Mission type Communication COSPAR ID 2010-034A Mission duration 15 years planned Inclination 0.01° Period 24 hours Launch site Baikonur Cosmodrome | Operator EchoStar SATCAT no. 36792 Manufacturer Space Systems/Loral Inclination 0.01° Launch date 10 July 2010 Bus SSL 1300 | |
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Similar Kosmos 2469, Nimiq 5, Progress M‑07M, Kosmos 2459, Progress M‑06M | ||
EchoStar XV is an American geostationary communications satellite which is operated by EchoStar. It is positioned in geostationary orbit, and will be located at a longitude of 61.5° West, from where it is intended to provide direct broadcasting of high-definition television services to the continental United States and Puerto Rico for Dish Network.
EchoStar XV was built by Space Systems/Loral, and is based on the LS-1300 satellite bus. It is equipped with 32 J band (IEEE Ku band) transponders, and at launch it had a mass of 5,521 kilograms (12,172 lb). It has a design life of fifteen years,; however, it is carrying enough fuel for around twenty years of operations. It has a common configuration with EchoStar XI and EchoStar XVI.
The launch of EchoStar XV was conducted by International Launch Services, using a Proton-M carrier rocket with a Briz-M upper stage. The launch occurred from Site 200/39 at the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan, at 18:40 UTC on 10 July 2010. The launch successfully placed EchoStar XV into a geosynchronous transfer orbit. Following separation from the rocket, it manoeuvred into a geostationary orbit with a perigee of 35,781 kilometres (22,233 mi) and an apogee of 35,805 kilometres (22,248 mi).