Russian Proton-M launches with Ekspress-AM7 mission

A Russian Proton-M was in action on Wednesday, lofting the Ekspress-AM7 communications satellite on what is a multi-hour flight to a geostationary orbit via its Briz-M Upper Stage. The Russian workhorse launched from its traditional home at the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan at 22:05 UTC on a nominal first leg of the flight. The Proton booster tasked with launching the satellite was 4.1 m (13.5 ft) in diameter along its second and third stages, with a first stage diameter of 7.4 m (24.3 ft). More

(Source: NASASpaceFlight.com - Mar 19)