* Astronomy

Eutelsat Communications and ictQATAR (representing the State of Qatar) announce today that following an international consultation, Space Systems/Loral (SS/L) has been selected to build the high-performance satellite they will jointly own and operate at the 25.5° East location in geostationary orbit.
The selection of prime contractor marks the next step forward in the partnership signed in May by Eutelsat and ictQATAR to invest in and operate a high-capacity satellite at 25.5° East, one of the two longstanding and anchored neighbourhoods serving rapidly expanding markets in the Middle East, North Africa and Central Asia regions. The two organisations selected Space Systems/Loral to deliver a spacecraft with a more than 15-year design life based on the Space Systems/Loral 1300 satellite bus, which is a decades-proven, modular platform with high power capability and flexibility for a broad range of applications.
To enter into service in early 2013, this satellite will provide a significantly expanded mission and superior coverage across Middle East, North Africa and Central Asia to follow on from Eutelsat's EUROBIRD2 satellite, which is currently operated at 25.5° East.

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