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ViaSat-3 Americas (Falcon Heavy) 30 April 2023 |
Launch Complex 39A Kennedy Space Center |
A SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket launched the ViaSat-3 Americas mission, making for SpaceX's second Falcon Heavy launch of 2023. The ViaSat-3 Americas mission launched to a geostationary orbit, lifting off from Launch Complex 39A (LC-39A) at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center at 8:26 p.m. on 30 April 2023. Also on board this mission is Astranis's first MicroGEO satellite and Gravity Space’s GS-1 satellite. One of the side boosters on this mission previously supported Arabsat-6A, STP-2, COSMO- SkyMed Second Generation FM2, KPLO, and three Starlink missions, and the second previously supported launch of Arabsat-6A and STP-2. This is the core booster's first and only flight as all the boosters were expended and will not be recovered. |
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EXCERPTS FROM A VIASAT PRESS RELEASE |
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Artist rendition of ViaSat-3 Americas in orbit. IMAGE CREDIT: Viasat |
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CARLSBAD, Calif., May 1, 2023 –Viasat Inc. (NASDAQ: VSAT), a global communications company, today announced the successful launch of ViaSat-3 Americas aboard a SpaceX Falcon Heavy from Launch Complex 39A (LC-39A) at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. ViaSat-3 lifted off yesterday at 8:26 pm EDT, and approximately four hours and thirty two minutes after liftoff, the satellite separated from the launch vehicle. First signals from the satellite were acquired approximately 15 minutes later through a ground station in South Korea. In the coming days, ViaSat-3 will deploy its solar arrays and drift to its final orbital location. Viasat expects it will take less than three weeks for ViaSat-3 to reach its final orbital destination, located at 88.9° west longitude. |
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Artist rendition of the complete ViaSat constellation. IMAGE CREDIT: Viasat |
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| About ViaSat-3 The ViaSat-3 class of Ka-band satellites are capable of delivering over 1 Terabit per second (Tbps) of throughput capacity each, with dynamic flexibility to move and concentrate that capacity where it’s most needed - whether it’s on land, in the ocean or in the air. The first two satellites are planned to focus on the Americas and on EMEA [Europe, Middle East, & Africa], respectively, and the ViaSat-3 EMEA satellite is now in environmental testing in Boeing’s El Segundo, California factory. The third ViaSat-3 satellite has completed final payload integration and testing at Viasat’s Tempe, Arizona facility and will focus on the Asia Pacific region, completing Viasat's global service coverage. |
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SPACEX VIASAT-3 AMERICAS MISSION LOGO |
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IMAGE CREDIT: SpaceX |
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All contents copyright Lunar Cabin |
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