Engineering:Intelsat V F-1

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Intelsat V F-1 → Intelsat 501
Mission typeCommunications
OperatorCOMSAT / INTELSAT
COSPAR ID1981-050A
SATCAT no.12474
Mission duration7 years (planned)
Spacecraft properties
BusIntelsat V
ManufacturerFord Aerospace
Launch mass1928 kg
Dry mass1012 kg
Dimensions1.66 x 2.1 x 1.77 metres
Power1800 watts
Start of mission
Launch date23 May 1981, 22:42:00 UTC [1]
RocketAtlas SLV-3D Centaur (AC-56)
Launch siteCape Canaveral Air Force Station , LC-36B
ContractorGeneral Dynamics
End of mission
DisposalGraveyard orbit
DeactivatedFebruary 1997
Orbital parameters
Reference systemGeocentric orbit[2]
RegimeGeostationary orbit
Longitude177.0° West (1981-1992)
91.5° East (1992-1996)
72.0° East (1996-1997)
Epoch23 May 1981
Transponders
Band21 C-band
4 Ku-band
Intelsat V
 

Intelsat V F-1 (or Intelsat 501) was a geostationary communications satellite built by Ford Aerospace, it was owned by COMSAT. Launched in 1981, it was the second of fifteen Intelsat V satellites to be launched. The satellite was based on the Intelsat V platform and its estimated useful life was seven years.

Satellite

The satellite was box-shaped, measuring 1.66 by 2.1 by 1.77 metres; solar arrays spanned 15.9 metres tip to tip. The arrays, supplemented by nickel-hydrogen batteries during eclipse, provided 1800 watts of power. The payload housed 21 C-band and 4 Ku-band transponders. It could accommodate 15,000 two-way voice circuits and two TV channels simultaneously. It had a launch mass of 1928 kg.[3] The satellite was deactivated in February 1997.

Launch

The satellite was successfully launched into space on 23 May 1981, at 22:42:00 UTC, by means of an Atlas SLV-3D Centaur vehicle from the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station , LC-36B.[4]

See also

  • 1981 in spaceflight

References