First Ariane 5 mission to loft Galileo navigation satellites

The first Ariane 5 mission to loft four global positioning satellites for Europe's Galileo navigation system has begun its build-up at a spaceport in French Guiana with a planned launch in November.

The mission will use an Arianespace Ariane 5 ES launcher designated as Flight VA233.

Arianespace has orbited 14 Galileo spacecraft, all lofted in pairs on seven previous missions utilizing the company's medium-lift Soyuz launcher - with the most recent conducted last May.

Europe's Galileo navigation system provides highly accurate global positioning services under civilian control. The European Commission funds and manages its Full Operational Capability phase, during which the network's complete operational and ground infrastructure will be deployed; with the European Space Agency designated as the system's design and procurement agent.

The Ariane 5 launcher will deploy the four Galileo satellites at a targeted release altitude of 23,222 kilometers.

The four spacecraft were built by OHB System in Bremen, Germany, with their navigation payloads provided by Surrey Satellite Technology in the United Kingdom.

Joint Europe/Qatar communications satellite arrives at launch site

The Eutelsat 25B satellite of Eutelsat Communications has arrived at the European spaceport in French Guiana and is now in final stages of preparation for launch by an Ariane 5 vehicle on Aug. 29.

Built by U.S.-based Space Systems/Loral, this high-power, multi-mission satellite is jointly owned by Eutelsat and Es'hailSat from Qatar. It will be operated at 25.5 degrees east on Earth's equator, currently occupied by the Eutelsat 25C satellite, in order to provide communications coverage over the Middle East, North Africa and Central Asia for broadcasting, telecommunications and government services in Ku and Ka-bands.

The satellite is designed to provide service for 15 years or more.

Receive DCNewsroom email alerts, subscribe here.

Video: Ariane 5 rocket launches Alphasat and INSAT-3D satellites

An Arianespace heavy-lift launcher orbited Europe’s largest ever telecommunications satellite, Alphasat, and India’s latest meteorological spacecraft, INSAT-3D, Thursday on the third Ariane 5 mission of 2013.

The Ariane 5 rocket lifted off at 3:54 p.m. EDT from French Guiana, South America, for a nearly 33-minute flight into Earth orbit, which marked the launcher’s 56th consecutive successful mission. The two solid propellant boosters on the Ariane 5 separated from the vehicle at an altitude of 67 kilometers.

Alphasat

Deployed first in the flight sequence nearly 28 minutes after liftoff, Alphasat is configured with a new-generation L-band geo-mobile communications relay system that will provide voice and data transmission services across Europe, Africa and the Middle East.

Alphasat is a partnership between the European Space Agency and operator Inmarsat, with support from the CNES French space agency.

With a liftoff mass of 6,650 kilograms, Alphasat was one of the heaviest passengers carried in the upper position of Ariane 5.

INSAT-3D

Some five minutes after Alphasat’s deployment, Ariane 5 completed its mission with the successful separation of INSAT-3D, which will provide enhanced meteorological observation and monitoring of land/ocean surfaces. The satellite carries a six-channel imager and 19-channel sounder, as well as a data relay transponder for satellite-aided search and rescue operations.

INSAT-3D was developed by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO).

“We are looking forward to the excellent operational performance of INSAT-3D for the next seven years, making a difference for the weather forecasting and disaster warning systems for the country,” said K. Radhakrishnan, the chairman of ISRO.

Designated Ariane Flight VA214 – this mission represented the 214th launch since operations began with the Ariane series of vehicles in 1979.

Arianespace’s next launch is targeted for Aug. 29, using an Ariane 5 to orbit the Eutelsat 25B/Es’hail-1 for Es’hailSat and Eutelsat, along with GSAT-7 for the ISRO.

Follow DCNewsroom on Twitter and Facebook.