Nimiq 5

Nimiq 5

Operator	Telesat Canada
Major contractors	Space Systems/Loral ILS (LSP)
Bus	LS-1300
Mission type	Communications
Launch date	17 September 2009 19:19 GMT
Carrier rocket	Proton-M/Briz-M
Launch site	Baikonur Site 200/39
Mission duration	15 years
Homepage	Telesat - Nimiq Fleet
Mass	4,745 kilograms (10,460 lb)
Orbital elements
Regime	Geostationary
Orbital period	24 hours
Longitude	72.7° West
Transponders
Transponders	32 J band

Nimiq 5 is a Canadian communications satellite, which will be operated by Telesat Canada as part of its Nimiq fleet of satellites.^[1] It will be positioned in geostationary orbit at a longitude of 72.7° West of the Greenwich Meridian.^[2] EchoStar Corporation will lease the satellite's entire capacity to provide direct-to-home broadcasting for Dish Network Corporation.^[2]

Nimiq 5 was built by Space Systems/Loral, and is based on the LS-1300 satellite bus.^[3] The contract to build it was announced on 4 January 2007.^[4] At launch, it will have a mass of 4,745 kilograms (10,460 lb),^[5] and is expected to operate for fifteen years. It carries 32 J band transponders (NATO frequency designation system, US IEEE K_u band).^[3]

Nimiq 5 was launched by International Launch Services, using a Proton-M rocket with a Briz-M upper stage, under a contract signed in April 2007.^[6] The launch was conducted from Site 200/39 at the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan, at 19:19 GMT on 17 September 2009. The Briz-M separated from the Proton-M nine minutes and forty one seconds into the flight and subsequently made five burns before releasing Nimiq 5 into a geosynchronous transfer orbit nine hours and fifteen minutes after liftoff.^[5] It will then raise itself into its final geostationary orbit. It is expected to enter service in early 2010.^[1][7]

See also

• 2009 in spaceflight

References

1. ^ ^{a b} "Nimiq Fleet". Satellite Fleet. Telesat. http://www.telesat.ca/en/Nimiq_Fleet. Retrieved 2009-09-17. 
2. ^ ^{a b} "Telesat Completes Agreements For Satellite Capacity With Bell TV And Echostar Corporation". Telesat. 2009-09-17. Archived from the original on 2009-09-17. http://www.webcitation.org/5jrNbU1dQ. Retrieved 2009-09-17. 
3. ^ ^{a b} Krebs, Gunter. "Nimiq 5". Gunter's Space Page. http://space.skyrocket.de/doc_sdat/nimiq-5.htm. Retrieved 2009-09-17. 
4. ^ "Space Systems/Loral To Build Nimiq 5 Satellite For Telesat Canada". Commercial Space Watch. 2007-01-07. http://www.comspacewatch.com/news/viewpr.html?pid=21579. Retrieved 2009-09-17. 
5. ^ ^{a b} "Mission Overview". Nimiq 5. International Launch Services. http://www.ilslaunch.com/assets/pdf/Nimiq-5-MO-final.pdf. Retrieved 2009-09-17. 
6. ^ "ILS, Telesat Canada Sign Contract to Launch Nimiq 5 on Proton in 2009". SpaceRef. 2007-04-26. http://www.spaceref.com/news/viewsr.html?pid=24020. Retrieved 2009-09-17. 
7. ^ http://www.ilslaunch.com/news-091809/