Astra 2B moving west.

Analoguesat

Administrator
Staff member
Joined
Jul 26, 2003
Messages
50,739
Reaction score
11,220
Points
113
Location
Scottish Borders
My Satellite Setup
TM 5402HD
Sky+ UK.
My Location
Scottish Borders
Ive just been looking at the SES centre of box info for the old Astra's (1E 1F & 1H are no longer listed) and noticed 2B is due to drift west from May 30th

ATM shes wandering around 19.4E, by June 5th she will be out around 16.1E. Anyone got any idea of the final destination?
 

hvdh

Specialist Contributor
Joined
Dec 10, 2004
Messages
2,357
Reaction score
3,336
Points
113
Age
59
Website
gso-satellites.nl
My Satellite Setup
Dr.HD F16, TBS 5927, T-55, Laminas 120 cm
My Location
Oss, NL (5.5°E 51.8°N)
Destination is 19.6°W, next to the old & inclined NSS-7 at 20.0°W.
It will be reached on August 1.
 

hvdh

Specialist Contributor
Joined
Dec 10, 2004
Messages
2,357
Reaction score
3,336
Points
113
Age
59
Website
gso-satellites.nl
My Satellite Setup
Dr.HD F16, TBS 5927, T-55, Laminas 120 cm
My Location
Oss, NL (5.5°E 51.8°N)
Astra 2B (incl. 2.3°) arrived at 19.6°W.
 

Analoguesat

Administrator
Staff member
Joined
Jul 26, 2003
Messages
50,739
Reaction score
11,220
Points
113
Location
Scottish Borders
My Satellite Setup
TM 5402HD
Sky+ UK.
My Location
Scottish Borders
It'll be feeds only if the old girl is even powered up. 2.3 degree inclination makes 2B unsuitable for domestic broadcasting.

Its far more likely 2B will sit there for 3 months "activating" a new frequency band at 20W, and then will be shunted off to another slot to do the same.
 

william-1

Super Moderator
Staff member
Joined
Jul 2, 2005
Messages
12,179
Reaction score
12,266
Points
113
Location
Epping Forest
My Satellite Setup
OP Gibertini 100 XP+ Inverto Black Ultra Lnb
Superior Dark Motor (160° max)
(50 east to 45 west)
Octagon SX88+Optima (A/B switch) Edision primo IP S2

Raven 88cm Mesh Dish + IBU Twin output
Stab100 H to H (120° max)
(53 east to 45 west)
Octagon SX88+ Ultra HD (A/B switch) Golden Interstar Alpha_X
My Location
Epping Forest Essex

Attachments

  • 2B-footprint-fact-sheet.pdf
    178.9 KB · Views: 7

s-band

Specialist Contributor
Joined
Feb 7, 2016
Messages
1,186
Reaction score
1,843
Points
113
My Satellite Setup
1.5m IRTE PF, Octagon OSLO external Ref., TBS6983,
Various L, S, C, X & Ka bits. 1.2m S/X/Ku/Ka Prodelin on Az-El (being refurbished)
My Location
Essex
0.9 deg N at time of beacon plot attached, dish not tracking. Frequency wobble due to clouds obscuring sun intermittently - DRO. 11708V & 11710V 10kHz BW

Astra_2B_19.6W.gif
 
Last edited:

william-1

Super Moderator
Staff member
Joined
Jul 2, 2005
Messages
12,179
Reaction score
12,266
Points
113
Location
Epping Forest
My Satellite Setup
OP Gibertini 100 XP+ Inverto Black Ultra Lnb
Superior Dark Motor (160° max)
(50 east to 45 west)
Octagon SX88+Optima (A/B switch) Edision primo IP S2

Raven 88cm Mesh Dish + IBU Twin output
Stab100 H to H (120° max)
(53 east to 45 west)
Octagon SX88+ Ultra HD (A/B switch) Golden Interstar Alpha_X
My Location
Epping Forest Essex
Nothing showing with vertical polarization 11700 to 12750

DSCN2023[2].JPG
 

s-band

Specialist Contributor
Joined
Feb 7, 2016
Messages
1,186
Reaction score
1,843
Points
113
My Satellite Setup
1.5m IRTE PF, Octagon OSLO external Ref., TBS6983,
Various L, S, C, X & Ka bits. 1.2m S/X/Ku/Ka Prodelin on Az-El (being refurbished)
My Location
Essex
Nothing showing with vertical polarization 117oo to 12750

I was only getting about 12dB SNR in 10kHz which is 8dB below noise in 1MHz bandwidth.

11710 had dropped by 6dB by 11:38 when at 1.14N.

Edit: Only 2dB over noise in 10k at 12:03 1.38 deg. N, 28.2deg elevation

Astra_2B_19.6W_11-33.gif
 
Last edited:

s-band

Specialist Contributor
Joined
Feb 7, 2016
Messages
1,186
Reaction score
1,843
Points
113
My Satellite Setup
1.5m IRTE PF, Octagon OSLO external Ref., TBS6983,
Various L, S, C, X & Ka bits. 1.2m S/X/Ku/Ka Prodelin on Az-El (being refurbished)
My Location
Essex
It was barely detectable in 10KHz when at max inclination. As it was wandering, 11708 became a dB or so stronger than 11710 (vs 2dB weaker when peaked). Maybe they have different radiation patterns?
At max it is about 8dB stronger than here: Astra 2B moving west. and can be seen on Crazyscan

astra2b.JPG
 

hvdh

Specialist Contributor
Joined
Dec 10, 2004
Messages
2,357
Reaction score
3,336
Points
113
Age
59
Website
gso-satellites.nl
My Satellite Setup
Dr.HD F16, TBS 5927, T-55, Laminas 120 cm
My Location
Oss, NL (5.5°E 51.8°N)
In June 2018, Astra 2B was back at 19.4°E (in-orbit spare).
And since 2 weeks, slightly adjusted to 19.6°E. :confused
Inclination 4.0°.
 

hvdh

Specialist Contributor
Joined
Dec 10, 2004
Messages
2,357
Reaction score
3,336
Points
113
Age
59
Website
gso-satellites.nl
My Satellite Setup
Dr.HD F16, TBS 5927, T-55, Laminas 120 cm
My Location
Oss, NL (5.5°E 51.8°N)
In hindsight, Astra 2B moved to 19.6°E to make room for Astra 1G that arrived at 19.4°E in February 2021.
Now Astra 2B has left 19.6°E, drifting West.
CoB does not give a new location but drift will become about 4.5°W/day.
This is probably the end-of-life manoever. Astra 2B was launched in 2000.
 
Top