Thales Alenia Space reports that the platform and payload of Eutelsat’s all-electric Konnect communications satellite have been successfully mated.
Thales Alenia Space, the joint venture between Thales (67 %) and Leonardo (33 %), reports that the platform and payload of Eutelsat’s Konnect communications satellite have been successfully mated. The operation was completed on 1st March. Konnect is the first satellite to use the new Spacebus Neo all-electric platform.
Major innovations on the Spacebus Neo platform include:
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thermal control and high-performance power subsystem
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flexible, modular design
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payloads tailored to each customer’s requirements, including digital solutions and Very High-Throughput Satellites (VHTS).
The Konnect satellite will feature an all-electric Xenon Propulsion System (XPS) module that will be used to raise the satellite from the orbit provided by the launch vehicle to geostationary orbit and then to maintain its station in orbit for at least 15 years.
The Spacebus Neo product line — like the Eurostar Neo by Airbus Defence and Space — is jointly supported by the European Space Agency, through its Advanced Research in Telecommunications Systems (ARTES) programme for Advanced Research in Telecommunication Systems, and the French space agency CNES.