The replaced Nigerian Communications Satellite (NigComSAT-1R) was
launched last December, REMMY NWEKE reports that now the satellite has returned
to orbit, the government must have the political will to push for full
commercialisation.
Fulfilled NigComSAT-1R
The much taunted replacement satellite of the Nigerian
Communications Satellite-1 has returned successfully to the space with the
launch on Monday, December 19, evening.
From China where the Long March 3B (LM-3B) launch
vehicle from Xichang Satellite Launch Centre, located in South West China
was conducted as at 5.41pm.
ITRealms Online recalls that NigComSat-1R formal
launch was in fulfillment of the Chinese company’s promise to replace
NigComSat-1, which was de-orbited due to malfunctioning of Solar
Array Deployment Assembly (SADA) on November 10, 2008.
Confirming this to ITRealms Online, the Deputy
General Manager, Corporate Communications, Mr. Sonny Aragba-Akpore said that
the spacecraft entered the predefined orbit of perigee being 200 kilometres
(km), apogee 41991 km and inclination 24.8, noting that NigComSAT-1R is the
fourth in-orbit delivery contract signed by China Space with its international
customers.
The 18th CGWIC deal:
He also said that the launch was conducted in line
with the NigComSat-1R contract signed between the Nigerian Communications
Satellite Limited (NIGCOMSAT) and China Great Wall Industry Corporation
(CGWIC), a subsidiary of China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation
(CASC).
He noted that NigComSat-1R spacecraft is built on
Dong Fang Hong 4 (DFH-4) satellite bus developed by China Academy of Space
Technology (CAST) and launched by LM-3B launch vehicle, developed by China
Academy of Launch Vehicle (CALT).
China Satellite Launch Tracking and Control General
(CLTC), he said, is providing tracking, control and ground segment support for
the programme, just as NigComSat-1R is the 8th satellite built on the DFH-4 bus
for in-orbit delivery and the NigComSat-1R launch is the 18th flight
of LM-3B launch vehicle and the 154th flight in the series of the
Long March launchers.
Knowledge Transfer
The project, he said, was carried out in conjunction
with over 50 NigcomSAT engineers who spent the last 31 months in China, just as
the satellite has service lifespan of over 15 years and was designed to meet
the needs of telecommunications, maritime, defense, broadcast media in Africa,
particularly Nigeria, parts of Europe and Asia.
An elated Managing Director, NigcomSAT Limited, Mr.
Timasaniyu Ahmed-Rufai declared “this is mission fulfilled,” adding that
NigComSAT1-R has 28 active transponders and quad band of Ku, ka, C-Band and
L-band.
He also said that there are two ground stations
located in Abuja, Nigeria and Kashi, China owned by NigComSAT which
participated fully in the launch.
Top government officials that witness the launch
included the Communications Technology, Minister, Mrs. Omobola Johnson, her
Science and Technology counterpart, Prof. Okon Ewa Bassey, chairman, Senate
Committee on Communications, Senator Gilbert Nnaji, House members, NigComSAT 1R
project Director and Executive Director, Marketing, Abimbola
Alale and Chief Executive of LASACO Insurance Plc, Mr. Sola Ladipo-Ajayi
among others.
Ghana orders for NigComSAT-1R transponders
And with the disclosure that NigComSAT-1R covers of
over 40 African countries in the orbit, days after launch started to attract
the commercial attention it deserved with Ghana leading the queue to have
access to the services of the replaced Nigerian Communication Satellite
(NigComSAT-1R) launched last month in China, with Ghana already ordered for two
transponders.
A communications satellite’s transponder is the
series of interconnected units which form a communications channel between the
receiving and the transmitting antennas.
A transponder is composed of an input band limiting
device known as a band pass filter, in addition to having an input low-noise
amplifier (LNA), designed to amplify the normally very weak, because of the
large distances involved signals received from the earth station. Even as it’s
a frequency translator; normally composed of an oscillator and a frequency
mixer and used to convert the frequency of the received signal to the frequency
required for the transmitted signal.
Experts at Wikipedia, an online open source
encyclopedia explained that most communication satellites are radio relay stations
in orbit, and carry dozens of transponders, each with a bandwidth of tens of
megahertz. Most transponders operate on a “bent pipe” principle, sending back
to earth of what goes into the conduit with only amplification and a shift from
uplink to downlink frequency.
Internet surfing without tears
Confirming this at a maiden media interaction after
the launch of NigComSAT-1R, the chief executive officer, NigComSAT, Mr.
Timasaniyu Ahmed-Rufai, said that Ghana and Congo are some of the countries on
the continent keenly interested on receiving service offering from NigComSAT,
just as Ghana has asked for two transponders.
He noted that the replacement satellite is of no cost
to Nigeria, while the commercialization potential of NigComSAT extends beyond
the current 40 African coverage to China and Asia as well as Europe among
others.
NigComSAT, Ahmed-Rufai said, is specifically for
Africa and has been globally positioned, adding that talks are on with MainOne,
a cable company in Nigeria to enter into partnership with NigComSAT through
deployment of its services and compliment the efforts of MainOne in extending
broadband availability to homes in the country.
Ahmed-Rufai who was accompanied at the session by the
Executive Director, Marketing, Ms Bimbola Alale, Head, Legal Services, Ms Alima
Udoye and General Manager, Corporate Strategy and Planning, Mr. Olabode Oroge,
said that Nigerians are fully in control of the recently launched satellite
which arrived its orbital home successfully on December 27, 2011, which is
approximately seven days or 168 hours after it was launched, stressing that it
will remain there in the next 15 years plus when its lifespan is expected to
expire, just as the partnership with MainOne, would usher into homes ‘Internet
surfing without tears.”
He underscored the fact that the satellite was built
on a DFH-4 platform and was successfully launched on a Long March 3B/E launch
vehicle into the geo-transfer orbit (GTO) on Monday, December 19, 2011 at
exactly 5.41pm local time, from Xichang satellite launch centre in China.
As said by him, following the separation of the
satellite from the launch vehicle, the satellite was injected into the
geo-transfer orbit and subsequently began its journey to the final orbital
position of 42.5degree East in the GEO-stationary orbit.
Final Orbiting of NigComSAT-1R
“This operation is referred to as Launch and Early
Orbit Phase (LEOP) operations of the satellite lasted for one week with about
five orbital maneuvers carried out successfully,” he said, maintaining that the
satellite was placed in its final orbital position of 42.5 degrees East at
exactly 00:58 GMT, on Tuesday, December,27, 2011.
He said that the satellite now positioned, is within
the view of the two NigComSat ground control centres based in Lugbe, Abuja and
Kashi in China respectively, of which NigComSat-1R is now monitored and
controlled from the Abuja ground station; where the data from the satellite are
presently being received real-time.
Hence, he said that In-Orbit Testing (IOT) has
commenced and will last another 40 days from the date of arrival at orbital
home, before commercial activities could take off, to ensure that the tests
satellite conform with the design requirements.
“Upon the successful completion of IOT, it is
expected that commercial services shall commence in the first week of February
2012. In anticipation of this, the Direct-to-Home (DTH) platform, broadband
Internet services and other services are being prepared for hosting on the
satellite as soon as commercial activities flag off,” he said.
Now, NigComSAT-1R is here!
The truth of the matter now is that NigComSAT-1R is
here, no doubt, but the fact remains that its commercialization positively
could spur further job creation for the country, apart from uplifting Nigeria’s
position among the satellite nations of the world.
The political will of the government, especially now
that NigComSAT is under the Ministry of Communications Technology, led by Mrs.
Omobola Johnson should be at the utmost level, so as to ensure that before
NigComSAT-1R expires in some 15 years ahead, Nigeria may have made its mark
with the benefits visibly trickles down to the masses of this country.
ITREALMS Online ... delivering news for ICT4D
