Meridian 1

This article is about the satellite, for the telephone see Nortel Meridian

Meridian 1

Operator	VKS
Major contractors	NPO-PM
Mission type	Communications
Launch date	24 December 2006
Carrier rocket	Soyuz-2.1a/Fregat
Launch site	Plesetsk Site 43/4

Meridian 1, also known as Meridian #11L was a Russian communications satellite. It was the first satellite to be launched as part of the Meridian system, which will replace the older Molniya series.

Meridian 1 was the first Russian Government satellite to be launched by a Soyuz-2 rocket. The Soyuz-2.1a configuration was used, along with a Fregat upper stage. The launch occurred from Site 43/4 at the Plesetsk Cosmodrome at 08:34:44 GMT on 24 December 2006.^[1]

It was constructed by NPO-PM and is believed to be based on the Uragan-M satellite bus,^[2] which has also been used for GLONASS navigation satellites. It operates in a Molniya orbit with a perigee of 900 kilometres (560 mi), an apogee of 39,000 kilometres (24,000 mi), and 65° inclination.^[2]

The satellite entered service on 1 February 2007, however by May 2009 it had failed. NPO-PM reported that an impact with a piece of debris had caused the spacecraft to malfunction.^[3]

References

1. ^ McDowell, Jonathan. "Launch Log". Jonathan's Space Page. http://planet4589.org/space/log/launchlog.txt. Retrieved 2009-05-22. 
2. ^ ^{a b} Krebs, Gunter. "Meridian (14F112)". Gunter's Space Page. http://space.skyrocket.de/doc_sdat/meridian.htm. Retrieved 2009-05-21. 
3. ^ Zak, Anatoly. "The Meridian satellite (14F112)". RussianSpaceWeb. http://www.russianspaceweb.com/meridian.html. Retrieved 3 May 2011.