Falcon Heavy sends Jupiter-3 broadband giant toward geostationary orbit

SpaceX launched EchoStar’s more than nine metric ton Jupiter-3 spacecraft July 28 and successfully dropped off the world’s heaviest commercial communications satellite in geosynchronous transfer orbit. The Maxar Technologies-built satellite lifted off on a dedicated Falcon Heavy at 11:04 p.m. Eastern from Kennedy Space Center, Florida, separating from the rocket about three and a half hours later. Both Falcon Heavy side boosters landed at nearby Cape Canaveral Space Force Station just over seven minutes after launch for reuse. They had supported two earlier Falcon Heavy missions, both for the U.S. Space Force: USSF-44 in November and USSF-67 early this year. The mission was delayed from July 26 to allow more time for vehicle checkouts after an abort was called with about a minute remaining in the countdown for reasons SpaceX did not detail. EchoStar’s Hughes Networks Systems subsidiary, which is set to provide Jupiter-3’s broadband services, confirmed the satellite has started sending and receiving its first signals post-launch, and that engineers had deployed its solar arrays. Jupiter-3 is set to double the capacity of the operator’s Jupiter fleet with an additional 500 gigabits per second, after reaching its 95 degrees west orbital slot and completing health checks the operator expects to wrap up in the fourth quarter. The broadband services would address rising demand over the Americas, where it has been losing subscribers as capacity constraints weigh on the business.

EchoStar's colossal Jupiter-3 satellite launches on a Falcon Heavy July 28. Credit: SpaceX

EchoStar recently said Hughes broadband subscribers are using about 15% more bandwidth on average year-on-year amid intensifying competition in the market, including from SpaceX’s Starlink broadband constellation.

Jupiter-3 enables the company “to start growing again in our key markets where we’ve been hesitant to add new customers because of the capacity limitations,” EchoStar chief operating officer Paul Gaske said, “and it also allows us the opportunity to improve plans for our existing customers.”

He said the company has a number of “pinch points” to address but its constraints are highest in the United States, where it intends to put the largest chunk of Jupiter-3’s capacity to work.

Heavyweight champions

EchoStar ordered Jupiter-3 (also called EchoStar-24) in 2017 from Space Systems Loral before it rebranded as Maxar Technologies, and had initially planned to launch it in 2021 before the pandemic led to production issues at Maxar and other satellite manufacturers.

Maxar said Jupiter-3, at about the size of a standard school bus when antennas and solar panels stowed and with a wingspan of a Boeing 737 when fully deployed, is the largest spacecraft it has ever made.

Jupiter-3 unseats Telesat’s Telstar-19 Vantage that launched in 2018 on a SpaceX Falcon 9 as the largest commercial communications satellite ever deployed.

Maxar-built Telstar-19 Vantage had a launch mass of roughly seven metric tons.

Merger rumors swirl around Dish and EchoStar

Satellite TV broadcaster Dish Network is rumored to be considering recombining with internet-focused sister company EchoStar to strengthen its financial resources. The companies have engaged advisers to flesh out a potential deal, reported news publication Semafor July 6, citing people familiar with the matter. Dish and satellite fleet operator EchoStar — both controlled by billionaire Charlie Ergen — declined to comment on the speculation. A deal would need to navigate starkly contrasting financial standings following their split into separate companies and stocks back in 2008.Dish has been investing heavily to meet regulatory deployment deadlines for expanding a terrestrial 5G network across the United States, putting its balance sheet under strain as its core satellite TV business bleeds subscribers. Meanwhile, EchoStar is sitting on $1.7 billion in cash and is poised for subscriber and revenue growth from Jupiter 3, its long-awaited broadband satellite that Maxar recently delivered for a Falcon Heavy launch in the coming months. EchoStar sold underperforming broadcast satellite services assets to Dish in 2019, seemingly doubling down on the strategy to keep their businesses apart. Still, rumors about a potential recombination have periodically resurfaced in the market over the years, according to Raymond James analyst Ric Prentiss. Notably, EchoStar CEO Hamid Akhavan’s Feb. 17, 2022, employment offer letter includes a clause covering the possibility of Dish owning more than half of EchoStar’s voting stock.

The Jupiter 3 satellite in its launch configuration at Maxar Technologies' manufacturing plant in Palo Alto, California. Credit: Credit: Hughes Network Systems

Prentiss said he was unsurprised to see the speculation resurface again because of how challenging it is to borrow money to finance Dish’s wireless plans in the current economic climate.

A combination could also put perennial rumors to rest about another attempt to merge Dish with its satellite broadcast rival DirecTV, majority owned by U.S. telecoms giant AT&T.

Earlier this year, Dish was also said to be one of a handful of U.S. companies in talks about selling wireless services through Amazon, according to reports including Bloomberg and the Wall Street Journal.

Citing people familiar with the situation, Bloomberg reported June 2 that Amazon was looking into offering a low-cost or free nationwide mobile service to Amazon Prime subscribers.

Amazon, which is working toward providing initial broadband services next year from its proposed Project Kuiper satellite constellation, said in response that it was not currently planning to add wireless service to its Prime offering.

Its package of Amazon Prime services includes online TV streaming, which has contributed to the decline of the satellite broadcast market.