[Satnews] Getting ready for another ULA launch…
Statement from ULA and Boeing…
The Lockheed Martin Commercial Launch Services and ULA team is proud to be the launch provider for the Secretaría de Comunicaciones y Transportes de México (Ministry of Communications and Transporta- tion of Mexico) Morelos-3 satellite. Morelos-3 is an important element of the Mexsat program, Mexico’s next-generation telecommunications system.
Our teams are focused on attaining Perfect Product Delivery for the Morelos-3 mission, which includes a relentless focus on mission success (the perfect product) and also excellence and continuous improvement in meeting all of the needs of our customers (the perfect delivery).
Our thanks to the entire launch team, including our suppliers, as well as our mission partner—the Ministry of Communications and Transpor- tation of Mexico—for their hard work and commitment to mission success. Go Atlas! Go Centaur! Go Morelos-3!
The Mission
ULA's Atlas V 421 rocket provided by Lockheed Martin Commercial Launch Services will deliver the Morelos-3 mission to a geo-synchronous transfer orbit (2588 x 19323 nmi). Liftoff will occur from Space Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida.
Morelos-3 will be the second of two communications satellites that comprise the Mexsat communications satellite system. Mexsat is a constellation of satellites owned by Mexico’s Secretaría de Comunicaciones y Transportes (Ministry of Communications and Transportation) and operated by Telecomunicaciones de México (Telecommunications of Mexico) that delivers advanced telecommunications throughout Mexico.
The Mexsat program is an end-to-end satellite communications system that provides 3G+ communications services to mobile terminals across multiple platforms. The system consists of two satellites, two ground sites, associated network and spacecraft operations centers, and reference user terminals. Satellite services include education and health programs, voice, data, video, and Internet services. The Mexsat program provides communications to rural zones as a complement to other networks and will also provide secure communications for Mexico’s national security needs.
Morelos-3 is a 702HP geomobile satellite built by The Boeing Company. The 702HP satellite will supply 14 kilowatts of power through 5-panel solar array wings using high-efficiency ultra triple-junction gallium arsenide solar cells. It will also carry a 22-meter L-band reflector that enables connectivity to handheld terminals, complemented by a 2-meter Ku-band antenna. The Boeing-built Morelos-3 is designed for a 15-year service life. Morelos-3 will be the 57th Atlas V launch since the vehicle’s inaugural mission in 2002 and the fifth in the 421 configuration.
