A team of engineers and technicians at Lockheed Martin has completed the integration of the company's first modernized A2100 satellite. The spacecraft, known as Hellas-Sat-4/SaudiGeoSat-1, now moves into final assembly and testing, on track for launch in the second quarter of 2018.

Built for Arabsat and King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology, Saudi Arabia, the satellite will provide advanced telecommunications capabilities, including television, internet, telephone and secure mode communications, to customers in the Middle East, Africa and Europe.

"We've modeled this activity in our virtual reality lab hundreds of times, but this is the first time we've performed the integration activity of our modernized A2100 satellite in a clean room," said Rick Ambrose, executive vice president of Lockheed Martin Space Systems. "Mating the scalable modules together in a precise method was a critical step for the program, and the team did an exceptional job."

This milestone on a modernized A2100 satellite sees the hybrid propulsion integrated with the payload module and transponder panels. Using a combination of electrical Hall current thrusters and liquid apogee engine, the propulsion subsystem serves as the structural backbone of the satellite and is essential for maneuvering it into its final orbit as well as keeping it on station throughout its mission.

The modernized A2100 builds on a flight-proven bus that is the foundation for more than 40 satellites in orbit today. Through an internally-funded, multi-year modernization effort, Lockheed Martin has enhanced the spacecraft's power, propulsion and electronics, while also adopting the latest advanced engineering and manufacturing techniques to decrease production costs and timelines.

There are five modernized A2100 satellites currently under contract to Lockheed Martin. They are designed for a host of missions and customers around the globe.

Tweet

NASA Tests Autopilot Sensors During Simulations
Greenbelt MD (SPX) Aug 09, 2017
Inside a large, black-walled facility outside Denver, NASA's Satellite Servicing Projects Division (SSPD) team successfully completed the latest testing of three rendezvous and proximity operations sensors used for satellite servicing applicatons and beyond. These sensors are needed for autonomous rendezvous of spacecraft, which is a vital technology for robotically servicing a satellite. ... read more

Related Links
Commercial communications satellites at Lockheed Martin
Space Technology News - Applications and Research

Thanks for being here; We need your help. The SpaceDaily news network continues to grow but revenues have never been harder to maintain. With the rise of Ad Blockers, and Facebook - our traditional revenue sources via quality network advertising continues to decline. And unlike so many other news sites, we don't have a paywall - with those annoying usernames and passwords. Our news coverage takes time and effort to publish 365 days a year. If you find our news sites informative and useful then please consider becoming a regular supporter or for now make a one off contribution.
SpaceDaily Contributor $5 Billed Once credit card or paypal		SpaceDaily Monthly Supporter $5 Billed Monthly paypal only