Galileo satellites not on right orbit—Arianespace
This photo provided by the European Space Agency (ESA), shows the medium-lift VS07 Soyuz rocket lifting off from its launching pad in Kourou, French Guiana, Friday Aug. 22, 2014. The European Space Agency says two satellites for its new global navigation system have been lifted into orbit aboard a modified Soyuz rocket. Friday’s launch from Kourou, French Guiana, had been delayed by a day due to bad weather. Once the two satellites are fully deployed, ESA will have six of the 30 planned satellites in orbit for its Galileo system. (AP Photo/P Baudon, European Space Agency)
PARIS—Two European Galileo satellites launched by a Russian-built rocket on Friday from French Guiana have not reached their intended orbit, launch firm Arianespace said Saturday.
“Observations taken after the separation of the satellites from the Soyuz VS09 (rocket) for the Galileo Mission show a gap between the orbit achieved and that which was planned,” the company said in a statement.
