Inmarsat-4 F3 is a communications

I-4 satellite Three I-4 satellites make up the INMARSAT BGAN, FleetBroadband and SwiftBroadband communications network. They provide Internet and telephony connections anywhere on Earth, except in polar regions. Data services Two general types of data ser ...

operated by the British satellite operator Inmarsat. It was launched into a

geosynchronous orbit A geosynchronous orbit (sometimes abbreviated GSO) is an Earth-centered orbit with an orbital period that matches Earth's rotation on its axis, 23 hours, 56 minutes, and 4 seconds (one sidereal day). The synchronization of rotation and orbital ...

at 22:43 GMT on 18 August 2008, by a

Proton-M The Proton-M, (Протон-М) GRAU index 8K82M or , is an expendable Russian heavy-lift launch vehicle derived from the Soviet-developed Proton. It is built by Khrunichev, and launched from sites 81 and 200 at the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kaz ...

Briz-M The Briz-K, Briz-KM and Briz-M (russian: Бриз-К, КM and M meaning ''Breeze-K, KM and M'') are Russian liquid-propellant rocket orbit insertion upper stages manufactured by Khrunichev State Research and Production Space Center and used on ...

Enhanced

carrier rocket A launch vehicle or carrier rocket is a rocket designed to carry a payload (spacecraft or satellites) from the Earth's surface to outer space. Most launch vehicles operate from a launch pad, launch pads, supported by a missile launch contro ...

. It is currently located at 97.65° West longitude, providing coverage of the Americas. It entered service on 7 January 2009. Like the earlier Inmarsat-4 F1 and F2 satellites, Inmarsat-4 F3 was constructed by

EADS Astrium Astrium was an aerospace manufacturer subsidiary of the European Aeronautic Defence and Space Company (EADS) that provided civil and military space systems and services from 2006 to 2013. In 2012, Astrium had a turnover of €5.8 billion and 18 ...

, using a

Eurostar E3000 The Eurostar E3000 is a generic satellite model most commonly used for commercial and military communications satellites manufactured by Airbus Defence and Space (formerly Astrium). It is a member of Airbus Defence and Space's Eurostar family. It ...

bus A bus (contracted from omnibus, with variants multibus, motorbus, autobus, etc.) is a road vehicle that carries significantly more passengers than an average car or van. It is most commonly used in public transport, but is also in use for cha ...

. It has a mass of 5,960 kilograms, and is expected to operate for 13 years. It was originally slated for launch using an

Atlas V Atlas V is an expendable launch system and the fifth major version in the Atlas (rocket family), Atlas launch vehicle family. It was originally designed by Lockheed Martin, now being operated by United Launch Alliance (ULA), a joint venture be ...

531, but was transferred to Proton due to a large backlog of Atlas launches. In the United States, Inmarsat ground stations are licensed to operate at 1525-1559 MHz and 1626.5-1660.5 MHz. The 1544-1545 MHz and 1645.5-1646.5 MHz bands are reserved for safety and distress communications.

References

External links

*http://www.inmarsat.com/corporate/our-satellites/index.htm *https://web.archive.org/web/20120927021531/http://www.boeing.com/news/releases/2005/q4/nr_051108s.html *http://www.as.northropgrumman.com/products/aa_inmarsat/index.html {{Orbital launches in 2008 Spacecraft launched in 2008 Communications satellites in geostationary orbit Satellites using the Eurostar bus Inmarsat satellites