Satellite News

Magellan Aerospace has delivered the first of three Power Control Units (“PCU”) for an upcoming space mission.

Rocket: Chang Zheng 11; Payload: Jilin-1 Video 07, Jilin-1 Video 08; Date: 19 January 2018, 0412 UTC; Launch site: Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, China. The rocket also carried four small piggyback satellites.

Rocket: Atlas V; Payload: SBIRS GEO Flight 4; Date: 20 January 2018, 0048 UTC; Launch site: Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, USA. Signal acquisition was confirmed approximately 37 minutes after lift-off .

Rocket: Electron ‘Still Testing’; Payload: one Dove, two Lemur-2 satellites; Date: 21 January 2018, 0145 UTC; Launch site: Mahia Peninsula, New Zealand. Following successful first and second stage burns, Electron reached orbit and deployed customer payloads at 8 minutes and 31 seconds after lift-off.

The Ariane 5 for Arianespace’s upcoming mission from French Guiana is now complete following integration of its two satellite passengers: SES-14 for operator SES and Yahsat’s Al Yah 3 – both of which will be delivered to geostationary transfer orbit on a flight planned for 25 January.

Rocket: Epsilon-3; Payload: ASNARO-2; Date: 17 January 2018, 2106 UTC; Launch site: Uchinoura Space Center, Japan. The launch and flight of Epsilon-3 took place normally. Approximately 52 minutes 35 seconds into the flight, the separation of ASNARO-2 proceeded, with confirmation as successful.

Arianespace is preparing its initial Ariane 5 and Soyuz missions of 2018, which will set the stage for up to 14 flights this year using its family of launchers.

JAXA has rescheduled the launch of Epsilon-3, the third Epsilon launch vehicle which encapsulates NEC’s small radar satellite “ASNARO-2” from the JAXA Uchinoura Space Center.