Hughes' in-orbit failures may make the headlines, but Lockheed gets the award for worst in-orbit and on-ground performance. They made the two Echostar sats that are wounded in orbit. They have also significantly delayed the Nimiq satellite for DBS in Canada, and now the Ikonos sat:
Space Imaging Announces Delay of IKONOS 1 Satellite Launch
THORNTON, Colo.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Dec. 2, 1998--Space Imaging announced today that the launch of the world's first commercial one-meter resolution satellite, IKONOS 1, will occur by June 1999. The launch was previously scheduled for 1998. The delay is a result of a technical problem discovered during the satellite's final verification testing. The problem lies in a satellite sub-system and is being corrected.
''The sophistication of a satellite such as IKONOS 1 demands that every sub-system be tested and operate at 100% capability,'' said John Copple, Space Imaging's chief executive officer. ''Lockheed Martin has an extensive test program to ensure any potential problems are corrected prior to launch. Space Imaging will continue to rely on the judgment and proven expertise of Lockheed Martin to ensure mission success.''
IKONOS 1 is being built by Lockheed Martin Missiles & Space in Sunnyvale, California. It will be launched from Vandenberg Air Force Base, California, aboard an Athena II rocket.
Space Imaging is a leading supplier of space imagery, aerial photography, mapping services, and derivative geographic information products and services. The company supplies these products and services to commercial, government and consumer users worldwide. Space Imaging collects and distributes Earth imagery from the Indian Remote Sensing satellites, the U.S. Landsat, Canada's RADARSAT and the European Space Agency's ERS satellites. In addition, Space Imaging distributes imagery from the Japanese JERS imaging system archive. The company also delivers a broad array of aerial-derived information products through its Mapping Alliance Program.
|
