Türksat 4A

Türksat 4A

Mission type	Communication
Operator	Turksat
Mission duration	15 years
Spacecraft properties
Bus	MELCO DS2000[1]
Manufacturer	MELCO[1]
Launch mass	~4,910 kilograms (10,820 lb)
Power	7,670 Watts
Start of mission
Launch date	February 14, 2014, 21:09:03 UTC
Rocket	Proton-M/Briz-M
Launch site	Baikonur Site 81/24
Contractor	ILS
Orbital parameters
Reference system	Geocentric
Regime	Geostationary
Longitude	42° East
Transponders
Band	28 Ku band 2 Ka band
Bandwidth	1,750 megahertz (total)

Türksat 4A is a Turkish communications satellite, operated by Turksat. It was constructed by Mitsubishi Electric (MELCO) of Japan, based on the MELCO DS2000 satellite bus,^[1][2] and was launched by the American-Russian joint-venture company International Launch Services (ILS) atop a Russian Proton-M space launch vehicle on February 14, 2014 at 21:09:03 from Site 81/24 of the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan.^[3]

The in-orbit delivery contract for the satellite was signed in March 2011.^[2] In the scope of the contract, Turkish engineers were trained in the facilities of MELCO in Japan.^[4][5][6][7] During the official visit of Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan to Japan, the satellite was handed over by the Mitsubishi Electric to the Turkish officials in a ceremony on January 8, 2014.^[8]

The initially planned launch date of Türksat 4A in November 2013 was postponed to February 2014 due to the suspension of the Proton-M launches because of problems, which arose on December 8, 2012.^[5][9]

Türksat 4A is part of the Turksat series of satellites, and was placed in a temporary geosynchronous orbit at 50°E, where it will remain around three months.^[3] During this period, orbital and subsystem tests will be conducted.^[3] Thenafter, the satellite will be transferred to 42°E to provide telecommunication and direct TV broadcasting services over a wide geographic region between west of China and east of England spanning Turkey, as well as Europe, Central Asia, the Middle East and Africa.^{[2][3][5][6][10]}

Right after the satellite reached orbit, mission control and operational support was taken over by Gölbaşı Ground Station in Ankara, which will condact performance tests around month long. The first signal from the satellite is expected to arrive 9 hours and 13 minutes after the launch.^[3]

Türksat 4A has a mass of approximately 4,910 kg (10,820 lb) and an expected on-orbit life time of 15 years.^[2] It will consist of 28 K_u band, two K_a band and an undisclosed number of C band transponders.^[2][5][6] The use of K_a band will allow higher bandwidth communication, and thus reaching the southern regions of the Sahara in Africa that was not possible with former Türksat satellites.^[3] Türksat 4A will enable to cut cost of internet access, and will be also available for military-purpose broadcasting.^[3] It is expected that Türksat 4A will increase the communications capacity of Turkey three-fold.^[3]

See also

• Turksat (satellite)

References

1. TURKSAT-4A/4B Mitsubishi Electric
2. "Türksat 4A 42° East". Türksat. Retrieved 2014-02-15.
3. "Türksat 4A uzayda". Hürriyet (in Turkish). 2014-02-14. Retrieved 2014-02-15.
4. "TÜRKSAT 4A haberleşme uydularının imza töreni". Hürriyet Teknoloji (in Turkish). 2011-03-07. Retrieved 2013-01-20.
5. "ILS and MELCO Announce the Contract for Launch of the Turksat 4A and Turksat 4B Satellites on ILS Proton". ILS Launch. Retrieved 2013-01-20.
6. "Launch Schedule 2014". Satellite Launches. Retrieved 2013-11-29.
7. "TÜRKSAT-4A ve TÜRKSAT-4B Uydu İhalesi ve Uydu Üretim Teknoloji Transferi Projesi" (in Turkish). Türksat. Retrieved 2013-01-20.
8. "Turkish PM attends satellite hand-over ceremony in Tokyo". Hürriyet Daily News. 2014-01-08. Retrieved 2014-01-08.
9. "Proton roketinde yaşanan 4 aylık fecikme Türksat-4A'yı olumsuz etkileyecek" (in Turkish). Uyduda Ne Var. 2013-01-12. Retrieved 2013-01-20.
10. "Türksat 4A coverages & footprints". Satellite Launches. 2011-10-09. Retrieved 2013-01-20.