# How do commercial satellites get into orbit? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [April 26, 2004, 5:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-commercial-satellites-get-into-orbit/242040 "2004-04-26T05:17:10Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 5\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Freejooky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ba8739/32.png) [@Freejooky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freejooky)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2004, 5:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-commercial-satellites-get-into-orbit/242040/1 "2004-04-26T05:17:10Z")
They’re not exactly deployed by NASA. How do commercial satellites - for telecommunications, satellite TV, etc. - get into orbit? Are they launced by rockets? When? ---
**Author:** ![Declan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ecae2f/32.png) [@Declan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Declan)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2004, 6:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-commercial-satellites-get-into-orbit/242040/2 "2004-04-26T06:06:43Z")
> [@Freejooky](#): > > They’re not exactly deployed by NASA. How do commercial satellites - for telecommunications, satellite TV, etc. - get into orbit? Are they launced by rockets? When? They are launched into orbit via rockets at this time. Between Ariane, the russian company , the chinese company ,and some company that launches them from an old offshore oil platform. Nasa itself places sats into orbit , via the space shuttle , or the delta rockets. Declan ---
**Author:** ![flight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/bbce88/32.png) [@flight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/flight)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2004, 6:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-commercial-satellites-get-into-orbit/242040/3 "2004-04-26T06:12:18Z")
There are several companies that launch rockets containing satelites for other companies. They often ship them down around the equator for launch as it is easier to get to orbit there. Sometimes this is done on old oil rigs at sea. Here is a link to a company that consults on it. [http://www.telesat.ca/international/space/launch-vehicle-consulting.htm](http://www.telesat.ca/international/space/launch-vehicle-consulting.htm) ---
**Author:** ![friedo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/8edcca/32.png) [@friedo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/friedo)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2004, 6:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-commercial-satellites-get-into-orbit/242040/4 "2004-04-26T06:13:02Z")
> [@Freejooky](#): > > They’re not exactly deployed by NASA. How do commercial satellites - for telecommunications, satellite TV, etc. - get into orbit? Are they launced by rockets? When? Some of them are indeed deployed by NASA, via the space shuttle. The communications companies and whatnot pay NASA a few gazillion dollars for the opportunity. (This was one of the many ways in which the Space Shuttle program was supposed to be self-sufficient; of course that never happened.) ---
**Author:** ![Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spectre_of_pithecanthropus/32/12343_2.png) [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spectre_of_Pithecanthropus)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2004, 1:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-commercial-satellites-get-into-orbit/242040/5 "2004-04-26T13:17:20Z")
The most recently launched satellite of the company where I work was launched by Ariane. Another commercial launch company that I didn’t see mentioned was [Sea Launch](http://www.sea-launch.com/), based in Long Beach, CA, which uses a sea-going floating launchpad that can be towed anywhere in the ocean for a sea-based launched.