AMC-21 Is Delivered
To The Spaceport For Ariane 5's Upcoming Heavy-Lift Mission
(17 July 2008) The second of two satellites for Ariane 5's next flight has arrived at Europe's Spaceport as Arianespace continues its sustained mission pace in 2008.
The AMC-21 spacecraft is removed from its protective shipping container inside the S5 satellite preparation facility at Europe's Spaceport. (courtesy: ESA, CNES, Arianespace, Photo Optique Video du CSG)
After touching down in French Guiana earlier
this week aboard a cargo jetliner, the AMC-21 satellite was moved to the
Spaceport's S5 spacecraft preparation facility. It joins Superbird 7, which
also is undergoing final checkout for a planned Ariane 5 ECA lift-off during
the first half of August.
This will be the fifth Ariane 5 mission of
2008, and it follows the previous launches in March, April, June and July -
which orbited a total of six telecommunications satellites, along with the
Automated Transfer Vehicle for servicing of the International
Space
Station.
AMC-21 will be operated by U.S.-based satellite
services provider SES Americom, and is to handle television and enterprise
distribution services. The spacecraft was supplied by prime contractor Thales
Alenia Space, and utilises a STAR-2 spacecraft manufactured by Orbital Sciences
Corporation.
Arianespace is targeting a total of seven Ariane 5 missions
in 2008 - making it the busiest year for this workhorse launcher since its
commercial introduction in 1999.
(source: Arianespace)
