Russia’s Proton-M rocket set for orbiting US satellite

Russia’s Proton-M carrier rocket with a US telecoms satellite, Intelsat-23, will be launched on Sunday from the Baikonur space center in Kazakhstan, a spokesman for the Russian Federal Space Agency Roscosmos said. The spokesman said that the launch of Proton-M with Intelsat-23 satellite has been scheduled for October 14, according to the Russian (RIA Novosti) News Agency. The launch was initially scheduled for August 23, but was postponed because of a failed satellite launch earlier that month, when two telecommunications satellites were lost due to a failure in the Russian Proton-M rocket’s upper stage. Intelsat-23 has been built by Orbital Sciences Corporation for Intelsat Ltd., which operates the world’s most extensive satellite network, comprising over 50 satellites. The satellite is equipped with 24 C-band and 15 Ku-band transponders and will provide telecommunications services to customers in North and Latin America, Western Europe, Africa and some islands in the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans. The launch of the Proton-M is conducted under a contract concluded by International Launch Services Inc. (ILS), which is owned by the Khrunichev Center, RSC Energia and US firm Space Transport Inc. y