LOS ANGELES A straying telecommunications satellite was headed toward the moon in a last-ditch effort to return to its proper orbit around Earth, Hughes Space and Communications said Friday. The HGS-1 satellite's motor kicked in at 5:42 p.m. Thursday (0042 GMT Friday) and propelled the device at some 38,000 kilometers (23,560 miles) per hour toward the moon. HGS-1 was expected to come within 8,000 kilometers (4,960 miles) of the moon May 13 before swinging back toward Earth, said the Hughes Control Center in El Segundo, California. With an assist from lunar gravity, it will swing around the moon, change directions and head off on its three-day return trip to Earth to put the satellite in the orbit it failed to reach after liftoff.

On May 16, satellite controllers will begin braking maneuvers to help the satellite settle into an orbit around the equator. Launched in December by Asia Satellite Communications of Hong Kong, the satellite then called ASIASAT-3 went into a low orbit because of a malfunction in the fourth stage of its Russian Proton rocket. If HGS-1 completes its mission, this salvage effort would mark the first time a civilian satellite has made a lunar voyage.

NASA frequently has used the gravity of the planets to drive probes such as the Voyager, the Galileo and Cassini toward the far-flung corners of the solar system. After the launch failure, the original owner of the spacecraft filed an insurance claim. The insurers declared the spacecraft a total loss for its original purposes. Hughes has obtained the title to the spacecraft, with the agreement to share profits with the insurers if the satellite can be put to use.

(AFP)