Satellite News

During the remaining four months of 2016, Arianespace plans to launch – amongst others – Earth observation platforms and global navigation satellites from the Spaceport in French Guiana.

Intelsat S.A. announced that Intelsat 33e, the second of seven planned Intelsat EpicNG high throughput satellites, was launched successfully from French Guiana aboard an Ariane 5 launch vehicle. Signal acquisition has been confirmed.

Space Systems Loral announced that Intelsat 36 is successfully performing post-launch manoeuvres according to plan.

Boeing said that the Mexsat system was formally accepted by Mexico’s Ministry of Communications and Transportation after successfully completing its final tests.

Rocket: Ariane 5 ECA; Payload: Intelsat 33e, Intelsat 36; Date: 24 August 2016; Launch site: Kourou, French Guiana. In a rare dual launch for a single customer, both satellites were successfully deployed into geostationary transfer orbit.

corporation Roskosmos is allocating over RUB1.9 billion (US$29 million) to upgrading rocket engines, rocket boosters and spacecraft, according to materials published on Russia’s official public procurement website.

Russian state space corporation Roskosmos has started work on designing a new super-heavy class carrier rocket on the basis of the RD-171 liquid-fuel rocket engine, Russia’s S.P. Korolev Rocket and Space Corporation (RSC) Energia General Director Vladimir Solntsev was quoted as saying.

China has unveiled plans of a Mars probe and rover it aims to launch at the end of the decade. Zhang Rongqiao, chief architect of the project, said Tuesday they were targeting July or August 2020 for the launch, Xinhua news agency reported.