A Russian rocket sent a telecommunication satellite owned by U.S.-based DirecTV Group into orbit Saturday, the Russian space agency said. The DirecTV-10 satellite blasted off atop a Proton-M rocket early Saturday morning from the Baikonur cosmodrome in Kazakhstan, The Associated Press quoted Roscosmos as saying in a statement. Once operational, the satellite will broadcast high-definition television signals to the United States. The Interfax news agency said the 5,900-kilogram (13,000-pound) satellite was largest ever launched into space aboard a Proton-M rocket.
