spacetoday.net: Eutelsat loses more than half of capacity on new satellite

Eutelsat loses more than half of capacity on new satellite

Posted: Mon, Jan 20, 2020, 8:42 PM ET (0142 GMT)
Eutelsat said it's lost more than half the capacity of a satellite launched in October. The company announced Friday that the Eutelsat 5 West B satellite will have only 45% of its projected capacity because of the failure of one of its two solar arrays, a problem first reported shortly after launch. The satellite, expected to enter service later this month, will still operate for its full lifetime, and the company said it has "a number of mitigation actions" planned for affected customers. The Northrop Grumman-built satellite is insured for $192 million.