Article Posted on : - May 20, 2011

Proton M rocket

MOSCOW (BNS): Proton-M carrier rocket will launch later today with the US Telstar-14P communication satellite on board, Russian space agency Roscosmos said.

The rocket will be launched from the Baikonur space center in Kazakhstan at 11.15 pm Moscow time (19:15 GMT). Friday's mission will be the first for Proton-M this year.

Telstar 14R is a commercial communication satellite designed to operate for at least 15 years. The satellite will strengthen the signal of the Estrela do Sul (Telstar 14) satellite and then replace it at its 63 degrees West orbital location.

The satellite, produced by US Space Systems/Loral Company for leading satellite operator Telesat, has 46 active transponders with coverage in Latin America, the United States, the Gulf of Mexico, the northern and southern Caribbean Sea, and the northern and central Atlantic.