An earlier Soyuz-FG launch At 22:16 GMT yesterday (04:16 today local time), a Russian Soyuz-FG / Fregat carrier rocket was launched from Site 31/6 the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan, carrying the European GIOVE-B experimental Navigation satellite . The launch was conducted by Starsem , a Russo-European organisation which commercially markets Soyuz-FG and Soyuz-2 launches. GIOVE-B was successfully deployed into a medium Earth orbit at 02:01 GMT this morning, after an ascent lasting nearly four hours. GIOVE-B will serve as a prototype for the Galileo positioning system . It is the second such prototype, GIOVE-A is already in orbit, having been launched in December 2005. GIOVE-B was originally scheduled to launch in April 2006, but was delayed for a number of reasons. The next Galileo launch is scheduled to be the first cluster of operational satellites, which will be launched in 2010. The next Soyuz launch will be a Soyuz-U in mid-may, with a Progress spacecraft to resupply the International Space Station . This was the 20th orbital launch of 2008 , the 24th Soyuz-FG launch, and the 1,732nd flight of a Soyuz rocket of any variant.
 At 22:16 GMT yesterday (04:16 today local time), a Russian / carrier rocket was launched from the in Kazakhstan, carrying the European experimental . The launch was conducted by , a Russo-European organisation which commercially markets Soyuz-FG and launches. GIOVE-B was successfully deployed into a at 02:01 GMT this morning, after an ascent lasting nearly four hours. GIOVE-B will serve as a prototype for the . It is the second such prototype, GIOVE-A is already in orbit, having been launched in December 2005. GIOVE-B was originally scheduled to launch in April 2006, but was delayed for a number of reasons. The next Galileo launch is scheduled to be the first cluster of operational satellites, which will be launched in 2010. The next Soyuz launch will be a in mid-may, with a to resupply the . This was the 20th orbital launch of , the 24th Soyuz-FG launch, and the 1,732nd flight of a Soyuz rocket of any variant.
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An earlier Soyuz-FG launch
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Soyuz-FG
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Fregat
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Site 31/6 the Baikonur Cosmodrome
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GIOVE-B experimental Navigation satellite
experimental
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Starsem
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Soyuz-2
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medium Earth orbit
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Galileo positioning system
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Soyuz-U
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Progress spacecraft
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International Space Station
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2008