All-electric satellite from Boeing meets critical design review
NewsAugust 06, 2013
EL SEGUNDO, CA. – The electric-powered 702 Small Platform (702SP) from Boeing passed its critical design review, enabling the new program to place two satellites into assembly, integration, and testing. The 3- to 8-kilowatt satellite started on its 702 product line last spring as a more simple design that could be built more quickly while costing and weighing less than traditional satellites. Its all-electric propulsion reduces the spacecraft’s mass and maximizes its available payload.
A dual launch of the first two 702SP satellites is expected to be scheduled by Boeing in the first quarter of 2015 on a Falcon 9 rocket. Two commercial satellite service providers -- Asia Broadcast Satellite (ABS) in Bermuda and Satélites Mexicanos S.A. de C.V. (Satmex) in Mexico City -- have jointly ordered for four satellites with options for four more.
