Sea Launch Signs Pact To Launch XM-4 Satellite
By Staff Writer | August 12, 2003
Sea Launch, a joint venture of Boeing [NYSE: BA] and international partners, has received a contract from XM Satellite Radio [Nasdaq: XMSR] to launch the XM-4 satellite on a Zenit rocket in 2006.
Sea Launch placed the first two XM satellites – “Rock” and “Roll” – in orbit in 2001. The company also was selected for the launch of the XM-3 satellite in 2004 as part of a delivery-in-orbit contract with Boeing Satellite Systems, the manufacturer of all four satellites.
The new contract directs the Sea Launch team to deliver XM-4 – a Boeing 702 spacecraft – to geosynchronous transfer orbit for a final orbital position at 115 degrees West Longitude. The XM-3 spacecraft will be positioned at 85 degrees West Longitude.