Astra 2C

Astra 2C

Mission type	Communications
Operator	SES
COSPAR ID	2001-025A
SATCAT no.	26853
Website	https://www.ses.com/
Mission duration	15 years (planned) 23 years, 1 month (elapsed)
Spacecraft properties
Spacecraft type	Boeing 601
Bus	BSS 601 HP
Manufacturer	Boeing Satellite Systems
Launch mass	3,643 kg (8,031 lb)
Power	7.0 kW
Start of mission
Launch date	16 June 2001, 01:49:00 UTC
Rocket	Proton-K / DM-03
Launch site	Baikonur, Site 81/23
Contractor	Khrunichev State Research and Production Space Center
Entered service	August 2001
Orbital parameters
Reference system	Geocentric orbit[1]
Regime	Geostationary orbit
Longitude	Astra 23.5°E (2018) 60.2° East (2015–2018) Astra 28.2°E (2014–2015) Astra 19.2°E (2010–2014) Astra 31.5°E (2009–2010) Astra 28.2°E (2007–2009) Astra 19.2°E (2001–2007)
Transponders
Band	32 Ku-band
Bandwidth	33 MHz
Coverage area	Europe
Astra constellation ← Astra 2D Astra 3A →

Astra 2C is one of the Astra communications satellites owned and operated by SES. Designed to join Astra 2A and Astra 2B at the Astra 28.2°E orbital position providing digital television and radio broadcast services to the United Kingdom and Ireland, the satellite was first used after launch in 2001 at 19.2° East for pan-European coverage.

The satellite provides one broadcast beam with horizontal and vertical polarisation, across a single footprint covering the areas of Central and Eastern Europe, Scandinavia, the Iberian Peninsula and Canary Islands.^[2]

TV signals can be received with a 50 cm dish across the majority of the British Isles with a 60 cm dish required in the extreme north and west. Astra 2C can also provide backup capacity, substituting for one or more transponders across the 10.70-12.20 GHz broadcast range used by Astra satellites in the Astra 19.2°E and Astra 28.2°E orbital positions.