Paris (AFP)
An Ariane 5 rocket took off on Tuesday from Kourou, in French Guiana, to put into orbit two telecommunications satellites, one for a Japanese operator and the other for the South Korean space agency.
It was the third flight of 2020. The European launcher took off at 19:18, Kourou time (22:18 GMT, 23:18 Paris).
The mission should last approximately 31 minutes from takeoff until the separation of the satellites.
Ariane 5 takes the GEO-KOMPSAT-2B satellite for the Korean Aerospace Research Institute (KARI) and the JCSAT-17 satellite on behalf of the Japanese operator SKY Perfect JSAT Corporation, said Arianespace in a press release.
JCSAT-17 will cover Japan and the Asia-Pacific region. It will be the 21st satellite of the Japanese operator to be launched by Arianespace.
The JCSAT-17 satellite has a mass of 5.8 T at takeoff. Its lifespan is estimated at 15 years.
Eighth satellite launched by Arianespace for South Korea, GEO-KOMPSAT-2B (3.4 T) will carry out terrestrial environment and ocean surveillance missions for the South Korean government.
Its lifespan is estimated at more than 10 years.
© 2020 AFP