It has been determined that the space particle that hit the SpainSat-NG II satellite struck it in a vital area, meaning that it cannot perform its mission as planned. Hisdesat, the government-focused division of Hispasat, has already given the go-ahead to build the SpainSat-NG III satellite to replace it. The 6,000 kgs satellite is likely to prompt an insurance claim of a reported €400 million (€344m).

The SpainSat-NG II satellite, which was launched on an expendable Falcon 9 last year, was hit by a “space particle” at an altitude of about 69,650 kms while in its highly elliptical transfer orbit to its geostationary position.

Hisdesat, under its new owners Indra Group, confirmed on January 16th that it had started the replacement process inviting presentations from interested parties to build SpainSat-NG 3.

“Hisdesat has implemented this measure after analysing the latest reports by the main contractor,” the company’s statement said. “Although the space particle that collided with the satellite was estimated to be millimetric in size and weigh only a few grams, the high speed of the impact on a vital area of the satellite caused non-recoverable damage.”

“The satellite is stable, complete and in a highly eccentric orbit, in such a way that it won’t interfere with any present or future space operations, and its loss will not cause any economic harm, as it’s insured against this kind of damage,” the statement added.

However, there are anxieties amongst the insurance community. Their problem is that this is the second satellite which was built by Airbus to suffer an incident. The Airbus satellite (a Eurostar Neo) was very similar to the Inmarsat 6 F2, owned by Viasat, and was also lost in August 2023 and blamed on a “micrometeorite”. That prompted a claim of $348 million.

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Categories: Blogs, Inside Satellite, Satellite

Tags: Hispasat, satellite, spainsat