spacetoday.net: Proton launches European satellite

Posted: Wed, Nov 25, 2009, 11:02 AM ET (1602 GMT)
Proton launch of Eutelsat W7 (ILS)

After a one-day delay caused by a dispute between Russian and Kazakh officials, a Proton rocket successfully launched a European communications satellite Tuesday. The Proton M lifted off from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan at 9:19 am EST (1419 GMT, 8:19 pm local time) Tuesday and placed the Eutelsat W7 satellite into geosynchronous transfer orbit a little over nine hours later. The satellite, a Spacebus 4000 C4 built by Thales Alenia Space, weighed 5,627 kilograms at launch and will operate up to 70 Ku-band transponders. The spacecraft will be co-located with the Eutelsat W4 satellite at 36 degrees east in GEO to provide video services for Russia and sub-Saharan Africa. The launch had been scheduled for Monday but was postponed because Kazakh officials withheld approval for the launch because of a dispute over paperwork with Russian space agency officials.