SpaceX launches next ten Iridium Next satellites

News Video Global 27 DEC 2017
SpaceX launches next ten Iridium Next satellites

Iridium Communications announced that SpaceX successfully launched the fourth set of 10 Iridium Next satellites into orbit from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California on 23 December. The launch marks the midway point of the Iridium Next launch programme, and was the first Iridium launch to use a SpaceX flight-proven rocket. The first stage booster for Iridium-4 was previously used for Iridium-2, making Iridium the first company to reuse the same rocket booster.

The Iridium network is comprised of six polar orbiting planes, each containing 11 operational crosslinked satellites, for a total of 66 satellites in the active constellation. Of the 10 Iridium Next satellites launched on 23 December, nine were delivered to their operational orbital plane, and the tenth is set to drift to an adjacent orbital plane. Once fully deployed, Iridium Next will blanket the earth with satellite connectivity, enabling broadband connectivity from even the most remote parts of the planet.

All Iridium Next launches take place out of SpaceX’s west coast launch facility at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. Four additional launches are planned for the first half of 2018, including a rideshare that will carry five Iridium Next satellites, and the twin satellites for the NASA/German Research Center for Geosciences Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment Follow-On mission.

Categories:

Satellite

Companies:

Iridium,  SpaceX

Regions:

Global

Tags:

Launch, Internet Access, Satellite

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