On December 24, 2015 at 21:31 UTC (On December 25 at 00:31 Moscow time) the Russian "Proton-M” rocket-carrier was launched from Baykonur Cosmodrome. The rocket equipped with the "Briz-M” booster orbited the Russian “Express AMU1” telecommunication satellite. This large European-built telecommunications satellite is to broadcast television, radio and other services across Russia and sub-Saharan Africa. Based on Airbus Defense and Space’s Eurostar E3000 satellite platform, Express AMU1 is designed for a 15-year mission.