EchoStar 19. Photo: SSL

[Via Satellite 01-10-2017] Hughes Network Systems has begun system-level testing of its new EchoStar 19 broadband high-throughput satellite following successful placement into its permanent geosynchronous orbital slot at 97.1 degrees west longitude. The satellite was manufactured by Space Systems Loral (SSL) and launched aboard a United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 launch vehicle from the Kennedy Space Center at Cape Canaveral, Florida on Dec. 18, 2016.

Designed with Hughes Jupiter System high-throughput technology, EchoStar 19 is a multi-spot beam, Ka-band satellite that will power HughesNet Gen5, the company’s next generation of satellite internet service, according to a statement released by Hughes. From its orbital slot, EchoStar 19’s 138 beams aim to provide coverage for high-speed internet service to homes and small businesses in the continental United States, Alaska, Mexico and parts of Canada and Central America.

EchoStar 19 joins EchoStar 17, which has been in service since 2012, and will more than double HughesNet’s current capacity, support faster speeds and provide more data for today’s online activities, according to Hughes. HughesNet currently has more than 1 million subscribers. The company expects to begin delivering service to customers over EchoStar 19 by the end of the first quarter of 2017.