Jupiter 3 spacecraft weighs over 9 tons
Tomorrow, Thursday, July 26, the seventh launch of the powerful Falcon Heavy rocket will take place. The mission features a record payload: Falcon Heavy will launch the Jupiter 3 telecommunications satellite into geostationary orbit (35,700 kilometers above Earth), which, according to operator Hughes Network Systems, is the largest commercial spacecraft ever created.
SpaceX to launch on July 26 with Falcon Heavy rocket to launch world’s heaviest commercial communications
The Falcon Heavy will launch from Kennedy Space Center Launch Pad LC-39A at Cape Canaveral, Florida on Wednesday at 11:04 pm ET (Thursday at 06:04 am BST). The launch will be broadcast live.
Jupiter 3, built by Maxar Technologies for EchoStar and its subsidiary Hughes Network Systems, will be used to provide broadband Internet access in the Americas. Once deployed, the size of the Jupiter 3 will be comparable to the wingspan of an airliner (40-50 meters).
