The SES-4 satellite is now fully operational and ready for service at the orbital location of 338 degrees East.
With 52 C-band and 72 Ku-band transponders 50th SES satellite is also the largest, most powerful satellite in its fleet to date
SES-4 was successfully launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan on board an ILS Proton Breeze M booster on February 15, 2012. SES-4 takes over from the NSS-7 satellite at 338 degrees East longitude and provides replacement as well as incremental capacity at this well-established SES orbital slot over the Atlantic Ocean.
SES-4 is a 20-kilowatt satellite manufactured on the Space Systems/Loral 1300 platform, with 52 C-band and 72 Ku-band transponders. It has C-band beams serving the eastern hemisphere of Europe and Africa and providing full coverage of the Americas, plus a global C-band beam to support mobile and maritime customers.
Four high-power, regional Ku-band beams provide service to Europe, the Middle East, and West Africa, as well as North and South America, with extensive channel switching capability between C- and Ku-band transponders for enhanced connectivity. The satellite is designed to deliver services for 15 years or more.
Martin Halliwell, CTO of SES, stated: “We are delighted to see the 50th spacecraft in the global SES fleet go live and congratulate the technical teams involved for the successful bringing into operation of this important addition to our fleet. SES-4 offers state-of-the-art transmission capacity to SES customers across three continents and for a wide array of applications, including video distribution with DTH power-levels, VSAT, government and maritime services.”
