Space Exploration Technologies today announced the successful launch of a Falcon 1 rocket and delivery of Malaysia's RazakSAT into the correct orbit."This marks another successful launch by the SpaceX team," Elon Musk, CEO and CTO of SpaceX, said in a statement. "We are pleased to announce that Malaysia's RazakSAT, aboard Falcon 1, has achieved the intended orbit."
Falcon 1, a two-stage, liquid oxygen/rocket-grade kerosene vehicle designed and manufactured by SpaceX, lifted off Monday from the Reagan Test Site on Omelek Island at the U.S. Army Kwajalein Atoll in the Pacific Ocean, approximately 2,500 miles southwest of Hawaii.
SpaceX plans to launch a nine-engined Falcon 9 rocket from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station later this year. This is the second successful launch of a Falcon 1. The first three launch attempts did not reach orbit.
RazakSAT was designed and built by Astronautic Technology (M) Sdn Bhd (ATSB), a pioneer and leader in the design and manufacture of satellites in Malaysia.
"Our ground systems were able to pick up communication from RazakSAT on its first pass," Norhizam Hamzah, senior vice President, chief technical officer, space systems division, ATSB. "The satellite is communicating as expected and our team will continue to monitor the data closely."
Preliminary data indicates that the RazakSAT, equipped with a high resolution Medium-Sized Aperture Camera, achieved the intended near-equatorial low earth orbit at 685 km altitude and a 9 degree inclination. The payload is expected to provide high resolution images of Malaysia that can be applied to land management, resource development and conservation, forestry and fish migration.
For more information about the Falcon family of vehicles, and to watch the Falcon 1 Flight 5 video, visit the SpaceX website at www.spacex.com.
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