Boeing ships first two redesigned O3b mPower satellites
TAMPA, Fla. — Boeing has shipped the first pair of O3b mPower satellites with fixes addressing power issues that have hobbled the initial six in SES’s next-generation medium Earth orbit (MEO) broadband network.
Boeing said Nov. 13 the satellites with redesigned power modules were sent via truck from its facilities in El Segundo, California, and are due to arrive at Cape Canaveral in Florida next week for their December SpaceX launch.
SES announced in August 2023 that electrical issues were sporadically tripping off power modules on in-orbit O3b mPower satellites after deploying the first four spacecraft in the Boeing-built constellation.
While the trip-offs can be quickly resolved in a process an SES executive likened to flipping a circuit breaker, the company said the issue significantly reduces their operational life and broadband capacity.
Even still, SES proceeded with launching the fifth and sixth O3b mPower satellites without hardware changes to enable initial commercial services to start in April.
