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TAMPA, Fla .– Malaysian operator Measat has likely lost control of an aging satellite that has been drifting west in geostationary orbit for nearly a month, according to analysts at space-tracking company ExoAnalytic Solutions.
The ExoAnalytic space tracking system detected an anomaly for Measat-3 on June 21, after which it began to drift out of its orbital slot of 91.5 east.
Measat-3 appears to have performed several maneuvers in orbit after starting to drift on June 22, but “none since our analysts confirmed on July 1 that it was tumbling,” said the executive vice president of engineering at ExoAnalytic Solutions, Bill Therien.
“It’s rare to see one come back from this stage,” Therien told SpaceNews.
However, he added that there was a possibility that Measat would still be able to communicate and recover the Boeing-built satellite, which was nearing the end of its operational life after its launch in 2006.
Measat was unable to comment until this article was posted.
The operator announced on June 26 that an anomaly he detected on June 21 had been resolved and that his team had been in full control of Measat-3 for about two days.
But on June 27, he said in a statement: “During our monitoring of satellite services restored after a recent anomaly incident on MEASAT-3, we observed that the levels of intermittent degradation of service recorded indicate that a additional time will be required to fully complete the complex satellite and signal stabilization process.
U.S.-based ExoAnalytic Solutions did not observe any debris around Measat-3 when it began to drift and said there was no risk of a short-term collision with another object in it. ‘space.
“As satellites age, orbit drift is a natural phenomenon,” said Stewart Bain, CEO of Canadian company Northstar, which plans a constellation of satellites to track other satellites.
“MEASAT-3 is a more extreme case. As we increasingly commercialize space, examples like this show just how vital it is for our economy to have accurate information about resident space objects in real time so that other space assets can be found. great value can perform the necessary evasive maneuvers or simply stay where they are.
Measat-3 covered Asia, Australia, Southern Europe, Africa and the Middle East with C-band and Malaysia, Indonesia and South Asia with Ku-band services.
The operator said in May 2019 that Airbus Defense and Space will build a replacement for Measat-3 called Measat-3d in time for a launch in 2021.
Measat-3d is also expected to effectively replace another aging satellite called Measat-3a, launched in 2009.
With Measat-3, Measat operates five satellites that provide broadcast and telecommunications services.
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