Skynet 2A [Marconi]
The Skynet 2 satellites were built by Marconi Space and Defence Systems with assistance from Philco-Ford. They were spin-stablised and massed 240 kg. Skynet 2 used two communications channels, one at 20 MHz and the other at 2 MHz.
Skynet 2A was lost in an unsuccessful launch attempt in January, 1974. However, the spin-stabilized, 240 kg Skynet 2B was successfully orbited in November, 1974. Remarkably, Skynet 2B was still operating 20 years after it was launched.
|Type / Application:||Military communication|
|Contractors:||Marconi Space and Defence Systems|
|Power:||Solar cells (body mounted), batteries|
|Mass:||243 kg (219 kg BOL)|
|Skynet 2A||1974-002A||19.01.1974||CC LC-17B||P||Delta-2313|
|Skynet 2B||1974-094A||23.11.1974||CC LC-17B||Delta-2313|