Russia’s carrier rocket ready for U.S. telecoms satellite launchMarch 22, 2012 - 22:01 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - A state commission on Thursday, March 22 approved the readiness of a Proton-M carrier rocket for the launch of a U.S. telecoms satellite, Russia’s Federal Space Agency Roscosmos said, according to RIA Novosti. The launch of the Proton-M, which is to carry the Intelsat-22 satellite, has been scheduled for March 25 from the Baikonur space center in Kazakhstan under a contract concluded by International Launch Services Inc. (ILS). “The state commission has decided that the Proton-M launch vehicle, Briz-M booster and Intelsat-22 satellite are ready to be transported to the launch pad,” Roscosmos said in a statement. “The start of the operation has been set for 04.30 a.m. Moscow time [00:30 GMT] on March 23.” Intelsat-22 has been built by Boeing Space and Intelligence Systems for Intelsat Ltd., which operates the world's most extensive satellite network, comprising over 50 satellites. The satellite is equipped with 48 C-band and 24 Ku-band transponders and will provide telecommunications services to customers in Africa, South-East Asia, and the Middle East. Intelsat-22 also carries UHF payload under a $167-mln contract with the Australian Defense Ministry. It will be the 10th Intelsat satellite launched on a ILS Proton carrier rocket. Top stories Authorities said a total of 192 Azerbaijani troops were killed and 511 were wounded during Azerbaijan’s offensive. In 2023, the Azerbaijani government will increase the country’s defense budget by more than 1.1 billion manats ($650 million). The bill, published on Monday, is designed to "eliminate the shortcomings of an unreasonably broad interpretation of the key concept of "compatriot". The earthquake caused a temporary blackout, damaged many buildings and closed a number of rural roads. Partner news | The Power of One Dram to benefit Road of Life charity The companies inform that the May beneficiary of The Power of One Dram is the “Road of Life” charitable organization. Ucom General Director gives lecture at French University in Armenia The General Director of Ucom Ralph Yirikian delivered a lecture at the French University of Armenia. Kazakhstan welcomes Yerevan, Baku’s agreement to meet in Almaty Kassym-Jomart Tokayev has welcomed the agreement of Baku and Yerevan to hold negotiations in Almaty. Armenia offers to temporarily host, preserve Gaza manuscripts The Armenian Foreign Minister has said Yerevan is ready to help preserve manuscripts from the conflict zone in Gaza. |