Sun, Jan 15, 2017
Successful Placement of 10 Iridium Satellites Completed
SpaceX’s Falcon 9 successfully delivered 10 satellites to low-Earth orbit for Iridium. The 10 satellites are the first of at least 70 satellites that SpaceX will launch for Iridium’s next generation global satellite constellation, Iridium NEXT. SpaceX conducted the launch of Iridium-1 from Space Launch Complex 4E at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California.
The payloads for this launch are the first 10 Iridium NEXT satellites. Iridium NEXT will replace the world's largest commercial satellite network of low-earth orbit satellites in what will be one of the largest "tech upgrades" in history. Iridium has partnered with Thales Alenia Space for the manufacturing, assembly and testing of 81 Iridium NEXT satellites, at least 70 of which will be launched by SpaceX. The process of replacing the satellites one-by-one in a constellation of this size and scale has never been completed before.
Iridium's primary launch campaign consists of seven SpaceX Falcon 9 launches, deploying ten Iridium NEXT satellites at a time. These 70 Iridium NEXT satellites are scheduled to be deployed by early 2018.
In addition to the successful placement of the new Iridium satellites, this launch marked the first recovery of a Falcon 9 First Stage in the pacific Ocean aboard the “Just Read the Instructions” robotic drone recovery ship. In a scene that is beginning to seem almost common place, the first stage landed near the center of the target on the recovery vehicle.
Launches back on the East Coast, with this successful event, are expected within weeks.
More News
Aero Linx: JAARS Nearly 1.5 billion people, using more than 5,500 languages, do not have a full Bible in their first language. Many of these people live in the most remote parts of>[...]
'Airplane Bounced Twice On The Grass Runway, Resulting In The Nose Wheel Separating From The Airplane...' Analysis: The pilot reported, “upon touchdown, the plane jumped back>[...]
"Burt is best known to the public for his historic designs of SpaceShipOne, Voyager, and GlobalFlyer, but for EAA members and aviation aficionados, his unique concepts began more t>[...]
"Polaris Dawn, the first of the program’s three human spaceflight missions, is targeted to launch to orbit no earlier than summer 2024. During the five-day mission, the crew >[...]
There Are SO Many Ways To Get YOUR Aero-News! It’s been a while since we have reminded everyone about all the ways we offer your daily dose of aviation news on-the-go...so he>[...]