Eutelsat 21B ready for launch
November 8, 2012
By Chris Forrester
Arianespace is making final pre-launch checks today in readiness for its planned November 9th launch of two satellites from its Kourou launch site.
Eutelsat 21B and Brazil’s Star One C3 craft are the pair of passengers on a giant Ariane 5 rocket. Lift-off is planned for a launch window that opens at 6.05pm French Guiana local time (21.05 GMT).
Eutelsat’s latest satellite will go to the 21.5 degrees East orbital slot where it will replace the 21A craft which launched back in 1999. The new satellite is much larger than 21A, and has 40 Ku-band transponders, compared with 29 on 21A. The satellite can serve Europe, the Mid-East, Africa and Central Asia.