JCSat 8 (JCSat 2A) (original) (raw)

JCSat 8 [Boeing BSS]

Boeing Satellite Systems (BSS) and JSAT signed an agreement in April 2000 for a Boeing BSS-601 model satellite. Known as JCSAT-8, the spacecraft is the seventh satellite ordered by JSAT from BSS.

JCSAT-8 replaces JCSAT-2 at the orbital slot of 154 degrees East longitude. This will enable the new satellite to provide coverage to Japan, East Asia, Australia and Hawaii. The satellite was launched on 28 March 2002 aboard an Ariane 4 rocket.

JCSAT-8 carries 16 Ku-band transponders, each with 120 Watts provided by traveling-wave tube amplifiers (TWTAs), and 16 C-band transponders, each with 34 Watts provided by solid-state power amplifiers (SSPAs).

Like all BSS-601s, the new satellite consists of a cube-shaped center payload section, with the solar panel wings extending from the north and south sides, and an antenna array.

After becoming operational, the satellite is refered by the designator JCSat 2A.