SIRIUS FM-5 satellite now in service

Sharon

Sharon Gill

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9th September 2009

FM-5 was launched on June 30th from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan aboard an International Launch Services (ILS) Proton.

All post-launch testing has now been completed successfully, and the new satellite is now providing improved signal penetration and reception to millions of SIRIUS subscribers across the US.

SIRIUS FM-5 is one of the world's most powerful communications satellites and is the first geostationary SIRIUS satellite, complementing the SIRIUS fleet of three non-geostationary satellites.

The addition of SIRIUS FM-5 to the current SIRIUS fleet significantly increases the broadcast power of the total SIRIUS network.

SIRIUS FM-5 is designed to provide more focused power in areas of peak population, such as metropolitan areas on the east and west coast, as well as significantly improving reception when driving under heavy foliage.

The new satellite's location in a geostationary orbit position over North America (approximately above Texas, at 96 degrees west longitude) ensures that home receivers can aim at a fixed point in the southern sky to receive a signal on a constant basis.