Palapa-C1 satellite ready for launching<\/p>\n
By I. Christianto<\/p>\n
COCOA BEACH, Florida (JP): Palapa-C1, the first of Indonesia's
\nnew generation of telecommunication satellites, is ready to be
\nlaunched from Cape Canaveral, Florida, tomorrow at 7:50 p.m.
\n(Feb. 1 at 7:50 a.m., Indonesian Western Time Zone).<\/p>\n
Palapa-C1, which will replace the Palapa-B2P satellite at 113
\ndegrees east longitude, is owned and will be operated by PT
\nSatelindo, one of the country's private telecommunications
\nproviders.<\/p>\n
Satelindo's general manager for corporate relations, Iwan
\nKrisnadi, said here yesterday that the launching of the satellite
\nlargely depends on four aspects: the readiness of the satellite,
\nthe readiness of the launch vehicle, the readiness of the
\nsatellite owner's master control station and the weather
\nthroughout the launch schedule.<\/p>\n
\"Hughes of the United States, the manufacturer of Palapa-C1,
\nsaid that the satellite is Ok for launching, while Satelindo and
\nAmerican Lockheed Martin, the manufacturer of the satellite's
\nlaunch vehicle Atlas IIAS, have also OK'd the launch plans,\" he
\nsaid. \"So the launch readiness will depend on the weather.\"<\/p>\n
Iwan said he was optimistic that the launch would be
\nsuccessful because the weather report said that it would be
\npartly cloudy but not raining on Wednesday.<\/p>\n
He said there will be a review of the launch readiness today,
\nwhich will involve executives from Satelindo, Hughes and Lockheed
\nas well as a weather advisor.<\/p>\n
The launching, he said, will involve a panel consisting of
\nMinister of Tourism, Post and Telecommunications Joop Ave as the
\nadvisor of the Palapa-C1 launching mission and Director General
\nof Post and Telecommunications Djakaria Purawidjaja as a senior
\nmission director.<\/p>\n
\"On the launching day, Minister Joop will be ready at
\nSatelindo's controlling station in Daan Mogot, West Jakarta,
\nwhile Djakaria will be in Cape Canaveral,\" he said, adding that
\nthe panel in Cape Canaveral will also include Indonesian
\nAmbassador to the United States Arifin Siregar as the host of the
\nmission and Satelindo's director of satellites, Sahala Silalahi,
\nas the mission director.<\/p>\n
Sequence<\/p>\n
According to Iwan, the launching, to be carried out by the
\nInternational Launch Services, will receive the \"go\" or \"no go\"
\ncommand from Sahala.<\/p>\n
\"The launching mission will depend by about 80 percent on the
\nweather. If the speed of the wind exceeds 23 knots, or if there's
\ncloud which may cause threatening thunder, the mission will be
\npostponed until the following day.\"<\/p>\n
He said that strong wind might change the vehicle's direction,
\nwhile thunder might cause a blast.<\/p>\n
Iwan said that there will be three major events in the Palapa-
\nC1 launch sequence.<\/p>\n
\"First is liftoff, second is the spacecraft separation which
\nwill occur about 30 minutes after the launch, and third is when
\nSatelindo's controlling station in Jakarta receives a Palapa-C1
\nsignal about 60 minutes after the launch.\"<\/p>\n
Indonesians will witness the three events through live
\ntransmissions by the state-owned TVRI, he added.<\/p>\n
Palapa-C1 is expected to reach its orbit and to be in service
\non March 23 after a seven-day traffic transfer from Palapa-B2P's
\ncontrol station in Cibinong, West Java.<\/p>\n
Satelindo, set up in 1993 to provide various telecommunication
\nservices, is 45 percent owned by a subsidiary of the Bimantara
\nGroup, a conglomerate chaired by one of President Soeharto's
\nsons, 25 percent by DeTeMobil, a subsidiary of Deutsche Telekom
\nof Germany, 22.5 percent by PT Telkom and 7.5 percent by PT
\nIndosat. The last two firms are state owned. Besides operating
\nsatellites, Satelindo also runs international and digital
\ncellular telecommunications services.<\/p>\n
The Palapa-C series are set to replace the current B series
\noperated by Telkom.<\/p>\n
The lessees of Palapa-C1 transponders include mostly
\ntelevision broadcasters from Indonesia and other countries within
\nthe Asia-Pacific region, which are currently using Palapa-B2P
\ntransponders.<\/p>\n
The satellite, with a lifespan of about 14 years, has 34
\ntransponders.<\/p>\n
Satelindo has invested about US$400 million in Palapa-C1 and
\nPalapa-C2. Palapa-C2 will be launched by France-based Arianespace
\nin April.<\/p>",
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"image": ""
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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