This heavy-lift workhorse was equipped with its upper cryogenic stage and vehicle equipment bay inside the Spaceport's Launcher Integration Building, installed as a single "upper composite" atop the core cryogenic stage by prime contractor Astrium.

The launcher will now be readied for transfer to the Final Assembly Building in French Guiana, where Arianespace will take responsibility for final launch preparations and integration of the satellite payloads - Alphasat and INSAT-3D - before a liftoff targeted for the second half of July.

Built by Astrium, Alphasat will weigh more than six metric tons at launch and provide additional L-band capacity for coverage of Europe, the Middle East and Africa. Operated under an agreement between the European Space Agency (ESA) and European commercial satellite operator Inmarsat, it will be the first satellite to use Alphabus, the high-powered European telecommunications platform co-developed by Astrium and Thales Alenia Space under joint contract from ESA and the French CNES space agency.

INSAT-3D is a dedicated meteorological satellite built by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), India's space agency. It will carry weather forecasting payloads, along with a search and rescue relay system, and has a liftoff mass of 2,100 kg., offering 1,100 W of power.

Designated Flight VA214 in Arianespace's numbering system, this launch represents the 214th flight of an Ariane vehicle since this family's maiden liftoff in December 1979.

Flight VA214 is one of two Ariane 5 missions currently being prepared in French Guiana - and is part of Spaceport activity for four launch campaigns in May that involves members of Arianespace's entire launcher family.

Pre-flight operations are continuing for Ariane 5's Flight VA213, which will carry Europe's fourth Automated Transfer Vehicle (ATV) into orbit next month; and for Soyuz Flight VS05 which will loft four satellites for O3b Networks - scheduled in June as well. On May 7, Arianespace's lightweight Vega completed its second mission with the successful launch of three passengers - VNREDSat-1, Proba-V and ESTCube-1.

]]> Sat, 18 MAY 2013 00:31:26 AEST Kourou, French Guiana (ESA) May 17, 2013 - The first Arianespace Soyuz mission for O3b Networks has moved into its next phase of preparations at the Spaceport, as fueling is now underway with the global satellite services provider's spacecraft that will provide connectivity for emerging markets worldwide.

This upcoming medium-lift Soyuz launch - designated Flight VS05 in Arianespace's launcher family numbering system - will orbit four O3b Networks spacecraft during a June mission from French Guiana.

Fueling was initiated with FM4 (Flight Model 4) in the launch site's S5 payload preparation building, where the satellite was transferred after verification of its platform and payload during activity in the separate S1B clean room facility at the Spaceport.

O3b Networks' other three satellites will follow in the fueling process, enabling them to be integrated on a dispenser system that is to deploy the cluster of spacecraft during Arianespace's Soyuz flight.

Built by Thales Alenia Space, these spacecraft are to operate in Ka-band at a medium-orbit altitude of 8,063 km. - offering high-speed, low-cost, low-latency Internet and telecommunications services for O3b customers in emerging markets. The satellites have a trapezoidal-shaped main body that facilitates their integration on the Soyuz payload dispenser system.

In addition to the first batch of four O3b spacecraft for the upcoming Soyuz mission, another Arianespace flight is scheduled to orbit four more later this year, followed by an additional four in 2014.

The June mission will be Arianespace's fifth Soyuz liftoff from the Spaceport since this workhorse medium-lift vehicle was introduced at French Guiana in October 2011. Soyuz is part of the company's complete launcher family, which also includes the heavyweight Ariane 5 and light-lift Vega.

]]> Sat, 18 MAY 2013 00:31:26 AEST Moscow (RIA Novosti) May 16, 2013 - Russia's Proton-M carrier rocket will blast off on Tuesday from the Baikonur space center in Kazakhstan to put a French telecommunications satellite into orbit, a spokesman for the Russian space agency Roscosmos said.

"The launch of the Proton-M carrier rocket with W3D satellite is scheduled for 20:02 [4:02 p.m. GMT] on Tuesday," the spokesman said.

He added that the separation of the satellite from the Russian spacecraft is scheduled for 5:15 (1:15 a.m. GMT) on Wednesday.

The W3D satellite was built upon order from the Paris-based Eutelsat on the Spacebus 4000 C3 platform by Thales Alenia Space. It weighs 5,400 kg (11,900 lbs) and has a service life of 15 years.

The satellite is planned to provide extensive Ku-band coverage across Europe, North Africa, the Middle East and Central Asia for video links and data networks as well as Direct-to-Home (DTH) reception and Internet services.

Source: RIA Novosti

]]> Sat, 18 MAY 2013 00:31:26 AEST Baikonur, Kazakhstan (SPX) May 15, 2013 - International Launch Services (ILS) successfully placed the EUTELSAT 3D satellite into Geostationary Transfer Orbit (GTO), today, for Eutelsat Communications of Paris, France.

With this mission, ILS, a leader in providing mission integration and launch services to the global commercial satellite industry, completed its 80th Proton launch overall and 3rd Proton launch in 2013.

The Proton Breeze M vehicle carrying EUTELSAT 3D launched from Pad 39 at the Baikonur Cosmodrome, today, at 22:02 local time(16:02GMT and 12:02 EDT). The satellite, built by Thales Alenia Space on the reliable Spacebus 4000 platform and weighing nearly 5.5 metric tons at liftoff, was released 9 hours and 13 minutes after a standard 5-burn Breeze M mission.

This was the 7th Eutelsat satellite launched on a Proton and the 9th Thales Alenia Space Satellite launched on an ILS Proton.

EUTELSAT 3D will initially be located at 3 degrees east longitude, until the launch of EUTELSAT 3B in 2014, at which time it will continue its service at 7 degrees east longitude.

From its orbital locations, the satellite will provide resources, reach and flexibility to address the high-growth rate in the video, data, telecom, and broadband markets. This Ku and Ka-band satellite will serve customers across Europe, Africa, the Middle East and Central Asia.

Since its maiden flight in 1965, this was the 386th aggregate launch for the Proton vehicle, including both Federal and commercial missions. The Proton Breeze M vehicle is developed and built by Khrunichev Research and Production Space Center of Moscow, Russia's premier space industry manufacturer and majority shareholder in ILS.

ILS President Phil Slack stated, "The Proton vehicle and Eutelsat partnership dates back 13 years starting with the SESAT-1 launch on Proton in 2000. After seven launches, including the 50th ILS Proton launch in 2009 with the EUTELSAT 10A satellite, we are honored that Eutelsat continues to place their trust in us to enable the expansion of their business.

"Many thanks to the Eutelsat, Thales Alenia Space, Khrunichev and ILS teams for ensuring mission success with the launch of EUTELSAT 3D."

Michel de Rosen, Eutelsat CEO, "We thank ILS and Khrunichev for this flawless launch which maintains our perfect track record of success since our first Proton flight in 2000.

"I'm happy to say that EUTELSAT 3D is well on its way to 3 East, where it will go into service next month. The performance of the Proton launcher gives us the flexibility we need to further increase our resources and commercial flexibility which is highly valued in our business."

]]> Sat, 18 MAY 2013 00:31:26 AEST Kourou, French Guiana (ESA) May 15, 2013 - Arianespace marked one of the final steps in preparations for the next Ariane 5 launch as Europe's latest Automated Transfer Vehicle (ATV) was integrated atop the heavy-lift workhorse at the Spaceport.

This latest ATV - named after German-born physicist Albert Einstein - was lowered by an overhead crane onto its Ariane 5 inside the 90-meter-tall Final Assembly Building in French Guiana.

The payload fairing - which will complete the launcher build up - will be mounted closer to the launch date, allowing for loading of late cargo for the ATV's International Space Station servicing mission. This second Ariane 5 flight of 2013 is scheduled for a June 5 liftoff.

Integration of the ATV Albert Einstein for Ariane Flight VA213 is part of this month's activities on four parallel missions involving Arianespace's complete launcher family at the Spaceport - including the successful orbiting of three passengers by the lightweight Vega vehicle on May 7.

Rounding out this month's action in French Guiana are ongoing preparations for the medium-lift Soyuz Flight VS05, scheduled for June to loft four O3b Networks satellites; and Flight VA214, set in the second half of July with an Ariane 5 to carry the Alphasat and Insat-3D satellites.

Flight VA213's ATV Albert Einstein will have a liftoff mass of 20,235 kg. - the heaviest payload ever lofted by any Ariane vehicle. In addition to resupply, the ATV will be used for maneuvering the International Space Station.

Built by an Astrium-led industry team, ATV Albert Einstein will be the fourth such servicing vehicle launched by Arianespace for the European Space Agency.

]]> Sat, 18 MAY 2013 00:31:26 AEST Reston, VA (SPX) May 15, 2013 - International Launch Services (ILS) of Reston, VA and EchoStar Satellite Services of Englewood, Colorado, have announced a new launch service award for the ILS Proton launch of a future heavy-lift mission.

A satellite, weighing more than 6900 kg, is planned to be launched into geostationary transfer orbit on an ILS Proton Breeze M in the late 2015 or early 2016 timeframe from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan.

The Proton vehicle is Russia's premier heavy lift launcher and is built by Khrunichev Research and Space Production Center of Moscow. Khrunichev is the majority shareholder of ILS and one of the pillars of the Russian space industry.

Proton has a long heritage with 385 launches performed since the inaugural flight in 1965. To date, there have been five EchoStar satellites launched on an ILS Proton rocket.

ILS President Phil Slack said, "Less than six months ago, we launched the EchoStar XVI satellite, EchoStar's 5th launch on an ILS Proton; in fact, it was fifteen years ago this month when we launched EchoStar IV, ILS' first launch for EchoStar. We are honored to be selected for this upcoming Proton launch and look forward to collaborating with EchoStar on this important mission."

"We are pleased to continue our longstanding successful collaboration with the ILS and Khrunichev team and are confident in their commitment to mission success. This agreement provides the necessary flexibility and schedule assurance we require for the execution of our fleet expansion programs," said President of EchoStar Satellite Services, Anders Johnson.

]]> Sat, 18 MAY 2013 00:31:26 AEST Washington DC (SPX) May 10, 2013 - NASA has awarded a contract to J.P. Donovan Construction Inc. of Rockledge, Fla., to modify the mobile launcher that will enable the agency's Space Launch System (SLS) heavy-lift rocket to send humans to an asteroid, Mars and other new destinations in the solar system.

The work under this firm fixed-price $20.7 million contract will begin in June and be completed in 18 months.

The mobile launcher is located at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Kennedy is expanding its capabilities to support the SLS rocket and ground support infrastructure. The modifications will enable the mobile launcher to meet vehicle processing deadlines and the launch manifest for SLS.

SLS' first launch is scheduled for 2017. It will be a flight test to send an uncrewed Orion spacecraft into lunar orbit. NASA's asteroid initiative, proposed in the agency's budget request for fiscal year 2014, would use SLS and Orion to send astronauts to study a small asteroid that will have been redirected robotically to a stable orbit near the moon.

Midwest Steel Inc. of Detroit will be a major subcontractor to J.P. Donovan Construction.

]]> Sat, 18 MAY 2013 00:31:26 AEST Moscow (RIA Novosti) May 08, 2013 - The launch of Russia's new Angara carrier rocket has been delayed by at least a year, Defense Ministry officials said on Monday.

The light-class Angara is to be launched in mid-2014 and its heavy-class version toward the end of the same year, Deputy Defense Minister Yury Borisov said.

The light-class Angara was previously due to be launched in 2013.

Deputy Defense Minister Col. Gen. Oleg Ostapenko said in late April that the new rocket would only be launched after the construction of a new facility at the Plesetsk space center is completed.

Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu on Monday showed concern over the delays, saying the ministry would closely watch the development of the new rocket as a high priority project.

The development of the Angara is "very important," he said. "I will be regularly reviewing its progress in the course of weekly conference calls with the chief of the General Staff."

Angara rockets, designed to provide lifting capabilities of between 2,000 and 40,500 kilograms into low earth orbit, have been in development since 1995.

The rockets have a modular design similar to the Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicle (EELV), based on a common Universal Rocket Module (URM).

The main purpose of the Angara rocket family is to give Russia independent access to space. The rockets will reduce Russia's dependence on the Baikonur space center it leases from Kazakhstan by allowing the launch of heavy payloads from the Plesetsk space center in northern Russia and from the new Vostochny space center in Russia's Far East.

Source: RIA Novosti

]]> Sat, 18 MAY 2013 00:31:26 AEST Kourou, French Guiana (ESA) May 07, 2013 - The second flight of ESA's newest launch vehicle has been completed from Europe's Spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana. Two Earth observation satellites, ESA's Proba-V and Vietnam's VNREDSat 1A, were released into different orbits, demonstrating the rocket's versatility. Estonia's first satellite, the ESTCube 1 technology demonstrator, was also released into orbit.

Vega lifted off at 02:06 GMT on 7 May (23:06 local time 6 May; 04:06 CEST 7 May) on a complex mission requiring five upper-stage boosts and lasting about twice as long as its first launch, in February 2012.

The three solid-propellant stages performed flawlessly and, after two burns of the liquid-propellant upper stage, Proba V was released into a circular orbit at an altitude of 820 km, over the western coast of Australia, some 55 minutes into flight.

The satellite is now being controlled by ESA's centre in Redu, Belgium, where it is undergoing a health check and testing before the operational phase starts to monitor the vegetation coverage on Planet Earth.

After releasing Proba-V, the upper stage performed a third burn and the top half of the egg-shaped Vega Secondary Payload Adapter was ejected. After a fourth burn to circularise the orbit at an altitude of 704 km, VNREDSat-1A was released 1 hour 57 minutes into flight. ESTCube 1 was ejected from its dispenser three minutes later.

A fifth and last burn will now place the spent upper stage on a trajectory that ensures a safe reentry that complies with new debris mitigation regulations.

"It is another great day for ESA, for its Member States and for Europe. Thanks to decisions taken by Member States, ESA and European industry are demonstrating once again their capabilities of innovation.

"Among the Member States, special mention goes to Italy which has led the Vega Programme, Belgium which has led the Proba projects at ESA, and France which has led the development and maintenance of the European spaceport here in Kourou. We are also proud to have made possible the launch of the first satellite from Estonia," said Jean-Jacques Dordain, Director General of ESA.

The flight was conducted under the Vega Research and Technology Accompaniment programme (VERTA) that aims at demonstrating the versatility of the launch system. It also marked the start of the transition from ESA to Arianespace as launch operator. Arianespace provided flight analysis, preparation and operations, and the marketing that secured VNREDSat 1A as Vega's first commercial payload.

This second mission demonstrated Vega's capability to launch multiple satellite stacks with the new VESPA multiple launch adapter, as well as its overall flexibility.

It also introduced new flight software developed by contractor ELV and a new tracking station in the northwest of French Guiana that ensures telemetry links during some phases of the flight when they could be affected by the plume from the solid propellants.

"Vega has confirmed that it is ready to deliver a high-quality service for small payloads to low Earth orbit," said Antonio Fabrizi, ESA's Director of Launchers. "Europe now has the capability to serve both the government and commercial market in this growing market segment.

"Since the qualification flight one year ago, the marketplace has warmly embraced the arrival of Vega, and today we launched the first commercial satellite."

The Proba V primary payload is a 138,2 kg satellite built by Qinetiq Space Belgium..

"With the launch of this third Proba satellite, ESA's small satellite series has come of age," notes Franco Ongaro, ESA Director of Technical and Quality Management.

"This flight affirms ESA's capacity to provide concepts and flexible mission designs that address specific needs in a short time. Proba V will be an operational satellite as soon as it is commissioned, supplying data to an eagerly waiting community.

"In addition, it continues the tradition of being a technology demonstrator for innovative technology that will benefit the wider European space community for years to come."

Proba V is based on the platform flown on two previous ESA missions and carries the Vegetation imager to map global vegetation cover every two days, as a follow-on to the first generation of Vegetation imagers on France's Spot-4 and -5 satellites.

Proba-V is flying in the same orbit as Spot-5 in order to take over from the ageing satellite on its retirement next year. Vegetation is a high-technology optical imager designed to provide 350 m-resolution imagery in four visible and infrared bands with an impressive 2250 km swath width that will allow daily coverage of all areas within 35-75N and 35-56S. These data will be processed and provided to a wide community of international users, including the European Commission.

In addition to this primary payload, Proba also hosts a series of technology payloads such as a receiver to detect aircraft in flight around the globe, a communications amplifier based on the latest gallium nitride technology, a novel pair of radiation monitors and a photonics experiment testing fibre optics for space.

More information on Proba can be found at: http://www.esa.int/Our_Activities/Technology/Proba_Missions

VNREDSat-1A (Vietnam Natural Resources, Environment, Disaster Satellite) is a 115,3 kg commercial remote sensing satellite built by Astrium for Vietnam's Academy of Sciences and Technologies. Its launch was contracted through Arianespace in January.

ESTCube-1 is Estonia's first satellite. This 1.3 kg CubeSat was designed and built by students from the University of Tartu with a contribution from the Finnish Meteorological Institute. It will deploy a 10 m-long tether to demonstrate electrostatic manoeuvring through the plasma flow, which could lead to electrostatic solar sails for propellantless interplanetary travel.

Vega
As technology advances allow satellites to shrink, demand is increasing for smaller satellites, in particular for scientific and Earth observation missions. As an affordable response to European institutional needs and to maintain its competitiveness in the world's launch services market, Europe has developed the Vega launch system.

Vega is able to inject payloads of up to 1.5 tonne into low polar orbits at altitudes of 300-1500 km. With a length of 30 m and a diameter of 3 m, it has three solid-propellant stages (P80, Zefiro-23 and Zefiro-9) and a liquid-propellant stage (AVUM: Attitude and Vernier Upper Module). Unlike most small launchers, it is able to place multiple payloads in orbit.

The VERTA programme covers a batch of five missions to demonstrate the flexibility of the system, promoting the smooth introduction of the vehicle for commercial exploitation. Seven ESA Member States (Italy, France, Spain, Belgium, the Netherlands, Switzerland and Sweden) are contributing to the Vega programme. The industrial prime contractor is ELV SpA, 70% of which is owned by Avio SpA and 30% by Italy's ASI space agency.

The flight manifest for Vega is currently: Kazakhstan's DZZ-HR high-resolution remote sensing satellite (2014), the Intermediate eXperimental Vehicle reentry demonstrator (2014), the LISA Pathfinder mission to demonstrate the technologies for the future Laser Interferometer Space Antenna gravity-wave detection mission (2015), and the Aeolus satellite to map Earth's wind profiles (2015).

]]> Sat, 18 MAY 2013 00:31:26 AEST Greenbelt MD (SPX) May 06, 2013 - A NASA sounding rocket supporting a study of ionosphere and its impact on radio transmissions was launched at 3:38 a.m. EDT, May 1 from Roi-Namur, Republic of the Marshall Islands. The Terrier-Orion rocket was the first of two to be launched as part of the Metal Oxide Space Cloud experiment (MOSC).

The rocket flew to approximately 115 miles altitude and the payload impacted safely in the Pacific Ocean about 20 minutes after launch. MOSC released a Samarium vapor creating a red cloud of charged particles in the ionosphere.

Researchers from the Air Force Research Laboratory studied the cloud as it dispersed and its impact on radio transmissions sent from multiple locations. MOSC is being launched with the assistance of the Department of Defense Space Test Program.

In addition to the two rockets for MOSC, NASA is launching two sounding rockets for the Equatorial Vortex Experiment (EVEX). EVEX will study space weather in the ionosphere, specifically the circulation of ionized gas, the intensity of which is believed related to post-sunset ionospheric storms that can impact satellite communication and navigation systems and signals.

As part of the mission, during the rocket flights red and white vapor clouds will form to allow the scientists to observe the winds in the upper atmosphere.

The launch window for both projects runs through May 12.

]]> Sat, 18 MAY 2013 00:31:26 AEST Subscribe to our daily selection of space, military, environment and energy newsletters responseText http://visitor.constantcontact.com/manage/optin/ea?v=0016gbbKsaiGSpQFojVO8ZoHw%3D%3D