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Contact with AngoSat satellite restored

The systems are operating normally, according to Russia’s Energia Rocket and Space Corporation

MOSCOW, December 29. /TASS/. Contact with Angola’s AngoSat satellite has been restored, Russia’s Energia Rocket and Space Corporation said in a statement, adding that according to the telemetry data, the satellite’s systems were operating normally.

"Experts from the Energia Corporation have received telemetry data from the AngoSat satellite launched by the Zenit-3SLBF space rocket from the Baikonur spaceport on December 26. The satellite has provided telemetry data showing that all its systems settings are in order," the statement reads.

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Russian experts working to restore contact with AngoSat satellite

On Thursday, a source in the Russian rocket and space industry told TASS that experts had managed to restore contact with the satellite and telemetry information had started coming from it.

The Zenit-2SB carrier rocket with the Fregat booster and Angola’s AngoSat satellite was launched from the Baikonur spaceport in Kazakhstan on December 26. The Fregat booster and AngoSat separated from the rocket’s third stage eight minutes after the launch. The satellite separated from the booster on the morning of December 27. After that, the satellite started to move as planned and provide telemetry data, but when its solar batteries began to unfold, telemetry data stopped coming.

Experts from the Energia Corporation worked for more than 24 hours in order to restore contact with the satellite and succeeded in achieving this goal on Thursday, December 27.

According to the source in the rocket and space industry, issues with the AngoSat’s battery charge could be the reason for the temporary loss of contact.

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