Instruction Manual

Hosted Payloads
FACTS AT A GLANCE
Galaxy 15 in production. A hosted technology
demonstration payload for the FAA is
mounted on the nadir deck.
GEOStar
™
Hosted Payloads
Hosted Secondary Payload Opportunities Provide Rapid/Low-Cost Access to Space
GEO
Orbital Sciences Corporation’s Hosted Payload Interface (HPI) allows small payloads for science,
technology demonstration, and national security applications to be mounted onto Orbital’s GEOStar-2
bus GEO communications platform. This hosted payload program takes advantage of the high
frequency of commercial satellite launches and the excess resources that typically exist on a
commercial communications satellite to provide frequent and low-cost access to space.
Mission Opportunities
Hosted payloads provide a novel way to serve the needs of the science, technology demonstration,
and security and defense communities as well as the space-based commercial telecommunications
industry. Hosted payloads can be housed on spacecraft whose primary mission does not require full
use of communications payload capacity over the 15-year mission life of the commercial satellite.
The satellite owner/operator works with Orbital and the hosted payload provider to make use of the
available surplus spacecraft resources. By taking advantage of this excess, hosting can be done at a
fraction of the cost of typical science and technology demonstration satellite missions using dedicated
spacecraft.
The frequency of commercial spacecraft launches provides many opportunities for small payloads to
gain access to space. Payload hosting on Orbital’s GEOStar Bus is available on an almost yearly basis
for future launches. This robust launch pace and the quick turnaround and strict schedule requirements
of commercial spacecraft programs (typically 24-27 months) ensure efcient access to space with
minimal risk of delay.
Programs
• Orbital integrated the Geostationary
Communication and Control
Segment onto Intelsat’s Galaxy 15
spacecraft for the Federal Aviation
Administration’s Wide Area
Augmentation System. Galaxy 15
was launched in October 2005 and
continues operation.
• The Commercially Hosted Infrared
Payload Flight Demonstration Program
(CHIRP) is for the Air Force's Third
Generation Infrared Surveillance
(3GIRS) program. The SAIC wide-eld
of view sensor was integrated onto
the Orbital-built SES-2 commercial
GEO communications satellite to
validate missile warning technologies
from geosynchronous orbit in a fast
and cost-effective manner. SES-2 was
successfully launched in September
2011.