LIVE: Sea Launch: DIRECTV-11 launch - March 19

[Herb Schaltegger]

marsavian - 19/3/2008  7:26 PM

edkyle99 - 19/3/2008  7:12 PM

End of webcast, with a launch replay showing that it really was hard to see due to poor visibility.

It was hard to see because the broadcast turned into a slideshow a couple minutes before the launch where each frame was at least 5sec apart, poor show.

It looked pretty good on DirecTV channel 573.  Too bad it wasn't in high-definition though. :p

[Herb Schaltegger]

Maa2p - 19/3/2008  8:03 PM

This may be too early to ask, but is D12 on the schedule yet? The president spoke of it during his speech.

D12 was ordered as a ground spare but current announced plans are for a launch sometime in the 3rd or 4th quarter 2009.  However, no announcement of a launch carrier has yet been made, so I suspect that DirecTV is in negotiations with with the major launch carriers right now.

[anik]

Satori - 20/3/2008  2:03 AM

Does anyone have the exact launch time in format 2248:XX.XXXUTC?

22:47:59.11 UTC, according to report of the Russian in Sea Launch webcast.

[jacqmans]

Boeing DIRECTV 11 Satellite Receives 1st Signal Following Successful Launch

ST. LOUIS, March 20, 2008 -- The Boeing Company [NYSE: BA] has received the first on-orbit signals from its DIRECTV 11 satellite, indicating that the satellite is healthy and operating normally. A ground station in Hartebeesthoek, South Africa, reported spacecraft acquisition at 1:44 a.m. Eastern time, as scheduled.

The newest satellite for DIRECTV Inc. was launched on a Sea Launch Zenit-3SL rocket on March 19 from Sea Launch's equatorial launch site in the Pacific Ocean.

"The successful launch of DIRECTV 11 marks another milestone in the evolution of DIRECTV as the leading satellite TV service and provider of high-definition programming," said Rômulo Pontual, DIRECTV's chief technology officer. "Through our long collaboration with Boeing and our commitment to deploying the most advanced technology, we are in the best competitive position to meet the growing demand for high-definition services and provide the most compelling viewing experience for our more than 16.8 million customers."

DIRECTV 11 is a Boeing 702 satellite with onboard technology that will enable DIRECTV to continue expanding its industry-leading lineup of quality High-Definition Television (HDTV) programming to its U.S. customers. DIRECTV 11, together with the DIRECTV 10 satellite launched last year, will provide DIRECTV with the capacity for 150 national HDTV channels and 1,500 local channels.

"Boeing and DIRECTV are celebrating 15 years of collaboration, and I cannot think of a better way to mark this occasion than with the successful delivery, launch and signal acquisition of the ninth satellite we've built for DIRECTV," said Craig Cooning, vice president and general manager of Boeing Space and Intelligence Systems. "We've come a long way since Boeing's first DIRECTV satellite, and we remain committed to their success as we work to deliver the next in the series of HDTV satellites."

DIRECTV 1, launched in 1993, boasted a solar wingspan of 86 feet and an innovative graphite-antenna system featuring transmit and receive reflectors with a contoured surface that required only one feedhorn antenna to provide an optimal signal. Today's DIRECTV 11 has a wingspan measuring more than 157 feet and supplements its antenna system with spot-beam technology capable of concentrating the broadcast signal to specific markets.

DIRECTV 11 is the second of three next-generation Boeing-built satellites that are helping to expand DIRECTV's market by providing technology that brings the crystal-clear sharpness of satellite-delivered HDTV into millions of households.

[iamlucky13]

Unrelated question that perhaps no one will be able to answer, but I thought I'd ask:

jacqmans - 21/3/2008  2:50 AM

Today's DIRECTV 11 has a wingspan measuring more than 157 feet and supplements its antenna system with spot-beam technology capable of concentrating the broadcast signal to specific markets.

Does that mean there will be dead zones? Or perhaps you can use a smaller dish in targeted areas?

[DarthVader]

MajorTom, one of the Orbiter's addons developer, have released (pretty much on time) a first version of his Sea Launch addon:

http://www.orbithangar.com/searchid.php?ID=3277

This version allow to simulate the flight of DirectTV-11 and it works relatively well :-)

[jacqmans]

Boeing Delivers 4th High-Definition TV Satellite to DIRECTV

ST. LOUIS, July 21, 2008 -- The Boeing Company [NYSE: BA] today announced that DIRECTV Inc. has taken on-orbit delivery of the DIRECTV 11 satellite, which will continue to expand DIRECTV's industry-leading lineup of high-definition television channels and services to millions of households in the United States.

Sea Launch launched DIRECTV 11 March 19 on a Sea Launch Zenit-3SL rocket from the launch services company's equatorial launch site in the Pacific Ocean. (Boeing is a 40 percent partner in Sea Launch.) The newest spacecraft in DIRECTV's fleet will begin transmitting additional national high-definition signals for the nation's leading satellite TV provider, and expand DIRECTV's HD platform to up to 150 national channels and local HD channels in well over 100 markets by this fall.

"The Boeing and DIRECTV teams worked together to ensure that this satellite and its systems are ready to begin broadcasting television programs in high definition into homes throughout the United States," said Craig Cooning, vice president and general manager of Boeing Space and Intelligence Systems. "The spacecraft was handed over eight days ahead of schedule, and we are pleased to have a role in assisting DIRECTV with the expansion of their service to customers."

DIRECTV 11 is the fourth Ka-band Boeing 702 satellite built for DIRECTV at Boeing's satellite manufacturing facility in El Segundo, Calif. The facility encompasses approximately 1 million square feet and is the largest state-of-the-art dedicated satellite factory in the world.