spacetoday.net: OneWeb launches satellites to complete polar coverage

Posted: Sat, Jul 3, 2021, 10:59 AM ET (1459 GMT)
OneWeb successfully launched 36 satellites Thursday, allowing it to begin broadband services in northern latitudes later this year. The Soyuz -2 rocket lifted off from the Vostochny Cosmodrome at 8:48 am EDT (1248 GMT), deploying its payload of 36 satellites over the next four hours. Once the satellites reach their final orbits in about a month, OneWeb will have enough satellites to provide continuous service above 50 degrees north latitude. The company aims to launch four or five more batches of satellites in 2021 that will focus on filling out coverage of the Earth's southernmost regions, with 10 more launches needed to provide global services with the constellation by next year.