GE 16

Also called AMC 16, S2181

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General

Designation	28472 / 04048A
Launch date	17 Dec 2004
Country of origin	United States
Mission	Telecommunications
Geostationary orbit	see below
Launch vehicle	Atlas 5 #4

Hybrid Ku- & Ka-band satellites, maybe using slots reserved for GE Star.

Suffers some power loss on solar array circuits which have reduced capacity. In Mar 2010 some transponders had to be switched off. Another failure occured in Jan 2012, Apr 2012, Nov 2012. Each event reduced the satellite's capacity.

In 2015, the company is pending authorization to repoint the Ku-band antenna to South America.
Licence to be extended till end on 2021.

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Location

Begin	End	Position
L: 17 Dec 2004	Dec 2004	82.1°W
Jan 2005	Feb 2005	84.9°W (Ka-band tests)
Feb 2005	Apr 2005	85°W
Apr 2005	Jun 2005	97°W
Jul 2005	Apr 2006	85°W
May 2006	Apr 2007	118.75°W (until Anik F3 is launched)
May 2007	May 2007	113°W (20 days)
Jun 2007	Jun 2007	97°W (20 days)
Jul 2007	Jul 2021	85°W

The entire capacity has been booked by Echostar

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End of life

Out of service	Jul 2021
Cause	moved to the junk orbit

sat-index articles

Technical data

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Lyngsat transponder loading

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Specifications

Prime contractor	Lockheed Martin
Platform	A2100AX
Mass at launch	4200 kg
Mass in orbit
Dimension
Solar array
Stabilization	3-axis
DC power
Design lifetime	15 years

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Ku-band

Main transponders	24
Backup transponders	12
Power	140 W (TWTA)
Bandwidth	36 MHz
Coverage	US (including Hawai and Alaska), part of Canada and Mexico
EIRP max	52 dBW
G/T max
Polarization	linear H/V cross-pol
Frequencies	downlink: 11.7-12.2 GHz uplink: 14.0-14.5 GHz

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Ka-band

Main transponders	12
Backup transponders	6
Power	75 W (LTWTA)
Bandwidth	125 MHz (3 x 39 MHz subchannels)
Coverage	CONUS, Hawaii, Alaska; 12 spots
EIRP max	57 dBW
Polarization
Frequencies	Uplink: 28.4-28.6 GHz & 29.5-30 GHz Downlink: 18.6-18.8 GHz & 19.7-20.2 GHz

Beacon: 18.5820 GHz (RHCP)

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