TDRS-M was constructed by Boeing, based on the BSS-601HP satellite bus. Fully fueled, it has a mass of 3,454 kg (7,615 lb), with a design life of 15 years.[1] It carries two steerable antennas capable of providing S, Ku and Ka band communications for other spacecraft, with an additional array of S-band transponders for lower-rate communications with five further satellites.[3] The satellite is powered by two solar arrays, which produce 2.8 to 3.2 kilowatts of power, while an R-4D-11-300 engine is present to provide propulsion.[1]
On 15 July 2017, The TDRS-M space communications satellite was damaged during the encapsulation process at Astrotech Space Operations.[5]
According to NASA's press release, "NASA and Boeing are reviewing an incident that occurred during final spacecraft closeout activities on the Tracking Data Relay Satellite (TDRS-M) mission at Astrotech Space Operations in Titusville, Florida, on July 14, involving the Omni S-band antenna."[6] This incident did result in a launch delay.[7]
Location of TDRS as of 22 May 2020Location of TDRS as of March 2019
^Foust, Jeff (18 August 2017). "TDRS launch marks end of an era". SpaceNews. Retrieved 16 June 2021. During a pre-launch news conference Aug. 17 at the Kennedy Space Center, a Boeing manager said the antenna suffered some "minor damage" when a crane bumped it. "It was prepping to the lift the satellite, and the crane did come down and touch it," said James Wilson III, Boeing program manager for NASA and civil space programs.
Launches are separated by dots ( • ), payloads by commas ( , ), multiple names for the same satellite by slashes ( / ). Crewed flights are underlined. Launch failures are marked with the † sign. Payloads deployed from other spacecraft are (enclosed in parentheses).
