Russia launches Dutch SES-4 telecoms satellite February 15, 2012 - 21:06 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - A Russian Proton-M launch vehicle carrying the Dutch SES-4 (NSS-14) telecoms satellite lifted off on Tuesday, February 14 from the Baikonur Space Center in Kazakhstan after a series of delays caused by technical problems, Russia’s Federal Space Agency Roscosmos said, according to RIA Novosti. “The launch occurred at the calculated time - 11:36 p.m. Moscow time [19:36 GMT],” Roscosmos said. “The separation of the satellite from the launch vehicle is expected at 08:48 a.m. Moscow time [04:48 GMT] on February 15.” The blastoff was the 70th commercial launch of a Proton carrier rocket since 1995 under contracts concluded by International Launch Services Inc. (ILS). ILS initially had to postpone the launch planned for December 26, 2011 after a problem affecting the avionics unit of the rocket’s Briz-M upper stage was discovered. The launch was moved to a later date for the second time on January 28 due to an electrical problem affecting the Proton rocket. The SES-4 is the largest and most powerful in the group of SES satellites, built by U.S. company Space Systems/Loral for the Dutch operator SES World Skies, which is now a subsidiary of Luxemburg-based SES S.A. It was designed to provide various satellite services to customers in the Middle East, Europe, Africa and Latin America. Equipped with 52 C-band and 72 Ku-band transponders, the 5.8-ton satellite has a life span of 15 years. The SES-4 will be deployed over the Atlantic Ocean region, enabling the incumbent NSS-7 satellite to move to a new orbital position.   Top stories Azerbaijani authorities report that they have already resettled 3,000 people in the Nagorno-Karabakh town of Stepanakert. On June 10, Azerbaijani President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev will leave for Turkey on a working visit. Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev arrived in Moscow on April 22 to hold talks with Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin. Authorities said a total of 192 Azerbaijani troops were killed and 511 were wounded during Azerbaijan’s offensive.   Partner news |  Latest news Viva sees growing demand for cloud services  In recent years, medical institutions are starting to make use of Viva’s cloud servicesArmenian, German presidents meet in Berlin Armenian and German Presidents Vahagn Khachaturyan and Frank-Walter Steinmeier met in Berlin.Armenia assumes presidency of Mediterranean Network of Regulatory Authorities The Commission on Television and Radio of Armenia said it expects productive cooperation in various formats.Balance of attached cards in the Idram&IDBank app From now on, users will be able to view the online balances of cards issued by ArCa system banks and attached to the app. |
