Mexico Launches Communications Satellite From Cape Canaveral

   By Anthony Harrup 
 

MEXICO CITY--Mexico successfully sent its Morelos 3 communications satellite into orbit Friday, months after a previous launch ended in the loss of a satellite.

The Morelos 3 satellite was launched from the Cape Canaveral in Florida early Friday. It's expected to take 13 days to reach its final orbital position and go into operation 10 months later after systems are tested, the Communications and Transport Ministry said.

The Boeing satellite was put in orbit by Lockheed Martin Commercial Launch Services using an Atlas V 421 rocket of United Launch Alliance, a joint venture between Lockheed Martin Corp. (LMT) and Boeing Co. (BA).

The ministry said the 5.3-ton Morelos 3 will cover the entire Mexican territory and be used for communications among national security agencies, emergency alerts and support during natural disasters. It has a useful life expectancy of 15 years and will be operated by the state-owned telecom company Telecomunicaciones de Mexico.

It also can provide mobile-communications services that were to have been carried out by the Centenario satellite. The Centenario was lost in May when the Russian-made Proton-M rocket launched from Kazakhstan broke up over eastern Siberia.

The Bicentenario satellite, the first of the three in the Mexsat constellation, was launched in December 2012 and has been operating for almost three years.

Write to Anthony Harrup at [e-mail]

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(END) Dow Jones Newswires

October 02, 2015 13:03 ET (17:03 GMT)

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