Orbital built the Intelsat 15 satellite on a STAR-2 platform. With a mass weight of 2,550 kg (5,622 lb), the high power Ku-band payload will provide video and data services for the Middle East and Indian Ocean regions as well as Russia. Intelsat 15 will produce 4.6 kW of power and feature two 2.3 meter dual-grid deployable antennas as well as one 1.4 meter dual-grid deck-mounted antenna. Designed for a service life of 15 years, Intelsat 15 is part of Intelsat's fleet replacement and expansion plans and replaces Intelsat 709, at an orbital position of 85 degrees East Longitude.

Intelsat is the leading provider of fixed satellite services (FSS) worldwide, delivering information and entertainment for many of the world’s leading media and network companies, multinational corporations, Internet service providers and governmental agencies. Intelsat’s satellite, teleport and fiber infrastructure is unmatched in the industry, setting the standard for advanced transmissions of video, data and voice services. With the globalization of content, broadband, telecom, HD and IPTV fueling next-generation growth, the ever-expanding universe of satellite communications is the cornerstone of today's Intelsat.

Orbital is the world's leading supplier of small geosynchronous (GEO) satellites designed to provide direct-to-home TV broadcasting, cable program distribution, business data network capacity, regional mobile communications and similar services.

From our launch site at the Baikonur Space Center in Kazakhstan, a Zenit-3SLB launch vehicle will lift the 2,550 kg (5,622 lb) Intelsat 15 communications satellite to geosynchronous transfer orbit, on its way to a final orbital position of 85 degrees East Longitude. The first stage will operate for two-and-a-half minutes and then separate, followed by the jettison of the payload fairing three minutes later. After a six-minute burn, the second stage will separate from the Block DM-SLB upper stage. The Block DM will then begin the first of three burns, taking the spacecraft to a stable parking orbit. After a brief second burn, the upper stage will coast with the spacecraft for five hours, after which a third burn will inject the spacecraft into a geosynchronous transit orbit. Eleven minutes later, the spacecraft will separate from the upper stage. Following spacecraft separation, ground stations in Hartebeeshoek, South Africa, and Perth, Australia, will be tracking the satellite to acquire its first signals from orbit.

Nov. 2 - Vehicle assembly on the Zenit-3SLB rocket is underway in support of the Intelsat 15 launch. The first and second stages are mated while the upper stage, the Block DM-3SLB, undergoes standalone tests. In the Payload Processing Facility, tests on the satellite continue on schedule. Upon completion of these tests, the satellite is transferred to the spacecraft fueling facility.

Oct. 28  -  Operations begin in the Payload Processing Facility, where the Intelsat-15 satellite is transferred  from the spacecraft container to the clean room for stand-alone testing. Please visit the following site for additional coverage of these activities: http://www.federalspace.ru/NewsDoSele.asp?NEWSID=7976

Oct. 27 - The Intelsat 15 communications satellite arrives on an Antonov-124 cargo plane at the Baikonur Space Center with representatives from Sea Launch, Intelsat and Orbital Sciences on hand to receive the spacecraft and its associated support equipment. Following customs clearance, the satellite and equipment are loaded onto a transport platform and delivered to the clean room of the Payload Processing Facility at Site 31. Mission operations are now underway. Please visit the following site for additional coverage of satellite arrival: http://www.federalspace.ru/NewsDoSele.asp?NEWSID=7954

Photos: Craig Peterson, Intelsat 15 Mission Manager