Airbus is handling the transportation of the Eutelsat 36D satellite to the United States
The geostationary telecommunications satellite Eutelsat 36D, built by Airbus, was shipped from Toulouse (France) to Sanford, Florida (United States), aboard an Airbus BelugaST (A300-600ST).
The Eutelsat 36D satellite was transported to the United States aboard a BelugaST. It is currently at the Kennedy Space Center where it will be launched into orbit by a SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket (Elon Musk group) by the end of March 2024. Eutelsat 36D is based on the latest generation of geostationary telecommunications satellite, Eurostar Neo. It will provide direct-to-home (DTH) television broadcasting as well as government services in Africa, Europe and Eastern countries.
How to reduce satellites’ mass
« Eutelsat 36D is the latest milestone in our long-standing partnership with Eutelsat, which has lasted for over 30 years. This is the 22nd geostationary satellite we have built for them. It will provide expanded capacity over Africa and Eurasia », commented Philippe Pham, Director of Telecommunications and Navigation Systems at Airbus.
The Eurostar Neo range of telecommunications satellites from Airbus was developed with the support of the European Space Agency (ESA) and other partners, including the Centre national d’études spatiales (CNES) and the UK Space Agency(UKSA). These satellites combine an electrical power of 18 kW with a reduced mass, around 5 tonnes, thanks to Airbus’s electric orbit raising (EOR) technique. Mass control has been optimised through the development of new materials, such as the contribution from Bercella on several critical parts of the Eurostar Neo platform.
