Eutelsat 21B, previously known as Eutelsat W6A, is a French

communications satellite A communications satellite is an artificial satellite that relays and amplifies radio telecommunication signals via a transponder; it creates a communication channel between a source transmitter and a receiver at different locations on Earth ...

. Operated by Eutelsat, it provides

direct to home Satellite television is a service that delivers television programming to viewers by relaying it from a communications satellite orbiting the Earth directly to the viewer's location. The signals are received via an outdoor parabolic antenna comm ...

broadcasting services from geostationary orbit at a longitude of 21.5 degrees east. It replaced the Eutelsat 21A spacecraft which was launched in 1999. Eutelsat 21B was constructed by

Thales Alenia Space Thales Alenia Space () is a Franco-Italian aerospace manufacturer. A joint venture between the French technology corporation Thales Group (67%) and Italian defense conglomerate Leonardo (33%), the company is the largest satellite manufactur ...

, and is based on the Spacebus-4000C3

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 opposed to specially produced satellites. Bus- ...

. It had a mass at launch of and is expected to operate for at least 15 years. The satellite carries 40 Ku-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, which are used to broadcast

satellite television Satellite television is a service that delivers television programming to viewers by relaying it from a communications satellite orbiting the Earth directly to the viewer's location. The signals are received via an outdoor parabolic antenna comm ...

and

radio Radio is the technology of signaling and communicating using radio waves. Radio waves are electromagnetic waves of frequency between 30 hertz (Hz) and 300 gigahertz (GHz). They are generated by an electronic device called a transmi ...

to Europe, North Africa, Central Asia and the Middle East. Eutelsat 21B was originally ordered as ''Eutelsat W6A'', as part of the W Series of satellites - the satellite it was to replace was at the time named Eutelsat W6. In 2012, several months before its scheduled launch, W6A was renamed Eutelsat 21B. Its launch was conducted by

Arianespace Arianespace SA is a French company founded in 1980 as the world's first commercial launch service provider. It undertakes the operation and marketing of the Ariane programme. The company offers a number of different launch vehicles: the heavy ...

using an Ariane 5ECA carrier rocket, as part of a dual launch with the Brazilian

Star One C3 Star One C3 is a communications satellite operated by Star One, a subsidiary of Embratel. It was built by Orbital Sciences Corporation based on the STAR-2 satellite bus, and was launched on 10 November 2012 21:05 UTC by an Ariane 5ECA carrier roc ...

satellite. The launch took place from

ELA-3 ELA-3 (french: Ensemble de Lancement Ariane 3, lit=Ariane Launch Complex 3), is a launch pad and associated facilities at the Centre Spatial Guyanais in French Guiana. ELA-3 is operated by Arianespace as part of the expendable launch system f ...

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 i ...

French Guiana French Guiana ( or ; french: link=no, Guyane ; gcr, label=French Guianese Creole, Lagwiyann ) is an overseas department/region and single territorial collectivity of France on the northern Atlantic coast of South America in the Guianas. ...

, at 21:05:07 UTC on 10 November 2012. The spacecraft was deployed into

geosynchronous transfer orbit A geosynchronous transfer orbit or geostationary transfer orbit (GTO) is a type of geocentric orbit. Satellites that are destined for geosynchronous (GSO) or geostationary orbit (GEO) are (almost) always put into a GTO as an intermediate step f ...

, raising itself to its operational geostationary orbit by means of its S400

apogee motor An apogee kick motor (AKM) is a rocket motor that is regularly employed on artificial satellites to provide the final impulse to change the trajectory from the transfer orbit into its final (most commonly circular) orbit. For a satellite laun ...

References

External links

IMS
Official provider's site Spacecraft launched in 2012 Satellites using the Spacebus bus Eutelsat satellites Communications satellites in geostationary orbit {{France-spacecraft-stub