SPACEWAY-2
| Operator | DirecTV |
|---|---|
| Mission duration | 12 years |
| Spacecraft properties | |
| Bus | BSS-702 |
| Manufacturer | Boeing |
| Launch mass | 6,116 kilograms (13,483 lb) |
| Start of mission | |
| Launch date | November 16, 2005 |
| Rocket | Ariane 5ECA |
| Launch site | Kourou ELA-3 |
| Contractor | Arianespace |
| Orbital parameters | |
| Reference system | Geocentric |
| Regime | Geostationary |
| Longitude | 99.2° West |
| Transponders | |
| Frequency | 500 MHz |
Spaceway F2 is part of DirecTV’s constellation of direct broadcast satellites. The satellite was launched via an Arianespace Ariane 5 ECA rocket from Kourou, French Guiana on November 16, 2005. Its operational position is in geosynchronous orbit 35,800 kilometres (22,200 mi) above the equator at 99.2 degrees west longitude. SPACEWAY-2 is a Boeing 702-model satellite with a 12-year life expectancy. It is expected to support high definition television to DirecTV customers with its Ka-band communications payload. Although SPACEWAY-2 was originally built by Boeing to be used for broadband Internet access via HughesNet, it has been retrofitted to deliver HD local channels (NBC, ABC, CBS, & Fox) to numerous markets nationwide.
On April 19, 2006 the satellite was delivered to DirecTV's control after successful on-orbit testing. SPACEWAY-2 immediately started broadcasting HD locals to DirecTV customers in eight more markets: Minneapolis, Minnesota; Sacramento and San Diego, California; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; Nashville, Tennessee; Kansas City, Missouri.; Columbus, Ohio; and Birmingham, Alabama. Satellites named DirecTV-10 (launched 2007) and DirecTV-11 (launched 2008), constructed by Boeing, also for use in high definition television, are bent-pipe Ka-band satellites instead of regenerative satellites, and are being used to continue the expansion of DirecTV's HD services.
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