spacetoday.net: Delta launches Italian satellite

Posted: Sun, Dec 9, 2007, 10:47 AM ET (1547 GMT)
Delta 2 launch of COSMO-SkyMed 2 (ULA)

A Delta 2 successfully launched an Italian remote sensing satellite on Saturday evening after several days of delays. The Delta 2 7420-10 lifted off during its one-second launch window at 9:31 pm EST Saturday (0231 GMT Sunday) and placed the COSMO-SkyMed 2 satellite into Sun-synchronous orbit. The launch had originally been scheduled for Wednesday but was delayed by poor weather, which also postponed a Friday launch; Thursday's launch was scrubbed to repair insulation on the launch vehicle. COSMO-SkyMed 2 is the second in a series of four radar imagery satellites built by Thales Alenia Space for the Italian space agency ASI and the Italian Ministry of Defense. The first satellite was launched in June, also on a Delta 2 from Vandenberg. The third COSMO-SkyMed satellite will also be launched on a Delta 2, in the second half of 2008. The fourth COSMO-SkyMed satellite will be launched in 2009; no launch contract for that mission has been announced.