spacetoday.net: Japan launches experimental communications satellite

Posted: Mon, Dec 18, 2006, 7:50 AM ET (1250 GMT)
H-2A launch of ALOS (JAXA)

An H-2A rocket launched a large Japanese experimental communications satellite on Monday. The H-2A lifted off from the Tanegashima Space Center at 1:32 am EST Monday (0632 GMT, 3:32 pm JST) and released the Experimental Test Satellite (ETS) 8 spacecraft into a geosynchronous transfer orbit 27 minutes later. The first signals from the spacecraft were received by a ground station in Chile about one hour after launch. The spacecraft, also known as Kiku 8, will test a pair of large deployable reflectors that will provide high-powered communications services, including directly to handsets and other mobile devices. The launch had been planned for Saturday but was postponed two days by poor weather.