Astra 2A Satellite at 28.2° East

Astra 2A Satellite

Astra 2A is a communications satellite owned by SES Astra. Launched in 1998, half its expected end-of-life capacity of 28 transponders were pre-booked by BSkyB, who utilised it and a re-positioned Astra 1D to launch their new Sky Digital service. 21 transponders are active, as of 2006, with two of these active though unused.

The satellite suffered pre-launch technical issues with its apogee motors and was moved to a launch by the Proton rocket rather than the Ariane V, as the Proton was deemed more suitable for the crafts precarious state.When positioned at 28E, it joined DFS Kopernikus 1, which served mainly Eastern Europe. The satellite was the first of Astra's craft to never carry analogue television services, and as of 2006, carries standard definition digital television, digital radio, and high-definition digital television, as well as Sky Interactive streams and the AVC Broadband and Silvermead satellite internet services. Two beams, both of which transmit on horizontal and vertical polarisation, exist - "2A North" and "2A South". The South beam covers almost all of Europe, with the North beam covering only Northern Europe at a high power.