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| Russian Rocket Lifts U.S. TV Satellite Into Orbit From Floating Platform |
| 2005-04-26 |
| A Russian rocket blasted off from a floating Pacific Ocean platform Tuesday, carrying a DirecTV satellite into orbit, Sea Launch Co. said. A Zenit-3SL rocket carrying the Spaceway F1 communications satellite, manufactured by Boeing Co., blasted into space at 11:31 a.m. Moscow time (3:31 a.m. EDT). The satellite entered its designated orbit 30 minutes later, the company said. Sea Launch said the satellite weighed 13,376 pounds, making it the heaviest commercial satellite it had launched. Sea Launch is a multinational venture owned by Boeing Co., RSC-Energia of Russia, Anglo-Norwegian Kvaerner Group of Norway and SDO Yuzhnoye/PO Yuzhmash of Ukraine. DirecTV is a subsidiary of Rupert Murdoch's News Corp. This is the wave of the future in commercial space tech. Floating platforms close to the equator make launches much easier. Less-polluting fuels get them up there cleaner. And a high volume makes them much more cost-effective. |
| Posted by:Anonymoose |
| #1 The Zenit uses liquid oxygen and kerosene, for the most part. I don't remember what it uses on its third stage... While it's not as environmentalist-friendly(*) as hydrogen, it's a lot better than most solid rocket fuels and the storable propellants still used on Titan and Proton. And it's a fairly good choice for a fuel for a reusable vehicle, since tanks, engines, and pumps can all be lighter and more compact, and there are less gravity losses total. (*) Many environmentalists seem to be ignorant of the fact that most industrially produced liquid hydrogen is made from natural gas these days. |
| Posted by: Phil Fraering 2005-04-26 6:25:28 PM |