The scale of the debris cloud caused by the loss of the Intelsat 33e geostationary orbit (GEO) satellite has been revealed.
On October 19, Intelsat announced issues with the communications satellite, before announcing the machine as a “total loss.”
The cause of the loss is still being investigated.
After initially saying it was tracking some 20 pieces of debris, US Space Forces-Space (S4S) upped that figure to more than 50. However, the full extent of the damage is worse than previously feared.
As reported by SpaceNews and others this week, space-tracking company ExoAnalytic Solutions has identified about 500 pieces of debris from the break up of Intelsat 33e.
“The size of the debris we are tracking ranges from small fragments roughly the size of a softball to larger pieces up to the size of a car door,” ExoAnalytic chief technology officer Bill Therien told SpaceNews. “The majority of the tracked objects are on the smaller end of that spectrum, which contributes to the difficulty of consistently observing all the debris pieces.”
Comspoc Corp has also created a visualization of the debris cloud. The final number may be smaller, as some pieces of solid fuel are evaporating in space.
Located at 60 degrees East, the 6.6-ton 33e high throughput satellite was designed and manufactured by Boeing Space Systems. Replacing Intelsat 904, the satellite had a mixed C-band, Ku-band, and Ka-band payload.
It was launched in August 2016 and entered service in January 2017. The satellite was slow to originally enter service after thruster issues were discovered.
Space Intel Report notes Intelsat has requested the FCC grant expedited approval to switch 2,000 of its in-flight connectivity customer aircraft to satellites owned by SES and the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) following the loss of 33e.
In April 2019 Intelsat 29e, another satellite using the same Boeing 702MP platform as 33e, was lost three years into service after developing a fuel leak.
Intelsat has at least four other satellites in orbit that are based on the 702MP platform: Intelsat's 21, 22, 27, and 35e.
SpaceNew said Intelsat has said that an investigation into the loss of Intelsat-29e found no significant risk of failure in subsequent EpicNG satellites.
In other recent satellite news:
– Telesat has ordered 127 gateway antennas from South Korea’s Intellian for its upcoming Lightspeed low Earth orbit (LEO) broadband network.
– OQ Technology has received investment from the Luxembourg Space Sector Development (LSSD), which the government co-runs with SES as part of its Series B funding round.
– AST SpaceMobile has secured a contract with Space Development Agency (SDA), weeks after its first commercial satellites have begun unfolding their solar arrays.
– Eutelsat and OneWeb have added Iridium’s GNSS services to their offerings.
– Aptos Orbital has announced a hardened device for space-based processing, communications and cloud services.
– Northrop Grumman has demonstrated a new system, called Deep Sensing and Targeting (DSAT), that turns aircraft into a “flying data center.”
– Qatar Airways has equipped its first Boeing 777 with Starlink. The airline also plans to equip its entire fleet of 777s by the end of 2025.
– Private air firm Pegasus Elite Aviation, has equipped a Bombardier Global 5000 with Starlink.
– KDDI recently completed a trial to use Starlink for direct-to-cell services.
– Broadcast firm TV2GO has launched a teleport in Nijkerk, Netherlands, in partnership with Multi-Link Holland.
– Leaf Space has deployed a 3.7-meter S/X band ground station antenna at Azercosmos’ teleport in Baku.
– More than 100 scientists have asked the FCC to temporarily suspend broadband satellite launches until the agency assesses the environmental effects of LEO constellations.
– UK startup Space Solar has secured an agreement with Reykjavik Energy to supply 30MW from space-based solar in 2030.
