Atlas 5 rocket to finish year with commercial broadband satellite launch

Preparing for its eighth launch of the year, the Atlas 5 rocket program has begun stacking the vehicle that will deploy a commercial satellite to provide Internet connectivity to rural America. The United Launch Alliance rocket will haul the EchoStar 19 spacecraft into a geosynchronous transfer orbit from Cape Canaveral’s Complex 41 on Dec. 16. The two-hour launch window opens at 1:22 p.m. EST (1822 GMT). Stacking started today at the Vertical Integration Facility as the first stage was erected aboard the mobile launch platform. Three side-mounded solid rocket boosters and Centaur upper stage will be added in the coming days before the payload is attached next week. More

(Source: SpaceFlight Now - Nov 29)