It was recently announced that Sea Launch was preparing for the launch of the Intelsat (News - Alert) 21 satellite. Intelsat 21 was located at 302 Degrees East longitude and replaced the IS-9 satellite.

Apart from offering mobility services, IS-21 will maintain and improve the video neighborhood in Latin America. Intelsat 21 will carry 24 C-band transponders and 36 Ku-band transponders, weighing 5,984 kilograms (13,192 lbs.) at lift-off and is based upon the Boeing (News - Alert) Satellite Systems, Inc. (BSSI) 702MP platform.

Recently, the company announced that a Sea Launch Zenit 3SL launch vehicle successfully launched the Intelsat 21 satellite from a mobile platform in the equatorial Pacific Ocean. Liftoff reportedly occurred at 2:55 a.m. EDT.

The Intelsat 21 satellite separated from the rocket’s upper stage and continued its ascent toward geosynchronous orbit, thirty minutes after launch, at 3:25 a.m. EDT.

Offering coverage across the South Atlantic to Intelsat’s maritime and aeronautical customers, Intelsat 21 also provides a Ku-band mobility beam. Intelsat’s worldwide broadband mobility platform is scheduled for completion in early 2013.

The satellite’s final orbital location will be 302 Degrees East.

“Intelsat 21 will refresh capacity for Latin America’s premier video neighborhood and will offer vital communications services spanning four continents,” said Intelsat CEO David McGlade. “In addition, Intelsat 21 continues deployment of Intelsat’s Ku-band global broadband mobility platform, designed to support the rapid growth in demand for broadband connectivity for maritime and aeronautical applications.”

In 2010, the company was able to immediately offer important communication links after the Haiti earthquake. This earthquake caused havoc in the region and caused severe damage to the local infrastructure and measures 7.0 on the Richter scale. Within hours of the disaster, Intelsat responded to the first customer request for assistance.

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