Galaxy-36 (G-36) at 89° West
Position: | 89° West |
Manufacturer: | Space Systems/Loral (SS/L) |
Operator: | Intelsat |
Launch operator: | Arianespace |
Launch vehicle: | Ariane 5ECA |
Launch date: | 12/13/2022 |
Expected lifetime: | 15+ Years |
The Intelsat Galaxy-36 (G-36) at 89° West is the 7th satellite in Intelsat’s comprehensive Galaxy fleet refresh, a new generation of technology that will provide Intelsat Media customers in North America with contribution capacity to support high-profile events, such as collegiate and professional football, auto racing, baseball, golf, boxing and professional wrestling. The satellite, built by Maxar Technologies (former SS/L division), also offers in-orbit protection for select customers in the broadcast arc serving North America. With full C-band capabilities, G-36 is critical to Intelsat’s U.S. C-band clearing strategy. The G-36 satellite was orbited with G-35 in December 2022 with an Ariane V rocket from Arianespace.
G-35 and G-36 are the 5th and 6th satellites out of seven for Intelsat’s C-band clearing program. Maxar also built G-31 and G-32, which were launched in November 2022 on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket. Both satellites will operate in the upper portion of the C-band spectrum, which is a range of wireless radio frequencies used for telecommunications and data connections around the world. The satellites are the next satellites in Intelsat’s comprehensive Galaxy fleet refresh plan, a new generation of technology that will provide Intelsat Media customers in North America with high-performance media distribution capabilities and unmatched penetration of cable head-ends. It is critical to Intelsat’s U.S. C-band clearing strategy.
G-35 and G-36 were orbited in a triple payload on December 13th, 2022 from the Kourou Space Center in French Guiana on one of the final launches of the Ariane V rocket operated by launch operator Arianespace. The third passenger was the MTG-I1 for European Satellite Agency EUMETSAT that monitors weather, climate and the environment from space.