Word was issued Thursday, from Arianespace that due to unfavorable weather conditions the launch that was targeted for Friday, August 14, will not take place. The soonest date for a launch is Saturday, August 15. This makes four delays, and hopefully a launch on the fifth day.
On Wednesday Satnews wrote: After three launch delays, it’s all a ‘go’ for Arianespace Flight VA253 on August 14– which will utilize an increased-lift Ariane 5 version – is a “go” for launch on August 14 following an additional Launch Readiness Review (LRR) performed Wednesday in French Guiana. However, now we know that there will be no Friday, launch
Here’s the announcement Arianespace issued.
The Ariane 5 with its three satellite payloads for Flight VA253 was transferred today to the Guiana Space Center’s ELA-3 launch zone. However, due to currently unfavorable wind conditions at altitude above the Guiana Space Center, Arianespace has decided not to initiate the final phase of launch preparation operations.
The soonest possible launch date for Flight VA253 is Saturday, August 15, as early as possible during the following launch window:
- Between 5:33 p.m. and 6:20 p.m. Washington, D.C. time,
- Between 6:33 p.m. and 7:20 p.m. Kourou, French Guiana time,
- Between 21:33 and 22:20 Universal time (UTC),
- Between 11:33 p.m. and 12:20 a.m. Paris time, in the night of August 15 to 16,
- Between 06:33 a.m. and 07:20 a.m. Japan time, in the morning of August 16.
The Ariane 5 launch vehicle and the three satellite payloads: Galaxy 30; MEV-2 and BSAT-4b are in stable and safe conditions.
The mission to geostationary transfer orbit will deploy two telecommunications satellites: Galaxy 30 for Intelsat, and BSAT-4b for B-SAT, both of which are long-time Arianespace customers. Also carried by Ariane 5 is the Mission Extension Vehicle-2 (MEV-2) for Northrop Grumman’s wholly-owned subsidiary, SpaceLogistics LLC, which is a first-time user of Arianespace launch services.
Galaxy 30 was built by Northrop Grumman for Intelsat and will be the first payload deployed during the Ariane 5 mission. This satellite is to provide Ultra-High-Definition video distribution/broadcast and broadband services that cover North America.
MEV-2 is stacked under Galaxy 30 on Ariane 5, and is to be the second payload released during Flight VA253. The SpaceLogistics LLC-built spacecraft is designed to offer life extension services for in-orbit satellites, and its initial target is the Intelsat 10-02 relay platform, which has been in geostationary orbit since 2004.
Completing Flight VA253’s mission sequence will be the deployment of BSAT-4b, configured for Ultra-High-Definition (UHD, 4K and 8K) direct-to-home television broadcasting across Japan. Built by Maxar Technologies, BSAT-4b will be operated by Japan’s Broadcasting Satellite System Corporation (B-SAT).
The launcher configuration used for Flight VA253 marks the final step in Ariane 5’s latest performance improvement program, which was decided in 2016 and has increased the launch vehicle’s total payload capacity by 300 kg. ArianeGroup is production prime contractor for Ariane 5, delivering the launcher to Arianespace for operation.
Liftoff of Flight VA253 is planned as early as possible within the following launch window on August 14:
Between 5:33 p.m. and 6:20 p.m. Washington, D.C. time,
Between 6:33 p.m. and 7:20 p.m. Kourou, French Guiana time,
Between 21:33 and 22:20 Universal time (UTC),
Between 11:33 p.m. and 12:20 a.m. Paris time, in the night of August 14 to August 15,
Between 06:33 a.m. and 07:20 a.m. Japan time, in the morning of August 15.
