BADR-4/Proton news and pictures

[BGonaSTICK]

Payload: BADR-4
Platform: Eurostar E2000+
Separated Mass: Approx. 3,280 kg (7,231 lbs)

Launch Vehicle: Proton M/Breeze M
Weight at liftoff: 691,272 kg (1.5 million lbs), including payload
Height: 61 m (200 ft)

Launch Time: 20:01, Nov. 8 GMT

Launch Site: Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan; Launch Pad 39

End User: ARABSAT, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

Satellite Manufacturer: Astrium Satellites; Toulouse, France

Launch Vehicle
Manufacturer: Khrunichev State Research and Production Space Center, Moscow

Launch Services
Provider: International Launch Services (ILS), McLean, Va.

Satellite Use: Multipurpose communications satellite serving Arab countries and neighboring regions. Ku-band payload will carry direct-to-home, interactive TV and internet broadband services, with additional capacity to accommodate anticipated demand for high-definition TV.

Satellite Statistics: 32 Ku-band transponders
Orbital Location: 26 degrees East longitude
Anticipated service life: 15 years

Mission Profile: The Proton launch vehicle will inject the satellite into geosynchronous transfer orbit, using a four-burn Breeze M mission design. The first three stages of the Proton will use a standard ascent trajectory to place the Breeze M fourth stage, with the satellite, into a suborbital trajectory, from which the Breeze M will place itself and the spacecraft into a circular parking orbit of 173 km (107.5 miles), inclined at 51.5 degrees. Then the satellite will be propelled to its transfer orbit by additional burns of the Breeze M. Following separation from the Breeze M, the spacecraft will perform a series of liquid apogee engine burns to raise perigee, lower inclination and circularize the orbit at the geostationary altitude of 35,786 km (22,236 miles).

Target Orbit at Separation:
Apogee: 35,786 km (22,236 miles)
Perigee: 3,150 km (1,957 miles)
Inclination: 14.2 degrees

Spacecraft Separation: Approximately 4 hours after liftoff

ILS Mission Statistics:
3rd ILS Proton mission of 2006
5th ILS mission overall for 2006
7th Proton launch of Astrium Eurostar bus
38th ILS mission on Proton

_________________________________________________

I hope the two guys holding the ropes at the fat-end remember to let go at launch time....

[BGonaSTICK]

International Launch Services (ILS) said today that it's on schedule to launch Arabsat's BADR-4 on Wednesday, 8th November from Launch Pad 39 at the Baikonur Cosmodrome.

BADR-4 will be launched by a Proton M/Breeze M at 20:01 Nov 8 GMT. The BADR-4 satellite is an Astrium Eurostar E2000+ model, the third Eurostar satellite to be launched this year on Proton.

Live coverage on BADR-3 at 26E if you have a large enough dish, or are in the footprint of BADR-3.

Frequency: 11996
Polarisation: Horizontal
Symbol Rate: 27500
FEC: 3/4

Otherwise there is live internet coverage available at http://streamvox.streamos.com/vyvx/ils110806

[Analoguesat]

Full launch coverage details:

Intelsat Americas-6C:

Orbital Position: 93 deg. West

C-band / ANALOG --NTSC

Transponder: 14

36 MHz BANDWIDTH

Frq.: 3,980 MHz

Polarity: Horizontal


NSS-7:

Orbital Position: 338.0 deg. East

Ku-band / Digital -- PAL

Transponder: WHL4/EUH3,Channel-1

Freq.: 11,098.9 MHz

Polarity: Horizontal

Symbol Rate: 6.1113 Msps

FEC: 3/4


BADR-3
(ex-3A):

Orbital Position: 26 deg. East

Ku-band / Digital -- PAL

Transponder: BSS-15

Freq.: 11,996 MHz

Polarity: Horizontal

Symbol Rate: 27.5 Msps

FEC: 3/4



BADR-C (ex-2C)

Orbital Position: 26 deg. East

Ku-Band / Digital -- PAL

Transponder: C21

Freq.: 4,120 MHz

Polarity: Horizontal

Symbol Rate: 27.5 Msps

FEC: 3/4

Plus the web stream mentioned in the post above.

[Analoguesat]

Well the lift off and climbout was seemed to be perfect and ontime too. I watched the web stream - without sound as the audio had disappeared!

[Analoguesat]

Launch successful

Badr 4 has been placed into geostationary transfer orbit and is on her way to 26E

[london-guy]

great
now we can watch some good Arab channels without having to put up a big dish

[BGonaSTICK]

Indeed.

I've just realised - I don't think that we have a BADR-4 footprint map here, so for those who haven't seen, BADR-4 brings a whole new range of Arabic programming to the UK