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Tag: Cape Canaveral

  • 5G will blast into orbit as Europe’s CTO readies game-changing satellite launch

    5G will blast into orbit as Europe’s CTO readies game-changing satellite launch

    PARIS: European satellite player Constellation Technologies & Operations (CTO) is set to fire the starting gun on a bold new telecoms era, with the launch of its first regenerative 5G mmWave payload on 20 June from Cape Canaveral, Florida.

    The payload—hitching a ride aboard D-Orbit’s Ion platform—aims to prove that ultra-fast, low-latency 5G can be beamed directly from space, using mmWave spectrum already owned by telcos. If successful, it could catapult satellite telecoms into the heart of mainstream connectivity—no cables required.

    “This inaugural flight brings our vision to life: a space-based network that’s neutral, carrier-operable, and truly global,” said CTO chief executive Charles Delfieux. “Space is the next frontier for telecom operators.”

    Far from a mere science experiment, CTO’s Vleo (very low Earth orbit) constellation project is designed to extend high-performance internet access to rural backwaters, disaster zones, and connectivity dead spots. Its shared infrastructure model sidesteps the need for heavy telco capex, acting as a cost-effective complement to ground-based fibre and cellular systems.

    CTO’s pitch is as strategic as it is technological: a European-built, sustainable, and operator-neutral framework that could offer the continent telecom sovereignty in an increasingly contested digital domain.

    As launch day approaches, the industry is watching closely. If CTO sticks the landing, it won’t just be a payload going up—it could be terrestrial telcos’ bandwidth ambitions reaching escape velocity.

  • SpaceX successfully launches Thaicom 6 satellite to GTO

    SpaceX successfully launches Thaicom 6 satellite to GTO

    FLORIDA: Today, Space Exploration Technologies (SpaceX) successfully launched the THAICOM 6 satellite for leading Asian satellite operator THAICOM.  Falcon 9 delivered THAICOM 6 to its targeted 295 x 90,000 km geosynchronous transfer orbit at 22.5 degrees inclination.  The Falcon 9 launch vehicle performed as expected, meeting 100% of mission objectives.

     

    Falcon 9 lifted off from Space Launch Complex 40 (SLC-40) at 5:06 PM Eastern Time.  Approximately 184 seconds into flight, Falcon 9’s second stage’s single Merlin vacuum engine ignited to begin a five minute, 35 second burn that delivered the THAICOM 6 satellite into its parking orbit. Eighteen minutes after injection into the parking orbit, the second stage engine relit for just over one minute to carry the THAICOM 6 satellite to its final geostationary transfer orbit.  The restart of the Falcon 9 second stage is a requirement for all geostationary transfer missions.

     

    “Today’s successful launch of the THAICOM 6 satellite marks the eighth successful flight in a row for Falcon 9,” said Gwynne Shotwell, President of SpaceX. “SpaceX greatly appreciates THAICOM’s support throughout this campaign and we look forward to a busy launch schedule in 2014.”   

     

    The THAICOM 6 mission marks Falcon 9’s second flight to a geosynchronous transfer orbit and begins a regular cadence of launches planned for SpaceX in 2014. SpaceX has nearly 50 launches on manifest, of which over 60% are for commercial customers. 

     

    This launch also marks the third of three qualification flights needed to certify the Falcon 9 to fly missions under the Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicle (EELV) program. Once Falcon 9 is certified, SpaceX will be eligible to compete to launch national security satellites for the U.S. Air Force.