The Russia carrier rocket has successfully launched the Express-AM33 telecommunication satellite. The rocket blasted off from the Baikonur space centre in central Asia at 23:18 GMT, Sunday. The satellite will replace the Express-AM11 that was shutdown in 2006, following what its builder said was a sudden external impact of undetermined origin.
A Russian government Proton rocket with a Briz-M upper stage will launch the Express AM33 communications satellite at 00:17 GMT on 28th January 2008 from the Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan.
A Proton-M rocket with a Briz-M upper stage and the Russian telecommunications satellite Express-AM33, is to be launched from Baikonur, Kazakhstan, early on Monday.
"The launch is set for 3:17 a.m. Moscow time, on January 28" - spokesperson with the Khrunichev state space research and production centre, the manufacturer of the Proton-M launch vehicle and Briz-M upper stage.
Satellites of the Express series are made by the Reshetnev research and production corporation in cooperation with Thales Alenia Space, with Reshetnev in charge of the satellite platform and Thales Alenia Space's French division - the payload module. The new satellite differs from the previous satellites of the Express-AM series in that it has a greater output rating and new antennas. The satellite's launch weight is about 2,600 kilograms and its minimal guaranteed service life in orbit is 12 years. The satellite will provide communication, TV broadcast, multimedia, data transmission, and mobile governmental and presidential communication services. The customers are Russian Space Agency (Roscosmos,) the Russian Information and Communications Ministry and the Space Communications wholly-owned state company.
Russia is to launch a Express AM-33 communications satellite aboard a Proton M carrier rocket from the Baikonur cosmodrome, Kazakhstan on January 28th, 2008. The launch of an Express AM-33 communications satellite had been originally scheduled for September, but was delayed after Thales Alenia Space, a French firm, failed to supply the manufacturer, with a payload module for the spacecraft. According to the Federal Space Agency (Roscosmos) the satellite had passed all performance tests and would be transported to the launch site on January 3rd for launch preparations. The new satellite is equipped with C band, Ku band and L band transponders and will have a service life of 12 years.
