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For Proton missions in 2011 click here
SES-4 mission January 28 The Proton rocket started its first mission of 2012, with a liftoff from Pad 39 at Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan, on Feb. 14, 2012, at 23:36 Moscow Time. (It was already 36 minutes past midnight local time on February 15), carrying the SES-4 communications satellite. During the mission, first three stages of the Proton rocket used a standard ascent profile to place the payload section (Briz M upper stage and the SES-4 satellite) into a sub-orbital trajectory. The Briz M then performed five engine firings: first to reach a circular parking orbit, a sceond an intermediate orbit, followed by a transfer orbit, and finally a geosynchronous transfer orbit. Separation of the SES-4 satellite occured as scheduled, approximately nine hours, 12 minutes after liftoff. By that time, the satellite was in a 3,714 by 35,786-kilometer orbit with an inclination of 24.6 degrees toward the Equator. The satellite The 6,180-kilogram SES-4 satellite (formerly NSS-14) built by Space Systems/Loral for SES New Skies, of Luxembourg. It was designed to provide broadband communications services over the Atlantic Ocean region at the orbital position 338 degrees East over the Equator during a 15-year life span. It was based on the Loral's standard SS/L 1300 platform. SES-4 carried a so-called "hybrid" payload featuring high powered C-band coverage and incremental global capacity which was ideal for video distribution, government and VSAT services. The satellite’s Ku-band payload was to provide enhanced coverage and capacity across Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Western Africa and Latin America. SES-4 was to bring a substantial increase in the total capacity available at its orbital position. The state-of-the-art spacecraft has been specifically designed for its orbital location, with C-band beams serving the eastern hemisphere of Europe and Africa, full America’s coverage as well as a global beam to support mobile and maritime customers. Four high powered regional Ku-band beams were to service Europe, the Middle East, West Africa, North America and South America with extensive cross-strapping between C- and Ku-band transponders providing enhanced connectivity. Long road before the flight Plans to launch the SES-4 satellite on Proton in late 2010 were first announced on March 18, 2009. In January 2010, the mission was expected in the first and second quarter of 2011. The launch was then delayed to mid- or late November 2011 and then to Dec. 27-28, 2011. A day before the original launch attempt on Dec. 27, 2011, International Launch Services, ILS, announced that the mission had been postponed for approximately 25 days for technical reasons associated with the avionics system of the launch vehicle’s Briz M upper stage. The additional time was needed due to the required destacking and replacement of the affected avionics unit. The delay was called after Khrunichev engineers at the launch site received an anomalous telemetry reading on the Briz M upper stage during preflight testing. The vehicle and the satellite remained in a safe configuration at the launch site, ILS said. The second attempt to launch SES-4 was rescheduled for January 28, 2012. The rocket with the spacecraft was rolled out to the launch pad on Jan. 25, 2012, however two days later Roskosmos announced that the technical problems required to postpone the launch to a later date. The return of the rocket from the launch pad to the processing facility was scheduled to take place on January 27, Roskosmos said. According to unofficial sources, the mission was delayed until the middle of February. According to multiple industry sources, a malfunction was discovered on a transit cable in the first stage of the Proton rocket. This cable is reportedly supply power to an autonomous pump unit on the second stage of the vehicle and is absolutely necessary for integrated tests of the vehicle on the launch pad. The nature of the problem, reportedly required to partially disassembly the vehicle and check several power lines in order to pinpoint the culprit. Problems with the SES-4 mission also reportedly stalled preparations for the next Proton mission, carrying Sirius FM-6 satellite. As of January 27, that payload's processing team had to pack up and go home. After repairs, the rocket and its payload were returned to the launch pad at Site 200 on February 11, 2012, in preparation for launch on Feb. 14, 2012. March 25 The Proton-M rocket lifted off from Pad 39 at Site 200 in Baikonur Cosmodrome at 16:10:32 Moscow Time carrying the Intelsat 22 communications satellite. The first three stages of the Proton used a standard ascent profile to send the 6,199-kilogram payload section (Briz M upper stage and the Intelsat 22 satellite) into a sub-orbital trajectory. Briz M then performed a total of five engine firings to advance the orbital unit first to a circular parking orbit, then to an intermediate orbit, followed by a transfer orbit, and finally to a 3,791 by 65,000-kilometer geostationary transfer orbit with an inclination 28.5 degrees toward the Equator. Separation of the Intelsat 22 satellite occured 15 hours, 30 minutes after liftoff at 07:40 Moscow Time on March 26 (11:40 p.m. EST on March 25). The spacecraft was expected to use its own engines to enter a geostationary orbit over the Equator at 72 degrees East longitude for 15-18 years of service. The payload The design of the 6,249-kilogram Intelsat 22 spacecraft would be the first based on Boeing's new 702MP platform. As part of Intelsat’s 2012 fleet replacement and expansion plans, Intelsat 22 will carry two Ku-band mobility beams providing coverage of the Indian Ocean region, which will blanket busy maritime and aeronautical routes. From its position at 72 degrees East, Intelsat 22 will have Ku-band capacity serving the Middle East and eastern Africa. Its C-band coverage will provide connectivity to and from most of Europe, Africa, the Middle East and eastern Asia. It also carries an Ultra-High Frequency hosted payload that will be used by the Australian Defense Force. The spacecraft carries a total of 48 transponders working in C-band, 24 - Ku-band and 18 in UHF. Mission history On March 15, 2010, International Launch Services, ILS, announced an agreement to launch the Intelsat 21 spacecraft on the Proton rocket with a projected launch date in early 2012. Weighing 6,300 kg, Intelsat-21 was based on the Boeing's standard 702B spacecraft platform. Proton would carry it into a 65,000-kilometer super-synchronous transfer orbit. Intelsat 21 was to replace the Intelsat 9 satellite located at 302 degrees East providing C- and Ku-band capacity for broadband, video and voice applications with coverage over the Americas and Europe. On May 5, 2010, ILS announced that Intelsat 22 would replace the Intelsat 21 spacecraft during this mission, as it was allowed by a multi-launch agreement with the customer. By the end of 2011, the mission was expected during a second week of March 2012. By mid-February 2012, the launch shifted to March 20 and then to March 25. March 30 The Proton-K rocket with Block-DM 2 upper stage lifted off Friday at 09:49 Moscow Time (1:49 a.m. EST) carrying an Oko (eye) early-warning satellite for the Russian military. The payload was scheduled to separate from its upper stage at 16:27 Moscow Time on the same day. The mission also employed the last Proton-K rocket marking a full transition of the Russian workhorse launcher to Proton-M version. April 24 A Russian rocket successfully delivered one of two communications satellites for Al Yah Satellite Communications Co. (Yahsat) of the United Arab Emirates. The Proton-M/Briz-M rocket lifted off from Baikonur Cosmodrome's Site 200 at 02:18 Moscow Summer Time (22:18 GMT on April 23), carrying YahSat 1B satellite, also known as Y1B. After an nine-hour, 12-minute mission, which included five engine burns of the Briz M upper stage, the six-ton satellite was successfully released into geostationary transfer orbit. Mission history The agreement for the launch between International Launch Services (ILS), Thales Alenia Space of France and Yahsat was announced on Jan. 30, 2008. Previously, Arianespace had announced a contract to launch one of Yahsat satellites on the Ariane-5 rocket from Kourou. In August 2007, Thales Alenia Space and Astrium won a $1.7-billion contract to build two large Yahsat multipurpose satellites based on the Astrium Eurostar 3000 bus. Yahsat, which is owned by Mubadala Development Company, will provide commercial and government services across the Middle East, Africa, Europe and Southwest Asia. YahSat satellites were to provide innovative solutions for internet connectivity via satellite, wide area networks and television transmission services, in particular for high-definition television (HDTV). The launch was originally expected in 2010-2011, however, by the end of 2011, the mission was set to go ahead during the second week of April 2012. At the same time, the mission could move up in the Proton launch manifest, if the launch of Oko-2 early-warning satellite would continue to be postponed. Following the launch of Oko on March 30, the YahSta misison was scheduled for April 24. May 17 A Proton-M rocket launched the Nimiq-6 communications satellite for Telesat of Canada. The launch vehicle lifted off on May 17, 2012, at 23:12 Moscow Time (19:12 GMT) from Pad 24 at Site 81 in Baikonur. During the launch, the first three stages of the Proton used a standard ascent profile to send the payload section consisting of the Briz-M upper stage and the Nimiq-6 satellite into a sub-orbital trajectory. The Briz-M then performed five engine firings to advance the orbital unit first to a circular parking orbit, then to an intermediate orbit, followed by a transfer orbit, and finally to a geostationary transfer orbit (an altitude - 12,073 by 35,786 kilometers; an inclination - 10.2 degrees toward the Equator). The separation of the payload from the upper stage took place as scheduled at 08:26 Moscow Time on May 18, 2012, or nine hours 14 minutes after the liftoff. The 4.5-ton Nimiq-6 satellite built by Space Systems/Loral was based on the company's standard and flight-proven 1300 platform. As its payload, the spacecraft was carrying 32 high-power Ku-band transponders. The spacecraft was to be stationed at 91 degrees West Longitude over the Equator where it was expected to function for 15 years. Telesat’s Nimiq fleet is comprised of direct broadcast satellites utilized by Telesat’s customers to provide Direct-to-Home (DTH) television services to consumers in North America. Nimiq-6 was fully leased to Bell TV for the satellite’s lifetime to serve the fast-growing number of Bell TV subscribers across Canada. The contract for the launch of Nimiq-6 was announced on March 17, 2010, with the mission promised to lift off in the middle of 2012.
Summary of Proton missions in 2012 (as of May 18, 2012 ):
For future Proton missions click here Page author: Anatoly Zak; Last update: May 18, 2012 All rights reserved |
PICTURE GALLERY
The rollout of a Proton rocket with NSS-14 (SES-4) communications satellite to the launch pad in Baikonur. Credit: Telesat
Proton lifts off on Feb. 14, 2012, at 23:36 Moscow Time. Credit: ILS
Proton with Intelsat 22 rolls out to the launch pad on March 23. Notable is unpainted body of the rocket, probably intended to save mass for the heavy payload. Credit: Roskosmos
Intelsat 22 with Briz M upper stage during pre-launch processing in Baikonur. Credit: Khrunichev
Proton with Intelsat 22 lifts off on March 25, 2012. Credit: GKNPTs Khrunichev
Last Proton-K with last Oko satellite lifts off on March 30. Credit: Roskosmos
A Proton-M rocket lifts off on May 17, 2012, carrying Nimiq-6 satellite. Credit: Roskosmos |
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