Ariane 5 is scheduled to launch two satellites, India's GSAT-11 and Korea's GEO-KOMPSAT-2A, on 4th December in its sixth mission of 2018.
For its next mission, scheduled for 4th December, an Ariane 5 ECA will launch two satellites: India's GSAT-11 and Korea's GEO-KOMPSAT-2A. It will be the 102nd flight of Ariane 5, the sixth of 2018 and the tenth launch of the year from the CSG.
With a launch mass of 5,854kg, GSAT-11 is an operational telecommunications satellite designed and built by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO). It is the largest satellite ever built by India’s space agency.
Operating from a final orbital position at 74 deg. East, GSAT-11 will deliver multi-spot beam coverage over the Indian mainland and nearby islands, helping to bridge the digital divide on the Indian sub-continent. The satellite has an expected lifetime of more than 15 years.
With a launch mass of 3,507kg, GEO-KOMPSAT-2A is a national programme developed and built by the Korea Aerospace Research Institute (KARI) for the Korean government. The satellite is designed to conduct meteorological and space weather monitoring missions over the Asia-Pacific region. It has an expected lifetime of more than 10 years. It will be the seventh Korean satellite to be launched by Arianespace.