A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket lifting off Hispasat 30W-6 satellite. Credit: SPACE EXPLORATION TECHNOLOGIES CORP.|Launch of the Hispasat 30W-6 satellite from Space Launch Complex 40. Credit: Space Exploration Technologies Corp.

A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket has launched the Hispasat 30W-6 communications satellite into orbit from Space Launch Complex 40 (SLC-40) at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida, US.

The launch was conducted on behalf of Spanish satellite communications operator Hispasat and marks the 50th flight of the Falcon 9rocket.

Around 33 minutes after liftoff, Hispasat 30W-6 was deployed into a geostationary orbit.

The satellite is set to go through a test phase to ensure its functionality over the next several weeks. Upon completion of the tests, it will be placed in its final orbital position of 30° west.

“Hispasat 30W-6 allows us to broaden capacity and services while completing the current phase of the company’s growth plan.”

Similar in size to a bus, Hispasat 30W-6 is the largest satellite launched by Falcon 9 into space, reported cnbc.com.

Built by Space Systems Loral (SSL), the satellite is expected to operate for 15 years.

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Hispasat CEO Carlos Espinós said: “This new satellite will allow us to meet the growing connectivity demand detected in the market.

“In the hyperconnected world in which we live, access to quality broadband is an essential need for economic, social and even personal development, and this satellite fulfils this need in places other technologies cannot reach.

“Hispasat 30W-6 allows us to broaden capacity and services while completing the current phase of the company’s growth plan.”

Equipped with 40 Ku-band transponders, up to six Ka-band beams and ten C-band transponders, Hispasat 30W-6 will replace and widen the capacity of Hispasat 30W-4.

The satellite will provide services to the Mediterranean, Europe, Spain, north-east Africa and the American continent.