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Sat-UK-News #251 20.05.98: Thor 3 frequency info

Sat-UK-News Report #251:
- Thor 3 set to launch; we have the freq. plans
- Astra starts three new channels
Wednesday 20.05.1998
=======================================================================
Email: dsedghi@TELE-Satellite.com OR dominic@bigrp.demon.co.uk
Sat-UK-Web: http://www.sat-uk.com/
UK Satellite Control: http://www.sat-net.com/uk-satellite/
And now the news:


---------- Thor 3 set to launch; we have the freq. plans
 Anyone who has been keeping abreast of the satellite scene recently
will know that quite a few interesting launches are coming up soon. SES
are planning to lift Astra 2A into orbit sometime next month to relieve
Astra 1D of its temporary duty. June 12/13 sees the launch of Intelsat
805 which will replace Intelsat 505 and 510 at 33°E. The last launch in
June is Eutelsat W1 which will move to 10°E to replace Eutelsat II-F2.
Launches thereafter include Sirius 3 in August, Eutelsat W2 in September
and HotBird 5 in October.
 However, the main focus at the moment is on Thor 3, which will, if all
goes well, launch on the night of June 9/10. It will be positioned at
0.8°W and full broadcasts are scheduled to being on August 1st - quite a
long delay for tests - two months! The satellite will use 14
transponders in the frequency range of 11.700 to 12.500 GHz - a
frequency plan has been put up at Sat-UK-Web
(http://www.sat-uk.com/sats/thor3.html). If you take a look you'll
notice that it appears some frequencies have been left out - they
haven't. This is because Thor 1 and TV-Sat 2 already use some of these
frequencies, and should do for a while now. Already Telenor, the owners
of the satellites at 1°W, have confirmed certain details as to which
channels will be transferred to the new bird. Here's a brief rundown:

- Sky News & Documentaries will move in analogue format from 11.773 R on
Thor 1 to 11.727 V on Thor 3.
- TV3+ Denmark will move in analogue format from 11.977 L on TV-Sat 2 to
11.747 H on Thor 3.
- TV1000 Cinema will move in analogue format from 11.888 L on TV-Sat 2
to 11.823 H on Thor 3.
- Sky Entertainment will move in analogue format from 11.667 V on Intel
707 to 12.054 H on Thor 3.
- Sky Entertainment will also start in digital format on 12.226 V on
Thor 3.
- TV Butikken will start in digital format on 12.322 H on Thor 3.

 In addition, DR 2 will move from its spot on 11.667 V on Intel 707 to
MTV Europe's current transponder on Thor 2, 11.434 V. This leaves a
transponder on Intel 707 completely empty and gives rise as to where MTV
Europe will go. All this info is provided by Telenor itself so we can
expect it to be true. All of the above channels will start on August 1st
and will continue to simulcast until about September 15th, when they
will shut down. This also frees up some space on Thor 1, which will find
one of its six transponders completely empty. If, as expected, the
History Channel moves with TV1000 Cinema, and TVG Danmark moves with
TV3+. then TV-Sat 2 will be freed of all channels and programming,
making it redundant. We could see this very old bird finish service this
autumn. Thor 1 is scheduled to stay around for some time, and it also
hosts some of Scandinavia's most important channels, such as Canal+
Sverige and Canal+ Gul, so don't expect to see it go anytime soon. One
thing is for sure: with the pending demise of Sirius 1 (to be replaced
by Sirius 3) and the possible upcoming loss of TV-Sat 2, British D2-MAC
enthusiasts will think twice about getting a 3m dish!

---------- Astra starts three new channels
 Slightly old news, I know, but what the heck! Astra has begun three new
channels on Astra 1G, 12.552 V. These are AstraVision 1, a new updated
version of the ever-popular promo video, Astra Info 1, which gives
information on all the free-to-air digital channels available at 19.2°E,
and Astra Info 2, which provides information on the four current digital
packages (Canal Satellite, CSD, DF1 and Canal Digitaal) using the Astra
satellites. All three channels are free-to-air and in a variety of
languages, including English.

********** INTERNAL
 All satellite listings have now been updated in the new style with the
logotypes removed, except for the new screenshot logos. More logos are
always welcome - see http://www.sat-uk.com/sats/logotypes.txt for
information. This has obviously helped speed up download time so why not
take a look? In addition, the Thor 3 frequency table has been added in
both HTML and text format - http://www.sat-uk.com/sats/thor3.html /
http://www.sat-uk.com/sats/text/thor3.txt . No footprint yet - sorry.


All contents (C) 1998 Dominic Sedghi, except where indicated. All
rights reserved. Contents may be reproduced providing the following
is included: "Provided by Sat-UK - www.sat-uk.com/".
Information is subject to change and/or may be incorrect.

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