Zvi Kopelman, head of communications satellite administration at the aerospace industry's Mabat Space Company, says that the injection was accurate, and the electrical systems, the direction control, the antenna and the heat control are working as planned * At the end of 12 days, the respondents will be tested.
Avi Blizovsky
The launch of the Israeli communication satellite "Amos 2" is launched on giant screens at Tel Aviv University * Photo by Kobi Kantor (for H.L.L. company)
Direct link to this page: https://www.hayadan.org.il/amos2update291203.html
Zvi Kopelman, head of satellite communications administration at Mebet Hallel:
Following the launch of Amos 2, it will be possible to double the capacity of Yes
Yes Company can double its broadcasting capacity from 80 channels today to 160 in the future, if it so wishes. This is if, after the successful launch, the Amos 2 satellite also arrives safely at the point where it is supposed to operate in space - about four kilometers near the Amos-1 satellite.
According to Tzvi Kopelman, head of communications satellite administration at the aerospace industry's Mabat Space Company, in a special interview with the Hidan site and the "People and Computers" group, now everything is working as expected, the satellite is functioning, the injection was accurate, and the electrical systems, the direction control, the antenna and the heat control are working properly. However, we will only know in ten days if the heart of the satellite - its 22 respondents - are working as planned, and will be able to provide service to the television and internet companies.
According to him, the satellite was launched by Soyuz and precisely entered the planned trajectory. This is an elliptical track that is a transit track. The greatest distance from the Earth is 36 thousand kilometers, and the closest distance is 4,000. "After the launch, we deployed the communications antenna and the solar panels," Kopelman says. "The satellite, with the help of the Earth's instruments, aims at the Earth all the time and it sails to this orbit. He will stay there for 24 hours, during which time he will have enough time to make two circles of the earth. After 24 hours we activate the main engine of the satellite which will raise its orbit. 3 such activations of the main engine are planned for the next five days. The satellite will then enter an almost final orbit. He will begin a glide path at a rate of one degree per day (from 11 degrees West, it will take him seven days to reach 4 degrees West), and after a total of 12 days he will reach his final location. So we will start a phase of testing in orbit, where we will test its systems and especially its communication hub. If everything goes well, within five weeks from today we will be able to start providing service."
Who will run it?
"We will activate it. We have an operating contract with the owner of the satellite, which is a space company. We will operate it for her for the entire life of the satellite from the station located at the Mabat-Hellal plant in Yehud.
"We at the Mabat-Hell plant have two main administrations. One deals with the Ofek and Eros photography satellites, and the other administration, which I head, the Communications Satellite Administration that built Amos 1 and now we have built Amos 2. We will also operate it."
And Yes is supposed to be the main beneficiary?
"Yes broadcasts about 80 digital channels. They did not rent the entire capacity of Amos-1, but part of the capacity - all they could purchase. But there was no longer room for additional channels. Amos 1 is completely full, even beyond planning. All nine respondents, including two that we thought would be spares, are working today at Amos 1 at full capacity. Yes asked us for more channels to double their capacity."
Who are the other big customers besides Yes?
"Our biggest clients are Telespazio, HBO and Antena Hungary. They rent a satellite segment and distribute the broadcasts to the broadcast centers of the cable companies in Central and Eastern Europe. Amos 2 will also provide an additional service, according to the design of the space company: it will be able to provide internet directly to homes through direct connectivity to the East Coast of the United States."
The Prime Minister and Minister of Industry, Trade, Employment and Communications, Ehud Olmert, who watched the launch of the satellite from the hub at Tel Aviv University, noted that launching Amos 2 into space is another step that places Israel at the forefront of high-tech communications in the world.
According to the minister, there are few countries in the world that have the ability to design, manufacture and launch communication satellites into space. The combination of a commercial business company and the aerospace industry is a combination that emphasizes Israel's uniqueness in the field of communication and technology, and positions it in the first row in this field in the world.
Minister Olmert added that the Israeli government sees great importance in continuing the development of the space industry in general and the launching and operation of Israeli communication satellites.
CEO of Space-Communications, David Polak noted that Amos 2's ability to link North America, Europe and the Middle East with high quality, opens the door to new and fascinating fields of activity. "We expect high revenues from the export of satellite communication services in Amos 2, as a basis for the development of the next 'Amoss'," Polk said.
More updates on the Amos 2 satellite can be found on a news site dedicated to the satellite.
Avi Blizovsky
The "Soyuz" rocket launched the satellite to an altitude of 36 thousand km
The Israeli communication satellite, "Amos 2", was launched on top of the Russian "Soyuz" satellite launcher, which is considered the "workhorse" of Russian satellites. The current launch will be the 1,682nd in number of the rocket, which launched all the manned satellites of the Soviet Union and Russia into space, since the launch of Yuri Gagarin into space in 1957.
The "Soyuz" is a rocket with four stages (accelerators), powered by liquid fuel. The first three stages accelerate the launcher to a speed of 8 km per second, to overcome the Earth's gravity and leave the atmosphere. The first stages are gradually detached, and "throw" the satellite into space to a low transit orbit around the Earth, at an altitude of about 200 km.
Then the fourth stage of the launcher comes into action, which raises the satellite within 8-7 hours to an orbit at an altitude of about 36 thousand km. At this point, the fourth stage also disconnects, and the satellite activates its independent engine, called ABM. For five days the satellite cruises with the help of the independent engine.
Upon reaching the desired area, the engine operation is stopped by means of a command transmitted from the ground station.
The process of stopping the satellite is carried out using another engine, which "throws" it to the final point - "WEST 4" - at a distance of 4 km from the communication satellite "Amos 1". On the seventh day of launch, "Amos 2" will be stopped in its final position.
Tracking stations in Israel, Great Britain, the USA and Australia will monitor the course of the Israeli satellite. After "Amos 2" is positioned at the point determined for it in space, the satellite will deploy the antennas and the solar surfaces, through which it receives energy to operate the electrical systems.
When the batteries of the satellite's electrical sub-systems are full, "Amos 2" will begin to receive commands from the ground station in "Mabat". At this stage, the testing of the systems on the satellite will begin, which will last about a month, after which "Amos 2" will be handed over to the "H.L.L" company.
Amnon Barzilai
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