SpaceX successfully launched Turkey’s first domestically-built communications satellite, Türksat 6A, onboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida on July 9.
The satellite is designed to handle secure military communications within Turkey and provide expanded commercial services across India, Thailand, Malaysia, and Indonesia.
“We have just launched our domestic communication satellite Türksat 6A into space,” Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan announced on social media. “We have witnessed another source of pride for our country and our nation. More than 81 percent of the subsystems, satellite ground stations, and software in the 6A project, which is of great importance for the future of our country in space, have been produced by Turkey with national resources.”
Abdulkadir Uraloglu, Turkey’s Minister of Transportation and Infrastructure, highlighted the significance of the launch, stating that Turkey now joins an exclusive group of only 11 nations capable of building high-tech communications satellites. In a pre-launch post on social media, he wrote,
“Türksat 6A will be the symbol of our independence in space and our unity on Earth and in the sky.”
The SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launched from pad 40 at the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station at 7:30 p.m. EDT, after a delay of over two hours due to threatening weather.
The first stage of the rocket, on its 15th flight, successfully boosted the satellite out of the lower atmosphere and landed on a SpaceX barge in the Atlantic Ocean. The second stage then completed two firings of its single engine, deploying the Türksat 6A satellite into a highly elliptical transfer orbit 35 minutes after liftoff.
In the coming days, the satellite’s onboard thrusters will circularize its orbit to 22,300 miles above the equator at 42 degrees east longitude.
At this altitude, satellites complete one orbit in 24 hours and appear stationary in the sky, allowing for the use of fixed ground antennas.
Organizations involved in the satellite’s development include TÜBİTAK UZAY, Turkish Aerospace (TUSAŞ), Aselsan, and CTech.
Türksat 6A, operated by Türksat A.Ș., is equipped with 16 Ku-band transponders and four held in reserve, along with two active X-band transponders and one spare for Turkish military use.
The Ku-band transponders will support commercial services. Uraloglu noted that with previous satellites purchased abroad, Turkey’s coverage included Europe, the Middle East, the Turkic nations, parts of East Asia, and a significant portion of North Africa.
“Turksat 6A will increase satellite coverage, as it will cover India, Thailand, Malaysia, and Indonesia, increasing our coverage of approximately 3.5 billion people to around five billion.”
The satellite, with a design life of 15 years, marked SpaceX’s 68th Falcon 9 launch of the year and its 353rd overall.
The company aims to launch more than 140 Falcon-family rockets this year, setting an unmatched pace in the commercial launch industry.