Japan Launches "KIZUNA" Broadband Satellite

The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), in conjunction with Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, successfully launched the "KIZUNA" broadband Internet satellite from the Tanegashima Space Center in Japan.


The KIZUNA geostationary satellite, which is also designated as the Wideband Internetworking Engineering test and Demonstration Satellite (WINDS), is designed to deliver residential services in remote areas of Japan at a maximum speed of 155Mbps (receiving) / 6Mbps (transmitting) using 45-centimetre aperture antennas. The satellite is further capable of ultra-high speed downlinks of up to 1.2 Gbps to locations using five-meter antennas. The satellite leverages an on-board ATM switch and Ka-band transmitters.http://www.jaxa.jp/projects/sat/winds/index_e.html