Eutelsat’s giant KaSat satellite was successfully launched from Kazakhstan on Dec 26^th (at 21.51 GMT). The satellite was scheduled for separation from the rocket some 9 hours after lift-off.

The Astrium-built satellite, weighing more than six tonnes, will then require some weeks of in-orbit testing ahead of going live for operational purposes.

Kasat is unique over Europe in that it is the first craft to operate entirely in Ka-band, a set of transmission frequencies as yet largely untapped. Eutelsat will be wholesaling this bandwidth to re-sellers for consumer broadband-by-satellite services, and available from Scandinavia to the Middle East.

Other posts by Chris Forrester:

1. UK Spaceports determined to succeed
2. Airbus flies high with Zephyr HAPS
3. Bank: Australia linear TV “shows weakness”
4. Intelsat left SES “on the hook” for C-band costs
5. Bank: Viaplay de-risked for Q4
6. Bank: “Video Games will rebound in 2023”
7. Analyst: “Disney problems self-inflicted”
8. Bank upgrades SES
9. Bank raises Netflix to ‘Buy’

Categories: Blogs, Inside Satellite