Before dawn on a Thursday in early August, a Falcon 9 rose from Cape Canaveral carrying Intelsat's Galaxy 37, a machine meant to hang motionless above the Americas and relay the signals people depend on. It is one more thread in a patient renewal of an aging fleet, a forty-year legacy being carried forward into new metal. The satellite now waits for its place at 127 degrees west, where it will serve North American customers once it moves into full service later this year.
SpaceX Launches Intelsat's Galaxy 37 Satellite into Geostationary Orbit from Florida
Eight geostationary satellites in 10 months, by Intelsat's count
Mark
So this is one satellite on one rocket. Why does it get attention?
Mimi
Because it closes out something larger. Intelsat says Galaxy 37 completes a fleet refresh that started about 10 months ago, and it's the eighth geostationary satellite in that span.
Luke
Worth noting that the record claim is Intelsat's own. The report attributes it to the company, and I wouldn't treat it as independently verified.
Mark
Fair. What actually happened during the launch itself?
Mimi
Liftoff at 1 a.m. EDT from Space Launch Complex 40, separation about half an hour later, and signal acquisition confirmed at 1:37 a.m.
Mark
And the hardware? It sounds like a lot of it was reused.
Mimi
The booster was on its sixth flight and landed on the drone barge Just Read The Instructions. The fairing halves were on their eighth and 10th flights, with recovery planned using Bob.
Luke
Careful there. The fairings were described as set to be retrieved. The source doesn't confirm that recovery happened.
Mark
What will the satellite do?
Mimi
Sit at 127 degrees west and serve North America: C-band for television and telecom customers, Ku-band for mobility, network and U.S. government users.
Luke
And none of that is live yet. Operational status is expected later this year, so that's a plan, not a result.
O Pulso
- A rocket lifted off at 1 a.m. Eastern, and the clock ran tight through the minutes until separation about thirty minutes later.
- Intelsat's signal lock at 1:37 a.m. turned a rocket's flight into a living link with a spacecraft far above the planet.
- The refresh of an aging Galaxy fleet is racing forward, with eight geostationary satellites placed in orbit within ten months.
- The booster returned to be caught by the drone barge Just Read The Instructions, while fairing halves were set for recovery by the drone ship Bob.
- Galaxy 37 now sits in orbit awaiting its operational debut at 127 degrees west later this year.
Before dawn on a Thursday in early August, a Falcon 9 rose from Cape Canaveral carrying Intelsat's Galaxy 37, a machine meant to hang motionless above the Americas and relay the signals people depend on. It is one more thread in a patient renewal of an aging fleet, a forty-year legacy being carried forward into new metal. The satellite now waits for its place at 127 degrees west, where it will serve North American customers once it moves into full service later this year.
At one in the morning Eastern on Thursday, August 3, a Falcon 9 lifted off from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral with a single passenger: the Galaxy 37 communications satellite, built by Maxar for Intelsat. Its destination was geostationary orbit, the fixed height above the equator where a satellite can hold steady over one place on the ground.
About half an hour later the satellite separated from the rocket. At 1:37 a.m., Intelsat confirmed it had acquired the satellite's signal, the moment when a launch becomes a working relationship between operator and spacecraft. The first stage, on its sixth flight, returned to Earth and was recovered on the drone barge Just Read The Instructions.
Intelsat's chief executive, Dave Wajsgras, called the launch the completion of the company's Galaxy fleet refresh, a plan that began about ten months ago and honors a forty-year legacy that North American customers have relied on for decades. Galaxy 37 will sit at 127 degrees west and become operational later this year, carrying C-band capacity for television and telecom customers and Ku-band service for mobility, network and U.S. government users.
At 1 a.m. Eastern on Thursday, August 3, a Falcon 9 rocket rose from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida. The 229-foot vehicle carried a single payload, the Galaxy 37 communications satellite built by Maxar for the operator Intelsat. Its destination was geostationary orbit.
The satellite separated from the rocket about half an hour after liftoff. Intelsat then confirmed it had acquired the satellite's signal at 1:37 a.m. EDT, the point at which a launch becomes a working relationship between operator and spacecraft. Weather had been favorable going in: the probability of acceptable conditions stood at 80 percent in the minutes before launch.
The rocket's first stage was on its sixth flight. It came back to Earth and was recovered on SpaceX's drone barge, named Just Read The Instructions. The two halves of the payload fairing were also slated for recovery, using the drone ship Bob. One half was flying for the eighth time and the other for the 10th.
Intelsat's chief executive, Dave Wajsgras, said in a statement after the launch that it completes the company's comprehensive Galaxy fleet refresh plan, which began about 10 months ago. He described the milestone as part of a 40-year Galaxy legacy, and called the satellites ones that North American customers have relied on for decades.
The company says Galaxy 37 will become operational later this year, stationed at 127 degrees west. Its G-37 C-band payload is expected to supply North American capacity for television media and telecommunications network customers. Its Horizon 4 Ku-band payload is meant to provide continuity of service for mobility, network and U.S. government customers.
The refresh has run across several launches and more than one rocket. Galaxy 33 and 34 went up on a SpaceX vehicle in October. Galaxy 35 and 36 followed in December, launched from French Guiana aboard an Ariane 5. Thursday's launch put Intelsat's eighth geostationary satellite into orbit within a 10-month window, which the company says sets a new commercial satellite record.
Intelsat is a multinational satellite services company based in Luxembourg. With Galaxy 37 in orbit and signal confirmed, the next milestone is its move into service at 127 degrees west later this year.
Citações Notáveis
The launch completes the comprehensive Galaxy fleet refresh plan begun about 10 months ago, and is part of a 40-year Galaxy legacy.— Dave Wajsgras, Intelsat CEO (paraphrased)
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