Mon, Jan 12, 2004
Sea Launch Company successfully deployed Loral's Telstar
14/Estrela do Sul 1 communications satellite into orbit tonight.
All systems aboard the Space Systems/Loral 1300- series spacecraft
are reported in excellent condition.
The Sea Launch Zenit-3SL rocket lifted off at 8:13 pm PDT from
the Odyssey Launch Platform, positioned at 154 degrees West
Longitude, on the Equator. All systems performed nominally
throughout the flight. The Block DM-SL upper stage inserted the
4,694 kg (10,350 lb) spacecraft into a high perigee geosynchronous
transfer orbit right on target. As planned, a ground station in
Western Australia received the spacecraft's first signal, shortly
after spacecraft separation. The spacecraft's final orbital
position will be 63 degrees West Longitude.
Jim Maser, president and general manager of Sea Launch, said
after completion of the mission, "This is the first launch of the
year for the industry and it's a great way to start the year for
Sea Launch, for Loral Space & Communications and for the
industry. This is our second mission for our Loral customer and the
first of three Loral missions we plan to complete early this
year."
The Telstar 14/Estrela do Sul 1 satellite was built by Space
Systems/Loral and will be operated by Loral Skynet do Brasil. The
spacecraft carries 41 high-powered Ku-band transponders with five
unique and interconnecting coverage beams. The satellite will serve
growing markets such as broadcast video and cable programming,
Internet backbone connectivity, VSAT data and other
telecommunications services. More than fifty percent of the
satellite's power will be focused on Brazil, providing dedicated
Ku-band solutions for the Brazilian marketplace. The satellite's
other beams will cover the Americas and the North Atlantic Ocean,
where Connexion by Boeing(TM) will use the satellite to support its
Internet-to-aircraft service.
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