GiSAT-1 is a high-throughput geostationary

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 ...

project by Global IP Cayman. It was to be designed and manufactured by Boeing Satellite Development Center on the Boeing-702MP

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 is intended to serve 35 Sub-Saharan Africa countries on the

Ka-band The Ka band (pronounced as either "kay-ay band" or "ka band") is a portion of the microwave part of the electromagnetic spectrum defined as frequencies in the range 26.5–40 gigahertz (GHz), i.e. wavelengths from slightly over one centime ...

and offer over 150

Gbit/s In telecommunications, data-transfer rate is the average number of bits ( bitrate), characters or symbols ( baudrate), or data blocks per unit time passing through a communication link in a data-transmission system. Common data rate units are mu ...

of bandwidth with a flexible digital payload. It was expected to be launched in the fourth quarter of 2018, but the cancellation of the construction contract by Boeing in December 2018 left the launch of the satellite uncertain.

Satellite description

GiSAT-1 was being designed and manufactured by Boeing Satellite Development Center on the Boeing 702MP satellite bus. It was estimated to have a launch mass of and a design life of more than 15 years. It was to be powered by two wings, with four solar panels each, of triple-junction GsAs

solar cell A solar cell, or photovoltaic cell, is an electronic device that converts the energy of light directly into electricity by the photovoltaic effect, which is a physical and chemical phenomenon.

s providing a total of 15 kW. It was to have a fully digital high-throughput Ka-band payload offering over 150 Gbit/s of bandwidth. It should offer its services in all the African continent and have four gateways in

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a subcontinent of Eurasia and it is located entirel ...

for connectivity.

History

On 12 September 2016, Boeing Satellite Development Center announced another win for its Boeing 702MP platform, with the order of GiSAT-1 from the start-up Global IP Cayman. It would be a satellite with 15 kW of power generation with a fully digital high-throughput Ka-band payload offering over 150 Gbit/s of bandwidth. It was at the time expected to be launched in 2019. On 3 April 2017, Global IP Cayman announced that it had signed an agreement with SpaceX to launch GiSAT-1 on a

Falcon 9 Falcon 9 is a partially reusable medium lift launch vehicle that can carry cargo and crew into Earth orbit, produced by American aerospace company SpaceX. The rocket has two stages. The first (booster) stage carries the second stage and pay ...

launch vehicle 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 pads, supported by a launch control center and ...

. On 6 December 2018, Boeing announced that it was cancelling the contract, citing lack of payment. According to the

Wall Street Journal ''The Wall Street Journal'' is an American business-focused, international daily newspaper based in New York City, with international editions also available in Chinese and Japanese. The ''Journal'', along with its Asian editions, is published ...

, Boeing intends to resell the nearly complete satellite to another customer. In October 2019, Global IP announced that it was seeking to renegotiate the contract with Boeing with the backing of a US$175 million investment from Bronzelink Holdings. The money would go towards completion of the mostly-complete satellite and fulfillment of contract payments. Because the launch order with SpaceX remains valid, GiSAT-1 will still be launched on a Falcon 9 rocket; the satellite's telemetry, tracking, and control will be managed by

Hellas Sat Hellas Sat Consortium Ltd (Hellas Sat) is the owner and a wholesaler of capacity and services of the Greek/Cypriot Hellas Sat 2 satellite, an Astrium Eurostar E2000+, which was launched successfully on 13 May 2003 to the 39th eastern meridian o ...

References

{{Reflist, 30em, refs= {{cite web, url=http://www.gipsat.com/, title=Global IP Broadband Services, publisher=Global IP Cayman, archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160914011810/http://www.gipsat.com/ , archive-date=September 14, 2016, access-date=September 14, 2016 {{cite web, title=GiSat, url=http://space.skyrocket.de/doc_sdat/gisat.htm, publisher=Gunter's Space Page, date=3 December 2020, access-date=27 March 2021 {{cite web, url=http://boeing.mediaroom.com/2016-09-12-Boeing-Communications-Satellite-to-Expand-Broadband-Services-in-Africa, title=Boeing Communications Satellite to Expand Broadband Services in Africa, date=September 12, 2016, publisher=Boeing, archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160914011816/http://boeing.mediaroom.com/2016-09-12-Boeing-Communications-Satellite-to-Expand-Broadband-Services-in-Africa, archive-date=September 14, 2016, access-date=September 13, 2016 {{cite web, url=http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20170402005120/en/Global-IP-Announces-Selection-SpaceX-Launch-150-Gbps, title=Global-IP Announces the Selection of SpaceX to Launch its 150 Gbps GiSAT-1, publisher=Business Wire, date=April 3, 2017, access-date=April 3, 2017 {{cite news, url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/boeing-backs-out-of-global-ip-satellite-project-financed-by-china-1544142484, title=Boeing Backs Out of Global IP Satellite Order Financed by China, newspaper=The Wall Street Journal, first1=Brian, last1=Spegele, first2=Kate, last2=O'Keeffe, date=December 6, 2018, access-date=December 30, 2018 {{cite web, url=https://satnews.com/story.php?number=1976608605, title=Global IP's African Broadband Satellite Service to Try Again, publisher=Satnews, date=October 7, 2019 , access-date=October 12, 2019 Satellites using the BSS-702 bus