A Proton rocket is set to lift off from Kazakhstan on Tuesday with a satellite to serve DISH Network television subscribers across the United States.
The 191-foot-tall rocket will launch at 1831 GMT (1:31 p.m. EST) Tuesday from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan.
The three-stage Proton and a Breeze M upper stage will place the EchoStar 16 satellite in a geostationary transfer orbit with a low point of 1,512 miles, a high point of 22,236 miles and an inclination of 29.5 degrees.
After a nearly 10-minute flight under the power of the Proton core booster, the Breeze M upper stage will fire five times before deploying EchoStar 16 at 0343 GMT Wednesday (10:43 p.m. EDT Tuesday).
The 14,660-pound EchoStar 16 satellite was built by Space Systems/Loral. The craft will enter service in geostationary orbit at 61.5 degrees west longitude, where it will join two other EchoStar satellites covering the United States for Dish Network.
The Proton rocket rolled to Complex 200 at the Baikonur Cosmodrome on Nov. 17. Credit: Roscosmos
Credit: Khrunichev
Credit: Khrunichev
Credit: Khrunichev
Credit: Khrunichev
Credit: Khrunichev
Credit: Khrunichev
Credit: Khrunichev
Credit: Khrunichev
Space video for your computer, iPod or big screen TV
