Telstar 14 or Estrela do Sul 1 (Southern Star 1) is a commercial
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. C ...
in the
Telstar
Telstar is the name of various communications satellites. The first two Telstar satellites were experimental and nearly identical. Telstar 1 launched on top of a Thor-Delta rocket on July 10, 1962. It successfully relayed through space the fir ...
series built by
Space Systems/Loral
SSL, formerly Space Systems/Loral, LLC (SS/L), of Palo Alto, California, is a wholly owned manufacturing subsidiary of Maxar Technologies.
SSL designs and builds satellites and space systems for a wide variety of government and commercial cust ...
(SS/L) for
Telesat to provide Ku-band communications to
South America
South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere at the northern tip of the continent. It can also be described as the southe ...
and the Southern United States.
Estrela do Sul 1 was launched by
Sea Launch using a
Zenit-3SL carrier rocket on 11 Jan 2004 for
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 63 degrees west.
The North
solar array
A photovoltaic system, also PV system or solar power system, is an electric power system designed to supply usable solar power by means of photovoltaics. It consists of an arrangement of several components, including solar panels to absorb and co ...
failed to open after launch, limiting the mission effectiveness. The president of SS/L later said images of the satellite in orbit showed massive damage to the affected array, indicating that an explosion had occurred during launch. The satellite entered service with reduced capacity (17 transponders) and reduced life span of 7 years with the jammed panel.
Estrela do Sul 1 / Telstar 14 and Estrela do Sul 2 / Telstar 14R are built around the
Loral 1300
The SSL 1300, previously the LS-1300 and the FS-1300, is a satellite bus produced by Maxar Technologies. Total broadcast power ranges from 5 to 25 kW, and the platform can accommodate from 12 to 150 transponders. The SSL 1300 is a modular platf ...
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-d ...
, and have launch mass of around 5000 kg.
Launch
The
Telstar 14R replacement was launched in May 2011 from the
Baikonur Cosmodrome
The Baikonur Cosmodrome ( kk, Байқоңыр ғарыш айлағы, translit=Baiqoñyr ğaryş ailağy, ; russian: Космодром Байконур, translit=Kosmodrom Baykonur, ) is a spaceport in an area of southern Kazakhstan leased to R ...
in
Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan, officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a transcontinental country located mainly in Central Asia and partly in Eastern Europe. It borders Russia to the north and west, China to the east, Kyrgyzstan to the southeast, Uzbeki ...
aboard an
International Launch Services Proton-M rocket
A rocket (from it, rocchetto, , bobbin/spool) is a vehicle that uses jet propulsion to accelerate without using the surrounding air. A rocket engine produces thrust by reaction to exhaust expelled at high speed. Rocket engines work entirely fr ...
. This replacement satellite,
Telstar 14R experienced the same problem, with its north solar array failing to open. The Telstar 14R replacement satellite is in service, despite that deployment failure.
See also
*
2004 in spaceflight
This article outlines notable events occurring in 2004 in spaceflight
Spaceflight (or space flight) is an application of astronautics to fly spacecraft into or through outer space, either with or without humans on board. Most spaceflight i ...
References
External links
* http://www.telesat.com/satellite-fleet/telstar/telstar-14r
* http://space.skyrocket.de/doc_sdat/telstar-14r.htm
* http://spaceflightnow.com/news/n1105/25telstar14r/index.html
* http://www.nasaspaceflight.com/2011/05/live-ils-proton-m-launch-with-telstar-14r/
{{Orbital launches in 2004
Telstar satellites
Spacecraft launched in 2004
Satellites using the SSL 1300 bus