Communications Satellite Launched
LONG BEACH, Calif. (AP) — A rocket carrying one of the heaviest commercial communications satellites ever launched roared into space Tuesday from a floating launch pad in the middle of the Pacific Ocean.
The rocket carrying the 11,413-pound satellite lifted off shortly before 7 a.m. from the Sea Launch Co. platform near the equator, about 3,000 miles off the coast.
The satellite is intended to expand capacity for Abu Dhabi-based Thuraya Satellite Telecommunications Co., which provides mobile telephone services to more than 100 countries around the world.
It was built by Boeing Satellite Systems and designed to last up to 15 years.
Sea Launch’s floating platform allows rockets to use the Earth’s rotation at the equator for greater carrying capacity than they would have at other locations. And because the platform is surrounded by the ocean, there is little chance of anything falling on populated areas.
—–
On the Net:
More science, space, and technology from RedNova
Copyright © 2003 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. The information contained in the AP News report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press.