European satellite operator Eutelsat, which is also the parent of UK ISP Konnect (We Konnect), are celebrating this morning after confirming the successful launch of their next gen ‘Very High Throughput Satellite’ (VHTS) into Geostationary Transfer Orbit by Arianespace using an Ariane 5 rocket from French Guiana.
The new satellite, which was built by Thales Alenia Space, is a more traditional one that will sit in a high geostationary earth orbit and cover a wide area – across the UK and Europe. The VHTS is expected to weigh 6.3 tonnes, support 230 beams over Western Europe and have a massive Ka-band (radio spectrum) capacity of around 500Gbps (Gigabits per second).
