| Mission type | Communication |
|---|---|
| Operator | Intelsat |
| COSPAR ID | 1990-091A[1] |
| SATCATno. | 20872 |
| Spacecraft properties | |
| Spacecraft | SBS 6 |
| Bus | HS-393 |
| Manufacturer | Hughes |
| Launch mass | 2,478 kg (5,463 lb) |
| BOL mass | 1,484 kg (3,272 lb) |
| Dimensions | 3.7 m × 10 m × 2.3 m (12.1 ft × 32.8 ft × 7.5 ft) with solar panels and antennas deployed. |
| Power | 2.2 kW |
| Start of mission | |
| Launch date | 22:58, October 12, 1990 (UTC) (1990-10-12T22:58:00Z)[2] |
| Rocket | Ariane 44L |
| Launch site | KourouELA-2 |
| Contractor | Arianespace |
| End of mission | |
| Disposal | placed in a graveyard orbit |
| Deactivated | April 2009[3] |
| Orbital parameters | |
| Reference system | Geocentric |
| Regime | Inclined geosynchronous |
| Semi-major axis | 42527 km |
| Perigee altitude | 36,127.3 km |
| Apogee altitude | 36,186.6 km |
| Inclination | 7.3° |
| Period | 1,454.7 minutes |
| Epoch | 00:00:00 2016-08-17[4] |
| Transponders | |
| Band | Ku band: 19 × 45 Mhz[3] /> |
| Bandwidth | 855 MHz |
| Coverage area | Continental United States[5] |
| TWTA power | 41 Watts |
SBS 6 was ageostationarycommunications satellite designed and manufactured byHughes (nowBoeing) on theHS-393 platform. It was originally ordered bySatellite Business Systems, which later sold it toHughes Communications and was last used byIntelsat. It had aKu band payload and operated on the 95°W longitude.[3]
The spacecraft was designed and manufactured byHughes on theHS-393satellite bus. It had a launch mass of 2,478 kg (5,463 lb), a mass of 1,500 kg (3,300 lb) after reachinggeostationary orbit and an 8-year design life. When stowed for launch, its dimensions were 3.4 m (11 ft) long and 3.7 m (12 ft) in diameter.[6]
With its solar panels fully extended it spanned 10 m (33 ft).[3] Its power system generated approximately 2,350 Watts of power thanks to two cylindrical solar panels.[3] It also had a two 38AhNiH2 batteries.[3] These panels used K7 and K4-3/4 solar cells and were more than twice the number than on theHS-376.[6]
Its propulsion system was composed of twoR-4DLAE with a thrust of 490 N (110 lbf). It also used two axial and four radial 22 N (4.9 lbf)bipropellantthrusters forstation keeping andattitude control.[6] It included enough propellant fororbit circularization and 8 years of operation.[3]
Its payload was composed of a 2.4 m (7 ft 10 in) multi horn antenna by thirty 45 MHzKu bandtransponders, of which 19 were active and 11 spares. It had a total active bandwidth of 855 MHz.[3][6] The Ku band transponders had aTWTA output power of 41 Watts.[3][6] It also had an omnidirectionalcommand and telemetry antenna.[6]
In 1985Satellite Business Systems decided to order a more powerful satellite than theHS-376 based previous satellites. Thus, it ordered theHS-393 basedSBS 6 fromHughes, becoming the first customer of the platform.[3]
On October 12, 1990, SBS 6 was finally launched by anAriane 44L fromKourouELA-2 at 22:58 UTC.
In April 2009, SBS 6 finally decommissioned and put on agraveyard orbit.[3]
