ULA, Boeing + Lockheed Martin Collaborate To Send Mexico’s Morelos-3 Soaring (Launch)

[SatNews] Kudos to the commercial launch services chosen by for Mexico’s Morelos-3 (MEXSAT-2) communications satellite.

United Launch Alliance (ULA) congratulates Lockheed Martin Commercial Launch Services (LMCLS) on its selection to provide commercial launch services for Mexico’s Morelos-3 (MEXSAT-2) communications satellite.

ULA will provide the Atlas V rocket for this mission as a subcontractor to LMCLS. LMCLS is the exclusive provider of all non-U.S. government Atlas V launch services worldwide and provides all systems engineering, regulatory and related value-added services for the launch.

“We are tremendously pleased ULA’s reliable Atlas V vehicle will launch this important communications satellite for the Secretaria de Comunicaciones y Transportes, a government agency of Mexico,” said Michael Gass, president and CEO of ULA. “Atlas continues to be a cost-effective, proven choice for commercial and government customers to deliver vital satellites to orbit.”

The launch is scheduled for as early as 2015 from Space Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida.

Morelos-3 will be the third of three communications satellites that comprise the MEXSAT communications satellite system. The previous two satellites Morelos 1 and 2, were Boeing satellites made for Mexico for different projects. The Mexican government named MEXSAT-2 “Morelos-3” as a reference to the two other satellites. For the MEXSAT satellite system, Mexico named the three MEXSAT satellites: “Bicentenario” (MEXSAT-3); “Centenario” (MEXSAT-1); and “Morelos-3” (MEXSAT-2). Boeing is building Centenario and Morelos-3 for the MEXSAT program. MEXSAT-3 already launched. The next satellite to launch is Centenario. After Centenario, Morelos-3 will launch on the Atlas V.

Since ULA was formed in December 2006, 74 missions have been launched with 100 percent success, carrying more than $60 billion in U.S. government and commercial space investments.

Lockheed Martin Commercial Launch Services, a business unit of Lockheed Martin Corporation, markets the Atlas V to commercial satellite customers worldwide and also offers Athena launch services for small satellites and multi-payload RideShare missions. LMCLS is responsible for contracts, marketing, sales and mission management for commercial and international government Atlas missions and all Athena missions.

ULA program management, engineering, test, and mission support functions are headquartered in Denver, Colorado.  Manufacturing, assembly and integration operations are located at Decatur, Alabama, and Harlingen, Texas. Launch operations are located at Cape Canaveral AFS, Florida, and Vandenberg AFB, California.