Arianespace Flight VA 204 - Ariane 5 ECA – Arabsat 5C – SES-2 poster.
September 21, 2011
Ariane Flight VA204
Arianespace’s mission with a dual-satellite payload of Arabsat-5C and SES-2 is now underway following the fifth liftoff of an Ariane 5 from Europe’s Spaceport in 2011.
Liftoff of Ariane 5 with Arabsat-5C & SES-2
Total lift performance for today’s launch is approximately 8,975 kg., with the spacecraft to be deployed during a flight lasting 35 minutes.
SES-2 will be utilized by European satellite telecommunications operator SES, and was manufactured by Orbital Sciences Corporation of the U.S. Carrying 24 C-band and 24 Ku-band transponders, the satellite is to generate approximately five kilowatts of payload power, and will replace SES’ AMC-3 spacecraft at 87 deg. West for coverage over North America and the Caribbean.
SES-2 satellite
The SES-2 platform also is equipped with the Commercially Hosted Infrared Payload (CHIRP) sensor for the U.S. Air Force – which integrates a wide-field of view sensor.
Arabsat-5C satellite
Arabsat-5C is a multi-mission spacecraft for the Arab Satellite Communications Organization (Arabsat), designed to deliver capacity in both the C- and Ka-bands for a range of communications services. It was manufactured in a joint effort by Europe’s EADS Astrium and Thales Alenia Space, and will be located at Arabsat’s 20 deg. East orbital position.
Related links:
EADS Astrium: http://www.astrium.eads.net/
Arabsat: http://www.arabsat.com/
SES: http://www.ses.com/
Thales Alenia Space: http://www.thalesgroup.com/Markets/Space/Home
Orbital Sciences Corporation: http://www.orbital.com/
Images, Video, Text, Credits: ARIANESPACE / Thales Alenia Space / EADS Astrium.
Greetings, Orbiter.ch
