ALPHABUS INFORMATION PACK. The new line of platform for high-power satellites. Astrium

Transcription

1 ALPHABUS INFORMATION PACK The new line of platform for high-power satellites Astrium

2 Contents p. 4 p. 6 p. 8 p. 10 p. 12 p. 14 p. 18 p. 20 ALPHABUS 2

3 In brief A look back on Half a century of space telecommunications What is a platform? 1. Increasing the capacity of communications satellites Serving the needs of operators and their customers What is a transponder? 2. Alphabus capabilities The product of a perfect blend of heritage and innovation Among the main innovations Alphabus: key figures Alphabus: key dates 3. A fruitful cooperation Between ESA and CNES Between manufacturers Between the public sector and the private sector 4. Alphasat: the first user of the Alphabus platform Alphasat, a high-power communications satellite Alphasat: Key figures 5. Alphabus and then? Alphabus extension NEOSAT The issues of electric propulsion CNES, the French space agency Contacts ALPHABUS 3

4 Smartphones, Internet and television: as we broadcast increasing amounts of high definition images and information, satellites must boost their capacity to transmit them. Alphabus is the European response to growing market demand. Astrium IN BRIEF Photononstop Televised broadcasts, Internet access, digital radio or high definition TV broadcasting, a new generation of mobile and broadband services - communications satellites today provide many services which require a constant increase in capacity. For this reason, their payloads are becoming more and more complex and heavy, consuming and dissipating power. Alphabus is Europe s response to the growing market demand for large telecommunications payloads which are heavier, more powerful and more cumbersome. It targets services such as direct to home television broadcasting, digital audio broadcasting, mobile services and broadband access. The Alphabus platform addresses the top end of the market, and is a complex and innovative product managed jointly by Astrium and Thales Alenia Space in a novel industrial arrangement, allowing them to build this unique platform series for the high-end market. Alphabus has therefore fully benefited ALPHABUS 4

5 Telstar, the first communications satellite, A look back on Half a century of space telecommunications 10 July Telstar, the first communications satellite, was sent into orbit. It was monitored by two ground stations, one in Pleumeur-Bodou in Brittany, and the other in the United States. And on 23 July, John F. Kennedy had his first speech broadcast live on both sides of the Atlantic. The satellite had just demonstrated that the technology was available for this type of service. Since then, several waves of innovation have renewed the telecommunications market, which has continued to grow over the last 50 years, meeting increasingly sophisticated needs. Most of the main families of applications that we know today emerged in the 1970s: telephony, television broadcasting, telephone communication in ships, etc. Today, Internet access is poised to replace telephony, hundreds of television channels have been developed, and listening to sailors voices out in the middle of the ocean is no longer good enough: we can now see them with high-quality images. At the same time, new countries have emerged and demand on the telecommunications market is constantly growing. However, the more we wish to broadcast higher definition images and information, the more satellites must increase their capacity to transmit them. The European Alphabus platform has been designed to meet that demand. Alcatel Lucent What is a platform? A satellite is made up of two parts: - Its payload, which directly carries out the targeted mission; - Its bus, or platform, which actually carries the payload and supplies the power, dissipates its heat and maintains the satellite s orbital position. The platform is almost identical for every satellite, and comprises: a structure (the equivalent of the chassis and bodywork of a car); electrical power supply; one or more means of propulsion; a thermal control system: the payloads consume and dissipate more and more power, which must be disposed of in space; an attitude control system: the satellite must be steered and pointed with extreme accuracy. For economy of scale, a platform model is developed which will be used for dozens of different satellites. A platform takes ten years to develop, whereas a satellite only takes three years to produce, on average. This standardisation in production reduces manufacturing times and makes savings on the equipment. to EADS Astrium Dominique Marques from the experience of the two industrial partners Thales Alenia Space and Astrium with their respective platform families: Spacebus and Eurostar. Alphabus enables the European industry to widen its range of communications satellites far beyond the current platform capabilities. This new generation platform is available on the commercial market to cover missions with payload power in the range of 12 and 18 kw and a launch mass within 6 to 8 tonnes. Alphasat, the first to use the Alphabus platform, should be launched during summer 2013 by Ariane 5 ECA from the European Spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana. This first launch will provide an opportunity to test and validate the performance of the Alphabus platform. Alphabus Extension, currently under development, will bring this power up to 22 kw and the maximum launch mass to 8.8 t, to meet the requirements of communications satellites for higher mass and power. ALPHABUS 5

6 1 Alphabus serves the needs of operators and their customers, which require very high payload capacity (mass and power), in particular because placing higher capacity payloads into orbit with a given launcher can reduce costs for the transponder in orbit: developing this platform therefore makes economic sense. The market in question is estimated to be one order for one satellite per year. The platform will enter into direct competition with Boeing and Loral, leaders in this segment up until now. ALPHABUS 6

7 Alphabus : Increasing the capacity of communications satellites ESA/Jacku HUART Alphabus offers an increased payload throw weight compared to Spacebus and Eurostar, in terms of mass (up to 2 tonnes), power (14 to 22 kw), and number and size of antennas. It is therefore a complementary platform for the Spacebus and Eurostar core range sectors. Furthermore, the increased throw weight it provides means more complex payloads can be considered, such as the flexible telecommunications payloads which can be adapted to changes in requirement and traffic throughout the satellite s life (15 years or more), in order to respond to the constantly changing worldwide market in space telecommunications. Furthermore, a technical synergy has been created between Alphabus, Eurostar and Spacebus, so that they can enrich one another with their innovative functions. The market in extra-large telecommunications missions is relatively small, but boosts the entire range. When the most innovative technology is developed and validated, it does not take long to migrate in turn to the core range. That is why the avionics designed by Thales Alenia Space for Alphabus are already used on the Spacebus platform. And the electric power supply equipment, developed by Astrium for Alphabus, is already used on Eurostar today. What is a transponder? A communications satellite receives data streams from Earth and broadcasts them to their users. The satellite components performing this function of receiving and transmitting data are the transponders. The number of transponders will largely dictate how much power a satellite consumes, as this equipment uses up a lot of electricity. A satellite s communication power is ultimately measured by the number of channels; a channel represents the frequency band handled by a transponder. Every satellite has a frequency range allocated to it by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) which it can use without risk of interference with its neighbours. The wider the range, the greater the amount of information the satellite is able to broadcast. ALPHABUS 7

8 2 The Alphabus service module. Helium and xenon tanks Central tube housing the two propellant tanks Lithium-ion batteries Plasma thrusters Avionics bay Liquid propellant apogee motor CNES/Pierre Jalby Telemetry and telecommand antennas The Alphabus service module houses the platform equipment. It is designed around a central tube, an internal deck and structural load-bearing walls. The central tube contains the two large propellant tanks which supply the apogee motor. It supports the helium tanks and the xenon tanks of the plasma propulsion system. ALPHABUS 8

9 Alphabus capabilities The platform can carry a payload of up to 2,000 kg, the total mass of the satellite at launch can therefore range from 6 to 8.8 tonnes. It can accommodate up to 12 antennas with rigid reflectors of up to 3.5 metres in diameter or deployable reflectors 15 metres in diameter. While allowing these high performance levels, it is still compatible with a dual Ariane launch or a Proton launcher. Its capacity ranges from 230 (TWTA) to 250 (SSPA) power amplifiers depending on the technology used. The product of a perfect blend of heritage and innovation The design of Alphabus greatly benefited from the experience accumulated by Thales Alenia Space and Astrium on the Spacebus 4000 and Eurostar E3000 platforms. This natural relation has today generated a return legacy, since the technology developed for the top of the range enriches these two core range sectors. Alphabus: key figures Satellite mass (Alphabus platform + payload + propellant Up to 8.8 t (with chemical propulsion for orbit raising) Payload mass Up to 1.5 t (2 t in extended version) Payload power Up to 18 kw (22 kw in extended version) Lifespan 15 years Alphabus: key dates 2001: feasibility studies 2002: ESA-CNES cooperation agreement 2007: contract signed with Inmarsat for the Alphasat satellite 2010: Qualification of the Alphabus programme 25 July 2013: Alphasat launch EADS Astrium Dominique Marques Among the main innovations: Alphabus uses electric propulsion to optimise the satellite mass in favour of the payload, by reducing the chemical propellant mass on board. A concept of a modular payload, including an antenna module, allows easy adaptation to missions and efficient integration and testing, whilst guaranteeing highly accurate antenna pointing. The platform is equipped with a highly accurate attitude and orbit control system (AOCS) thanks to star trackers. Alphabus is equipped with high-performance solar cells and fifth generation lithium-ion cell batteries. With its Extension version, Alphabus will offer enhanced heat rejection capability, thanks to the deployable radiators. CNES/Pierre Jalby CNES/Pierre Jalby Alphasat integration. The platform design has greatly benefited from the experience of Thales Alenia Space and Astrium on the telecommunications platforms. ALPHABUS 9

10 3 Part of the Alphasat project team (from l. to r.): David Schwaller (ESA), Romain Peyrou-Lauga (ESA), Paul Masters (Inmarsat), Valérie Frard (CNES) and Philippe Sivac (ESA). Astrium It is the first time that institutions (CNES and ESA) and manufacturers (Astrium and Thales Alenia Space) have all cooperated on the same project through a unique contract. CNES and the European Space Agency on the one hand, and Astrium and Thales Alenia Space on the other, created two integrated project teams, representing respectively the customer Agencies and the two project managers. The four entities made a big effort to coordinate their standards reference systems. ALPHABUS 10

11 A fruitful cooperation Between ESA and CNES Each partner had a well-defined role with complementary areas of responsibility. CNES was therefore in charge of defining the product line and participation in developing certain equipment in French industry. The European Space Agency was to take charge of equipment development as well as the development and qualification of the PFM platform (Proto-Flight Model). It is worth mentioning that the ESA/CNES team is truly integrated, without duplication, with tasks distributed between ESA or CNES architects, making the best use of the skills available in both agencies. The success of this operating method throughout the Alphabus programme has led ESA, quite naturally, to continue to use CNES expertise to follow the development of the first satellite to use the Alphabus platform: Alphasat. Between manufacturers Considering the unique nature of the highcapacity satellite market and the amount of investment necessary for the development of a large platform, the two European project managers Astrium Satellites and Thales Alenia Space joined forces, under the aegis of CNES and the European Space Agency, to develop the Alphabus platform, equally sharing the effort and risk and working as an integrated team. An equal partnership for marketing the new platform was set up. Between the public sector and the private sector The signing in 2007 of the Alphasat partnership contract between Inmarsat and ESA was a major step, recognizing this large programme carried out in the framework of a public-private partnership. It was in each of the players interests, Inmarsat benefiting from a brand new platform for operational use as part of a commercial programme, and ESA for the in-flight qualification of the Alphabus platform. Inmarsat signed an industrial contract with Astrium to make the satellite. CNES brought the Alphabus project all its expertise in putting together a variety of partnerships between agencies and with the industry; and its experience in steering the development of complex and innovative systems: Competence in telecommunications platform systems Mechanical and thermal engineering Avionic architecture Attitude and orbit control system (AOCS) Assembly, integration and tests (AIT) EADS Astrium / Dominique Marques ALPHABUS 11

12 4 Preparation of the Alphasat satellite for thermal-vacuum tests at Intespace, Toulouse. EADS Astrium Dominique Marques Alphasat will be the first geostationary communications satellite to use the new Alphabus platform. After its ground qualification, the placing in orbit will provide an opportunity to carry out several in-flight validations as regards: - avionics behaviour, - platform performance, - operations. ALPHABUS 12

13 Alphasat: the first user of the Alphabus platform This first flight is also the opportunity for Alphabus to prove to potential commercial operators that the platform is perfectly adapted to missions requiring a payload of 18 kw and over. By carrying four technology demonstration payloads (TDP) developed in the framework of the ESA ARTES telecommunication programme or supplied by the German Space Agency, the DLR, Alphasat also enables the very latest space technology to be tested. Northrop Grumman Astro Aerospace 2011 Alphasat is a high-power communications satellite intended for extending the existing worldwide network of Inmarsat mobile telecommunications. It was built by Astrium through a public-private partnership (PPP) between ESA and Inmarsat. The Alphasat geomobile communications payload aims to increase BGAN* capacity in the broader spectrum in L band. It will provide a wide range of high-speed data services for aeronautical, terrestrial and maritime users across Europe, Asia, Africa and the Middle East. The advanced integrated processor, one of the most complex in the space sector to date, is a key element in Inmarsat s commercial payload. It was developed by Astrium in the United Kingdom, Germany and also in France, which is responsible for designing the software, nearly 200 core processors (ASICs), and high efficiency power converters. This processor will enable coverage reconfiguration according to users needs. Alphasat should handle over 750 mobile communication channels in this band, improving in particular the signal quality for satellite mobile telephone users. * Broadband Global Aerea Network The L-Band reflector deployed. The «telecom giant» Alphasat will provide a wide range of high-speed services. Alphasat key figures Launcher: Ariane 5 ECA, dual launch Launch site: Guiana Space Centre (GSC), Kourou, French Guiana Mass at launch: 6,650 kg (full tanks), 3,480 kg (dry mass) Platform: Alphabus Orbital position: Geostationary 25 East Lifespan: 15 years (nominal value) Payload: Inmarsat L Band payload 4 ESA technology demonstration payloads (TDP) for a 140 kg mass and 600 W power. Electrical power: Solar panels, two wings with 4 panels, end-of-life power of 12 kw Dimensions: Main body: 7.1 m tall, 2.5 x 2.8 m cross-section Total breadth with panels deployed: 40m Reflector opening in L Band: 11 m Control Centre: Inmarsat, London ALPHABUS 13

14 5 CNES/Emmanuel Grimault Signing the Alphabus extension contract on 1st April 2011 at the Toulouse Space Centre. From l. to r. Arnaud de Rosnay (Astrium), Magali Vaissiere (ESA), Marc Pircher (CNES) and Daniel Kleim (Thales Alenia Space). An extension of the Alphabus contract was signed in 2011, with the intention of making the new European platform even more powerful and enabling it to reach the top of the range in the communications satellites market. Alphabus extension The Alphabus platform, which completed its qualification at the end of 2010, is today available on the commercial market for missions requiring a payload power of up to 18 kw. The new extension programme developments take this capacity up to 22 kw. The platform also benefits from the following improvements: thermal rejection capacity raised from 11.5 kw to 19 kw, payload mass raised from 1,250 kg to 2,000 kg (for a payload power of 18 kw), number of repeaters increased to 230, compared to the current 190, improvement of on-board electronics to switch to a n+1 generation. a version partly using electric propulsion to perform satellite orbit acquisition is being investigated. If decided, this function would be available for forthcoming platforms. The Alphabus Extension programme is also a unique opportunity for the European communications satellite industry to make further progress with many key technologies. ALPHABUS 14

15 Alphabus and then? NEOSAT The NEOSAT initiative should represent, between now and 2018, the European response to the demand for new generation platforms for satellites between 3 to 6 tonnes, i.e. 80 % of the communications satellite market. The aim of this programme, supported by CNES as part of the Investment for the future programme, is to obtain a 30 % increase in competitiveness, for the entire satellite. A very ambitious but necessary objective if European manufacturers want to remain at the level of American competition. As well as the technological innovations and increased competitiveness of the equipment and the sub-systems, part of the enhanced competitiveness will also come from the shorter development time for the satellites. From the standpoint of establishing partnerships, Alphabus is a forerunner of NEOSAT. In fact, armed with the experience acquired on the Alphabus programme for which the two manufacturers and the two agencies embarked on a fruitful collaboration, a new arrangement has been kept. It is based on the experience of the previous arrangement. However, with NEOSAT, only the development aspects will be the subject of a partnership. After that, each manufacturer will remain in charge of supplying and marketing the satellites based on its new line of platform product. Artist s impression of the future NEOSAT platform. ESA/Pierre CARRIL ALPHABUS 15

16 The issues of electric propulsion The recent change in the market raises questions about the emergence of all-electric propulsion in the satellite domain. During 2012, Boeing sold four models of one of its all electric platforms to customers in Asia and Mexico. These are small satellites (weighing about 2 tonnes), equipped with the same payload throw weight as a 3 to 4 tonne satellite using chemical propulsion. Electric propulsion is not new, since it is already commonly used to maintain the satellite in its position in geostationary orbit, or to correct drifts out of the orbital position. However, up until now, chemical propellant has remained the nominal solution for reaching orbital location following launch. Resorting to electric propulsion for transferring satellites to their final orbit, means saving on propellant mass and the associated structures. This propulsion method means that either lighter satellites with equal payload capacity can be launched, saving on launch costs, or even more powerful satellites can be launched. However, the main disadvantage of all-electric is a longer period for reaching the orbital location. Several months are in fact necessary for transferring these satellites to their permanent orbit, as opposed to a few days using chemical propulsion. So far, European operators have found that the technical risks and the shortfall - during the months without income - have been too significant compared to the benefit gained in terms of reducing launch costs or extra payload capacity. But a number of them have said they are ready today to take the risk. The Alphabus teams have therefore studied the integration of partial electric propulsion into the Alphabus Extension programme, attempting to limit the orbital positioning time to 3 months. One of the major issues at stake for the future NEOSAT platform, in terms of technological progress and increased competitiveness, will be mastering the all- electric, on the other hand. Snecma/Eric Forterre PPS 1350-G engine developed by Snecma. Alphasat is equipped with thrusters of this type. ALPHABUS 16

17 The Alphasat satellite after tests in an anechoic chamber at Intespace on 15 March Suivi d indicateurs du littoral sur le pourtour du bassin d Arcachon, effectué à partir d images du satellite GeoEye. Traitements CNES ESA/Stéphane Corvaja, 2013 ALPHABUS 17

18 CNES, the French space agency Since its inception in 1961, CNES is the public organisation responsible for elaborating and directing France s space policy within Europe. It designs satellites and puts them into orbit, inventing the space systems of tomorrow; it promotes new emerging services, useful in everyday life. CNES is the source of great space projects, launchers and satellites, which it commissions the industry to manufacture. It also surrounds itself with scientific partners and is engaged in many international cooperative projects. CNES is involved in 5 domains, which mobilise 2,400 people: Launchers Europe can reach space independently with the Ariane 5, Soyuz and Vega launchers. Earth observation Satellites collect continual global measurements of the Earth system. Universe sciences From the solar system to distant stars, probes and telescopes decipher the Universe that surrounds us. Space applications Space technology is useful to us on a daily basis for locating or communicating. Security and defence Space is a tool of sovereignty essential for anticipating, conducting operations and maintaining peace. ALPHABUS 18

19 Discover and share CNES universe: on the social networks: on iphone, key word CNES or by scanning the following code: ALPHABUS 19

20 Contacts CNES Head Office 2 place Maurice Quentin Cedex 01 France Launcher Directorate 52 rue Jacques Hillairet Paris Cedex France Toulouse Space Centre 18 avenue Edouard Belin Toulouse Cedex 9 France Guiana Space Centre BP Kourou Cedex Guiana Information for the general public Contact heading Press information: cnes-presse@cnes.fr ACM GB - Impression ACE - CNES Toulouse June