The Proton-M launch vehicle launched the Express-80 and Express-103 telecommunication satellites in conjunction with the Briz-M upper stage to a suborbital flight path, the press service of Roscosmos reports. Twitter has posted a broadcast of the launch, which was carried out from the Baikonur cosmodrome at 00.25 Moscow time.
Missed the launch? Are we showing the main moments of today’s launch and flight of the Proton-M launch vehicle with the Briz-M upper stage and the Russian spacecraft # Express103 and # Express80?
Are we expecting the separation of satellites in the target orbit after 18:00 Moscow time? pic.twitter.com/ghlzU6TM4m
– ROSCOSMOS (@roscosmos) July 30, 2020
The Proton rocket was launched on the second attempt. The day before, on Wednesday, the Russian space agency announced the postponement of the Proton launch from July 30 to July 31. Additional checks of components and assemblies were named as the reasons. Later, a RIA Novosti source clarified that the reason for the postponement was a remark during the checks of the control system of the Breeze-M upper stage.
Earlier, the Khrunichev Center published a financial report for 2019, according to which the cost of producing the Angara-A5 heavy-class launch vehicle, which is to replace the Proton-M rocket, turned out to be three times more expensive than its predecessor. The ministry clarified that in the future it is planned to reduce the cost of producing a heavy-class carrier rocket of the Angara family to four billion rubles, now the rocket cost 7 billion rubles.