Posted: Wed, May 9, 2001, 11:15 AM ET (1515 GMT)
A Zenit-3SL launcher successfully delivered the second of two XM Radio broadcasting satellites Tuesday evening. The booster lifted off at 6:10 pm EDT (2210 GMT) from the Sea Launch floating launch platform on the Equator in the Pacific Ocean southeast of Hawaii. It successfully placed in geosynchronous transfer orbit the XM-1 "Roll" spacecraft a little over an hour after launch. XM-1 joins its twin, XM-2, or "Rock", which was put in orbit by Sea Launch in March. The two spacecraft, both Boeing 702 models, will be used by XM Satellite Radio to provide digital radio broadcasts to subscribers across the continental United States; the company anticipates beginning commercial service later this year. XM-1 was to be launched in January but was delayed when a false alarm on the satellite triggered a last-second abort that required bring the rocket back to the Sea Launch home port of Long Beach, California for refurbishment.

Related Links:

•  Sea Launch press release
•  Sea Launch
•  XM Satellite Radio