Jupiter 3/EchoStar XXIV ready to launch
July 26, 2023
By Chris Forrester
If all goes to schedule, SpaceX will launch the giant Jupiter 3/EchoStar XXIV satellite today (July 26th). The launch, from the Kennedy Space Centre in Florida, will see two Falcon 9 booster rockets re-land simultaneously after launch.
SpaceX is using one of its Falcon 9 ‘Heavy’ version rockets which means the central booster will be discarded but the two strap-on boosters either side of the central core will be landed back at Kennedy.
At 10.1 tons (9.2 metric tons), Jupiter 3 will be the heaviest payload ever launched toward geostationary orbit, which lies about 22,200 miles (35,700 kms) above Earth.
Jupiter 3 will serve HughesConnects and HughesNet clients and satellite Internet and broadband services.
Launch window opens at 11.04 pm Florida time. It will offer download speeds up to 100 Mb/s and an overall capacity of more than 500 Gb/s.