Satellite News

Sirius Satellite Radio Inc.’s US$3.3 billion purchase of XM Satellite Radio Holdings Inc was formally approved with conditions by the U.S. Federal Communications Commission Friday night.

Rocket: Soyuz 2-1b; Payload: Kosmos 2441; Date: 26 July 2008, 1831 UTC; Site: Plesetsk, Russia. The classified military satellite was successfully deployed in its target orbit nine minutes after lift-off.