Broadcasting Satellite System Corporation

The Broadcasting Satellite System Corporation (B-SAT) is a Japanese corporation established in April 1993 to procure, manage and lease transponders on communications satellites. Its largest stockholder, owning 49.9%, is NHK, the Japan Broadcasting Corporation.[1] In 1994, it was ranked by Space News as the world's 19th largest fixed satellite operator.[2]

Satellite fleet

The B-SAT fleet has an extensive history. This is an overview of the satellites.

Former satellites

These satellites were managed by Broadcasting Satellite System Corporation but are now decommissioned.[3]

BSAT-1a

BSAT-1a was an HS-376 based satellite with 4 active plus 4 spares Ku-band transponders. It was successfully launched on 16 April 1997 aboard an Ariane 44LP along Thaicom 3.[4]

BSAT-1b

BSAT-1b was an HS-376 based satellite with 4 active plus 4 spares Ku-band transponders. It was successfully launched on 28 April 1998 aboard an Ariane 44P along Nilesat 101.[4]

BSAT-2a

BSAT-2a was manufactured by Orbital Sciences Corporation based on the Star Bus platform. It was launched aboard an Ariane 5G rocket on 8 March 2001. BSAT-2a serves as an on orbit backup to BSAT-2c. BSAT-2a was decommissioned in January 2013.[5]

BSAT-2b

BSAT-2b was a twin of BSAT-2a, also based on the Star Bus platform. Launched along Artemis aboard an Ariane 5G, it was left on an unusable orbit and that it couldn't compensate for. The electric propulsion Artemis, could use its higher efficiency ion drives, to reach operational orbit.[6][7]

BSAT-2c

BSAT-2c was manufactured by Orbital Sciences Corporation Based on the Star Bus platform. It was launched aboard an Ariane 5 rocket on 11 June 2003. In-orbit delivery to B-SAT took place 15 July 2003.[8] BSAT-2c was decommissioned in August 2013.[5]

Current satellites

The current fleet of Broadcasting Satellite System Corporation as of August 2020 is composed of five spacecraft.[3]

BSAT-3a

Launched on 14 August 2007 by an Ariane 5 ECA launch vehicle.[9] It was manufactured by Lockheed Martin Commercial Space Systems based on the A2100A platform design, with a communications payload containing 12 Ku-band channels, eight of which operate at one time.[10] Located in geostationary orbit at 110.0° East longitude, it replaced BSAT-1a and BSAT-1b.[1]

BSAT-3b

B-SAT awarded Lockheed Martin the contract to build its next geostationary telecommunications satellite, BSAT-3b, which was launched by Arianespace aboard an Ariane 5 ECA (along with the Eutelsat W3B) on 28 October 2010.[11][12][13]

BSAT-3c

BSAT-3c, also known as JCSAT-110R, is a satellite co-owned with SKY Perfect JSAT with each operator owning a separate payload. It was built by Lockheed Martin on its A2100A platform. It has two separate payloads with 12 Ku-band transponders each. It was successfully launched on 7 August 2011 on an Ariane 5 ECA along Astra 1N.[14]

BSAT-4a

The first satellite of the fourth generation BSAT was built by SSL on its SSL 1300 platform. It has 24 Ku-band transponders and mass of 3,520 kilograms (7,760 lb). BSAT-4a launched on 29 September 2017 aboard an Ariane 5 ECA.[15]

BSAT-4b

The second satellite of the fourth generation BSAT was built by Maxar Technologies on its SSL 1300 platform. It has 24 Ku-band transponders and mass around 3,530 kilograms (7,780 lb). BSAT-4b was launched aboard an Ariane 5 ECA on 15 August 2020.[16]

Satellite list
Name Bus Payload Order Launch Launch Vehicle Launch Result Launch Weight Status Remarks
BS-3N AS-30003 Ku-bandN/A8 July 1994Ariane 44LSuccess1,100 kilograms (2,400 lb)Decommissioned in August 2011Launched with PAS 2.[17] Transferred to B-SAT in November 1998.[5][18]
BSAT-1a HS-3764 Ku-band199316 April 1997Ariane 44LPSuccess1,236 kilograms (2,725 lb)Decommissioned in August 2010Launched with Thaicom 3.
BSAT-1b HS-3764 Ku-band199328 April 1998Ariane 44PSuccess1,236 kilograms (2,725 lb)Decommissioned in August 2011Launched with Nilesat 101.
BSAT-2a STAR-14 Ku-band19998 March 2001Ariane 5GSuccess1,292 kilograms (2,848 lb)Decommissioned in January 2013Launched with Eurobird 1.[6][5]
BSAT-2b STAR-14 Ku-band199912 July 2001Ariane 5GFailure1,292 kilograms (2,848 lb)Launch failureLaunched with Artemis. Launch failure left it in too low an orbit.[6][5]
BSAT-2c STAR-14 Ku-band200111 June 2003Ariane 5GSuccess1,275 kilograms (2,811 lb)Decommissioned in August 2013Launched with Optus C1.[5][19]
BSAT-3a A2100A12 Ku-band200514 August 2007Ariane 5 ECASuccess1,967 kilograms (4,336 lb)Operational at 110.0° EastLaunched along Spaceway-3.[5][20]
BSAT-3b A2100A12 Ku-band200828 October 2010Ariane 5 ECASuccess2,060 kilograms (4,540 lb)Operational at 110.0° EastLaunched with Eutelsat W3B.[5][20]
BSAT-3c A2100A24 Ku-band and 24 C-band20086 August 2011Ariane 5 ECASuccess2,910 kilograms (6,420 lb)Operational at 110.0° EastLaunched with Astra 1N. Co-owned with SKY Perfect JSAT, named as JCSAT-110R. Backup of N-SAT-110.[14][5]
BSAT-4a SSL 130024 Ku-band201529 September 2017Ariane 5 ECASuccess3,520 kilograms (7,760 lb)Operational at 110.0° EastLaunched with Intelsat 37e
BSAT-4b SSL 130024 Ku-band201815 August 2020Ariane 5 ECASuccess3,530 kilograms (7,780 lb)Success at 110.0° EastLaunched with Galaxy 30 and MEV-2

References
  1. "Broadcasting Satellite System Corporation Profile". B-SAT. Archived from the original on 7 July 2009.
  2. "Top 20 Fixed Satellite Operators, 2004". Space News. Archived from the original on 31 August 2005.
  3. "BS放送を支える放送衛星" [Broadcast Satellite support network] (in Japanese). B-SAT Corporation. Retrieved 2016-09-08.
  4. Krebs, Gunter Dirk (2016-09-08). "BSat 1a, 1b". Gunter's Space Page. Retrieved 2016-07-20.
  5. "Milestones". Broadcasting Satellite System Corporation. Archived from the original on 2016-09-08. Retrieved 2016-09-09.
  6. Krebs, Gunter Dirk (2016-09-08). "BSat 2a, 2b". Gunter's Space Page. Retrieved 2016-07-20.
  7. Krebs, Gunter Dirk (2016-09-08). "Artemis". Gunter's Space Page. Retrieved 2016-07-20.
  8. "ORBITAL MAKES FINAL IN-ORBIT DELIVERY OF BSAT-2c SATELLITE". Orbital Sciences.
  9. "BSAT-3A - NSSDC ID: 2007-036B". NASA. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
  10. "Lockheed Martin-Built BSAT-3a Satellite Ready For Launch". Lockheed Martin. Archived from the original on 2008-03-05.
  11. "B-SAT AWARDS LOCKHEED MARTIN CONTRACT FOR BSAT-3b SATELLITE". Lockheed Martin. 2008-04-15. Archived from the original on 21 May 2008.
  12. "Lockheed Martin-Built BSAT-3b Satellite Successfully Launched for the Broadcasting Satellite System Corporation of Japan". Lockheed Martin. 2010-10-28. Archived from the original on 4 April 2010.
  13. "All Systems Are Nominal Aboard Lockheed Martin Bsat-3b Satellite Following October 28 Launch". Lockheed Martin. 2010-11-04. Archived from the original on 13 November 2010.
  14. Krebs, Gunter Dirk (2016-09-08). "BSat 3c / JCSAT 110R". Gunter's Space Page. Retrieved 2016-07-20.
  15. Krebs, Gunter Dirk (2016-09-08). "BSat 4a". Gunter's Space Page. Retrieved 2016-07-20.
  16. B-SAT corporation
  17. Krebs, Gunter Dirk (2016-09-08). "BS 3a, 3b, 3n (Yuri 3a, 3b, 3n)". Gunter's Space Page. Retrieved 2016-09-06.
  18. McDowell, Jonathan. "Geostationary Orbit Catalog". Archived from the original on 2016-09-09. Retrieved 2016-09-09.
  19. Krebs, Gunter Dirk (2016-09-08). "BSat 2c". Gunter's Space Page. Retrieved 2016-07-20.
  20. Krebs, Gunter Dirk (2016-09-08). "BSat 3a, 3b". Gunter's Space Page. Retrieved 2016-09-06.
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