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Satnews Daily
August 4th, 2016

SkySat-3 Successfully Orbits Thanks To Going Green 



The HPGP propulsion system module (left) delivered for integration into the SkySat-3 satellite (right)

Beautiful Land, or Terra Bella SkySat-3 was launched aboard ISRO’s Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) rocket into a 500 km sun-synchronous orbit on June 22, and the High Performance Green Propulsion (HPGP®) system is reported to be successfully commissioned on-orbit and reported to be fully operational 48 hours later.

The High Performance Green Propulsion (HPGP®) system included on theTerra Bella SkySat-3 satellite is a product of ECAPS, an SSC Group company.  

All initial data from the propulsion system has indicated nominal performance and the HPGP system is now being used for recurring orbit maintenance operations.

On September 2014 the first complete HPGP propulsion system module was delivered by ECAPS  for integration into SkySat-3, the first of Terra Bella’s satellites to be equipped with an orbit maneuvering capability. In addition to serving as the first flight unit, that initial HPGP module was also used to validate the overall propulsion system design for implementation on subsequent SkySat satellites. Production of the many additional HPGP systems ordered by Terra Bella continues at ECAPS in an ‘assembly line’ manner, with additional deliveries occurring on a regular basis

According to Mathias Persson, President of ECAPS stated, “Customers select ECAPS to provide flight-proven, state-of-the-art propulsion capabilities due to the many unique aspects of HPGP technology that help contribute to overall mission effectiveness. We’re proud of our partnership with Terra Bella, under which ECAPS has now successfully transitioned into serial production of both the SkySat propulsion system modules and the associated 1N HPGP thrusters.”

HPGP technology provides both increased performance over monopropellant hydrazine and a more cost effective solution than a similarly-sized hydrazine propulsion system, when compared over a satellite mission’s life-cycle.  http://www.sscspace.com