Brazilian fisherman finds satellite debris in Amazon river
A fisherman in Brazil's Amazon region has found a large piece of debris from a European space launch. The man said he found the metal object floating on a remote river in the municipality of Salinopolis. The debris has been confirmed as coming from a satellite launched from the Kourou base, in neighbouring French Guiana, last July. Read more
Europe's biggest ever telecommunications satellite has switched on its innovative British payload to begin a month of testing. Seven-metre-long Alphasat - dubbed the "A380 of space" - was launched at the end of July, and is gradually being commissioned prior to entering service.
Watch the Alphasat launch live on 25 July. Streaming starts 15 minutes before lift-off, with the launch window between 19:53 GMT (21:53 CEST) and 21:11 GMT (23:11 CEST).
THE LAUNCH READINESS REVIEW (RAL) took place in Kourou on Tuesday July 23, 2013 and authorised count-down operations for the ALPHASAT and INSAT-3D launch. Arianespace will orbit two satellites on its third Ariane 5 launch of the year: the ALPHASAT mobile communications satellite for operator Inmarsat, and the INSAT-3D meteorological satellite for the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO). The choice of Arianespace by leading space communications operators and manufacturers is clear international recognition of the company's excellence in launch services. It will be launched from the Ariane launch complex N° 3 (ELA3), in Kourou, French Guiana.
THE ARIANE 5 ECA LAUNCHER LIFT-OFF for this flight is scheduled on July 25 to 26, 2013 as soon as possible within the following launch window: KOUROU:
Between 04:53pm and 06:11pm on July 25, 2013 UT: Between 07:53pm and 09:11pm on July 25, 2013 PARIS: Between 09:53pm and 11:11pm on July 25, 2013 WASHINTON: Between 03:53pm and 05:11pm on July 25, 2013
Tucked away in a vacuum chamber for several months, Europe's largest telecom satellite has faced the harsh conditions it will deal with once it is launched into space this summer. Testing at Intespace in Toulouse, France, simulated conditions close to those Alphasat will experience in flight, including the intense cold of its transfer orbits in the early stages of the mission. Read more
Alphabus has met Alphasat. Europe's largest telecom satellite is taking shape with final assembly and testing ready to begin in Toulouse, France. Planned for launch in late 2012 on Ariane 5, Alphasat will provide advanced mobile communication links for commercial operator Inmarsat. Read more
Inmarsat has chosen Arianespace to launch its new Alphasat I-XL communications satellite. This contract follows a partnership agreement between Inmarsat and the European Space Agency (ESA) concerning the commercialisation of the first mission to use the new European platform, Alphabus. Planned for launch in 2012, Alphasat I-XL will be carried by an Ariane 5 ECA in from the Guiana Space Center, Europes spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana. The satellite will be built by Astrium using an Alphabus platform, and will weigh more than six metric tons at launch. The new-generation Alphasat I-XL will be positioned at 25 degrees East, and will join Inmarsats current satellite fleet of 11 geostationary satellites to offer advanced mobile voice and data communications services across Europe, Africa and the Middle East. Its design life is 15 years.
ESA and Inmarsat Global Ltd announce on Friday 23 November in Paris the formal signature of the contract for Alphasat satellite, one of the world's largest telecommunications satellites. The Alphasat programme is a major cooperation between the public and private sectors. With Alphasat, Inmarsat will be the first commercial customer for the Alphabus platform, the new European high-power telecommunications platform jointly developed by Astrium and Thales Alenia Space and initiated by a partnership between ESA and CNES (Centre National d'Etudes Spatiales) as a coordinated European response to the increased market demand for larger telecommunication payloads, for new broadband, broadcasting and mobile communications services. The Alphabus Alphasat programme represents an expenditure of 440 million by 16 ESA Member States. Under the development schedule, Alphasat will be available for launch in 2012.
British engineers have been asked to build the payload for what will become one of the biggest commercial telecoms satellites ever launched. London-based Inmarsat signed a contract on Friday with industrialists to construct the Alphasat I-XL mission. The six-tonne satellite will deliver high-bandwidth services, such as mobile internet, to Europe, the Middle East, Asia and Africa.