EchoStar 19 High-Speed Internet Satellite Launching Today: Watch It Live

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By Tariq Malik
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The United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket carrying the EchoStar 19 satellite is rolled out to the launchpad at Florida's Cape Canaveral Air Force Station ahead of its Dec. 18, 2016 launch into orbit.
The United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket carrying the EchoStar 19 satellite is rolled out to the launchpad at Florida's Cape Canaveral Air Force Station ahead of its Dec. 18, 2016 launch into orbit. (Image credit: United Launch Alliance/Lockheed Martin)

An unmanned Atlas V rocket will launch a powerful new broadband internet satellite into orbit from Florida today (Dec 18) and you can watch the action live online. 

The United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket will launch the EchoStar XIX (or EchoStar 19) from a pad at Florida's Cape Canaveral Air Force Station at 1:27 p.m. EST (1827 GMT). ULA will provide a live launch webcast via YouTube, beginning at 1:07 p.m. EST (1807 GMT). You'll also be able to watch the rocket launch here, courtesy of ULA. 

Built for satellite operator Hughes, EchoStar 19 (also known as Jupiter 2) is being touted as the company's most powerful internet communications satellite to date.

"EchoStar XIX will be the world's highest capacity broadband satellite in orbit, dramatically increasing capacity for HughesNet high-speed satellite Internet service to homes and businesses in North America," ULA representatives wrote in a mission description. The large satellite features multiple Ka-band spot beams to support customers across North America, and will be stationed in a geosynchronous orbit over 97.1 West longitude to reach Hughes customers. 

Hughes representatives said in a statement that EchoStar 19 "will be able to will provide significantly more capacity than EchoStar XVII (EchoStar 17), which was also built by SSL and launched in 2012."

Atlas V EchoStar XIX Mission Profile - YouTube
Watch On

Current weather forecasts predict a 70 percent chance of favorable conditions for today's Atlas V launch. ULA's launch window for the mission extends from 1:27 p.m. EST to 3:27 p.m. EST (1827-2027 GMT).

ULA will mark its 12th and final launch of 2016 with EchoStar 19. It will be the 115th flight in the company's 10-year history.

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Tariq Malik
Tariq Malik
Editor-in-Chief

Tariq is the Editor-in-Chief of Space.com and joined the team in 2001, first as an intern and staff writer, and later as an editor. He covers human spaceflight, exploration and space science, as well as skywatching and entertainment. He became Space.com's Managing Editor in 2009 and Editor-in-Chief in 2019. Before joining Space.com, Tariq was a staff reporter for The Los Angeles Times covering education and city beats in La Habra, Fullerton and Huntington Beach. In October 2022, Tariq received the Harry Kolcum Award for excellence in space reporting from the National Space Club Florida Committee. He is also an Eagle Scout (yes, he has the Space Exploration merit badge) and went to Space Camp four times as a kid and a fifth time as an adult. He has journalism degrees from the University of Southern California and New York University. You can find Tariq at Space.com and as the co-host to the This Week In Space podcast with space historian Rod Pyle on the TWiT network. To see his latest project, you can follow Tariq on Twitter @tariqjmalik.