* Astronomy

Provisional parameters at injection of the cryogenic upper stage (ESC-A) were:
Perigee: 249.7 km. for a target of 249.6 km. (±3)
Apogee: 35,912 km. for a target of 35,917 km. (±160)
Inclination: 6.98 degrees for a target of 7.00 degrees (±0.06º)

Ariane 5 ECA enters the record books again with a heavyweight payload

The Ariane 5 ECA's successful mission tonight marked a new record for commercial launches, lofting a heavyweight dual satellite payload weighing more than 8,000 kg.

Lifting off from the ELA-3 launch complex at Europe's Spaceport, the Ariane 5 ECA deployed DIRECTV's Spaceway 2 satellite first, followed minutes later by the Telkom 2 relay platform for Indonesia's PT. Telekomunikasi Indonesia, Tbk.
It marked the 20th successful launch of an Ariane 5, and this on-target flight demonstrated the lift capability of Arianespace's Ariane 5 ECA version - which payload capacity of nearly 10,000 kg. on missions to geostationary transfer orbit.


Credit Arianespace

The Ariane 5 made an on-time departure from Europe's Spaceport at 8:46 p.m. local time, climbing away from the launch pad under the power of its cryogenic core stage and two solid rocket boosters. Spaceway 2 was injected into a geostationary transfer orbit at approximately 27 minutes into the flight, followed six minutes later by the release of Telkom-2.

Spaceway 2 had a mass at lift-off of 6,116 kg. and will allow DIRECTV to bring local high-definition programming to most of the American population, as well as expand its standard-definition local offerings. The Boeing-built BS 702 will operate at an orbital position of 99.2 deg. West.

The Telkom 2 relay platform is an Orbital Sciences Corporation STAR 2 spacecraft platform, and it will be used by Indonesia's PT Telkom to expand its satellite communications coverage area into the ASEAN region and the Indian subcontinent. Telkom 2 will be placed at an orbital position of 18 de3g. East.

End of a successful Arianespace Flight mission. Altitude 4346.0km velocity 7615m/s

The TELKOM-2 and the SPACEWAY 2 satellite will perform a series of manoeuvres to enter their correct orbits and begin a series of test to check they are ok.

Confirmed Separation of TELKOM-2 satellite.