TerreStar Networks and Space Systems/Loral announced that the TerreStar-1 satellite has arrived on schedule in Kourou, French Guiana where it is scheduled to launch on June 24th aboard the Ariane 5 heavy lift launch vehicle. TerreStar-1 will reportedly be the largest commercial satellite ever launched and is designed to provide integrated satellite and terrestrial mobile services for critical communications using conventionally-sized dual mode handsets.
Ideally suited to provide critical services to government, emergency responders, rural communities, and commercial users, the satellite uses 2 GHz spectrum to provide voice, data and video communications to satellite/terrestrial mobile devices the size of a typical smart phone. Space Systems/Loral, working with Hughes Network Systems, has developed a two-way ground-based beam forming technology that enables the satellite to reallocate resources based on demand, thereby maximizing capacity.
TerreStar-1 is based on SS/L's 1300 space-proven platform, which provides the flexibility to support a broad range of applications and technology advances. The satellite will be capable of generating over five hundred spot beams covering the continental U.S., Canada, Alaska, Hawaii, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
TerreStar Networks
www.terrestar.com
Space Systems/Loral
www.ssloral.com