DirecTV

DirecTV, Inc. is a subsidiary of Hughes Communications and offers commercial satellite television service to the US. The orbital part of the system consists of 3 Hughes-built geosynchronous satellites. Broadcast services began in mid-1994. Competitors include the similar Primestar and USSB services, as well as older C-band satellite services and cable TV companies.

Spacecraft
DirecTV uses the Hughes HS-601 spacecraft design. 3-Axis stabilized, zero momentum biased control system. Two solar arrays (4 panels each side) span 31 meters and generate 4.3 kW power.

Payload
The 2.5 m diameter graphite transmit reflector performs beam shaping. 16 x 120 watt Ka-Band (12.2 - 12.7 GHz) transponders with 48-53 dBw EIRP and 24 MHz bandwidth. Power is higher in areas with heavy rain. The high power combined with Reed Solomon error correction coding allow the use of small 18 inch antennas by customers.

Country of Origin	United States
Customer/User	DirecTV (commercial)
Manufacturer(s)	Hughes
Size	Solar arrays span 31 m
Orbit	Geosynchronous
Design Life	12 years

Launch Facts

Name	Int'l Desig.	Date	Site	Vehicle	Orbit	Mass(kg)
Notes
DirecTV 1 (DBS-1)	1993-078A	12/18/93	Kourou	Ariane 44L	GEO	2860
101.2 deg W
DirecTV 2 (DBS-2)	1994-047A	8/3/94	ESMC	Atlas 2A	GEO	2860
Commercial TV broadcast; 101 deg E
DirecTV 3 (DBS-3)	1995-029A	6/10/95	Kourou	Ariane 42P	GEO	2934
Commercial TV; 101 deg W