Roscosmos Approves Delay of Eutelsat 9B Launch Due to Bad Weather

Russia's space agency Roscosmos has approved the postponement of the launch of a Proton-M carrier rocket with the European Eutelsat 9B communications satellite until January 30 due to weather-related logistical issues, the United Rocket and Space Corporation (URSC) said Thursday.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — The launch, previously scheduled for January will be carried January 30 at 01.20 Moscow time from the Baikonur space center in Kazakhstan (22:20 GMT on January 29), URSC said in a statement.

According to the company, the preparation for the launch is continuing without any technical issues.

The Proton-M, produced by Russia's Khrunichev State Research and Production Space Center, is the largest carrier rocket in the country's space launch vehicle fleet. The rocket has lifted dozens of Russian-made and foreign satellites since it was first launched in 2001.

In October, a subsidiary of Khrunichev Center signed a contract with Eutelsat to put the French-based company's satellites into orbit during the period of 2016-2023.

According to the Khrunichev Center, the Russian Proton carrier rockets launched 11 Eutelsat satellites over the past 15 years.