Editing Spacebus (section)

{{Short description|Brand of satellite bus}}
{{Expand French|date=March 2013|Spacebus}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=December 2020}}
{{Infobox Spacecraft class
|image=Eurobird.JPG
| caption          = [[Eutelsat 28A]], a Spacebus 3000
|manufacturer = [[Thales Alenia Space]]
|country = {{flag|France}}
|applications = [[Communications satellite|Communications]]
|orbits = [[Geostationary orbit|Geostationary]]
|lifetime = 15 years
|status = In production
|built = 74 
|orders = 7
|launched = 74
|operational = <!--Number operational-->
|retired = <!--Number retired (nominally)-->
|failed = 1
|lost = 4
|first = 1985
|last = 20 August 2015
|lastretired = <!--Last satellite retired & date-->
|power = 16 kW
}}
'''Spacebus''' is a [[satellite bus]] produced at the [[Cannes Mandelieu Space Center]] in France by [[Thales Alenia Space]]. Spacebuses are typically used for [[geostationary orbit|geostationary]] [[communications satellite]]s, and seventy-four have been launched since development started in the 1980s. Spacebus was originally produced by [[Aérospatiale]] and later passed to [[Alcatel Alenia Space]]. In 2006, it was sold to [[Thales Group]] as Thales Alenia Space.<ref name="BBC-Sale">{{cite web|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/4878810.stm|title=Thales in Alcatel satellite deal|date=5 April 2006|publisher=BBC News |access-date=5 July 2009}}</ref>

The first Spacebus satellite, [[Arabsat-1A]], was launched in 1985. Since then, seventy-four have been launched, with one more completed, and six outstanding orders. The launch of the 50th Spacebus satellite, [[Star One C1]], occurred in November 2007.<ref name="50e">Christian Lardier, « Ariane-5 : un tir de l'industrie européenne – le 50e Spacebus », dans ''Air & Cosmos'', N° 2100, du 16 novembre 2007</ref> It was a Spacebus 3000B3, launched by an [[Ariane 5]] rocket flying from the [[Guiana Space Centre]] in [[Kourou]], French Guiana.

Several variants have been built: the early [[Spacebus 100]] and [[Spacebus 300]]; followed by the [[Spacebus 2000]], optimised for launch on the [[Ariane 4]] carrier rocket; and the subsequent modular [[Spacebus 3000]] and [[Spacebus 4000|4000]] series, designed for use with the Ariane 5 rocket.