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ILS Scrubs Inmarsat 4-F1 Launch |
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CAPE CANAVERAL, Fl, March 11, 2005/Satnews Daily/ — The launch of the Atlas V carrying the Inmarsat 4-F1 satellite was scrubbed on Thursday less than three minutes before blastoff after engineers in the control center received an alarm.
No information was released on the reasons for the cancellation of the launch but reports say the problem appeared to involve the “pogo” system aboard the rocket.
Another launch attempt is expected to be made today, Friday at 4:42 p.m. EST (2142 GMT).
Inmarsat-4 satellite will be positioned in geostationary orbit at 65 degrees East longitude. The spacecraft is the first of three spacecrafts to provide Broadband Global Area Network (BGAN), a new service that will bring seamless mobile voice and broadband Internet connectivity around the world.
Inmarsat 4-F1 will enable Inmarsat to address a wide area covering most of Europe, Africa, the Middle East and Asia, as well as the Indian Ocean. A second satellite is planned for launch in summer 2005 to cover South America, most of North America, the Atlantic Ocean and part of the Pacific Ocean.
A third satellite is also at an advanced stage of production. All three satellites are identical and interchangeable - their coverage is programmable and can be reconfigured in orbit.
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