{"id":11470,"date":"2022-06-08T20:49:27","date_gmt":"2022-06-08T12:49:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp-productionenv-bjg9h2g2bgg5b8aa.southeastasia-01.azurewebsites.net\/news\/spacex-rocket-hauls-egyptian-telecom-satellite-toward-geosynchronous-orbit\/"},"modified":"2022-06-08T20:49:27","modified_gmt":"2022-06-08T12:49:27","slug":"spacex-rocket-hauls-egyptian-telecom-satellite-toward-geosynchronous-orbit","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/news\/spacex-rocket-hauls-egyptian-telecom-satellite-toward-geosynchronous-orbit\/","title":{"rendered":"SpaceX rocket hauls Egyptian telecom satellite toward geosynchronous orbit"},"content":{"rendered":"
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SpaceX\u2019s Falcon 9 rocket dashes past the moon carrying the Nilesat 301 satellite into orbit. Credit: Stephen Clark \/ Spaceflight Now<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

SpaceX launched an Egyptian communications satellite toward a high-altitude geostationary orbit Wednesday from Cape Canaveral. It was the first commercial launch of a geostationary payload this year, another sign of a market shift toward smaller, lower-orbiting communications satellites.<\/p>\n

With the successful launch Wednesday, the Nilesat 301 satellite began a 15-year mission to provide Ultra HD television broadcast services and internet connectivity over Egypt and other parts of Africa and the Middle East.<\/p>\n

The 229-foot-tall Falcon 9 rocket blasted off at 5:04 p.m. EDT (2104 GMT) Wednesday from pad 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida, beginning a 33-minute mission to place the roughly 9,000-pound (4.1-metric ton) Nilesat 301 spacecraft into an elongated transfer orbit ranging nearly 28,000 miles (45,000 kilometers) above Earth.<\/p>\n

The Falcon 9 delivered Nilesat 301 to an orbit inclined about 18.6 degrees to the equator, according to U.S. military tracking data.<\/p>\n

Owned by the Egyptian operator Nilesat, largely controlled by Egypt\u2019s government, the new satellite is destined for an operating position in a circular geostationary orbit, or GEO, more than 22,000 miles (nearly 36,000 kilometers) over the equator at 7 degrees west longitude, where it will provide TV broadcast and internet services.<\/p>\n

The spacecraft will use its own propulsion system for the final maneuvers to reach its operational orbit.<\/p>\n

The launch Wednesday was the 23rd Falcon 9 launch of the year, and the first with a satellite heading toward geostationary orbit, a popular location for TV broadcasting and data relay spacecraft. It was also the first truly commercial launch into a geostationary transfer orbit worldwide this year.<\/p>\n

The geostationary satellite launch market was once a lucrative business for launch providers, including SpaceX. But the satellite market has shifted to smaller spacecraft, including constellations flying in low Earth orbit, or LEO, to beam broadband signals to consumers.<\/p>\n

Geostationary satellites are typically large and carry more communications capacity than a single LEO telecom spacecraft. In geostationary orbit, they orbit in lock-step with Earth\u2019s rotation, allowing an antenna on the ground to point at the same place in the sky for a continuous link with the satellite.<\/p>\n

SpaceX operates the Starlink network, the world\u2019s largest fleet of satellites, and other companies are in the process of developing and deploying their own low-orbit constellations.<\/p>\n

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SpaceX\u2019s Falcon 9 rocket shoots through the stratosphere about a minute after liftoff from Cape Canaveral on Wednesday. Credit: Michael Cain \/ Spaceflight Now \/ Coldlife Photography<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cHaving a first commercial GEO launch this late in the year is illustrative of a softer GEO market and growing demand for LEO missions,\u201d said Caleb Henry, a senior industry analyst at Quilty Analytics.<\/p>\n

But there is more to the story, Henry said.<\/p>\n

In 2018, commercial satellite operators ordered just five traditional large geostationary communications spacecraft from manufacturers. With most large satellites requiring a few years to build and prepare for launch, the low number of geostationary satellite orders in 2018 is now resulting in a slow year for geostationary launches, according to Henry.<\/p>\n

There were 11 commercial geostationary satellite orders in 2019, but that number was still well below the industry average of 20 in previous years, Henry said.<\/p>\n

There are two other factors impacting the geostationary satellite business, Henry said.<\/p>\n

The COVID-19 pandemic slowed satellite construction and exposed problems in global supply chains. And many of the geostationary satellites that were ordered in recent years are geared toward very high throughput missions. Those often require the design and development of new technology and first-of-their-kind reconfigurable payloads, resulting in longer build times, Henry said.<\/p>\n

Some of the new very high throughput satellites designed for geostationary orbit are still in development.<\/p>\n