Liftoff of Soyuz mission with six Globalstar satellites

October 19, 2010

Arianespace’s Soyuz mission with the initial cluster of Globalstar second-generation satellites is now underway following liftoff from Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan.

Conducted by Arianespace’s Starsem affiliate, this flight will deliver the six trapezoidal-shaped spacecraft into a circular phasing orbit.

The Globalstar satellites are installed on a purpose-built dispenser system that carries two spacecraft mounted on its upper section and four on the lower portion.  They will be deployed during a two-step process at 1hr. 38 min. and 1 hr. 40 min after liftoff.

The six satellites to be orbited by Soyuz each weigh approximately 700 kg., and carry 16 transponders from C-to S-band, and 16 receivers from L- to C-band.

Today’s mission is the first of four Soyuz launches booked with Arianespace to deploy a total of 24 second-generation satellites, which will support Globalstar’s current lineup of voice, Duplex and Simplex data products and services.

Follow Starsem’s ST22 mission activity with the update stories: Soyuz delivers: Six satellites are orbited for Globalstar’s second-generation constellation (October 19, 2010) Soyuz moves to the launch pad with its six Globalstar second-generation satellites (October 16, 2010) Assembly of the Soyuz 2 launcher is complete for its upcoming Globalstar mission (October 15, 2010) Launcher integration moves into final phase for the Soyuz 2 mission with six Globalstar satellites (October 14, 2010) Globalstar’s six satellites are encapsulated for their upcoming Soyuz mission from Baikonur Cosmodrome (October 11, 2010) Globalstar's second-generation satellites are integrated on the Soyuz upper stage (October 8, 2010) Integration is complete with the six Globalstar satellites for Soyuz’ mission from Baikonur Cosmodrome this month (October 1, 2010) Globalstar's six second-generation satellites are readied for Soyuz launch from Baikonur Cosmodrome (Septembet 7, 2010) Initial Soyuz mission with Globalstar second-generation satellites is being readied for an October liftoff from Baikonur Cosmodrome (August 27, 2010) For additional information on the ST22 mission, read the Launch Kit.