The upgraded broadband satellite communication system of the United States will increase the bandwidth by 45%

The first upgraded WGS satellite from the U.S. Department of Defense is scheduled to launch on December 7. It is the eighth communications satellite in its military satellite communications constellation and the first upgraded satellite to carry more data traffic than previous versions. The first WGS satellite was launched in 2007. Today's WGS-8, similar to the earlier WGS satellites, will also be launched on the United Launch Alliance's Delta-4 rocket. The satellite is currently encapsulated in the rocket fairing and is waiting on the launch platform 37 at Cape Canal Air Force Station. The launch time is expected to be between 6:53 and 7:42 p.m. Eastern Time.

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Thomas Bech, deputy director of the U.S. Air Force Space and Missile Systems Center, said that the most outstanding feature of the WGS satellite is its ability to broadcast, multi-point transmission and point-to-point connection anywhere in the world at any time, and support seamless connection of X-band and Ka-band at the same time. The satellite cost about 425 million U.S. dollars and has 45% more bandwidth than the earlier version of the WGS satellite, mainly because the WGS-8 satellite uses a more efficient digital channel.

According to information provided by its main contractor Boeing, the channel can decompose the uplink bandwidth into 1,900 sub-channels, providing more paths for data transmission. The relevant project manager of Boeing believes that the information age has led to an "explosive increase" in everyone's communication needs, and broadband communications are even more necessary for the military.

According to the plan, two more WGS satellites will be launched in the future, and the total number of WGS satellites will reach 10 by 2019. Each satellite has a service life of 14 years.

Walter Lauderdale, WGS-8 project manager at the center, said that although similar satellites have been launched before, the team will still take necessary precautions. Just like everyone is a unique individual, each rocket is actually unique.