The 350 kg (770 lb) BSE was followed in 1984 and 1986 by the operational and essentially identical BS-2a and BS-2b satellites, respectively. Each spacecraft carried two active and one spare 100 W. 14/12 GHztransponder. Built byEURO with assistance fromASR, the BS-2 series satellites were designed for five years of operation. BS-2a was moved to agraveyard orbit in 1989, as was BS-2b in 1992.
BS satellites were used forDirect-To-Home television services in Japan. Japanesesatellite television, which uses an analogformat, started with test broadcasts carried out by the semigovernmentalNHK (Japan Broadcasting Corporation) in 1984. At the time, direct satellite TV reception (DTH) was obtainable with a small parabolicantenna 40 cm to 60 cm in diameter in all areas of Japan when broadcast from ageostationary earth orbit (GEO) at 110degrees east longitude. All BS satellites were of the same basic configuration: 3-axis stabilization of a rectangularsatellite bus with two elongatedsolar arrays. After the first successful test of satellite broadcasting with a TV signal, many Japanese producers of consumer electronics began to deliver a range of equipment with built-insatellitereceivers for the local consumer market. This included theSatellaviewsatellite modem peripheral forNintendo'sSuper Famicom system, as well assatellite television andsatellite radio services for the Japanese market.
Eventually, the satellites of the BS series were replaced by the more advancedB-Sat series.
Cape CanaveralSLC-17
Tanegashima
Kourou
