Improved Soyuz 2-1a Payload Fairing Ready For Flight
Soyuz 2-1a's new fairing in Starsem's processing facility at Baikonur. The fairing has a length of 11.4 meters and an external diameter of 4.1 meters. During the upcoming July 17 launch, it will protect MetOp-A during the first five minutes of the mission. Image credit: Arianespace |
by Staff Writers
Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan (SPX) Jul 04, 2006
Arianespace announced Monday its Soyuz launcher's enlarged payload fairing is ready for its July 17 flight, in which it is scheduled to launch the MetOp-A meteorological satellite from Baikonur Cosmodrome.
The new fairing is part of the Soyuz 2-1a upgrade program for Russia's workhorse vehicle, which will join the Arianespace launcher family at Europe's Spaceport in French Guiana in 2008, the company said in a news release.
The Soyuz 2-1a's upcoming mission with MetOp-A will be performed under the auspices of Arianespace's Starsem affiliate.
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Hartford CT (SPX) Jul 03, 2006
UP Aerospace announced Friday that it has set Aug. 14 as the date of its first commercial space launch from New Mexico's spaceport facility. The company's SpaceLoft XL vehicle will carry more than 50 payloads and experiments from sponsors in the United States and Europe.
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