Arianespace's eighth mission of the year, a dual telecommunications satellite launch, will take place on 5 July.

A heavy-lift Ariane 5 will loft the dual telecommunications satellite payload on Flight 153 carrying the Stellat 5 and N-STAR c satellites, with liftoff set at the opening of a launch window that runs from 8:21 pm to 9:18 pm Kourou time. Stellat 5, according to Arianespace, will ride in the upper payload position on Arianespace's heavy-lift Ariane 5, and will be released into geostationary transfer orbit first. It will be followed by N-STAR c, which is to be in the lower position.

The N-STAR c is optimised for a 10-year on-orbit life and will provide mobile telephony and data transfer services to Japan and its surrounding waters. The satellite was delivered to the Ariane Spaceport in French Guiana on 18 June and was immediately moved into the new S5 preparation complex, where it is being readied for flight. Built by a Lockheed Martin/Orbital team for Japan's NTT DoCoMo, N-STAR c will operate in S-band frequencies from an orbital location at 136 degrees East longitude. It will have a launch mass of 1,625 kg., and the satellite is based on Orbital's STAR-1 and STAR-2 standard platforms, says Arianespace.

The Stellat 5 payload for Flight 153 will be used by a joint-venture company called Stellat, which brings together France Telecom with EuropeStar. Positioned at 5 degrees West longitude, Stellat 5, which arrived in French Guiana in May, will support two-way broadband Internet access across much of Europe, and will offer a connectivity matrix between Europe, the east coasts of North and South America, Africa, the Middle East and significant swaths of near Asia. Stellat 5, says Arianespace, is based on the Alcatel Space Industries' Spacebus 3000 B3 platform, and will have a launch mass of 4,100 kg.

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