Athena Fidus at 38° E
Technical details
- Status
- active
- Orbital position
- 38° EChannel line-up at 38° E | Coverage maps
- NORAD number
- 39509
- COSPAR number
- 2014-006B
- Operator
- Telespazio/CNES
- Manufacturer
- Thales Group
- Model
- Spacebus-4000B2
- Launch
- 06 Feb 2014 from Guiana Space Center on Ariane 5 ECA
- Launch mass
- 3080 kg
- Expected lifetime
- 15+ yrs.
- Orbit
- GEO
About Athena Fidus
Athena-Fidus is a French-Italian telecommunication satellite providing high-throughput secure communications to both nation's armed forces and their emergency services. The satellite provides an encrypted, 3 Gbit/s throughput, using mostly Ka-band links. It carries 14 antennas including 7 mobile spot antennas, enabling positioning of steerable 1750-km diameter spot beams over operational theaters requiring a high bandwidth. France owns 5 beams and Italy 2. The system will enable communication with deployable ground stations and with drones