Two Galileo satellites scheduled for launch

News & Press: Space

23 November 2021 (1 Comments)

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Galileo satellites 27/28 should be launched on a Soyuz carrier at 0031 UTC on 3 December from Europe’s Spaceport at Kourou, French Guiana.

This Galileo launch is the first of a series of 6 scheduled launches, each carrying 2 satellites. The recently-formed EU Agency for the Space Programme (EUSPA) will oversee the Launch and Early Orbit Phase (LEOP), which covers launch of the spacecraft, travel into correct orbits and gradual switching-on of the spacecraft to test core satellite elements.

LEOP should last ~10 days, seeing the satellites placed in drift start manoeuvres to inject them into target positions in medium-Earth orbits (MEO) of 23,222 km. There are currently 21 Galileo spacecraft operational plus 5 others in orbit but unavailable.

Further details from EUSPA