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2.11.2014
Protected by their shipping container, the O3b Networks satellites are unloaded from the cargo jetliner after their delivery to French Guiana.
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Satellites are delivered for Arianespace’s next Soyuz mission at the service of O3b Networks
Soyuz Flight VS10
Three of the four satellites for O3b Networks’ next flight to “bridge the digital divide” have been delivered to French Guiana, where they will be readied for an Arianespace Soyuz launch planned for December 18.
The spacecraft trio – built by Thales Alenia Space – arrived this morning aboard a chartered cargo jetliner that landed at Félix Eboué Airport near the capital city of Cayenne, enabling them to be transferred by road to the Spaceport’s preparation facilities. The fourth O3b Networks satellite in the batch is to be delivered separately.
This upcoming Soyuz mission is designated Flight VS10 in Arianespace’s launcher family numbering system, signifying the medium-lift workhorse’s 10th liftoff from the Spaceport since its 2011 introduction at French Guiana.
It follows Arianespace’s two previous Soyuz launches that successfully orbited four satellites apiece to create the basic constellation for O3b Networks’ pioneering connectivity service: Flight VS05 performed in June 2013; and this past July’s Flight VS08.
The latest O3b Networks spacecraft will be deployed by Soyuz into a circular orbit at an altitude of 8,062 km. – which is four-times closer to Earth than traditional geostationary satellites, providing substantial performance benefits due to lower latency or delay.
O3b Networks initiated commercial service on its state-of-the-art constellation across the Pacific, Africa, the Middle East and Asia in September of this year, and it already is delivering more than 4 Gbps of high quality connectivity to customers across the globe.
Quelle: arianespace
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Update: 6.11.2014
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Payload processing begins for the December 18 Soyuz launch with O3b Networks satellites
One of the three O3b Networks connectivity satellites is removed from its shipping container inside the Spaceport’s S5C clean room facility.
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Soyuz Flight VS10
Three of the next four spacecraft to serve O3b Networks in providing emerging market connectivity worldwide have entered their checkout phase at the Spaceport in French Guiana, preparing them for liftoff on Arianespace’s next Soyuz flight.
Following their arrival in French Guiana last week, these Thales Alenia Space-built satellites were transferred by road to the Spaceport’s S5 payload preparation facility – where they were removed from individual shipping containers that protected them during the trans-Atlantic cargo flight from Europe.
The trio will be joined in their Soyuz launcher’s payload arrangement by a fourth spacecraft, which is to be delivered separately to French Guiana ahead of the December 18 liftoff. Set to operate from a circular orbit at an altitude of 8,062 km., the four satellites will provide more capacity and drive even higher performance for O3b Networks’ low-latency network.
This upcoming Soyuz mission is designated Flight VS10 in Arianespace’s launcher family numbering system, signifying the 10th liftoff of this medium-lift workhorse from the Spaceport since its 2011 introduction at French Guiana.
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The individual shipping containers from which the three O3b Networks spacecraft were removed in clean room conditions provided protection during last week’s cargo flight to French Guiana.
Quelle: arianespace
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Update: 26.11.2014
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The next four O3b Networks satellites are readied for Arianespace’s December Soyuz launch
Soyuz Flight VS10
Payload processing for Arianespace’s third Soyuz mission at the service of O3b Networks has reached full speed, with all four connectivity satellites now at the Spaceport – where fueling and integration operations are underway.
Preparations for the launch have included delivery of the final member in the four-spacecraft cluster to French Guiana, the start-up of fueling for the satellites, and integration of the first passenger on the dispenser system that will deploy the payloads in orbit.
Liftoff of Arianespace’s Soyuz with these satellites is set for December 18, following the medium-lift workhorse’s previous missions that lofted four O3b Networks spacecraft each in July 2014 and June 2013.
The initial eight satellites orbited by Arianespace enabled O3b Networks to become fully operational. With its roll-out of services on a global basis, the company offers a system that combines the reach of satellite with the speed of fiber – providing customers with affordable, low latency, high bandwidth connectivity.
Thales Alenia Space builds the O3b Networks Ka-band relay platforms, which have a liftoff mass of approximately 700 kg. each. Their trapezoidal form enables four satellites to be installed on a tube-shaped dispenser system used on each launch.
The upcoming mission for O3b Networks is designated Flight VS10 in Arianespace’s launcher family numbering system, denoting the 10th mission of Soyuz performed from the Spaceport.
Quelle: arianespace
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Update: 11.12.2014
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Final payload integration begins for O3b Networks’ four satellites to be orbited on the next Arianespace Soyuz mission
Soyuz Flight VS10
O3b Networks’ four-satellite payload for Arianespace’s next Soyuz flight has been integrated on the launcher’s Fregat upper stage, marking another milestone at the Spaceport in preparations for the December 18 afternoon mission from French Guiana.
The cluster of spacecraft – previously installed on a tube-shaped dispenser system – was mated atop the Fregat upper stage during activity in the Spaceport’s S3B payload preparation facility.
This step will be followed by encapsulation of the Fregat stage and its satellites in a protective payload fairing, creating an “upper composite” unit to be placed atop Soyuz once the medium-lift vehicle has been rolled out to the launch zone.
Arianespace’s upcoming Soyuz flight is the 10th from French Guiana since this launcher’s introduction at the Spaceport in October 2011, as well as its third at the service of O3b Networks.
The previous two missions for O3b Networks also lofted four spacecraft each on launches performed in July 2014 and June 2013 – enabling the company to deliver connectivity that combines the reach of satellite with the speed of fiber, providing customers with affordable, low latency, high bandwidth connectivity.
Thales Alenia Space built the satellites as prime contractor, with the spacecraft having individual liftoff masses of 700 kg. They are designed to operate in circular orbit, giving the O3b Networks’ satellite constellation a vast coverage area across emerging and insufficiently connected markets in Latin America, Africa, the Middle East, Asia and Australia – with a collective population of over 3 billion people.
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Quelle: arianespace
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Update: 13.12.2014
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Arianespace’s upcoming Soyuz mission receives its “identity” at the Spaceport
Soyuz Flight VS10
The payload unit for Arianespace’s next Soyuz launch has now been decorated with logos of the company and this flight’s customer – connectivity provider O3b Networks – as preparations continue for a liftoff from the Spaceport in French Guiana on December 18.
This “upper composite” consists of the mission’s four O3b Networks satellites and their dispenser system, which have been installed atop the Soyuz launcher’s Fregat upper stage and encapsulated in a protective fairing.
The fairing’s decals were added during activity in the Spaceport’s S3 clean room facility, readying the upper composite for transfer to the ELS launch pad and its hoisting atop the assembled Soyuz inside a 53-meter tall mobile launch service tower.
Designated Flight VS10 in Arianespace’s mission numbering system, next week’s launch will be the third with Soyuz at the service of O3b Networks, and the 10th for this medium-lift vehicle since its October 2011 introduction at the Spaceport.
The four 700-kg. spacecraft lofted by Flight VS10 will join eight O3b Networks satellites already in orbit, which were launched in clusters of four on Arianespace missions in July 2014 and June 2013. These relay platforms operate at a medium Earth orbit (MEO) orbital altitude of 8,062 km., significantly reducing round-trip data transmission times when compared to telecommunications satellites in geosynchronous Earth orbit (GEO) satellites at 36,000 km.
Thales Alenia Space produced the Ku-band satellites as prime contractor. Benefits of the Ku-band frequency include very large bandwidth availability, a low utilization by existing satellite systems, and the ability to use smaller antennas.
Flight VS10 will be Arianespace’s 11th mission of 2014.
Quelle: arianespace
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Update: 16.12.2014
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Soyuz is ready to receive its O3b Networks satellite payload for Arianespace’s next medium-lift mission
Soyuz Flight VS10
The 10th Soyuz to be operated from the Spaceport in French Guiana is now on the launch pad, ready to receive its four-satellite O3b Networks payload for Arianespace’s afternoon mission this Thursday.
Using the rollout process that has been followed since the medium-lift Soyuz inaugurated the Space Age, the basic three-stage vehicle emerged from its integration building in the Spaceport’s northwestern sector, and was transferred horizontally to the ELS launch zone.
Riding on a transporter/erector rail car, Soyuz was raised to the vertical orientation and positioned over the launch pad, suspended in place by four large support arms.
In a process unique to Arianespace’s operations at the Spaceport, a purpose-built 53-meter-tall mobile gantry was then moved into position around the launcher, providing a protected environment for installation of the “upper composite” – which consists of the four O3b Networks connectivity spacecraft, the Fregat upper stage and an ST-type payload fairing.
Arianespace’s December 18 flight will be its third at the service of O3b Networks, following Soyuz missions performed in July 2014 and June 2013 that launched similar clusters of four satellites each.
The O3b Networks Ka-band relay platforms are produced by Thales Alenia Space, creating a constellation for telecommunications and Internet services that combine high speed and affordable costs for billions of people across the world who do not yet have adequate internet access.
O3b Networks’ satellites operate at a medium Earth orbit (MEO) of 8,062 km., significantly reducing the round-trip data transmission times when compared to telecommunications satellites in geosynchronous Earth orbit (GEO) at 36,000 km.
Each of the trapezoidal-shaped spacecraft have a liftoff mass of 700 kg., with the upcoming Arianespace mission – designated Flight VS10 in the company’s launcher family numbering system – providing a total payload lift performance of approximately 3,180 kg.
Quelle: arianespace
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Update: 17.12.2014
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O3b Networks’ four satellites are integrated on Soyuz for Arianespace’s December 18 flight
Soyuz Flight VS10
Arianespace’s next medium-lift Soyuz to be launched from French Guiana is now complete following the integration of its “upper composite,” which consists of four O3b Networks connectivity satellites, their protective payload fairing and the Fregat upper stage.
This activity was performed at the Spaceport’s ELS launch complex. It began with the upper composite’s transfer from the S3B payload preparation facility to the launch pad on a special transporter, and was followed by its hoisting to the upper level of a purpose-built mobile gantry – which provides a protected environment for the vertical installation atop Soyuz.
Final checkout of the completed medium-lift launch vehicle is now underway, leading to the Arianespace liftoff that is planned on Thursday, December 18 at 3:37 p.m. local time in French Guiana.
The upcoming mission’s payload – four Thales Alenia Space-produced satellites that will expand O3b Networks’ pioneering high-speed connectivity system – are to be deployed during a flight lasting 2 hrs., 22 min.
These 700-kg., Ka-band relay platforms will join eight O3b Networks spacecraft already in orbit, which were launched in clusters of four each on Arianespace Soyuz missions in July 2014 and June 2013.
Thursday’s mission is designated Flight VS10 in Arianespace’s launch vehicle numbering system, signifying the 10th liftoff of this medium-lift workhorse from the Spaceport in French Guiana.
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Quelle: ESA
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Update: 22.00 MEZ
Quelle: arianespace
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Update: 18.12.2014
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Update: 22.00 MEZ
Quelle: arianespace
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