Ariane 4 Rocket Launches 2 Satellites
United Press International
KOUROU, French Guiana —
An Ariane 4 rocket successfully boosted a pair of American communications satellites into orbit Tuesday in the 40th flight of the French-built rocket system.
Equipped with two strap-on, solid-fuel boosters for extra power, the 192-foot three-stage rocket took off at 3:11 p.m. PST and smoothly climbed away from its firing stand at the European Space Agency’s jungle launch complex on the northern coast of South America.
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