Ariane 5 - Fifth launch of 2008

From Space Wire Top Stories:

Yesterday evening, an Ariane 5 ECA launcher lifted off from Europe's Spaceport at Kourou, in French Guiana, on its mission to place two telecommunications satellites into geostationary transfer orbits. Lift-off of flight V185 took place at 22:44 CEST/Paris on 14 August (20:44 UTC/GMT; 17:44 UTC-3/Kourou).The satellites were accurately injected into the correct transfer orbits about 30 minutes later. The payload comprised AMC-21, which will provide will provide 24 Ku-band channels of television and enterprise data distribution services over the USA, the Gulf of Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean, and Superbird 7, which will provide 28 Ku-band channels of broadcast services and mobile terminal links over Japan, eastern Asia and the Pacific Ocean. The payload mass was 8068 kg; the satellite masses totalled 7229 kg, with payload adapters and dispensers making up the additional 839 kg. This fifth launch of the year keeps Arianespace and Europe's Spaceport on target for the seven missions planned for 2008 - the busiest year ever for Ariane 5. Flight timeline The Ariane 5's cryogenic, liquid fuelled main engine was ignited first. Seven seconds later, the solid fuel rocket boosters were also fired, and a fraction of a second after that, the launch vehicle lifted off. The solid boosters were jettisoned 2 min 20 sec after main engine ignition, and the fairing protecting the payload during the climb through the Earth's atmosphere was discarded at 3 min 12 sec. The launcher's main engine was shut down at 8 min 54 sec; 5 seconds later the main cryogenic stage separated from the upper stage and its payload.

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