Hughes High-Throughput Satellite Successfully Launched, Setting the Stage for the Next Generation of Satellite Internet

Hughes Network Systems, LLC (HUGHES) is set to usher in the next generation of satellite Internet service with the successful launch on December 18 of EchoStar XIX, the world's highest capacity broadband satellite. Designed with Hughes JUPITER™ System technology, EchoStar XIX is a multi-spot beam, Ka-band satellite which in its final orbit will power HughesNet® Gen5, the next generation of the nation's #1 high-speed satellite Internet service, delivering more speed, more data, and more advanced features for consumers and small businesses with limited Internet access options. 

Built for Hughes by Space Systems Loral, EchoStar XIX was successfully launched on a United Launch Alliance Atlas V launch vehicle from the Kennedy Space Center at Cape Canaveral, Florida. The satellite has deployed its solar arrays and is successfully performing post-launch maneuvers, according to plan. EchoStar XIX's 138 beams will cover the continental United States, Alaska, Mexico and parts of Canada and Central America.

When combined with EchoStar XVII currently in orbit, also a Hughes designed and SSL-built  high-throughput satellite which has been in service since 2012, EchoStar XIX will enable HughesNet to more than double its current capacity and support faster speeds and provide more data for today's online activities. HughesNet currently has more 1 million subscribers and was recently ranked first in delivering advertised speeds in the Federal Communication Commission's 2016 "Measuring Broadband in America" report – for the second year in a row.

EchoStar XIX will spend the next two weeks moving into a geosynchronous orbit 22,236 miles (35,786 kilometers) above the earth at 97.1° west longitude. It will go through extensive testing before going live at the end of the first quarter of 2017, when Hughes introduces its HughesNet Gen5 high-speed satellite Internet service in the U.S.

"The launch of EchoStar XIX represents a significant leap forward in redefining satellite Internet and is an incredible technology accomplishment that we are proud to share with our partners at Space Systems Loral and United Launch Alliance," said Pradman Kaul, president of Hughes Network Systems. "Hughes invented satellite Internet and with our fifth generation record-breaking platform, we will deliver faster speeds and more data, enabling our customers to do more of what they love online."

Source: Hughes Network Systems release