The Ariane-5 rocket is capable of launching payloads of up to 10 metric tons (tonnes) (22,050 pounds) into space. The May 4th launch of the Astra 1L and Galaxy 17 payloads had a combined weight of 8.6 tonnes (18,960 pounds) and a total payload weight of 9.4 tonnes (20,720 pounds). The Ariane-5 launch of Astra 1L and Galaxy 17 was its heaviest launch to date.

Astra 1L, owned by Luxembourg-based SES Astra and built by U.S.-based Lockheed Martin Space Systems, is a 4.5 tonne satellite designed to give direct-to-home broadcast service throughout Europe. Galaxy 17, owned by U.S.-based Intelsat and built by French-based Thales Alenia Space, is a 4.1 tonne satellite designed to provide telecommunications throughout the United States.

The Ariane-5 rocket is a heavy-launch expendable system designed to send satellites into geostationary transfer orbit (a preliminary orbit between low Earth orbit [LEO] and a geostationary orbit [GEO] and to deliver payloads to low Earth orbit.

The Guiana Space Center near Kourou, French Guiana is operated by the French government’s National Space Study Center (CNES, Centre National d’Études Spatiales) for the European Space Agency (ESA). It has been operational since 1968, and is a desirable place to launch satellites because of its closeness to the equator and its proximity to water.

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