The
Boeing Co. will launch Canada’s RADARSAT-2
Earth-observation satellite, with the world’s most advanced synthetic
aperture radar (SAR) system, on board a Delta II rocket in 2003.

MacDonald Dettwiler and Associates Ltd., Richmond, British
Columbia, Canada, on June 23 awarded Boeing a contract to launch the
satellite. Its satellite mass is expected to be 2,600 kilograms
(approximately 5,720 pounds), and its orbit 798 kilometers (431
nautical miles) at 98.6 degrees, sun-synchronous.

“With the selection of our launch provider, we are right on track
and moving forward toward a successful mission,” said David Caddey,
executive vice president and general manager of MacDonald Dettwiler’s
Space Missions Group.

RADARSAT-2 will offer data for new applications tailored to market
needs, thereby enhancing the satellite’s potential for providing new
environmental and resource information. It will also have an
all-weather, 24-hour viewing imager with a ground resolution of three
meters, while the RADARSAT-1 satellite has a ground resolution of 10
meters.

RADARSAT-2, follow-on to RADARSAT-1, is a jointly funded program
between the Canadian Space Agency (CSA) and MacDonald Dettwiler. It is
part of a groundbreaking, public-private sector partnership and a
further step toward commercialization of the spaceborne radar imaging
business.

Launched by NASA on a Delta II rocket in November 1995, RADARSAT-1
continues to provide Canada and the world with an operational radar
satellite system capable of timely delivery of Earth-observation data.
The scenes RADARSAT-1 has collected have provided new information in
the management and monitoring of the global environment in the areas
of disaster relief operations, ice navigation, agriculture, mapping,
hydrology, forestry, oceanography and coastal monitoring to both
commercial and scientific users.

“We appreciate MacDonald Dettwiler’s confidence in selecting a
Delta rocket,” said Jay Witzling, Boeing vice president, Delta II and
Delta III. “This contract reflects our commitment to building
long-term relationships with, and supporting quality companies like,
MacDonald Dettwiler.”

MacDonald Dettwiler is an information company that provides
essential information from anywhere in the world for decision-making
in the workplace. The company is working with the CSA to design and
build the RADARSAT-2 spacecraft, tentatively scheduled for launch from
Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif., in April 2003.

The Delta II is a medium-capacity expendable launch vehicle
derived from the Delta family of rockets built and launched since
1960. It is manufactured in Huntington Beach, with final assembly in
Pueblo, Colo., and is powered by the RS-27A engine built by Boeing in
Canoga Park, Calif. The Delta launch team at Vandenberg Air Force Base
will provide launch coordination and operations for this mission.

Visit the Delta home page at: www.boeing.com/delta