellite
- Astra 19.2°E orbital position
- Astra 28.2°E previous orbital position
- SES satellite owner
- Astra satellite family
References[edit]
- ^ "Astra 2B Footprints". SES. Retrieved January 26, 2011.
- ^ "ASTRA 2B". SES. Retrieved February 27, 2013.
- ^ "Astra 2B at 28.2°E". LyngSat. Archived from the original on 11 August 2008. Retrieved August 12, 2008.
- ^ Our global satellite fleet SES booklet November 2012 fleet plan for 2015. Accessed February 15, 2013
- ^ Astra 2B in lyngsat.com SatTracker Accessed February 27, 2013
External links[edit]
- OnAstra - Official consumers/viewers' site
- Astra 2B North beam footprint on SatBeams
- Astra 2B South beam footprint on SatBeams
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