Artemis satellite to be launched on Ariane 5
Artemis, which according to the European Space Agency (ESA) is the most advanced telecommunication satellite ever developed by ESA, will blast into space on a European Ariane 5 launcher sometime between June and August 2001. Agency Director General Antonio Rodotà joined the CEO of Arianespace, Jean-Marie Luton, to sign the launch contract on 15 February at ESA's headquarters in Paris (pictured). Artemis will operate from a geostationary orbit some 36,000 km above the Earth for a planned period of ten years. Its mission is to provide Europe with mobile communication and navigation services together with data relay capacity (satellite to satellite communication). The satellite will have a mass of 3100 kg at launch with solar arrays spanning 25 metres tip to tip and delivering 2.5 kW of electrical power. 'Artemis incorporates several significant technological advances,' reports ESA. 'The system to maintain the satellite in stable orbital position, for instance, makes use of electrical ion propulsion (a first for an ESA satellite), lighter and more compact than a conventional system using chemical propellant. This means cost and weight savings for future satellites also.'