ASTRA 1P Communications Satellite Successfully Launched

ASTRA 1P communications satellite has successfully been launched by a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Cape Canaveral in Florida.

As prime contractor for ASTRA 1P, Thales Alenia Space, a joint venture between Thales (67%) and Leonardo (33%), is responsible for the satellite’s design, manufacture and assembly, integration and testing (AIT), as well as oversight of the launch campaign.

Based on Thales Alenia Space’s powerful Spacebus NEO platform, featuring all-electric propulsion, ASTRA 1P will enable private and public broadcasters across Europe to deliver content with the highest picture quality. Ordered by SES, ASTRA 1P will join the company’s satellite fleet currently serving 119 million TV homes in Europe and will help ensure continuity of SES services until 2040.

With a launch mass of 5 metric tons and a very powerful payload, ASTRA 1P will be one of the most capacitive satellites in geostationary orbit and the most powerful operating from the 19.2° East orbital position. This wide-beam satellite has 80 Ku-band transponders and is designed to broadcast more than 500 TV channels simultaneously.

“Thales Alenia Space teams are delighted with the successful launch of the ASTRA 1P satellite, which will provide millions of homes with exceptional TV picture quality,” said Hervé Derrey, President and CEO of Thales Alenia Space. “This success follows the previous launches of the SES-17 and SES-22 geostationary satellites. I would like to thank our long-standing customer SES for its continued trust as well as the French and European space agencies, CNES and ESA, for supporting the development of our product line.”