SpaceX Launches Super-Heavy Communications Satellite

SpaceX has completed a record breaking launch.
Elon Musk’s space firm launched its Falcon 9 rocket to deliver Inmarsat-5 F4, a commercial communications satellite in iots first launch for the company.
The payload was so heavy (13,448lbs) and going into such a high orbit (22,000 miles) that the Falcon 9 rocket won't have enough propellant left to land, SpaceX said before the flawless launch.
SpaceX is targeting launch of Inmarsat-5 F4 from historic Launch Complex 39A (LC-39A) at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
The 49-minute launch window opens on Monday, May 15, at 7:21 p.m. EDT, or 23:21 UTC.
'All systems and weather are go,' it said at 6:35pm.
The satellite was deployed approximately 32 minutes after launch when it will come under the command of the Boeing and Inmarsat satellite operations teams based at the Boeing facility in El Segundo.
'From here I-5 F4 will be manoeuvred to its geostationary orbit, 35,786km (22,236 miles) above Earth, where it will deploy its solar arrays and reflectors and undergo intensive payload testing before beginning commercial service,' Inmarsat said.
The payload, Inmarsat-5 F4 (I-5 F4) is the fourth satellite in the Global Xpress (GX) constellation; the world’s first globally available, high-speed, mobile broadband service.
'Global Xpress represents an important step in Inmarsat’s transformation from a satellite operator to a digital services enabler,' the company said.
'Today, being connected is an expectation, whether you want access to Wi-Fi in the sky or to use your mobile in the remotest location.
'Satellite communications is no longer a luxury, it is a critical enabler for our demanding connectivity needs.'
Inmarsat, the only operator of a global Ka-band network, created the GX platform to enable communities across the world to benefit from the emerging digital society.
Already delivering unprecedented service speeds, coverage, reliability and security to users on land, at sea and in the air, Inmarsat’s GX network entered global commercial service in December 2015.
I-5 F4 adds further capacity to the network, as well as in-orbit redundancy that further upgrades the reliability and resilience of Inmarsat’s service offerings.
Global Xpress is establishing a new standard of excellence for broadband communications in established VSAT markets and is gaining strong traction in new market areas, such as the rapidly expanding aviation passenger connectivity sector. The first four GX satellites, including I-5 F4, were constructed by Inmarsat’s partner Boeing Network & Space Systems.