Galaxy 376
| Customer | PanAmSat Corp., Greenwich, CT |
|---|---|
| Spacecraft | 8 Hughes 376 models, spin-stabilized |
| Services and Coverage | General communications services Contiguous U.S., Alaska, Hawaii |
| Launch | I-28 June 1983-Delta-Cape Canaveral, Fla. II-22 Sept 1983-Delta-Cape Canaveral III-21 Sept 1984-Delta-Cape Canaveral VI-12 Oct 1990-Ariane 44L-Kourou, French Guiana V-13 Mar 1992-Atlas Centaur-Cape Canaveral I-R (1)-22 Aug 1992-Atlas Centaur-Cape Canaveral (launch vehicle failure) I-R (2)-19 Feb 1994-Delta II-Cape Canaveral IX-23 May 1996-Delta II-Cape Canaveral |
| Orbital Slot | I, II, III-retired VI-74 degrees West, I-R-133 degrees West, V-125 degrees West IX-123 degrees West |
| Contract Life | I-III, VI-10 years; V, I-R, IX-12 years |
The Galaxy 376 satellites were built in the 1980s and 1990s by Hughes Space and Communications Company, known today as Satellite Development Center, incorporating new technologies as they became available. Originally ordered by Hughes Communications, Inc., the Galaxy fleet transferred to PanAmSat Corporation ownership in May 1997, when PanAmSat and Hughes Communications Galaxy merged. The new company is the worlds largest private satellite owner/operator.
The spacecraft are used for general communications services, such as television relay, voice and data. Galaxy I-R, V and IX are dedicated to cable television transmission across the United States. The fleet's ground control station is in Long Beach, California, with telemetry and command terminals in Brooklyn, N.Y., and Fillmore, Calif.
For the launches on Delta rockets, each satellite carried a McDonnell Douglas payload assist module that performed the conventional third-stage rocket function of insertion into an elliptical transfer orbit. The apogee motor, which placed the satellite in near-synchronous orbit above the equator, was a Thiokol Star 30 solid propellant rocket motor.
The Ariane booster injected the satellite directly into geosynchronous transfer orbit, so no PAM was required. A Star 30B solid propellant apogee motor raised the spacecraft to geosynchronous altitude.
GALAXY 376 SPECIFICATIONS
| Payload | All models - C-band,
24 active (6 spare) ansponders I-III, VI-10-w TWTAs V, I-R, IX-16-w TWTAs |
|---|
| Solar Beginning of life Panels |
I-III, VI-990 w, V, I-R, IX-1163 w 2 cylindrical, telescoping panels I-III, VI-K7 & K4 3/4 silicon cells V, I-R, IX-K7 silicon cells |
|---|---|
| Batteries | I-III, V-2 NiCd V, I-R, IX-2 Super NiCd |
| Star 30 class AKM Monopropellant for stationkeeping |
| In orbit | All models - 7 ft 1 in (2.2 m) diam I-III, VI-21 ft 8 in (6.6 m) high V, I-R, IX-24 ft 8.5 in (7.5 m) high |
|---|---|
| Stowed | All models - 7 ft 1 in (2.2 m) diam I-III, VI-9 ft 4 in (2.8 m) high V, I-R, IX-10 ft 2.5 in (3.1 m) high |
| Weights In orbit (beginning of life) |
I-III, VI-1560 lb (709 kg) V, I-R, IX-1737 lb (788 kg) |
| Single 6-ft (1.8-m) diameter shared-aperture antenna with horizontally and vertically polarized surfaces |