SpaceX Successfully Launches Luxembourg’s Telecom Astra 1P Satellite Aboard Falcon 9

SpaceX brought another telecom satellite to orbit following the successful launch of Astra 1P.

SpaceX Launches Luxembourg's SES' Astra 1P

On Thursday (June 20) at 5:35 p.m. EDT (2135 GMT), a Falcon 9 rocket launched the Astra 1P satellite of Luxembourg-based communications company SES from Florida's Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. The launch was supposed to happen on Tuesday, but SpaceX had to postpone it by two days due to weather at the launch site.

About 8.5 minutes after takeoff, the first stage of the Falcon 9 descended to land on the droneship named "Just Read the Instructions," which was positioned in the Atlantic Ocean. It was the company's 250th droneship landing overall and the ninth launch and landing for this specific rocket, according to a SpaceX mission statement.

About 35 minutes after launch, Astra 1P was placed into geosynchronous transfer orbit by the upper stage of the Falcon 9. The spacecraft will travel autonomously 22,236 miles (35,786 kilometers) above Earth to reach geostationary orbit. Customers throughout Europe will be able to receive TV broadcasting service from Astra 1P following a checkout period. SES picked the name "Astra" for one of its satellite families, but it has nothing to do with the American aerospace company Astra.

The Ku-band satellite will distribute programming to audiences across the main European TV markets for public and private broadcasters, sports organizations, and content owners while enhancing and fortifying SES's premium TV neighborhood at 19.2 degrees East.

Additionally, ASTRA 1P will guarantee that premium HD content is delivered straight to German HD+ subscribers- that is, SES's high-definition satellite TV platform.

Based on the all-electric Spacebus NEO platform, ASTRA 1P was constructed by Thales Alenia Space and has 80 transponders that can transmit 500 HD TV channels. It will smoothly replace the present four satellites at the orbital location and carry on its duty of serving 119 million TV consumers. It is the most powerful satellite to operate at 19.2 degrees East.

Adel Al-Saleh, CEO of SES, said in a press release that they were thrilled ASTRA 1P would join its fleet of geostationary satellites responsible for delivering content to hundreds of millions of viewers in Europe. Since the launch of ASTRA 1A in 1988, Al-Saleh said the satellites have provided viewers with dependable, high-quality content delivery. With ASTRA 1P, they are reportedly in a good position to serve their broadcast clients for many years.

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Russia Allegedly Targets SES Satellites

Meanwhile, Russia has reportedly developed ground-based satellite jamming technologies for 25 years. Luxembourg just joined the list of countries that have complained about Russia's alleged jamming technologies.

On June 20, 2024, the Luxembourg satellite operator SES admitted that Astra 4, one of its high-orbit satellites, had been the victim of signal jamming from its ground station. Before a pivotal conference, Sweden, France, and the Netherlands had already filed objections with the International Telecommunication Union, which oversees the worldwide sharing of satellite orbits and radio frequencies.

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