posted 02-21-2015 02:15 PM               

Intelsat 603 Deorbits, Continues to Inspire

It was the satellite story that captured the attention of the world nearly a quarter century ago. The Intelsat 603 satellite, launched on March 14, 1990, was marooned in low-earth orbit. The remarkable public-private partnership among NASA, Hughes (the manufacturer of the satellite) and Intelsat yielded an exciting reboost mission that was carried out by the space shuttle Endeavour on its inaugural flight in May of 1992.

It was a drama fraught with ingenuity, tenacity and cliff-hangers the likes of which Hollywood blockbusters are made. It was also a saga filled with many firsts:

• The first flight of the orbiter Endeavour
  
• The first public-private collaboration of its kind
  
• The first three-man EVA (extravehicular activity)
  
• The first rescue of a satellite in orbit

Following its rescue, IS-603 contributed to communications in Europe, Africa and the Americas, carrying telephone calls and television channels for more than 20 years (the initial life span of the satellite was estimated to be 14 years).

For the past few weeks, Intelsat's satellite control center has been sending the sequence of commands to deorbit this famous bird.

When the final command is sent from Intelsat's East Coast Operations Center in Tysons Corner, VA, on Friday, Jan. 23, 2015, it will be the end of one era... and the beginning of another. Yet the qualities of creativity, innovation and perseverance exhibited by the talented engineers and astronauts who made history and put the satellite on course for decades of success are alive and well and hard at work at Intelsat today.