Comparison of satellite buses

This page includes a list of satellite buses, of which multiple similar artificial satellites have been, or are being, built to the same model of structural frame, propulsion, spacecraft power and intra-spacecraft communication. Only commercially available (in present or past) buses are included, thus excluding series-produced proprietary satellites operated only by their makers.

Satellite buses

Satellite bus Origin Manufacturer Maximum
Satellite Payload Mass
(kg) 		Total Mass (fueled bus
plus sat payload)
(kg) 		Price
(Mil US$) 		Launched Status First flight Last flight Comment
A2100 United States Lockheed Martin 56[1] Operational 1996 2019 GEO
Alphabus France Thales Alenia[2] and EADS Astrium 6,550 kg[citation needed] 1 Operational 2013 Alphabus
AMOS (original) Israel IAI 2,000 3 Retired 2008 GEO
AMOS-4000 Israel IAI 5,500 1 Operational 2013 GEO
Aprize United States SpaceQuest, Ltd. 13 kg 1.25[3] 2 Operational 2002 2014
ARSAT-3K Argentina INVAP 350 kg (770 lb) 3,000 kg (6,600 lb) 190 2 Operational 2014 2015 GEO
ATK 100 United States ATK Space Systems and Services 15 kg[4] 77 kg 5[5] Operational 2007 2007 used in THEMIS constellation only
ATK 200 United States ATK Space Systems and Services 200 kg[4] 573 kg 3[5] Operational 2000 2012 Formerly named, "Responsive Space Modular Bus";scaled-down ATK 150 option is also available
ATK 500 United States ATK Space Systems and Services 500 kg[4] 0 Development 2015 MEO/GEO/HEO/GSO; formerly named, "High End Modular Bus"; planned for DARPA Phoenix[4]
ATK 700 United States ATK Space Systems and Services 1,700 kg[4] 0 Development GEO/LEO/MEO/HEO/GTO; ViviSat[6]
Ball Configurable Platform 100 United States Ball Aerospace 70 kg 180 kg 3[7] Operational 1994[7] BCP 100[8]
Ball Configurable Platform 300 United States Ball Aerospace 750 kg 3[9] Operational 1999 2009
Ball Configurable Platform 2000 United States Ball Aerospace 2,200 kg 5[9] Operational 1999 2011
Ball Configurable Platform 5000 United States Ball Aerospace 2,800 kg 3 Operational 2007 2014 Used by all WorldView satellites
Boeing 601 United States Boeing Satellite Development Center 75 Operational 1993 2014 4.8 kW standard, 10 kW for Boeing 601HP
Boeing 702 United States Boeing Satellite Development Center 47[10] Operational 1999 2019 power range 3–18 kW in four sub-models
TubeSat Kit[11] United States Interorbital Systems 0.5 kg 0.75 kg 0.008[12] 0 Development LEO
CubeSat Kit[4] United States Pumpkin Inc. 1.65 kg 3 kg 0.194[13] 23 Operational 2007 2012 LEO;
CubeSat GOMX[14] Denmark GomSpace 1.50 kg 3 kg 1 Operational 2013 2013 LEO;
DFH-3 China China Academy of Space Technology 230 kg – 450 kg 2,320 kg – 3,800 kg 47 Operational 1994 2020
DFH-4 China China Academy of Space Technology 800 kg – 1,000 kg 5,100 kg – 5,300 kg 41 Operational 2006 2022
DFH-5 China China Academy of Space Technology 1,200 kg – 2,200 kg 6,500 kg – 9,000 kg 41 Operational 2017 2022
DS2000 Japan MELCO 5,800 kg 9 Operational 2015 GEO
Eurostar France, United Kingdom, Airbus (former EADS Astrium) 6,400 kg 76 Operational 1990 2019 GEO, models E1000,E2000,E2000+,E3000
HS-333 United States Hughes Space and Communications 54 kg[15] 560 kg[16] 8[16] Retired 1972 1979[16] GEO; first satellite series; 300 watt, 12-channel, single-antenna
HS-376 United States Hughes Space and Communications 1,450 kg[17] 58[17] Retired 1978 2003[17] GEO
HS-393 United States Hughes Space and Communications 2,478 kg[18] 3[18] Retired 1985 1990[18] GEO
I-1K India ISRO 1,425 kg[19] 4 Operational 2002 2014
I-2K India ISRO 1,400 kg 2,800 kg[20] 20 Operational 1992 2014 DC power up to 3KW
I-3K India ISRO 3,460 kg[21] 5 Operational 2005 2012 DC power up to 6.5KW
I-4K India ISRO 4,000 kg – 5,000 kg[22][23] 0 Development 2014 DC power up to 13KW
I-6K India ISRO 5,000 kg – 6,500 kg [24][25] 1 Operational 2018 2018 DC power up to 15KW
IMS 1 India ISRO 30 kg 100 kg 2 Operational 2008 2011 220 W power
IMS 2 India ISRO 200 kg 450 kg[26][27][28] 1 Operational 2013 2013 800 W power
PSLV Orbital Experiment Module India ISRO 30 kg 930 kg 3 Operational 2022 2023 200 - 500 W power
SSL 1300 United States SSL (company) 3,000–6,700 kg (approx.)[29] 118 Operational 1984[29] 2017 GEO; previously named the LS-1300
Modular Common Spacecraft Bus United States NASA Ames Research Center 50 kg 383+ kg[30] 4.0 1 Operational 2013 LADEE Low-cost interplanetary bus.[31]
Photon United States Rocket Lab 170 kg 2 Development 2020 LEO, SSO and interplanetary versions. First operational mission, NASA's CAPSTONE mission occurred in June 2022.
RS-300 United States Ball Aerospace 125+ kg[32] 2 Operational
(as of 2009) 		RS-300
SI-100 Korea Satrec 100 kg[33] 0 Development SI-100
SI-200 Korea Satrec 200 kg[34] 1 Operational 2009 2009 copy of RazakSAT, used in DubaiSat-1
SI-300 Korea Satrec 300 kg[35] 2 Operational 2013 2014 SI-200 with larger battery, used for Deimos-2 and DubaiSat-2
SNC-100 United States SNC Space Systems 100 kg[36]–172 kg[37] 116 kg-277 kg 9 Operational 2006 SNC-100A (OG2), SNC-100B, SNC-100C, Trailblazer was lost in launch failure
SNC-100-L1 United States SNC Space Systems 100 kg[38] 0 Development Optimized for LauncherOne[38]
Spacebus 100 France Aerospatiale 1,170 kg[39] 3 Unknown[40] 1981[39] 1981 GEO
Spacebus 300 France Aerospatiale 2,100 kg (approx.)[citation needed] 5 Retired 1987 1990 GEO
Spacebus 2000 France Aerospatiale 1,900 kg (approx.)[citation needed] 11 Retired 1990 1998 GEO
Spacebus 3000 France Aerospatiale 2,800-3200 kg (approx.)[citation needed] 27 Operational[citation needed] 1996 2010 GEO
Spacebus 4000 France Alcatel Space – Thales Alenia Space 3,000-5700 kg (approx.)[citation needed] 33 Operational[citation needed] 2005 2019 GEO
STAR-1 United States Orbital Sciences 1 Retired 1997[41] 2001 GEO
STAR-2 (GEOStar-2) United States Orbital Sciences 500 kg 3,325 kg 33[42] Operational 2002[41] 2013 GEO, 5550 W
GEOStar-3 United States Orbital Sciences 800 kg 5,000 kg 0 Development GEO, 8000 W
SSTL-70 (Microsat-70) United Kingdom Surrey Satellite Technology 30 kg 70 kg 16 Retired 1992 2001
SSTL-100 United Kingdom Surrey Satellite Technology 15 kg 100 kg 10.0 8 Operational 2003 2012
SSTL-100LO United Kingdom Surrey Satellite Technology 100 kg[38] 0 Development Optimized for LauncherOne[38]
SSTL-150 United Kingdom Surrey Satellite Technology 50 kg 177 kg 16.5 11 Operational 2005 2014
SSTL-300 United Kingdom Surrey Satellite Technology 150 kg 300 kg 23.5 1 Operational 2011 2011
SSTL-400 (Minisat-400) United Kingdom Surrey Satellite Technology 400 kg 1 Retired 1999 1999
SSTL-600 Satellite Platform United Kingdom Surrey Satellite Technology 200 kg 600 kg 36.0 1 Operational 2005 2005

Legend for abbreviations in the table:


See also

References

  1. ^ Krebs, Gunter. "Lockheed Martin: A2100". Gunter's Space Page. Retrieved June 12, 2017.
  2. ^ "Alphabus development well under way". Thales Alenia Space. 2007-11-23. Archived from the original on 2007-12-08. Retrieved 2013-10-04.
  3. ^ "AprizeSat". Archived from the original on 2009-08-05. Retrieved 2009-08-02.
  4. ^ a b c d e f Werner, Debra (2012-08-13). "Builder Packing More Capability into Small Satellites". Space News. p. 13.
  5. ^ a b "ATK's New Small Satellite Spacecraft Platforms". SpaceRef.com. July 30, 2012. Retrieved December 4, 2022.
  6. ^ "ATK: Introducing the expanded product line of agile spacecraft buses". Space News. 2012-08-13. pp. 16–17. ATK A100 THEMIS; ATK A200 ORS-1, TacSat3, and EO-1; ATK A500 DARPA Phoenix; ATK A700 ViviSat
  7. ^ a b "Ball Aerospace Configurable Platforms" (PDF). Product Brochure. Ball Aerospace. January 2014. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2015-09-23. Retrieved 2014-04-09.
  8. ^ "Green Propellant Infusion Mission (GPIM)". Ball Aerospace. 2014. Archived from the original on 2013-04-24. Retrieved 2014-02-26.
  9. ^ a b "Ball Aerospace Configurable Platforms" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2015-09-23. Retrieved 2014-04-09.
  10. ^ Krebs, Gunter. "Hughes / Boeing: HS-702 / BSS-702, HS-GEM / BSS-GEM (Geomobile)". Gunter's Space Page. Retrieved June 12, 2017.
  11. ^ "TubeSat_1". Archived from the original on 2014-06-23. Retrieved 2014-06-24.
  12. ^ "Interorbital Systems TubeSat Satelite Kit" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2014-06-30. Retrieved 2014-06-24.
  13. ^ "PL-1 Pumpkin Price List" (PDF). Pumpkin, Inc. April 9, 2022. Retrieved December 4, 2022.
  14. ^ "Cubesat and nano-satellite solutions". Archived from the original on 2015-02-15. Retrieved 2015-01-14.
  15. ^ Hughes Aircraft Corporation, Space and Communications Group, SBS F6 Prime sales brochure, 1985
  16. ^ a b c Krebs, Gunter. "Hughes: HS-333 / HS-356". Gunter's Space Page. Retrieved 4 July 2012.
  17. ^ a b c Krebs, Gunter. "Hughes / Boeing: HS-376 / BSS-376". Gunter's Space Page. Retrieved August 26, 2016.
  18. ^ a b c Krebs, Gunter. "Hughes: HS-333 / HS-356". Gunter's Space Page. Retrieved August 26, 2016.
  19. ^ "SPACECRAFT SYSTEMS AND SUB SYSTEMS" (PDF). Antrix Corporation. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2015-09-23. Retrieved 2013-02-02.
  20. ^ "SPACECRAFT SYSTEMS AND SUB SYSTEMS" (PDF). Antrix Corporation. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2015-09-23. Retrieved 2013-02-02.
  21. ^ "SPACECRAFT SYSTEMS AND SUB SYSTEMS" (PDF). Antrix Corporation. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2015-09-23. Retrieved 2013-02-02.
  22. ^ "Gsat-11". Archived from the original on 2014-01-07. Retrieved 2014-01-07.
  23. ^ "Welcome to Indian Space Research Organisation :: Current Programme". Archived from the original on 2010-11-25. Retrieved 2014-02-07.
  24. ^ "GSAT-11 Mission – ISRO". www.isro.gov.in. Archived from the original on 2019-07-13. Retrieved 2018-12-19.
  25. ^ "ISRO: I-6K (I-6000) Bus". space.skyrocket.de. Retrieved 2018-12-19.
  26. ^ "Welcome to ISRO :: Satellites :: Earth Observation Satellite :: IMS-1". Archived from the original on 2013-12-06. Retrieved 2014-02-07.
  27. ^ "Welcome to ISRO :: Satellites :: Earth Observation Satellite :: RISAT-2". Archived from the original on 2014-02-03. Retrieved 2014-02-07.
  28. ^ "NNRMS Bulletin No. 37" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2014-03-08. Retrieved 2014-02-07.
  29. ^ a b "Space Service Loral (SSL): LS-1300". Gunter's Space Page. Retrieved 2012-08-25.
  30. ^ Graham, William (2013-09-06). "Orbital's Minotaur V launches LADEE mission to the Moon". NASAspaceflight.com. Retrieved 2013-09-07.
  31. ^ NASA Lunar Science Institute, Common Spacecraft Bus for Lunar Explorer Missions, includes video.
  32. ^ Krebs, Gunter. "Ball: RS-300". Gunter's Space Page. Retrieved 21 March 2011.
  33. ^ Wade, Mark. "Satrec". Encyclopedia Astronautica. Archived from the original on November 29, 2010. Retrieved 2012-09-16.
  34. ^ Krebs, Gunter (2012-02-09). "Satrec Initiative: SI-200". Skyrocket.de (Gunter's Space Page). Retrieved 2012-09-16.
  35. ^ "Satellite System Products". Satrec Initiative. 2012. Archived from the original on 2011-07-16. Retrieved 2012-09-16.
  36. ^ "SN-100 Small Satellite Production Line". Space News. 2012-08-13. p. 21. first 18 satellites [are] in production
  37. ^ Graham, William (2014-07-14). "SpaceX's Falcon 9 set for fourth attempt to launch Orbcomm OG2 mission". NASAspaceflight.com. Retrieved 2014-07-14.
  38. ^ a b c d "Virgin Galactic relaunches its smallsat launch business". NewSpace Journal. 2012-07-12. Retrieved 2012-08-25. develop versions of their smallsat bus optimized to the design of LauncherOne.
  39. ^ a b Krebs, Gunter. "Arabsat 1A, 1B, 1C / Insat 2DT". Gunter's Space Page. Retrieved 2012-08-25.
  40. ^ Harland, David M; Lorenz, Ralph D. (2005). Space Systems Failures (2006 ed.). Chichester: Springer-Praxis. p. 221. ISBN 0-387-21519-0.
  41. ^ a b "GEOStar Brochure" (PDF). Orbital Sciences. 2012. Retrieved 2013-09-20.
  42. ^ "Home" (PDF).

Notes

It is not clear from the sources if the Spacebus 100 satellite bus is still on offer.