China Aerospace Corporation

Iridium 42 & 44

Long March 2C/SD

SUCCESS
Success

Monday, December 8, 1997 · 07:16 UTC

Mission

/01

Iridium provides global mobile telecommunications services using a constellation of 66 low earth orbit satellites in a 86.4° inclined orbit. Although 77 satellites were originally envisioned for the system and spawned the name based on the 77th element in the periodic table, the system has been scaled back. Motorola's Satellite Communications Group designed and manufactured the Iridium satellites with Lockheed Martin providing the LM-700A spacecraft buses.

Mission Type

Communications

Orbit

Low Earth Orbit (LEO)

Probability

N/A

Status

Launch Successful

Vehicle & Pad

/02

Rocket

Long March 2C/SD

Variant: C/SD

Launch Pad

Launch Complex 7

Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center, People's Republic of China

38.849° N, 111.608° E

4

Pad Launches

4

Location Launches

19

Agency Launches

80

Orbital This Year

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