Satellite News

Rocket: Atlas V 401; Payload: DMSP-19; Date: 3 April 2014, 1446 UTC; Launch site: Vandenberg Air Force Base, USA. The military weather satellite was placed into a near-polar, Sun-synchronous orbit.

Rocket: Soyuz/Fregat; Payload: Sentinel-1A; Date: 3 April 2014, 2102 UTC; Launch site: Sinnamary, French Guiana. The Earth observation satellite separated from the upper stage some 23 minutes after lift-off as planned and is now in a at 693-km Sun-synchronous orbit.

The U.S. Defense Advanced Projects Agency (DARPA) said its Phoenix has achieved promising Phase 1 results. The agency has awarded eight companies prime contracts for its Phase 2 efforts.

Eutelsat Communications announced that the Arab States Broadcasting Union (ASBU) has concluded a multi-year contract for Ku-band capacity on the Eutelsat 21B satellite that provides coverage of the Middle East, North Africa and Europe.