Telkom, Indonesia’s largest telecommunications company, plans to launch a brand new satellite, called Telkom-4, next 12 months.
The satellite was ordered from California-based Space Systems Loral and shall be equipped with 60 transponders that may transmit a mobile broadband signal at 100 Gbps to Indonesia, India and Southeast Asia.
The total investment was USD 166 million, including USD 10 million in insurance. Telkom CEO and Director Alex J. Sinaga mentioned, CNN“Investment in Telkom-4 [satellite] It shall be cheaper because we’re using a reusable orbital rocket from SpaceX, so it should be cheaper by as much as 40 percent.”
As quoted EdgeSpaceX CEO Elon Musk appeared on the corporate’s livestream and spoke concerning the achievement: “It means you’ll be able to fly and fly again an orbital-class launch vehicle, which is the most costly a part of the rocket. This will ultimately be an enormous revolution in spaceflight,” he said.
PT Telkom said Telkom-4 will replace the aging Telkom-1 satellite, launched in 1999 and positioned at 108 degrees west longitude.
Earlier this 12 months, Telkom successfully launched its third satellite, Telkom-3S, price $200 million. A Thales Alenia Space product in-built Toulouse and Cannes, France, the three,550-kilogram Telkom-3S satellite carries 42 transponders: 24 C-band, eight prolonged C-band and 10 Ku-band.
Telkom 3S will provide high-definition television (HDTV) services, in addition to mobile communications services and web applications covering Indonesia, Malaysia and other regions of Southeast Asia.
“Our goal is for Telkom to be the most important [satellite operator] in Asia. By providing satellite transponder in Indonesia, we may also meet [transponder] “We are meeting the demands of other countries,” said Rini Soemarno, minister of state-owned enterprises, on the inauguration of Telkom’s primary satellite control station in Cibinong, West Java.
Starting with Telkom 4, 24 transponders shall be sold for the Indian market, while the remaining 36 transponders shall be for domestic use.
The nation of some 13,400 islands is a market within the sky for satellite communications, and Indonesia’s capital, Jakarta, has long been a preferred port of call for satellite manufacturers, launch service providers, ground equipment suppliers and industry consultants.
“Satellite services are especially important in regions like Indonesia, where the population is scattered across thousands of islands,” said John Celli, president of Space Systems Loral, manufacturer of the Telkom-4 satellite.
Meanwhile, Huffington Post noted that Southeast Asia is quickly catching up within the space development race. Satellites might help predict and monitor potential natural disasters, reminiscent of earthquakes, floods and volcanic eruptions. They could be very useful tools for disaster management in near real time.
Source : CNN | Huffington Post | Between | Space news
