The Amos 2 satellite began broadcasting this morning from the Israel Aircraft Industry MBT (MABAT) - Weapon Systems and Space Technology control station at Ben Gurion Airport. Broadcasting began shortly after the satellite’s antennae were deployed and its solar energy panels were opened. The Amos 2 was launched last night from a Soyuz Russian rocket, which took off from Baikonur in Kazakhstan.
The Amos 2’s engine is scheduled to undergo operational testing tomorrow the most important event in the satellite’s operation. In 10 days, the Amos 2 is planned to join the Amos 1, which has been in orbit since 1996. The two Israeli satellites will be 4 km from each other, and provide each other with technical backup, if needed.
Jacob Keret, VP marketing at Spacecom, which owns the Amos 2, told “Globes” this morning that the company was completely satisfied with the satellite’s launch and operation in space. “The project is progressing as planned,” Keret said. “We expect commercial operations to begin shortly. For the first time, we’ll be able to provide satellite broadcasting in North America, in addition to Europe and the Middle East.”
While the satellite itself was manufactured at the MABAT facility in Yehud, where the Ofek surveillance satellites were also built, parts of the Amos 2 were produced by foreign companies, including Italian aerospace firm Alenia, which manufactured the payload carrier system, and German company Astrium, which supplied the propulsion system.
The project cost a total of $150 million, and Spacecom estimates its revenue from the satellite at $500 million. The Amos 1 is expected to cease operating in space around 2008, while the Amos 2 will last for over 12 years.
Published by Globes [online] - www.globes.co.il - on December 28, 2003