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Eutelsat 12 West B, known as Atlantic Bird 2 prior to 2012 and Eutelsat 8 West A from 2012 to 2015, was a geostationary communications satellite. Operated by Eutelsat, it provides direct-to-home (DTH) broadcasting services from geostationary orbit. The satellite is part of Eutelsat constellation at a longitude of 8° West, then 12.5° West. Eutelsat announced the order of a new Spacebus-3000B2 satellite bus from Alcatel Space in October 2012.
| Names | Atlantic Bird 2 (2001–2012) Eutelsat 8 West A (2012–2015) |
|---|---|
| Mission type | Communications |
| Operator | Eutelsat |
| COSPAR ID | 2001-042A |
| SATCAT no. | 26927 |
| Website | www |
| Mission duration | 12 years (planned) 19 years (achieved) |
| Spacecraft properties | |
| Spacecraft | Atlantic Bird 2 |
| Spacecraft type | Spacebus |
| Bus | Spacebus-3000B2 |
| Manufacturer | Alcatel Space |
| Launch mass | 3,150 kg (6,940 lb) |
| Dry mass | 1,368 kg (3,016 lb) |
| Start of mission | |
| Launch date | 21 September 2001, 23:21 UTC |
| Rocket | Ariane 44P H10-3 (V144) |
| Launch site | Centre Spatial Guyanais, ELA-2 |
| Contractor | Arianespace |
| Entered service | November 2001 |
| End of mission | |
| Disposal | Graveyard orbit |
| Deactivated | October 2020 |
| Orbital parameters | |
| Reference system | Geocentric orbit |
| Regime | Geostationary orbit |
| Longitude | 8° West (2001–2015) 12.5° West (2015–2020) |
| Transponders | |
| Band | 26 Ku-band |
| Coverage area | Americas, Europe |
Atlantic Bird 2 was a 3,150 kg (6,940 lb) satellite with a design life of 12 years. It is equipped with an S400-12 apogee motor which was used for initial orbit-raising manoeuvres and an S10-18 engine for station keeping burns.[1] The spacecraft has 26 Ku-band transponders.[2]
Atlantic Bird 2 was launched on the Ariane 44P launch vehicles from Centre Spatial Guyanais at the Kourou in French Guiana. Liftoff occurred at 23:21 UTC on 21 September 2001,[3] with the launch vehicle successfully injecting its payload into geosynchronous transfer orbit (GTO). The launch was conducted by Arianespace.
Following launch, the satellite Atlantic Bird 2 used its apogee motor to raise itself into geostationary orbit, positioning itself at a longitude of 8° West. In December 2011, Eutelsat announced, that their satellite assets will be renamed under a unified brand name effective from March 2012. This satellite became Eutelsat 8 West A at 8° West. In 2015, it was moved to 12.5° West and named Eutelsat 12 West B. It has been moved to a graveyard orbit in October 2020.[2]
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