Hellas 3 satellite is launched

The Greek and Cypriot Hellas Satellite 3 was successfully launched on Thursday to replace the Hellas Sat 2, which was sent into orbit on May 13, 2003 and had a lifespan of 15 years.

Transport Minister Marios Demetriades who was present at the launch in French Guiana said the Hellas Sat 3 satellite is promoting Cyprus in the field of space technology.

He said there are obvious benefits from the company’s offices and ground station being in Cyprus., along with broader economic factors.

Cyprus, he said, will take part of the revenues from the operation of the satellite.

According to online space news Spaceflight Now two geostationary communications satellites rode an Ariane 5 rocket from a launch pad in French Guiana, embarking on missions to broadcast television across Europe, the Middle East and Africa, linking European air travellers to Wi-Fi, and relaying video and data signals across India.

They deployed a spacecraft shared by the Greek and Cypriot operator Hellas-Sat and London-based Inmarsat, and a payload built and owned by the Indian Space Research Organization.

The nearly 55-metre tall rocket blasted off shortly after midnight after a 16-minute delay to allow the launch team time to finalise countdown preparations.

Officials at Thales Alenia Space, the manufacturer of the satellite, and the Indian space agency confirmed ground controllers established contact with the spacecrafts soon after they arrived in space.

The Hellas satellite is expected to reach its position in the coming days and will orbit at nearly 35,800 kilometres over the equator.

Hellas Sat 3 is one of the largest European satellites ever built, weighing 5.78 kg during the launch.

The Greek and Cypriot company Hellas has its headquarters in Nicosia.

The Cyprus Mail is the only English-language daily newspaper published in Cyprus. It was established in 1945 and today, with its popular and widely-read website, the Cyprus Mail is among the most trusted news sites in Cyprus. The newspaper is not affiliated with any political parties and has always striven to maintain its independence. Over the past 70-plus years, the Cyprus Mail, with a small dedicated team, has covered momentous events in Cyprus’ modern history, chronicling the last gasps of British colonial rule, Cyprus’ truncated independence, the coup and Turkish invasion, and the decades of negotiations to stitch the divided island back together, plus a myriad of scandals, murders, and human interests stories that capture the island and its -people. Observers describe it as politically conservative.