KOROLYOV, Moscow Region. June 1 (Interfax-AVN) - Another space launch under the Sea Launch program is slated for June 12, the Mission Control Center says.
The Odyssey platform and the Sea Launch command ship will head toward the traditional launch site in the Pacific, situated on the equator at 154 degrees Western longitude, the center's official website reported on Thursday.
According to Mission Control, the Zenit-3SL launch vehicle is to orbit the Galaxy 16 telecom satellite, belonging to the U.S. PanAmSat Company. The satellite, expected to provide telecommunications services in the U.S., Mexico, and Canada, is to be orbited at 99 degrees western longitude.
It is the fourth PanAmSat satellite, launched by Sea Launch. The launch weight of Galaxy 16 is 4,640 kg. It will replace the old Galaxy 4R satellite in the orbit. Galaxy 16 will have enough fuel to operate for 15 years in the orbit, but Sea Launch management believe that the direct launch of the satellite from the equator to the orbit specified will save fuel for another few years of operation.
It is the third of six sea launches slated for 2006, and the 21st launch under the Sea Launch program since 1999.
Sea Launch, established in 1995, comprises the U.S. Boeing (40% of the authorized capital), the Russian Energia Rocket and Space Corporation (25%), the Ukrainian Yuzhnoe Design Bureau and the Yuzhmash Enterprise (15%), and the British-Norwegian Kvaerner Group (20%). The company's contracts portfolio is estimated at over $2 billion.