Proton hauls communications satellite to orbit for America

A Proton rocket lifted off from Kazakhstan Saturday and delivered a new communications satellite into orbit to replace two aging spacecraft serving North America. The 18-story rocket launched at 1119 GMT (7:19 a.m. EDT) from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. Within less than 10 minutes, the three-stage Proton rocket completed its duties for the flight, depositing the Breeze M upper stage and the SES 1 satellite on a suborbital trajectory. The hydrazine-fueled upper stage ignited moments later to reach a parking orbit about 120 miles high. More

(Source: Space Flight Now - Apr 25)