WGS 9 (USA 275)

Launch data:

Description:

• WGS-9, which was purchased for the Air Force by a group of other nations in exchange for access to the WGS system, will join the eight satellites already in orbit which launched between 2007 and 2016. Built by Boeing, WGS satellites are based on the BSS-702 platform and designed for fourteen years of service. Each spacecraft is equipped with an Aerojet Rocketdyne R-4D-15 High Performance Apogee Thruster (HiPAT) to perform insertion into geosynchronous orbit and four Xenon-Ion Propulsion System (XIPS-25) thrusters for stationkeeping. The WGS-9 satellite carries X and Ka-band transponders. The satellite will use a phased array antenna to provide eight jam-resistant X-band beams, while ten individual antennae will provide Ka-band beams. An additional X-band payload will be used to provide Earth coverage. The satellite can support 8.088 gigahertz of bandwidth, with an expected downlink speed of up to 11 Gbps.

Mission details:

• Wideband Global Satcom 9 is to be added to the US DoD communications satellite constellation. This WGS was partly funded by allied countries, although it is still owned and operated by USAF. A United Launch Alliance Delta 4 sent the satellite aloft on Mar 19, 2017 first into a 185 x 6097 km x 27.6 deg parking orbit and then to a 430 x 44262 km x 27.0 deg supersynchronous transfer orbit. The Delta 377 second stage was deorbited over the Pacific near the Phillipines with reentry around 1230 UTC.

External links:

• Satellite tracking (n2ya.com): Real time satellite tracking