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Sea Launch Cancels Launch of XM-3 Satellite |
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LONG BEACH, Calif., Feb. 18/Satnews Daily/ — Sea Launch has postponed the Thursday launch of XM Satellite Radio's XM-3 satellite due to “continuing sea conditions at the launch site.”
Sea Launch said in a statement the satellite and the launch vehicle are healthy and ready for launch and will issue an advisory when a launch date is reestablished. The liftoff was originally scheduled at the opening of a one-hour launch window, at 7:53 pm PST (Feb. 17, 3:53 GMT).
Built by Boeing Satellite Systems, the 702-model spacecraft will augment the existing XM satellite system. Sea Launch successfully lifted to orbit the XM-1 and XM-2 satellites in 2001. XM-3 is the tenth Boeing 702 manufactured by Boeing.
From its equatorial launch site at 154 degrees West Longitude, a Zenit-3SL vehicle will lift the 4703 kg (about 10,368 lb.) XM-3 satellite to an optimized perigee geosynchronous transfer orbit (GTO), on its way to a final orbital position at 85 degrees West Longitude.
Like its sister spacecraft, XM-1 and XM-2, XM-3 will transmit more than 130 channels of digital-quality music, news, sports, talk, comedy and children's programming to subscribers across the continental United States.
Sea Launch said in its mission profile two-and-a-half minutes after liftoff, the first stage will separate and then the payload fairing will jettison. About five minutes later, the second stage will separate from the Block DM upper stage. After the first burn of the Block DM engine, the spacecraft will coast for about 30 minutes. Following this coast, the Block DM will make a second burn and then separate from the spacecraft about 14 minutes later, above the coast of Gabon, Africa.
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