{"id":11216,"date":"2022-10-22T22:06:58","date_gmt":"2022-10-22T14:06:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp-productionenv-bjg9h2g2bgg5b8aa.southeastasia-01.azurewebsites.net\/news\/oneweb-celebrates-successful-launch-on-indian-rocket\/"},"modified":"2022-10-22T22:06:58","modified_gmt":"2022-10-22T14:06:58","slug":"oneweb-celebrates-successful-launch-on-indian-rocket","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/news\/oneweb-celebrates-successful-launch-on-indian-rocket\/","title":{"rendered":"OneWeb celebrates successful launch on Indian rocket"},"content":{"rendered":"
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India\u2019s GSLV Mk.3 rocket, also called LVM3, lifts off with 36 OneWeb internet satellites. Credit: ISRO<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

OneWeb confirmed it established contact with all 36 new satellites launched Saturday on top of India\u2019s most powerful rocket, resuming the deployment of the company\u2019s fleet of internet relay platforms after suspending launches with Russia earlier this year.<\/p>\n

The mission Saturday was one of five rocket launches OneWeb needs to complete the first-generation constellation. OneWeb contracted SpaceX for three of the remaining missions, and inked a deal with NewSpace India Limited, the commercial arm of India\u2019s space agency, for two flights.<\/p>\n

\u201cToday\u2019s launch is a significant milestone for OneWeb,\u201d said Sunil Bharti Mittal, executive chairman of OneWeb, and the and the billionaire founder of Bharti Enterprises, OneWeb\u2019s largest shareholder. \u201cThis new phase of our launch programme from India brings us a step closer to not only enhancing our global coverage but also delivering connectivity in India and South Asia, particularly to the communities who need it most.\u201d<\/p>\n

The 36 OneWeb satellites lifted off from the Satish Dhawan Space Center on India\u2019s east coast at 2:37:40 p.m. EDT (1837:40 GMT) Saturday on top of a Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle Mk.3 rocket, also called the LVM3. The GSLV Mk.3 is India\u2019s most powerful launch vehicle, and the OneWeb flight was the first commercial mission to use it.<\/p>\n

The 143-foot-tall (43.5-meter) rocket fired two powerful S200 solid rocket boosters to begin the climb off the pad at the Indian spaceport, located on Sriharikota Island about 50 miles (80 kilometers) north of Chennai. The GSLV Mk.3 headed southeast over the Bay of Bengal, riding 2.2 million pounds of thrust from the two solid-fueled boosters before igniting two core stage Vikas engines nearly two minutes into the mission.<\/p>\n

With the hydrazine-fueled core engines firing, the solid rocket boosters burned out and jettisoned a little more than 2 minutes into the flight. The nose cone on top of the rocket jettisoned moments later to reveal the OneWeb satellites mounted to a dispenser structure. The core stage separated and the cryogenic third stage ignited a hydrogen-fueled engine to more than 10 minutes and accelerate the OneWeb satellites to orbital velocity.<\/p>\n

The OneWeb satellites began separating from their dispenser on the GSLV\u2019s upper stage at T+plus 19 minutes, 45 seconds. The spacecraft deployed in groups of four over the following 90 minutes. The 36 satellites totaled<\/p>\n

Massimiliano Ladovaz, OneWeb\u2019s chief technology officer, tweeted late Saturday that ground controllers established contact with all 36 satellites after deployment from the Indian launch vehicle. U.S. military tracking data confirmed the rocket placed the satellites into an on-target orbit with a peak altitude of about 373 miles (601 kilometers) and an inclination of 87.4 degrees to the equator.<\/p>\n

The OneWeb satellites, each weighing about 325 pounds (147.5 kilograms at launch), were expected to deploy solar panels and activate xenon ion thrusters to maneuver into their operational orbit at an altitude of 745 miles (1,200 kilometers).<\/p>\n

OneWeb\u2019s satellites are built in a factory just outside the gates of NASA\u2019s Kennedy Space Center in Florida by a joint venture between OneWeb and Airbus Defense and Space. The satellites are are designed to beam low-latency broadband internet signals to customers around the world. Based in London, OneWeb is one of several operators either already launching large fleets of internet satellites, or planning to begin launches soon.<\/p>\n

SpaceX has launched more than 3,500 Starlink internet satellites using the company\u2019s own reusable Falcon 9 rocket. OneWeb has launched 428 satellites of a planned first-generation constellation of 648 spacecraft using 13 Russian Soyuz rockets purchased through Arianespace, the French launch services provider. And Amazon plans to launch its first two prototype internet satellites of a planned constellation of 3,236 spacecraft next year on the first flight of United Launch Alliance\u2019s new Vulcan rocket.<\/p>\n