Engineering:PAS-3

Short description: Communications satellite

PAS-3

Names	PanAmSat-3 Panamsat K2
Mission type	Communications
Operator	PanAmSat
Mission duration	15 years (planned) Failed to orbit
Spacecraft properties
Spacecraft type	Boeing 601
Bus	HS-601
Manufacturer	Hughes
Launch mass	2,920 kg (6,440 lb)
Dry mass	1,727 kg (3,807 lb)
Power	4.3 kW
Start of mission
Launch date	1 December 1994, 22:57:51 UTC
Rocket	Ariane 42P H10-3 (V70)
Launch site	Centre Spatial Guyanais, ELA-2
Contractor	Arianespace
Entered service	Failed to orbit
Orbital parameters
Reference system	Geocentric orbit (planned)
Regime	Geostationary orbit
Transponders
Band	40 transponders: 20 C band 20 Ku-band
Coverage area	Atlantic Ocean Region
PanAmSat constellation

PAS-3, was a communications satellite for PanAmSat. Launched in December 1994.

Satellite description

PAS-3 was constructed by Hughes Aircraft Corporation, based on the HS-601 satellite bus. It had a mass at launch of 2,920 kg (6,440 lb), which decreased to around 1,727 kg (3,807 lb) by the time it was operational. Designed for an operational life of 15 years, the spacecraft was equipped with 20 C-band and 20 Ku-band transponders. Its two solar panels, which had a span of 26 m (85 ft) generated 4.7 kW of power when the spacecraft first entered service, which was expected to drop to around 4.3 kW by the end of the vehicle's operational life.

Launch

Arianespace launched PAS-3, using an Ariane 4 launch vehicle, flight number V70, in the Ariane 42P H10-3 configuration. The launch took place from ELA-2 at the Centre Spatial Guyanais, at Kourou in French Guiana, at 23:05:32 UTC on 8 July 1994. Failed to orbit.