Experts lost contact with it last month

May 4, 2010 07:10 GMT  ·  By
Galaxy 15 is seen in this image undergoing preparations, before being launched in 2005
   Galaxy 15 is seen in this image undergoing preparations, before being launched in 2005

On April 5, mission controllers lost contact with the Intelsat Galaxy 15. The telecommunications instrument, which is located in geostationary orbit around the planet, has been drifting from its designated position ever since, and this poses a huge challenge. As per last year's example, if two satellites are allowed to collide in orbit, then there will be hell to pay. A drifting orbit means that this spacecraft will enter another one's pathways, given that the Earth is tightly encircled by satellites, Space reports.

According to Intelsat officials, the spacecraft is currently moving eastwards, away from its geostationary arc, and it is jeopardizing the orbit of AMC-11 C-band satellite. The instrument, owned by SES of Luxembourg, is stationed at 131 degrees west. This means it's only two degrees of longitude away from the 133 degrees west location of Galaxy 15, which flies some 36,000 kilometers above Earth. Virginia-based Orbital Sciences Corporation, the manufacturer of the drifting spacecraft, said in a statement that the instruments aboard their vehicle are still operating.

This is unprecedented for satellite malfunctions. Generally, the entire instrument goes silent. But this one is very different, in the sense that its C-band telecommunications payload is still online. Officials at OSC believe that this peculiar malfunction may have been caused by the solar storm that took place in early April. Radiation (high-energy photons) coming from the Sun may have triggered the electronic glitches in the satellite's systems, they add. In the mean time, back on Earth, representatives from the SES World Skies division, and Intelsat, are meeting regularly to discuss risk management.

The two companies are direct competitors on the market, which is one of the reasons why their satellites are so close to each other. However, they are cooperating in order to minimize the extent of the damage caused by the Galaxy 15 malfunction. “The cooperation with them really has been very good. We all realize that we could be in the same position tomorrow. We are neighbors in space,” said the chief executive at SES World Skies division, Rob Bednarek. The period of time spanning from May 31 to June 1 will be the most dangerous for AMC-11, as interferences from the Intelsat spacecraft could affect its own services.