Proton launches Russian military satellite
Posted: Sat, Jun 28, 2008, 9:16 AM ET (1316 GMT)
A Russian Proton rocket launched a military satellite early Friday, the first Proton launch since a failure in March. The Proton K rocket lifted off from the Baikonur Cosmodrome at 7:59 pm EDT Thursday (0059 GMT Thursday, 3:59 am Moscow time Friday) and placed the Kosmos 2440 satellite into a geosynchronous orbit. Few details about the spacecraft were released, other than its mass, about 2,600 kilograms; various reports have described it as either a communications or missile warning satellite. The launch was the first for the Proton since a March 15 commercial launch, when an upper stage failure stranded its payload in a useless transfer orbit. The Proton is expected to return to commercial service later this summer.
A Russian Proton rocket launched a military satellite early Friday, the first Proton launch since a failure in March. The Proton K rocket lifted off from the Baikonur Cosmodrome at 7:59 pm EDT Thursday (0059 GMT Thursday, 3:59 am Moscow time Friday) and placed the Kosmos 2440 satellite into a geosynchronous orbit. Few details about the spacecraft were released, other than its mass, about 2,600 kilograms; various reports have described it as either a communications or missile warning satellite. The launch was the first for the Proton since a March 15 commercial launch, when an upper stage failure stranded its payload in a useless transfer orbit. The Proton is expected to return to commercial service later this summer.
Related Links:
| <<previous article | next article>> |
|
news in brief
|
|
|
|
news links
|
|
Thursday, March 18
Ball Aerospace Integration of VIIRS Instrument for NPP Complete
PR Newswire — 8:27 am ET (1227 GMT) Editorial: Lobbying for space programs
Huntsville Times — 8:27 am ET (1227 GMT) U.S.-Russian duo returns to Earth from space station
AP — 8:23 am ET (1223 GMT) U.S.-Russian duo returns to Earth from space station
Reuters — 8:23 am ET (1223 GMT) Soyuz Landing Caps Milestone Space Station Mission
NASA — 8:23 am ET (1223 GMT) |