HS-376

Boeing 376
Manufacturer	Boeing Satellite Development Center
Country of origin	United States
Applications	Communications satellite
Specifications
Spacecraft type	Spin-stabilized
Power	800 to 2,000 Watts
Production
Status	Retired
On order	58
Built	58
Launched	58
Maiden launch	Anik C1 April 12, 1985
Last launch	eBird 1 September 27, 2003
Related spacecraft
Derived from	HS-333
Derivatives	HS-393
← HS-333	Boeing 601 →

Last updated March 31, 2022

The Boeing 376 (sometimes referred to as the BSS-376, and previously as the HS-376) is a communications satellite bus introduced in 1978 by Hughes Space and Communications Company. It was a spin-stabilized bus that the manufacturer claims was the first standardized platform.^[1]^[2]

Design

The satellite bus was designed and manufactured by Hughes. This spin-stabilized platform had two main sections. The spinning section was kept rotating at 50 rpm to maintain attitude, and a despun section was used by the payload to maintain radio coverage.^[3]^[4]

The spinning section included the apogee kick motor, most of the attitude control, the power subsystem and the command and telemetry subsystems. The despun section contained the communications payload, including the antennas and transponders.^[3]^[4]

The stock version had a launch mass of 1,100 to 1,450 kg (2,430 to 3,200 lb), a mass of 540 to 790 kg (1,190 to 1,740 lb) after reaching geostationary orbit and an 8 to 10-year design life. When stowed for launch, its dimensions were 2.8 to 3.15 m (9 ft 2 in to 10 ft 4 in) in height and 2.16 m (7 ft 1 in) in diameter. With its solar panels fully extended its height was 6.6 to 8 m (22 to 26 ft).^[5]^[6]^[4]

Its power system generated approximately 1,100 to 1,200 watts of power at beginning of life, thanks to two cylindrical solar panels. The bottom panel was retracted around the body and top panel for launch, and extended downwards for operation. It also had two NiCd batteries for solar eclipses.^[5]^[6]^[4]

Versions

There were four variations of this platform:

HS-376: The original version of the platform was launched in 1977. It had a mass between 1.1 to 1.45 t (1.21 to 1.60 tons).^[2]
HS-376L: The Longer life version of the platform was launched in 1991. It had reduced power of 700 Watts and reduced electronics weight, which allowed for increased station keeping propellant supply. This lengthened the design life to 13.5 years.^[2]^[7]^[5]
HS-376HP: A Higher Power version of the platform was launched in 1995. It had a mass between 1.45 to 1.55 t (1.60 to 1.71 tons).^[2]
HS-376W: The Wide version of the platform was launched in 1990. It was wider, more powerful and modernized electronics. It was a joint development with INPE. It had a diameter of 3.43 m (11.3 ft) and more power.^[2]^[8]^[9]

Satellites

The HS-376 was a very successful satellite platform with 58 satellites ordered, built and launched. It was also the first satellite to launch from the Space Shuttle.^[2]

Satellite	Other names	Operator	Model	Ordered	Launch	Launch vehicle	Launch result	Mass (kg) at...		Remarks
Satellite	Other names	Operator	Model	Ordered	Launch	Launch vehicle	Launch result	Launch	BOL	Remarks
SBS 1			HS-376	1977	1980-11-15	Delta-3910/PAM-D	Success	1117	540	^[6]^[10]
SBS 2			HS-376	1977	1981-09-24	Delta-3910/PAM-D	Success	1117	540	^[6]^[10]
Westar 4			HS-376	1980	1982-02-26	Delta-3910/PAM-D	Success	1100	582
Westar 5			HS-376	1982	1982-06-09	Delta-3910/PAM-D	Success	1100	582
Anik D1			HS-376		1982-08-26	Delta-3920/PAM-D	Success	1140	634
Anik C3			HS-376	1978	1982-11-11	Shuttle/PAM-D	Success	1140	563
SBS 3			HS-376	1981	1982-11-11	Shuttle/PAM-D	Success	1117	540	^[6]^[10]
Anik C2	Nahuel I2		HS-376	1978	1983-06-18	Shuttle/PAM-D	Success	1140	563
Palapa B1	Palapa Pacific 1		HS-376	1980	1983-06-18	Shuttle/PAM-D	Success	1200	692	^[4]^[11]
Galaxy 1			HS-376		1983-06-28	Delta-3920/PAM-D	Success	1200	709
Telstar 301	Arabsat-1E		HS-376	1980	1983-07-28	Delta-3920/PAM-D	Success	1140	653
Galaxy 2			HS-376		1983-09-22	Delta-3920/PAM-D	Success	1200	709
Palapa B2			HS-376	1980	1984-02-03	Shuttle/PAM-D	PAM ignition failed, satellite recovered	1200	692	Launched along Westar 6. PAM-D failed to ignite, Shuttle recovered the satellite. Was relaunched as Palapa B2R.^[4]^[11]
Westar 6			HS-376		1984-02-03	Shuttle/PAM-D	PAM ignition failed, satellite recovered	1244	582	Launched along Palapa B2. PAM-D failed to ignite, Shuttle recovered the satellite. Was relaunched as AsiaSat 1.
SBS 4	HGS 5		HS-376	1983	1984-08-30	Shuttle/PAM-D	Success	1117	540	^[6]^[10]
Telstar 302			HS-376	1980	1984-08-30	Shuttle/PAM-D	Success	1140	653
Galaxy 3			HS-376		1984-09-21	Delta-3920/PAM-D	Success	1200	709
Anik D2	Satcom 4R Arabsat 1D		HS-376		1984-11-08	Shuttle/PAM-D	Success	1140	634
Brasilsat-A1	SBTS 1		HS-376	1982	1985-02-08	Ariane 3	Success	1195	N/A
Anik C1	Nahuel I1 Brasil 1T		HS-376	1978	1985-04-12	Shuttle/PAM-D	Success	1140	563
Morelos 1			HS-376	1982	1985-06-17	Shuttle/PAM-D	Success	1140	647
Telstar 303			HS-376	1980	1985-06-17	Shuttle/PAM-D	Success	1140	653
Aussat A1	Optus A1		HS-376	1982	1985-08-27	Shuttle/PAM-D	Success	1250	654
Aussat A2	Optus A2		HS-376	1982	1985-11-27	Shuttle/PAM-D	Success	1250	654
Morelos 2			HS-376	1982	1985-11-27	Shuttle/PAM-D	Success	1140	647
Brasilsat-A2	SBTS 2		HS-376	1982	1986-03-28	Ariane 3	Success	1195	N/A
Palapa B2P	Palapa B3 Agila 1		HS-376	1984	1987-03-20	Delta-3920/PAM-D	Success	1200	692	^[4]^[11]
Aussat A3	Optus A3		HS-376	1982	1987-09-16	Ariane 3	Success	1250	696
SBS 5			HS-376	1983	1988-09-08	Ariane 3	Success	1117	540	^[6]^[10]
Marcopolo 1	Sirius 1 Sirius W		HS-376	1987	1989-08-27	Delta-4925	Success	1250	660
AsiaSat 1			HS-376		1990-04-07	Long March 3	Success	1244	582	Was Westar 6, but the launch on Space Shuttle failed. It was recovered and launched again as AsiaSat 1.
Palapa B2R	NewSat 1		HS-376		1990-04-13	Delta-6925-8	Success	1200	692	Was Palapa B2, but the launch on Space Shuttle failed. It was recovered and launched again as Palapa B2R.^[4]^[11]
Marcopolo 2	Thor 1		HS-376	1987	1990-08-18	Delta-6925-8	Success	1250	662
Prowler			HS-376		1990-11-15	Shuttle/PAM-D	Success	N/A	N/A
Galaxy 5			HS-376	1989	1992-03-14	Atlas I	Success	1390	788
Palapa B4			HS-376		1992-05-14	Delta-7925-8	Success	1200	692	^[4]
Galaxy 1R			HS-376	1989	1992-08-22	Atlas I	Failure	1390	788	Launch failure
Galaxy 6	Westar 6S		HS-376	1983	1992-10-12	Ariane-44L	Success	1390	709
Thaicom 1	Thaicom 1A		HS-376L	1991	1993-12-18	Ariane-44L	Success	1080	629	^[5]
Galaxy 1R2			HS-376	1992	1994-02-19	Delta-7925-8	Success	1390	788
APSTAR-1	ZX-5E		HS-376	1992	1994-07-21	Long March 3	Success	1400	726
Brasilsat B1			HS-376W	1990	1994-08-10	Ariane-44LP	Success	1757	1052	^[8]^[9]
Thaicom 2			HS-376L	1991	1994-10-07	Ariane-44L	Success	1080	629	^[5]
Brasilsat B2			HS-376W	1990	1995-03-28	Ariane-44LP	Success	1757	1052	^[8]^[9]
MEASAT-1	AFRICASAT-1		HS-376	1994	1996-01-12	Ariane-44L	Success	1450	886
Galaxy 9			HS-376	1995	1996-05-24	Delta-7925	Success	1390	788
APSTAR-1A	ZX-5D		HS-376	1995	1996-07-03	Long March 3	Success	1400	726
ZX 7	Chinasat-7 HGS 2		HS-376	1995	1996-08-18	Long March 3	Failure	1384	734	Launch failure
MEASAT-2	AFRICASAT-2		HS-376	1994	1996-11-13	Ariane-44L	Success	1450	886
BSAT-1a			HS-376	1993	1997-04-16	Ariane-44LP	Success	1236	723	^[3]
Thor 2			HS-376HP	1995	1997-05-20	Delta-7925	Success	1467	853
Brasilsat B3			HS-376W	1995	1998-02-04	Ariane-44LP	Success	1757	1052	^[8]^[9]
BSAT-1b			HS-376	1993	1998-04-28	Ariane-44P	Success	1236	723	^[3]
Thor 3			HS-376HP	1997	1998-06-10	Delta-7925	Success	1451	853
Sirius 3			HS-376HP	1997	1998-10-05	Ariane-44L	Success	1465	815
Bonum 1			HS-376HP	1997	1998-11-22	Delta-7925	Success	1425	793
Brasilsat B4			HS-376W	1998	2000-08-17	Ariane-44LP	Success	1757	1052	^[8]^[9]
Astra 2D			HS-376HP	1999	2000-12-20	Ariane 5G	Success	1445	824
Astra 3A			HS-376HP	2000	2002-03-29	Ariane-44L	Success	1514	908
eBird 1	Eurobird 3 Eutelsat 33A Eutelsat 31A		HS-376HP	2000	2003-09-27	Ariane 5G	Success	1530	895

Related Research Articles

SBS 1 was a geostationary communications satellite designed and manufactured by Hughes on the HS-376 platform. It was ordered by Satellite Business Systems, which later sold it to Hughes Communications. It had a K_u band payload and operated on the 149°W longitude.

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Star One B4, originally designated Brasilsat B4, is a Brazilian communications satellite which is operated by Star One. It was constructed by the Hughes Space and Communications Company, and is based on the HS-376W satellite bus. It was the penultimate HS-376, and final HS-376W to be launched. Its launch was contracted by Arianespace, using an Ariane 4 44LP-3 carrier rocket. The launch occurred at 23:16 GMT on 17 August 2000, from the ELA-2 launch pad at the Guiana Space Centre. The Nilesat 102 satellite was launched on the same rocket.

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BSAT-1a was a geostationary communications satellite designed and manufactured by Hughes on the HS-376 platform. It was originally ordered and operated by the Broadcasting Satellite System Corporation (B-SAT). It was used as the main satellite to broadcast television channels for NHK and WOWOW over Japan. It had a pure K_u band payload and operated on the 110°E longitude until it was replaced, along its backup BSAT-1b, by BSAT-3a. On 3 August 2010, it was decommissioned and placed on a graveyard orbit.

Brasilsat B2 is a Brazilian communications satellite launched on 28 March 1995, at 23:14:19 UTC, by an Ariane 44LP H10+ launch vehicle at Kourou in French Guiana.

BSAT-1b was a geostationary communications satellite designed and manufactured by Hughes on the HS-376 platform. It was originally ordered and operated by the Broadcasting Satellite System Corporation (B-SAT). It was used as backup of BSAT-1a to broadcast television channels for NHK and WOWOW over Japan. It had a pure K_u band payload and operated on the 110°E longitude until it was replaced, along its twin BSAT-1a, by BSAT-3a.

BSAT-3c, also known as JCSAT-110R, is a geostationary communications satellite operated by Broadcasting Satellite System Corporation (B-SAT) and SKY Perfect JSAT (JSAT) which was designed and manufactured by Lockheed Martin on the A2100 platform.

Horizons-3e, also known as IS-H3e, is a high throughput geostationary communications satellite ordered by Horizons Satellite, a joint venture of Intelsat and SKY Perfect JSAT Group. The spacecraft is designed and manufactured by Boeing on the Boeing-702MP platform.

The JSAT constellation is a communication and broadcasting satellite constellation formerly operated by JSAT Corporation and currently by SKY Perfect JSAT Group. It has become the most important commercial constellation in Japan, and fifth in the world. It has practically amalgamated all private satellite operators in Japan, with only B-SAT left as a local competitor.

SBS 2 was a geostationary communications satellite designed and manufactured by Hughes on the HS-376 platform. It was ordered by Satellite Business Systems, which later sold it to Hughes Communications. It had a K_u band payload and operated on the 117°W longitude.

SBS 3 was a geostationary communications satellite designed and manufactured by Hughes on the HS-376 platform. It was ordered by Satellite Business Systems, which later sold it to Hughes Communications. It had a K_u band payload and operated on the 94°W longitude.

SBS 6 was a geostationary communications satellite designed and manufactured by Hughes on the HS-393 platform. It was originally ordered by Satellite Business Systems, which later sold it to Hughes Communications and was last used by Intelsat. It had a K_u band payload and operated on the 95°W longitude.

Brasilsat B3 is a Brazilian communications satellite. It was launched on 4 February 1998 by an Ariane 44LP carrier rocket, as part of a dual-payload launch with Inmarsat-3 F5. It was built by Hughes Aircraft, based on the HS-376 satellite bus. It operates by Star One, a subsidiary of Embratel.

Brasilsat A2 was a Brazilian geostationary communication satellite belonging to the Brasilsat family. It was built by Spar Aerospace in partnership with Hughes. For most of its useful life it was located in the orbital position of 70 degrees west longitude and was operated by Star One, a subsidiary company of Embratel. The satellite was based on the platform HS-376 and its life expectancy was 8 years. The same was out of commission in February 2004 and was transferred to the graveyard orbit.

The Hughes 393 is a communications satellite bus introduced in 1985 by Hughes Space and Communications Company. It was a spin-stabilized bus that had twice as much power as the HS-376 platform.

References

↑ "Boeing 376". Boeing Satellite Development Center. Archived from the original on 2010-03-05. Retrieved 2016-08-16.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
1 2 3 4 5 6 Krebs, Gunter Dirk (2016-04-21). "Hughes / Boeing: HS-376 / BSS-376". Gunter's Space Page. Retrieved 2016-08-16.
1 2 3 4 "BSAT-1". Boeing Satellite Development Center. Archived from the original on 2010-02-07. Retrieved 2016-08-18.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 "Palapa-B". Boeing Satellite Development Center. Archived from the original on 2010-02-07. Retrieved 2016-08-18.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
1 2 3 4 5 "THAICOM". Boeing Satellite Development Center. Archived from the original on 2010-02-07. Retrieved 2016-08-18.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "SBS". Boeing Satellite Development Center. Archived from the original on 2010-02-07. Retrieved 2016-08-18.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
↑ Krebs, Gunter Dirk (2016-08-08). "Thaicom 1, 2". Gunter's Space Page. Retrieved 2016-08-18.
1 2 3 4 5 "Brasilsat B". Boeing Satellite Development Center. Archived from the original on 2010-02-07. Retrieved 2016-08-18.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
1 2 3 4 5 Krebs, Gunter Dirk (2016-04-17). "Brasilsat B 1, 2, 3, 4". Gunter's Space Page. Retrieved 2016-08-18.
1 2 3 4 5 Krebs, Gunter Dirk (2016-04-17). "SBS 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 / HGS 5". Gunter's Space Page. Retrieved 2016-08-18.
1 2 3 4 Krebs, Gunter Dirk (2016-04-17). "Palapa B1, B2, B2P, B2R, B4 / Palapa Pacific / Agila 1 / NewSat 1". Gunter's Space Page. Retrieved 2016-08-18.

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[boeingdefenseandspace-boeing376-1] "Boeing 376". Boeing Satellite Development Center. Archived from the original on 2010-03-05. Retrieved 2016-08-16.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)

[gsp-hs376-2] 1 2 3 4 5 6 Krebs, Gunter Dirk (2016-04-21). "Hughes / Boeing: HS-376 / BSS-376". Gunter's Space Page. Retrieved 2016-08-16.

[boeingdefenseandspace-boeing376bsat1-3] 1 2 3 4 "BSAT-1". Boeing Satellite Development Center. Archived from the original on 2010-02-07. Retrieved 2016-08-18.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)

[boeingdefenseandspace-boeing376palapab-4] 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 "Palapa-B". Boeing Satellite Development Center. Archived from the original on 2010-02-07. Retrieved 2016-08-18.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)

[boeingdefenseandspace-boeing376thaicom-5] 1 2 3 4 5 "THAICOM". Boeing Satellite Development Center. Archived from the original on 2010-02-07. Retrieved 2016-08-18.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)

[boeingdefenseandspace-boeing376sbs-6] 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "SBS". Boeing Satellite Development Center. Archived from the original on 2010-02-07. Retrieved 2016-08-18.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)

[gsp-thaicom1-7] Krebs, Gunter Dirk (2016-08-08). "Thaicom 1, 2". Gunter's Space Page. Retrieved 2016-08-18.

[boeingdefenseandspace-boeing376brasilsatb-8] 1 2 3 4 5 "Brasilsat B". Boeing Satellite Development Center. Archived from the original on 2010-02-07. Retrieved 2016-08-18.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)

[gsp-brasilsatb-9] 1 2 3 4 5 Krebs, Gunter Dirk (2016-04-17). "Brasilsat B 1, 2, 3, 4". Gunter's Space Page. Retrieved 2016-08-18.

[gsp-sbs1-10] 1 2 3 4 5 Krebs, Gunter Dirk (2016-04-17). "SBS 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 / HGS 5". Gunter's Space Page. Retrieved 2016-08-18.

[gsp-palapab-11] 1 2 3 4 Krebs, Gunter Dirk (2016-04-17). "Palapa B1, B2, B2P, B2R, B4 / Palapa Pacific / Agila 1 / NewSat 1". Gunter's Space Page. Retrieved 2016-08-18.

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