Communications Satellites To Be Delivered In Third Arianespace
Launch Of 2011
Ariane Flight VA202 - The launcher components for Arianespace's
third Ariane 5 mission of 2011 arrived this week in French Guiana,
marking the first step in preparations for a heavy-lift flight with
the ST-2 and GSAT-8 telecommunications satellites.
Ship Delivering Launcher Components
Elements for the Ariane 5 were delivered to Pariacabo Port by
the MN Colibri, which is one of two sea-going roll-on/roll-off
ships utilized by Arianespace to transport launch vehicle stages
from Europe - where they are produced - to South America. The ST-2
satellite passenger on this Ariane 5 mission will be orbited for
ST-2 Satellite Ventures Pte Ltd., a joint venture formed by
Singapore Telecommunications Ltd (SingTel) and Chunghwa Telecom
Company Ltd.
ST-2 was built by Mitsubishi Electric Corporation of Japan using
a DS2000 spacecraft bus, and will have a liftoff mass of
approximately 5,100 kg. It is fitted with C- and Ku-band
transponders for fixed and mobile satellite services, along with
voice and data IP-based services for businesses - particularly
direct-to-home operators and shipping companies in Asia and the
Middle East.
To be orbited along with ST-2 is the GSAT-8 spacecraft for the
Indian Space Research Organisation. Weighing in at 3,150 kg. for
liftoff, GSAT-8 is equipped with 18 Ku-band transponders, along
with a satellite-based global positioning system called GAGAN (GPS
Aided Geo Augmented Navigation).
The Ariane 5 flight with GSAT-8 and ST-2 is scheduled for a
mid-May liftoff, continuing a busy year of Arianespace launch
activity. The company is targeting six Ariane 5 missions in 2011,
along with the first two launches of the medium-lift Soyuz and the
lightweight Vega's maiden flight - all from the Spaceport in French
Guiana; as well as three Soyuz missions from Baikonur Cosmodrome in
Kazakhstan.
As Arianespace prepares for the expansion of its launcher family
with the introduction of Soyuz and Vega at the Spaceport, the
company has adopted a new numbering system to identify its missions
with these three vehicles.
Ariane 5 flights will carry the "VA" designation, followed by
the flight number. The "V" is for "vol," the French word for
"flight," while the "A" represents the use of an Ariane launch
vehicle. As a result, the mid-May mission with ST-2 and GSAT-8 will
carry the "VA202" reference, for the 202nd launch of an Ariane
since this family of vehicles began operations in 1979.
With the introduction of Soyuz at the Spaceport in 2011,
Arianespace missions from South America with the medium-lift
workhorse launcher will be designated "VS," while flights with the
lightweight Vega vehicle are to be referenced as "VV."
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