CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - For the 10th time this year a Proton rocket has lifted off from the desert sands of the Baikonur Cosmodrome, this time carrying a U.S. satellite that might change the way you listen to a car radio.

The first second of flight and the booster's climb away from the Kazakhstan desert is seen in these views of a Proton launch by International Launch Services today at the Baikonur Cosmodrome.

Flying a commercial mission for International Launch Services, the Russian workhorse booster blasted off at 5:44 a.m. Eastern Daylight Time (09:44 GMT) to begin a nearly two-and-a-half-hour flight.

It will take that long for the four-stage rocket to successfully deliver the Sirius 2 radio satellite into its proper orbit over Earth.

The satellite is one of three intended for launch this year by Sirius Radio Satellite of New York City. The first was launched on June 30 and the third is targeted to fly in October, all on Proton rockets.

All three satellites, plus a fourth intended to be used as a ground spare, were built by Loral Space and Communications for Sirius.

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Radio service soon

If all goes well the company hopes to begin its innovative service to consumers by the end of the year.

The idea: equip cars and trucks with a radio receiver that can tune in the Sirius satellites' programming, allowing drivers to stay tuned to a station with CD-quality sound no matter where they drive in the United States.

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Learnmore about the Proton rocket. Learnmore about the Sirius radio satellite. Graphics require Flash4.

Another attraction for many potential users will be the fact that half of the 100 channels Sirius intends to offer will be free of advertising.

For the price of a new radio -- about $200 -- and a monthly service fee of $9.95, listeners will be able to hear 50 channels of nonstop music to suit anybody's taste, as well as 50 channels of more conventional news, sports and entertainment from sources such as CNBC, National Public Radio and the BBC.

Sirius has agreements with an impressive list of automakers to provide satellite radios in their vehicles that also are capable of picking up standard AM/FM bands. The list includes Ford, Chrysler, BMW, Mercedes, Mazda, Jaguar and Volvo.