Posted: Wed, Aug 31, 2005, 8:49 AM ET (1249 GMT)
Orbital Sciences Corporation has won a contract to build a communications satellite for a US-Japanese joint venture, the satellite manufacturer announced Tuesday. The Horizons-2 satellite will be based on Orbital's Star small GEO satellite bus for delivery in 22 months. The satellite, to be located at 74 degrees west longitude, will weigh 2,300 kilograms and carry 20 Ku-band transponders. The satellite will be operated Horizons-2 Satellite LLC, a joint venture involving Japanese satellite operator JSAT and American company PanAmSat. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Related Links:

•  AP article
•  Orbital press release