Thuraya
to launch second satellite
Posted: 28 May 2003
Thuraya's second satellite will be put into orbit on June 10,
2003 at 13:56 GMT (17:56 UAE time).
The Thuraya 2 satellite will potentially operate alongside the
Thuraya 1, enhancing network flexibility and augmenting the quality
and range of services offered by Thuraya.
The Thuraya 2 satellite will be sent into orbit by Sea Launch,
the company which successfully placed Thuraya 1 in Ocrober 2000.
After that successful launch, the system began commercial operations
a few months later.
Sea Launch has already begun preparations for launch of the Thuraya
payload, its first mission this year.
Sea Launch will be lifting this 5,212 kg (11,490 lb) communications
satellite to geosynchronous transfer orbit from the Odyssey Launch
Platform, positioned on the Equator.
The second Thuraya satellite, being built by Boeing Satellite Systems
in El Segundo, California, is part of the high-powered Boeing GEM
(geo mobile) spacecraft system which comprises the Thuraya 2, the
Thuraya 1, and a ground spare (Thuraya 3).
The Sea Launch team will place the Thuraya-2 satellite into Geosynchronous
Transfer Orbit, with the spacecraft separating from the upper stage
at 1,388 miles above the Pacific Ocean.
Launching from its equatorial launch site at 154 degrees West Longitude,
Sea Launch will insert the spacecraft directly into the required
6.3-degree inclined orbit, an optimal orbital location for the Thuraya
system.
Designed for a 12-15 year lifespan, the satellite will be positioned
in Geosynchronous Orbit, 35,786 km (22,236 miles) above the Earth,
at 44 degrees East Longitude and inclined at 6.3 degrees.
Thuraya with this new satellite launch will be reinforcing its
position as a leading satellite telecommunication provider in the
area of Europe, Middle East, North and Central Africa, Central Asia
and South Asia.
Posted by Richard Price,
Editor Pipeline Magazine
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