ABS-2A

ABS-2A is an all-electric propulsion commercial communications satellite which is owned and operated by ABS. Co-located with ABS-2 at the 75°E orbital position, the satellite provides coverage over markets in South East Asia, Africa, MENA and Russia. The satellite is equipped with 48 Ku-band transponder and is designed for DTH services, cellular backhaul, VSAT, maritime and mobility solutions.

ABS-2A

Mission type	Communications
Operator	ABS
COSPAR ID	2016-0038A
SATCAT no.	41588
Mission duration	15 years (planned)
Spacecraft properties
Bus	Boeing 702SP
Manufacturer	Boeing
Launch mass	4,972 pounds (2,255 kg)
Dry mass	4,266 pounds (1,935 kg)
Power	>13.3kW at 15 years
Start of mission
Launch date	June 15, 2016, 15:05:00 (2016-06-15UTC15:05Z) UTC
Rocket	Falcon 9 Full Thrust
Launch site	Cape Canaveral SLC-40
Contractor	SpaceX
Orbital parameters
Reference system	Geocentric
Regime	Geostationary
Longitude	75° East
Transponders
Band	48 Ku band
Frequency	13.750-14.800, 17.300-18.100 / 10.950-11.200, 11.450-12.750 (Ku band)
Bandwidth	54 MHz, 72 MHz, 108 MHz
TWTA power	150 watts (Ku band)

Manufacture and specifications

The satellite was designed and manufactured by Boeing, and is a Boeing 702SP model communication satellite.^[1] It was launched on board a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket on 15 June 2016.^[2]  The satellite lifted off as part of a dual launch and was the second deployment at 11:05am EDT.  

The satellite is propelled solely by electrically powered spacecraft xenon propulsion, with the on-board thrusters used for both geostationary orbit insertion and station keeping.

The satellite utilizes five Ku-band beams and covers South East Asia, Africa, MENA and Russia.^[3]

Launch

The launch occurred on 15 June 2016 at 11.05am EDT and the satellite was deployed in the planned supersynchronous transfer orbit at 11:40am EDT.^[4]

On-orbit operations

The satellite became fully operational as a geosynchronous communications satellite on 21 January 2017 after orbit raising and in-orbit tests by Boeing and a handover from Boeing to ABS for on-orbit operations.^[5]