Wed, May 17, 2017
Scheduled For Launch On May 18
Payload build-up is underway in French Guiana for Arianespace's medium-lift Soyuz mission this week, which is to orbit the SES-15 telecommunications satellite for European-based operator SES.
These preparations – performed inside the Spaceport’s S3B clean room facility – involved the installation of SES-15 atop Soyuz’ Fregat upper stage, enabling its encapsulation in the two-piece protective payload fairing.
The completed unit, called the “upper composite,” will be mated atop Soyuz after the vehicle’s rollout from the MIK integration building – where launcher assembly is handled – to the ELS launch zone.
Scheduled for liftoff on May 18 at precisely 8:54:53 a.m. local time in French Guiana, Soyuz will carry out a 5-hr., 18-min. mission from launch to SES-15’s separation into a sub-geostationary transfer orbit. Fregat – which is responsible for the final orbital maneuvers – will perform two burns separated by a four-hour-plus ballistic phase to reach the targeted deployment point.
SES-15 will be the 40th spacecraft orbited by Arianespace for SES, and its launch marks this long-time customer’s first use of Soyuz from French Guiana. The Boeing-built satellite has an estimated liftoff mass of 2,302 kg., with the mission’s total lift performance set at 2,447 kg. – taking into account the payload integration equipment and other hardware.
Arianespace’s May 18 mission, designated Flight VS17 in the company’s numbering system, will be the second-ever launch to geostationary transfer orbit performed by Soyuz from Europe’s Spaceport in French Guiana. The first was conducted earlier this year, with the Hispasat 36W-1 satellite successfully deployed on January 27.
(Source: Arianespace news release. Image from file)
More News
DETRESFA (Distress Phrase) The code word used to designate an emergency phase wherein there is reasonable certainty that an aircraft and its occupants are threatened by grave and i>[...]
Aero Linx: The International Association of Missionary Aviation (IAMA) The International Association of Missionary Aviation (IAMA) is comprised of Mission organizations, flight sch>[...]
Also: EP Systems' Battery, Boeing SAF, Repeat TBM 960 Order, Japan Coast Guard H225 Buy Despite nearly 100 complaints totaling millions of dollars of potential fraud, combined with>[...]
Also: Viasat-uAvionix, UL94 Fuel Investigation, AF Materiel Command, NTSB Safety Alert Norges Luftsportforbund chose Aura Aero's little 2-seater in electric trim for their next gli>[...]
Also: Moya Delivery Drone, USMC Drone Pilot, Inversion RAY Reentry Vehicle, RapidFlight UAVOS has recently achieved a significant milestone in public safety and emergency services >[...]