Türksat 3A is a Turkish communications satellite, operated by Türksat. It was constructed by Thales Alenia Space, based on the Spacebus 4000B2 satellite bus, and was launched by Arianespace atop an Ariane 5ECA launch vehicle, along with the British Skynet 5C satellite, in a dual-payload launch on 12 June 2008 at 22:05:02 GMT, from ELA-3 at the Guiana Space Centre in Kourou, French Guiana.[1][2]

Türksat 3A
Mission typeCommunication
OperatorTürksat
COSPAR ID2008-030B[1]
SATCAT no.33056[1]
Mission duration15 years
Spacecraft properties
BusSpacebus 4000B2
ManufacturerThales Alenia Space
Launch mass3,060 kilograms (6,750 lb)
Power8.1 kilowatts
Start of mission
Launch date12 June 2008, 22:05 (2008-06-12UTC22:05Z) UTC
RocketAriane 5ECA
Launch siteKourou ELA-3
ContractorArianespace
Orbital parameters
Reference systemGeocentric
RegimeGeostationary
Longitude42° East
Transponders
Band24 IEEE Ku band (NATO J-band)
Bandwidth12×36 megahertz
12×72 megahertz
 

It is part of the Turksat series of satellites, and is placed in geosynchronous orbit at 42°E to provide communications services to Turkey, Europe and the Middle East.

The contract for the construction and in-orbit delivery of Türksat 3A was announced in February 2006.[3]

Positioned at 42°E, Türksat 3A replaced the aging Türksat 1C, which entered service in 1996. It consists of 24 Ku band transponders, nine with 36Mhz, 12 with 36 MHz and 12 with 72 MHz bandwidth. Turksat 3A was originally intended to start services at the beginning of 2008.[3]

See also edit

References edit

  1. ^ a b c "Turksat 3A". NASA. Retrieved 2013-01-10.
  2. ^ "Türksat 3A". Gunter's Space Page. Retrieved 2013-01-10.
  3. ^ a b "Alcatel Alenia Space To Build Turksat 3A". Via Satellite. February 24, 2006. Retrieved January 2, 2023.

External links edit