KA-SAT
Encyclopedia
KA-SAT is a telecommunications satellite
owned by Eutelsat
. The satellite will provide broadband Internet access
services across Europe
and also a small area of the Middle East
. It is positioned at 9°E
, joining Eurobird 9A Ku band
satellite. KA-SAT was manufactured by EADS Astrium
, based on the Eurostar E3000
platform, with a total weight of 6 tons. It was launched by Proton in December 2010. The satellite is named after the Ka band
frequency, which is used on the spacecraft.
througput of 475 Mbit/s per spot.
The spacecraft power is about 14 kW, the payload DC power is 11 kW. The solar array power provides up to 16 kW.
The payload mass is about 1000 kg, the dry mass is about 3170 kg, the launch mass was 6100 kg.
The manoeuvre lifetime in orbit is estimated to 16 years.
KA-SAT features high level of frequency reuse enabling the system to achieve a total capacity of more than 70 Gbps
. It represents 38 times the capacity of a standard telecommunication satellite operating in Ku band. The introduction of KA-SAT has tripled the total capacity commercialized by Eutelsat.
The satellite operates in conjunction with ten terrestrial teleports (two of them as a backup) providing Internet gateway services, parts of the Eutelsat's Tooway
service, all of them linked by the "KA-SAT ring", a terrestrial telecommunication high-speed network. The service is centrally operated from the Skylogic's NOC
based in Torino (Italy) (Skylogic is a subsidiary of Eutelsat).
:
"SurfBeam 2" is a modified version of the DOCSIS
protocol adapted by ViaSat Inc. to the satellite physical link and adopts most recent technology for modulation on the forward channel, i.e. DVB-S2
, and channel access method, i.e. MF-TDMA (Multi Frequency-TDMA
).
Satellite
In the context of spaceflight, a satellite is an object which has been placed into orbit by human endeavour. Such objects are sometimes called artificial satellites to distinguish them from natural satellites such as the Moon....
owned by Eutelsat
Eutelsat
Eutelsat S.A. is a French-based satellite provider. Providing coverage over the entire European continent, as well as the Middle East, Africa, India and significant parts of Asia and the Americas, it is one of the world's three leading satellite operators in terms of revenues.Eutelsat’s satellites...
. The satellite will provide broadband Internet access
Internet access
Many technologies and service plans for Internet access allow customers to connect to the Internet.Consumer use first became popular through dial-up connections in the 20th century....
services across Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
and also a small area of the Middle East
Middle East
The Middle East is a region that encompasses Western Asia and Northern Africa. It is often used as a synonym for Near East, in opposition to Far East...
. It is positioned at 9°E
Celestial coordinate system
In astronomy, a celestial coordinate system is a coordinate system for mapping positions on the celestial sphere.There are different celestial coordinate systems each using a system of spherical coordinates projected on the celestial sphere, in analogy to the geographic coordinate system used on...
, joining Eurobird 9A Ku band
Ku band
The Kμ band is a portion of the electromagnetic spectrum in the microwave range of frequencies. This symbol refers to —in other words, the band directly below the K-band...
satellite. KA-SAT was manufactured by EADS Astrium
EADS Astrium
Astrium Satellites is one of the three business units of Astrium, a subsidiary of EADS. It is a European space manufacturer involved in the manufacture of spacecraft used for science, Earth observation and telecommunication, as well as the equipment and subsystems used therein and related ground...
, based on the Eurostar E3000
Eurostar (spacecraft)
Eurostar is the brand name for a satellite bus made by Astrium which has been used for a series of spacecraft providing telecommunications services in geosynchronous orbit . More than 60 Eurostar satellites have been ordered to date, of which 45 have been successfully launched since October 1990...
platform, with a total weight of 6 tons. It was launched by Proton in December 2010. The satellite is named after the Ka band
Ka band
The Ka band covers the frequencies of 26.5–40 GHz. The Ka band is part of the K band of the microwave band of the electromagnetic spectrum. This symbol refers to "K-above" — in other words, the band directly above the K-band...
frequency, which is used on the spacecraft.
The spacecraft
The spacecraft is equipped with four multi-feed deployable antennas with enhanced pointing accuracy and a high efficiency repeater. It is configured with 82 spotbeams, making it the most advanced multi-spot satellite designed in the world to date. Each spotbeam is associated with a 237 MHz wide transponder, allowing a data bit rateBit rate
In telecommunications and computing, bit rate is the number of bits that are conveyed or processed per unit of time....
througput of 475 Mbit/s per spot.
The spacecraft power is about 14 kW, the payload DC power is 11 kW. The solar array power provides up to 16 kW.
The payload mass is about 1000 kg, the dry mass is about 3170 kg, the launch mass was 6100 kg.
The manoeuvre lifetime in orbit is estimated to 16 years.
The broadband Internet access service
According to Eutelsat, KA-SAT will be able to provide broadband Internet access to potentially more than one million homes. The company invested about €350 million in the program, including the satellite manufacturing and launch.KA-SAT features high level of frequency reuse enabling the system to achieve a total capacity of more than 70 Gbps
Data rate units
In telecommunications, bit rate or data transfer rate is the average number of bits, characters, or blocks per unit time passing between equipment in a data transmission system. This is typically measured in multiples of the unit bit per second or byte per second.- Avoiding confusion :To be as...
. It represents 38 times the capacity of a standard telecommunication satellite operating in Ku band. The introduction of KA-SAT has tripled the total capacity commercialized by Eutelsat.
Tooway
Tooway is a bi-directional satellite broadband Internet service available across Europe. The service was launched in 2007 via two Eutelsat geostationary satellites, Hot Bird 6 and Eurobird 3, respectively at the 13° and 33° East orbital positions....
service, all of them linked by the "KA-SAT ring", a terrestrial telecommunication high-speed network. The service is centrally operated from the Skylogic's NOC
Network Operations Center
A network operations center is one or more locations from which control is exercised over a computer, television broadcast, or telecommunications network....
based in Torino (Italy) (Skylogic is a subsidiary of Eutelsat).
Communication systems
The data communications used on the KA-SAT satellite are transmitted to and from equipments manufactured by ViaSatViaSat
ViaSat is a communication company based in Carlsbad, California, that provides equipment and services for military and commercial communications, primarily in satellite related technologies...
:
- in the Eutelsat's teleports (Internet gateways), the ViaSat "SurfBeam 2" hub system;
- at the customer site, the ViaSat "SurfBeam 2" modem as a customer-premises equipmentCustomer-premises equipmentCustomer-premises equipment or customer-provided equipment is any terminal and associated equipment located at a subscriber's premises and connected with a carrier's telecommunication channel at the demarcation point...
.
"SurfBeam 2" is a modified version of the DOCSIS
DOCSIS
Data Over Cable Service Interface Specification is an international telecommunications standard that permits the addition of high-speed data transfer to an existing cable TV system...
protocol adapted by ViaSat Inc. to the satellite physical link and adopts most recent technology for modulation on the forward channel, i.e. DVB-S2
DVB-S2
Digital Video Broadcasting - Satellite - Second Generation is a digital television broadcast standard that has been designed as a successor for the popular DVB-S system. It was developed in 2003 by the , an international industry consortium, and ratified by ETSI in March 2005...
, and channel access method, i.e. MF-TDMA (Multi Frequency-TDMA
Time division multiple access
Time division multiple access is a channel access method for shared medium networks. It allows several users to share the same frequency channel by dividing the signal into different time slots. The users transmit in rapid succession, one after the other, each using its own time slot. This...
).