SpaceX Successfully Launches JCSAT-18/Kacific 1 Satellite Via Falcon 9 Rocket Written 17 December 2019
Falcon 9 first stage on an ASDS barge after successful landing at sea. | SpaceX/Wikipedia
CBS News reports that on Monday, SpaceX successfully launched a Falcon 9 rocket “boost[ing] the Boeing-built JCSAT-18/Kacific 1 satellite into space.” After “boosting the vehicle out of the dense lower atmosphere,” the Falcon 9 rocket achieved “an on-target touchdown aboard a SpaceX droneship” – eight and a half minutes after launch. After having reached “elliptical ‘transfer’ orbit” with the help of the Falcon 9, the satellite will use “on-board thrusters” to put it “into its operational circular orbit 22,300 miles above the equator.” The satellite is “expected to operate for at least 15 years” and will “provide 56 Ka-band spot beams to selected underserved areas of southeast Asia and the Pacific islands, carrying broadband internet for government services, healthcare and disaster relief.”
Full Story (CBS News)