Russian Space Mission Control to Abandon KazSat-1
[Satellite TODAY 08-25-09] Russia’s space mission control has placed the KazSat-1 satellite into a graveyard orbit in efforts to discard the spacecraft, according to reports by Russian news agency Ria Novosti released Aug. 21.
Russian officials said the decision to discard KazSat-1 was made earlier this month due to a possibility of collision with other satellites.
The $100 million communications spacecraft, Kazakhstan’s first satellite, was built by the Khrunichev Space Center and launched in June 2006. KazSat-1 aimed to provide broadcasting, fixed satellite communication and data transmission for Kazakhstan and Central Asia and was guaranteed for a service life of 10 years.
In June 2008, Russian officials confirmed that control of KazSat-1 was lost and then quickly restored. In October, control of the spacecraft was reported to be lost permanently.
Related Stories-
Khrunichev Loses Kazsat-1 [Satellite Today 12-03-08]
Kazakhstan Keeps Quiet about Kazsat 1 Loss Via Satellite August 1, 2008
State Of The Industry: News Players Enter Growing Market Via Satellite July 1, 2007