Dear {{lead.First Name:default=Colleague}},

As you know, the Satellite Transponder Guide is the most comprehensive resource on North American Transponders available and an indispensable resource for all satellite/communications decision makers.

To give you the most current information available, we will be updating your Dashboard every two weeks. Simply log on to the Satellite Transponder Guide Platform and you will see your updates.

Here is your Dashboard update for this week:

SES has quite the plan to get the 83°W slot active again after the failure of AMC-9. AMC-9 failed in the early morning hours of June 17th and SES restored service to AMC-9 users on other satellites. SES recently disclosed that after initially losing contact with AMC-9, they were just able to re-establish contact but it is too soon to know if AMC-9 recovery is possible or even if SES will be able to command AMC-9 into a retirement orbit if normal operations are not possible. SES filed a temporary request with the FCC and received permission to operate AMC-9 out of its 83°W stationkeeping box as the satellite is drifting and SES has been unable to stationkeep the satellite. AMC-9's payload is not turned on so it should not create any interference issues with other satellites as it drifts through the stationkeeping boxes of other active satellites.

SES's plan involves using two old satellites in their fleet, AMC-4 and AMC-6. AMC-6 recently arrived at the 85°W orbital slot in a fleet management move that was planned before AMC-9's failure. When AMC-9 failed, AMC-6 was used to restore some of the Ku-band data traffic that was on AMC-9. AMC-4 was drifting to 134.9°W to provide aeronautical data traffic when SES received FCC approval to stop the drift at 85°W. SES will transfer Ku-band data traffic from AMC-6 to AMC-4 at 85°W, drift AMC-6 to 83°W, and transition the data traffic from AMC-4 to AMC-6. After the data traffic leaves AMC-4, AMC-4 will restart its drift westward to 134.9°W.

AMC-6 at 83°W is authorized for C-band and Ku-band operations but it might not be able to provide full restoration for AMC-9 traffic as solar array string failures have limited AMC-6's transponder capacity. A lot of AMC-9 services restored to other satellites may have to remain on those other satellites due to lack of transponders on AMC-6.

The following items are new locations found so far for some formerly AMC-9 video services:

As reported in the last update, Luken Communications moved their digital multicast channel distribution signal to SES-1 C-band (101°W) at 3,900 MHz horizontal polarity in DVB-S2 format with a symbol rate of 29,125.

Televisa moved some of their distribution and occasional feeds to SES-2 C-band (87°W). The DVB-S2 format contribution HD signal is at 3,778 MHz vertical polarity with a symbol rate of 5,000 using BISS encryption. A lot of Televisa's NovelSat NS3 contribution and distribution feeds are on various frequencies across SES-2 C-band's transponder 4.

Also on SES-2 C-band is Pennsylvania Cable Network (PCN) at 3,856 MHz horizontal polarity in DVB-S format with a symbol rate of 4,167.

Two Spanish-language services also were restored on SES-2 C-band. Aguascalientes TV is found at 4,166 MHz vertical polarity in DVB-S2 format with a symbol rate of 3,715 and Telemax HD is at 3,938 MHz vertical polarity in DVB-S2 with a new symbol rate of 4,052. Telemax HD's symbol rate on AMC-9 was 4,034.

New York State Media Services Center, which also feeds New York Lottery programming, was on AMC-9 Ku-band but has found a new home on AMC-15 Ku-band (105.05°W) at 12,096 MHz horizontal polarity in DVB-S format with a symbol rate of 3,979.

In an item not related to AMC-9 restoration, Heroes & Icons launched a new time-shifted feed on SES-1 C-band (101°W) at 3,976 MHz vertical polarity in DVB-S format with a symbol rate of 2,733.

DirecTV has two lineup changes. NewsmaxTV on channel 349 is back on DirecTV after DirecTV pulled it from their lineup in 2016. Pursuit Channel on channel 604 was upgraded to high definition.

The joint Hellas Sat-3/Inmarsat S EAN satellite and GSAT-17 were launched on June 28 aboard an Ariane 5 rocket from French Guiana. The shared satellite was manufactured by Thales Alenia Space for operators Inmarsat and Hellas Sat. Inmarsat will operate the S-band package and Hellas-Sat will operate the Ku/Ka-band package from 39°E. GSAT-17 was manufactured by the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO). It will provide fixed satellite and mobile services from 93.5°E.

A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket carrying ten Iridium Next satellites successfully launched on June 25 from Vandenberg AFB. The satellites are the second set of replacement satellites that will eventually replace the aging fleet in the 66-satellite constellation.

BulgariaSat-1 was launched on June 23 aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from the Kennedy Space Center. The satellite was manufactured by Space Systems/Loral and will provide communication services over most of Europe, North Africa, and the Middle East from 1.9°E.

Chinasat-9A, launched on June 19 aboard a Long March 3B rocket, was placed in a lower-than-planned orbit after an upper stage malfunction.

A Long March 5 rocket carrying the Shijian-18 satellite suffered a launch failure on July 2. The satellite was an experimental communication satellite and is a complete loss.

Best,

Tish Drake
VP and Group Publisher, Satellite Transponder Guide
1-888-707-5814
clientservices@accessintel.com