It’s not just the fact that a new HDTV satellits was launched, it’s the fact that it was done from a floating platform. Now that’s cool.
A new broadcasting satellite for high definition television across the United States roared into space Sunday from a floating platform in the Pacific Ocean.
The commercial Sea Launch Zenit 3SL booster began the successful 60-minute ascent carrying the Galaxy 16 spacecraft at 3:50 a.m. EDT (0750 GMT) from a converted oil-drilling platform positioned in equatorial waters of the Pacific about 1,400 miles (2,253 kilometers) south of Hawaii.