Draggendrop Veteran Posted February 23, 2017 Author Veteran Share Posted February 23, 2017 NASA Establishes New Public-Private Partnerships to Advance U.S. Commercial Space Capabilities Quote Press Release From: NASA HQ Posted: Wednesday, February 22, 2017 NASA is partnering with eight U.S. companies to advance small spacecraft and launch vehicle technologies that are on the verge of maturation and are likely to benefit both NASA and the commercial space market. These partnerships are the result of a solicitation released in August 2016 by NASA’s Space Technology Mission Directorate (STMD), titled Utilizing Public-Private Partnerships to Advance Tipping Point Technologies. They mark the second round of public-private opportunities that enable industry to develop promising commercial space technologies that also may benefit future NASA missions. "The first awards showed us how much the commercial space sector is ready to collaborate with us on developing capabilities that align with their business plans and meet NASA's strategic goals," said Steve Jurczyk, associate administrator for STMD. "By contributing their own funds to their projects, these U.S. companies are joining in innovative co-investments to enable NASA's next generation of science and human exploration missions." A technology is considered at a ‘tipping point’ if an investment in a demonstration of its capabilities will result in a significant advancement of the technology's maturation, a higher likelihood of infusion into a commercial space application, and a significant improvement in the partner’s ability to successfully bring the technology to market. bit of a long press release, various categories and vendors...more at the link... http://spaceref.com/news/viewpr.html?pid=50471 This is what NASA is real good at...mentoring startups...excellent news. ----------------------------- New Launch Schedule Quote March 1 Atlas 5 • NROL-79 Launch time: TBD Launch site: SLC-3E, Vandenberg Air Force Base, California A United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket, designated AV-068, will launch a classified spacecraft payload for the U.S. National Reconnaissance Office. The rocket will fly in the 401 vehicle configuration with a four-meter fairing, no solid rocket boosters and a single-engine Centaur upper stage. Delayed from Dec. 1, Jan. 26 and Feb. 9. [Feb. 13] March 6/7 Vega • Sentinel 2B Launch time: 0149:24 GMT on 7th (8:49:24 p.m. EST on 6th) Launch site: ZLV, Kourou, French Guiana An Arianespace Vega rocket, designated VV09, will launch with the Sentinel 2B Earth observation satellite for the European Space Agency and the European Commission. Sentinel 2A carries an optical imaging payload for land observation. [Jan. 10] March 8 Delta 4 • WGS 9 Launch window: 2348-0053 GMT (6:48-7:53 p.m. EST) Launch site: SLC-37B, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida A United Launch Alliance Delta 4 rocket will launch the ninth Wideband Global SATCOM spacecraft, formerly known as the Wideband Gapfiller Satellite. Built by Boeing, this geostationary communications spacecraft will serve U.S. military forces. The rocket will fly in the Medium+ (5,4) configuration with four solid rocket boosters. Delayed from Feb. 2 and March 2. [Feb. 3] http://spaceflightnow.com/launch-schedule/ BetaguyGZT 1 Share Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Draggendrop Veteran Posted February 25, 2017 Author Veteran Share Posted February 25, 2017 OneWeb weighing 2,000 more satellites Quote LONDON and WASHINGTON — Satellite telecom startup OneWeb, emboldened by the oversubscribed $1.2 billion Softbank-led investment gained in December, is on the verge of adding another 2,000 satellites to its previously proposed constellation of several hundred satellites. OneWeb made a big splash in June 2015 when it went public with an impressive roster of investors pledging some $500 million to deploy more than 600 small, low-orbiting satellites to blanket the Earth in Ku-band broadband connectivity. On Wednesday, Greg Wyler, OneWeb’s founder and executive chairman, told an audience at the Royal Aeronautical Society in London that the company has sold a considerable portion of the capacity of its initial planned constellation and is seriously considering quadrupling its size. “We are adding 2,000 satellites at different altitudes in low Earth orbit,” Wyler told SpaceNews in London. “We have priority rights to another 2,000 satellites — 1,972 satellites, to be precise. With Softbank we have reinvigorated our activities and started talking about the strong possibility that we will be adding to the constellation using our priority rights.” The expansion plans materialized after Japanese mogul Masyoshi Son, the CEO of SoftBank, jumped on board with a $1 billion investment. Previous investors committed to an additional $200 million, bringing OneWeb’s total capital raised to $1.7 billion. “[Son] has really put the throttles full-forward when it comes to our mission of bridging the digital divide globally by 2027,” Wyler said in London. more at the link.... http://spacenews.com/oneweb-weighing-2000-more-satellites/ Now that's a jump start to their plans.... ----------------------- Delta 4 receives communications satellite payload for launch into space Quote CAPE CANAVERAL — A military communications satellite, built with international funding from Canada, Denmark, the Netherlands, Luxembourg and New Zealand, has been stacked atop a Delta 4 rocket to launch into a worldwide information-relay network operated by the U.S. WGS 9, the ninth installment of the Wideband Global SATCOM communications satellite system, will be boosted into a super-synchronous transfer orbit by the United Launch Alliance Delta 4 Medium+ (5,4) configured rocket with four strap-on solids. Liftoff is planned for March 8 during a window of 6:48 to 7:53 p.m. EDT (2248-2353 GMT). The allies bought this satellite in exchange for access to the planet-spanning constellation, similar to the groundbreaking deal with Australia that paid for the construction and launch of WGS 6. “Each of the partners receive resources commensurate with their investment with WGS 9…Commensurate investments from these partners equate to approximately 3 percent of the WGS constellation bandwidth,” according to answers provided by the Air Force’s Space and Missile Systems Center. The international participation gives communications interoperability between allied forces, funds expansion of the constellation and allows each partner nation to make a modest investment to receive immediate access to worldwide services that would be too expensive to construct on their own. The WGS 9 deal was signed in 2012 to begin construction of the satellite. more at the link... http://spaceflightnow.com/2017/02/24/delta-4-receives-communications-satellite-payload-for-launch-into-space/ ---------------------- And here is the news I want to hear.... Just need good comms per sat...or...a "mother" comm repeater for deep space relay back home. This is going to make affordable redundancy and drastically reduce mission costs. BetaguyGZT 1 Share Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim K Global Moderator Posted March 2, 2017 Global Moderator Share Posted March 2, 2017 Quote For its second launch of the year, the Atlas V rocket marked its 70th mission to space on Wednesday as the veteran rocket lofted the National Reconnaissance Office’s NROL-79 spacecraft to Low Earth Orbit (LEO). Liftoff took place from SLC-3E at Vandenberg Air Force Base, California, at 0950 PST (1750 UTC), the opening of a 40 minute launch window. The mission has been declared a success. /snip More at NASA Spaceflight Emn1ty and Draggendrop 2 Share Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Draggendrop Veteran Posted March 2, 2017 Author Veteran Share Posted March 2, 2017 Launch Schedule Quote March 8 Delta 4 • WGS 9 Launch window: 2348-0053 GMT (6:48-7:53 p.m. EST) Launch site: SLC-37B, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida A United Launch Alliance Delta 4 rocket will launch the ninth Wideband Global SATCOM spacecraft, formerly known as the Wideband Gapfiller Satellite. Built by Boeing, this geostationary communications spacecraft will serve U.S. military forces. The rocket will fly in the Medium+ (5,4) configuration with four solid rocket boosters. Delayed from Feb. 2 and March 2. [Feb. 3] NET March 12 Falcon 9 • EchoStar 23 Launch window: 0534-0804 GMT (12:34 a.m. EST – 4:04 a.m. EDT) Launch site: LC-39A, Kennedy Space Center, Florida A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket will launch EchoStar 23 communications satellite for EchoStar Corp. EchoStar 23, based on a spare platform from the canceled CMBStar 1 satellite program, will provide direct-to-home television broadcast services over Brazil. Delayed from 3rd quarter, 4th quarter, Jan. 8, Jan. 26, Jan. 30, Feb. 3 and Feb. 28. [Feb. 23] March 15/16 H-2A • IGS Radar 5 Launch period: 0100-0300 GMT on 16th (9:00-11:00 p.m. EDT on 15th) Launch site: Tanegashima Space Center, Japan A Japanese H-2A rocket will launch an Information Gathering Satellite with a radar reconnaissance payload for the Japanese government. [Jan. 25] http://spaceflightnow.com/launch-schedule/ BetaguyGZT 1 Share Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Draggendrop Veteran Posted March 2, 2017 Author Veteran Share Posted March 2, 2017 We appear to have a boo boo.... Flight VV09: with Vega, Arianespace at the service of Earth observation for the European Commission’s Copernicus program Quote For its third launch of the year, which will be the first mission in 2017 utilizing a Vega launcher, Arianespace will orbit the Sentinel-2B satellite, a part of Europe's Copernicus Earth observation program, on behalf of the European Commission within the scope of a contract with the European Space Agency (ESA). Quote The Launch Readiness Review (LRR) will take place on Saturday, March 4, 2017 in Kourou, to authorize the start of operations for the final countdown. Sentinel-2B is the fourth satellite in the Copernicus program to be orbited by Arianespace, following the successful launches of Sentinel-1A by a Soyuz rocket in April 2014, Sentinel-2A by a Vega rocket in June 2015, and Sentinel-1B by a Soyuz in April 2016 – all performed from the Guiana Space Center in French Guiana. The Sentinel-2B Earth observation satellite primarily focuses on monitoring land masses and coastal zones around the world. Its data will be used for applications concerning the monitoring of vegetation, world’s forest, soil types and habitats in particular by detecting pollution in lakes and coastal waters. The spacecraft features a multispectral, wide-swath, high-resolution optical imaging instrument. Sentinel-2B will be positioned in an orbit opposite that of Sentinel-2A to ensure optimum coverage and data delivery. The pair of Sentinel-2 satellites will cover the Earth’s entire surface in five days. This high frequency means they will capture brand-new views of the Earth, driving considerable progress in monitoring and predicting changes in vegetation and aquatic pollution. Sentinel-2B was built by a consortium led by Airbus. http://www.arianespace.com/press-release/flight-vv09-with-vega-arianespace-at-the-service-of-earth-observation-for-the-european-commissions-copernicus-program/ VV09 Launch Kit, 1 MB Gallery Images Should be a livestream at... http://www.arianespace.tv/ and http://spaceflightnow.com/ BetaguyGZT 1 Share Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Draggendrop Veteran Posted March 3, 2017 Author Veteran Share Posted March 3, 2017 ---------------------------- NASA Maven Steers Clear of Mars Moon Phobos Quote Press Release From: NASA HQ Posted: Thursday, March 2, 2017 NASA's MAVEN spacecraft performed a previously unscheduled maneuver this week to avoid a collision in the near future with Mars' moon Phobos. The Mars Atmosphere and VolatileEvolutioN (MAVEN)spacecraft has been orbiting Mars for just over two years, studying the Red Planet's upper atmosphere, ionosphere and interactions with the sun and solar wind. On Tuesday the spacecraft carried out a rocket motor burn that boosted its velocity by 0.4 meters per second (less than 1 mile per hour). Although a small correction, it was enough that -- projected to one week later when the collision would otherwise have occurred -- MAVEN would miss the lumpy, crater-filled moon by about 2.5 minutes. This is the first collision avoidance maneuver that the MAVEN spacecraft has performed at Mars to steer clear of Phobos. The orbits of both MAVEN and Phobos are known well enough that this timing difference ensures that they will not collide. MAVEN, with an elliptical orbit around Mars, has an orbit that crosses those of other spacecraft and the moon Phobos many times over the course of a year. When the orbits cross, the objects have the possibility of colliding if they arrive at that intersection at the same time. These scenarios are known well in advance and are carefully monitored by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Pasadena, California, which sounded the alert regarding the possibility of a collision. With one week's advance notice, it looked like MAVEN and Phobos had a good chance of hitting each other on Monday, March 6, arriving at their orbit crossing point within about 7 seconds of each other. Given Phobos' size (modeled for simplicity as a 30-kilometer sphere, a bit larger than the actual moon in order to be conservative), they had a high probability of colliding if no action were taken. Said MAVEN Principal Investigator Bruce Jakosky of the University of Colorado in Boulder, "Kudos to the JPL navigation and tracking teams for watching out for possible collisions every day of the year, and to the MAVEN spacecraft team for carrying out the maneuver flawlessly." http://spaceref.com/news/viewpr.html?pid=50526 Otherwise, it would have been similar to watching your phone data while you drift into a speeding city bus.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Draggendrop Veteran Posted March 7, 2017 Author Veteran Share Posted March 7, 2017 Next up.... Quote March 6/7 Vega • Sentinel 2B Launch time: 0149:24 GMT on 7th (8:49:24 p.m. EST on 6th) Launch site: ZLV, Kourou, French Guiana An Arianespace Vega rocket, designated VV09, will launch with the Sentinel 2B Earth observation satellite for the European Space Agency and the European Commission. Sentinel 2A carries an optical imaging payload for land observation. [Jan. 10] NET March 12 Falcon 9 • EchoStar 23 Launch window: 0534-0804 GMT (12:34 a.m. EST – 4:04 a.m. EDT) Launch site: LC-39A, Kennedy Space Center, Florida A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket will launch EchoStar 23 communications satellite for EchoStar Corp. EchoStar 23, based on a spare platform from the canceled CMBStar 1 satellite program, will provide direct-to-home television broadcast services over Brazil. Delayed from 3rd quarter, 4th quarter, Jan. 8, Jan. 26, Jan. 30, Feb. 3 and Feb. 28. [Feb. 23] NET March 14 Delta 4 • WGS 9 Launch window: TBD Launch site: SLC-37B, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida A United Launch Alliance Delta 4 rocket will launch the ninth Wideband Global SATCOM spacecraft, formerly known as the Wideband Gapfiller Satellite. Built by Boeing, this geostationary communications spacecraft will serve U.S. military forces. The rocket will fly in the Medium+ (5,4) configuration with four solid rocket boosters. Delayed from Feb. 2, March 2 and March 8. [March 5] https://spaceflightnow.com/launch-schedule/ Live coverage: European environmental satellite set for launch https://spaceflightnow.com/2017/03/06/vv09-mission-status-center/ and http://www.esa.int/Our_Activities/Observing_the_Earth/Copernicus/Sentinel-2 and http://www.arianespace.com/ approx 1/2 hour... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Draggendrop Veteran Posted March 7, 2017 Author Veteran Share Posted March 7, 2017 livestreams up shortly... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Draggendrop Veteran Posted March 7, 2017 Author Veteran Share Posted March 7, 2017 Vega Rocket Launch for the European Space Agency Carrying Sentinel 2B on Mission VV-09 video is 9:31 min. SpaceX Falcon 9, Vega and Virgin Orbit | KNews W.10/2017 video is 4:51 min. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Draggendrop Veteran Posted March 7, 2017 Author Veteran Share Posted March 7, 2017 approx 1 and 1/2 hour to completion...then payload health checks...telemetry is good. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Draggendrop Veteran Posted March 7, 2017 Author Veteran Share Posted March 7, 2017 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Draggendrop Veteran Posted March 7, 2017 Author Veteran Share Posted March 7, 2017 update... Quote 03/06/2017 21:53 A de-orbit burn of the Vega's AVUM fourth stage is coming up in less than an hour to prevent the creation of space debris. 03/06/2017 21:53 Engineers at ESA's control center in Darmstadt, Germany, confirm the first radio signals from the newly-launched Sentinel 2B satellite have been acquired, showing it to be in good health after arriving in orbit. 03/06/2017 21:49 Sentinel 2B separation Sentinel 2B separation! Europe's Sentinel 2B environmental satellite has been released in orbit after an apparently successful launch aboard a Vega rocket. https://spaceflightnow.com/2017/03/06/vv09-mission-status-center/ Jim K and BetaguyGZT 2 Share Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Draggendrop Veteran Posted March 9, 2017 Author Veteran Share Posted March 9, 2017 Launch schedule in a bit of limbo for a few days... Quote NET March 14 Falcon 9 • EchoStar 23 Launch window: Approx. 0534-0804 GMT (1:34-4:04 a.m. EDT) Launch site: LC-39A, Kennedy Space Center, Florida A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket will launch EchoStar 23 communications satellite for EchoStar Corp. EchoStar 23, based on a spare platform from the canceled CMBStar 1 satellite program, will provide direct-to-home television broadcast services over Brazil. Delayed from 3rd quarter, 4th quarter, Jan. 8, Jan. 26, Jan. 30, Feb. 3 and Feb. 28. [March 8] TBD Delta 4 • WGS 9 Launch window: TBD Launch site: SLC-37B, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida A United Launch Alliance Delta 4 rocket will launch the ninth Wideband Global SATCOM spacecraft, formerly known as the Wideband Gapfiller Satellite. Built by Boeing, this geostationary communications spacecraft will serve U.S. military forces. The rocket will fly in the Medium+ (5,4) configuration with four solid rocket boosters. Delayed from Feb. 2, March 2 and March 8. [March 5] March 15/16 H-2A • IGS Radar 5 Launch period: 0100-0300 GMT on 16th (9:00-11:00 p.m. EDT on 15th) Launch site: Tanegashima Space Center, Japan A Japanese H-2A rocket will launch an Information Gathering Satellite with a radar reconnaissance payload for the Japanese government. [Jan. 25] March 19/20 Atlas 5 • OA-7 Launch window: 0256-0326 GMT (10:56-11:26 p.m. EDT on 19th) Launch site: SLC-41, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida A United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket, designated AV-070, will launch will launch the eighth Cygnus cargo freighter on the seventh operational cargo delivery flight to the International Space Station. The mission is known as OA-7. The rocket will fly in the 401 vehicle configuration with a four-meter fairing, no solid rocket boosters and a single-engine Centaur upper stage. Delayed from March 9. [Jan. 7] https://spaceflightnow.com/launch-schedule/ This one does not impact the launch schedule......a launcher with "bell bottoms"... --------------------------- NASA Telescope Recovered In Antarctica 1 Year After Parachuting Down Quote The Gamma-Ray Imager/Polarimeter for Solar flare (GRIPS) mission was lofted into the stratosphere by high-altitude balloon in Jan. 2016. After 12 days of collecting data, it parachuted back down to the frozen tundra of Antarctica. Weather hampered recovery efforts until Jan. 2017. http://www.space.com/35919-nasa-telescope-recovered-in-antarctica-1-year-after-parachuting-down-video.html NASA-funded Balloon Recovered From Antarctica video is 1:46 min. ----------------------- This Student Film of a NASA Earth Science Mission is Simply Adorable Quote A new animated movie created by student filmmakers shows the journey of an adorable little photon who is sent on a long journey as part of a NASA science mission. The star of the new animated short is Pho the Photon, a particle of light who wears goggles and propels himself forward by moving his arms in a swimming motion. Real photons don't have eyes or arms, of course, but the film does capture some of the real science behind NASA's upcoming Ice, Cloud, and Land Elevation Satellite-2, or ICESat-2, mission. The movie, called "Photon Jump," was made by a team of students at Georgia’s Savannah College of Art and Design, or SCAD, in collaboration with scientists from the ICESat-2 mission. The movie shows Pho, along with a cavalcade of photon buddies, traveling from an Earth-orbiting spacecraft down to the surface of the planet and bouncing back up to the spacecraft. The duration of Pho's journey reveals the elevation of that particular spot on the Earth's surface. [Climate Change Impact: NASA's 21st Century Predictions (Video)] ICESat-2, scheduled to launch in 2018, will use laser light to measure the elevation of Earth's surface, with a focus on regions like Greenland and Antarctica, where snow and ice levels are changing, according to a statement from NASA. http://www.space.com/35940-student-nasa-film-stars-adorable-photon.html Photon Jump video is 2:48 min. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DocM Posted March 10, 2017 Share Posted March 10, 2017 (edited) Jon Goff's Altius Space Machines (mostly robotics, and a frequent industry tweeter) has good news, http://www.altius-space.com/cryo-coupler-sbir-phase-ii-win/ Quote Cryo Coupler SBIR Phase II Win Altius was excited to be selected yesterday by NASA for an SBIR Phase II contract to develop a cryogenic propellant transfer coupling for in-space refueling. This is a follow-on to one of the three SBIR Phase I contracts Altius was awarded last April, and completed during the second half of 2016. While Altius has won a few SBIR Phase I contracts in the past, this is our first SBIR Phase II contract, and to give you an idea of how competitive this process is, Altius was one of only 133 Phase II awardees–out of a total of 399 Phase I contracts this cycle, which were selected from 1278 Phase I proposals. Since I didn’t have the chance to explain what we were doing for this project back when we won the Phase I effort, I wanted to spend some more time and give some background on what we’re doing and where we’re trying to take this after Phase II. What is a Cryogenic Propellant Coupling? A cryogenic propellant coupling is a device that allows you to temporarily connect two tanks together in a way that allows you to transfer super-cold liquids or gases between the two tanks. This is similar to how you use a gasoline nozzle and the fill receptacle on your car to transfer gasoline from a storage tank at the gas station into your vehicle, except you’re now dealing with super cold pressurized liquids or gases. For rockets, cryogenic couplings are used for filling the stages prior to launch, but can also be used for refilling a stage in-space, similar to how military aircraft are sometimes refueled in-flight, enabling them to complete longer-range, and much more complicated missions without having to land to be refueled. Traditionally, rockets are designed with a break-away coupling that is used to fill the rocket tanks with cryogenic propellants prior to launch, and to drain the tanks in the case of a last-second abort. If the flight is scrubbed at the last second, you don’t want to have to have someone climb up the support tower to reconnect fluid lines before you can drain the tank as part of safing the stage. So these couplings are designed to stay attached to the vehicle until the absolute last possible second–after main engines have been lit, and as the rocket is just starting to leave the pad, at which point the coupling is yanked away from the vehicle so the rocket exhaust doesn’t melt it as the vehicle climbs off the pad. The problem is that most of these couplings were only designed for fueling a vehicle on the pad. In order to not leak at cryogenic temperatures, cryogenic seals are used which typically take a significant amount of force to make the initial connection and provide seal “preload”. This means that these couplings are typically bolted onto the vehicle with frangible or explosive bolts that are actuated to remove the coupling–not exactly something that would be easy to reconnect on orbit for refueling! So, if you want to refuel a launch vehicle upper stage in space, say to do a Distributed Launch mission like ULA has proposed or like SpaceX has proposed for its Mars colonization plans, you have one of two choices–either you go with two separate fill/drain ports–one designed for ground T-0 disconnect operations and another one for easy in-space connection (likely robotically), or you could develop a single vehicle-side coupling design that could be used for both T-0 disconnect operations and reused for in-space robotic refueling. That second option is what Altius is developing in this Phase II effort. Our thinking is that you need a fill/drain coupling anyway, so if you can design it for easy alignment and low-force connection/separation, you can kill two birds with one stone by having the same coupling do double-duty. This also has the benefit of providing a nearer-term market for these couplings than depots or distributed lift, since many companies are currently designing new upper stages, and all of them will need lightweight cryogenic propellant couplings. Our Overall Plan for Phase II Our Phase II plan includes doing some work to refine our unique cryogenic sealing architecture, which enables the super low connection/extraction forces, and then wrapping that into a full flight coupling design. Since we wanted to design and build a flight-like prototype in Phase II anyway, we decided it was best to tie it to a real-world application, so we could make sure we were designing something that could actually be used after Phase II is over. So, during Phase I, we reached out to several launch vehicle companies that are actively developing upper stages that use at least one cryogenic fluid, and found a few who would like to work with us to provide design requirements and design feedback as we develop the coupling. I won’t go into the details of who we’re working with yet, as I haven’t verified with the customers that I have permission to discuss their applications, but we’ve found at least one customer who needs a LOX coupler, in a size that’s convenient to work with in Phase II, and which could potentially get us a flight opportunity for the coupler very soon after the end of Phase II. We’ll be working with them to size the system, define requirements, flesh-out the design, and ultimately put it through qualification testing to qualify it for flight. Most of the Phase II design/testing effort will be focused on the T-0 fill/drain disconnect configuration of the coupling, but we’ll also build a slightly less flight-like in-space refueling coupling half, and practice robotic insertion/extraction operations (using our UR-3 robot arm or potentially one of our STEM Arms), and then simulated in-space fill/drain operations in our Thermal-Vacuum chamber. This will take us to a flight-ready T-0 disconnect design ready to integrate into the customer’s vehicle, and will also raise the TRL of the in-space refueling version of the coupler to TRL 6, where it could be integrated into a future in-space refueling demo. In parallel with this SBIR-funded effort for developing a LOX version of the coupling, we’ll also be working with other groups to test the coupling and cryogenic sealing architecture for other fluids such as cryogenic hydrocarbons like Liquid Methane, super-cold Liquid Hydrogen and maybe even Liquid Helium. Post Phase II In-Space Demonstration Ideas After the Phase II effort, we have a few ideas for how to affordably demonstrate the in-space refueling version of this coupling. One option that we haven’t started discussing with Goddard yet would be to make a version of our coupling that could be tested on a future Robotic Refueling Mission on ISS. The Satellite Servicing Program Office at Goddard has been developing testbeds for testing various satellite servicing and refueling-related tools using the Dextre robot arm on ISS. One of their demos on the next RRM mission will in fact include demonstrating a Methane coupling they’ve developed in-house. We could work with them to see if we could adapt our system for an ISS demonstration transferring some sort of cryogenic fluid on-orbit. We also have some affordable, higher-fidelity “distributed-lift” demo ideas we could potentially perform after we’ve developed our upper stage rendezvous/capture technology. One option that’s particularly intriguing could involve refueling a small launch vehicle upper stage using leftover LOX on a Centaur, and Kerosene/Helium brought up in additional tanks as a secondary payload. That would allow the smallsat launcher to launch with a payload, rendezvous with the Centaur, be captured, refueled, and then reignite to send its payload to some destination beyond LEO. Most of the small launch vehicle upper stages I’ve run the numbers for could send their full LEO payload to almost anywhere in the solar system if fully refueled in LEO. Distributed Launch Illustration I don’t know if there’s a market for dedicated small-sat launch to MEO, GEO, or Deep Space, but if there is, this demo would provide a way to start doing initial missions for on the order of half to two-thirds of the price of a dedicated reused Falcon 9 flight leaves. If you can get a rideshare slot to your interplanetary destination, obviously that’ll be cheaper, but if you’re trying to go to some place that doesn’t have other regular passengers, something like this could be an intriguing option. Commercialization plans As we work on the Phase II LOX coupling, we’re going to reach out to as many launch vehicle developers that have cryogenic upper stages as we can, both commercial (ULA, Blue Origin, SpaceX, Virgin Orbit, Generation Orbit, Ventions, RocketLabs, Masten, etc), government (SLS/EUS), and foreign (Arianespace, MHI, etc), especially focusing on those that are developing new upper stages. Our goal is to see if we can get enough customers that we can start creating a few standard sizes (maybe one for ACES/New Glenn/Falcon 9/EUS sized vehicles, one for Centaur/Ariane class vehicles, and one for smallsat launch vehicles like LauncherOne, Electron, etc) for fuel and oxidizer, to start making it easier for companies to transition to either refuel their upper stages on-orbit, or also to provide fuel-delivery on-orbit. These vehicles need a fill/drain valve anyway, and if we can keep ours simple, light, and affordable, we hope to be able to land several customers, especially for anyone who is designing a new upper stage so who may require a new coupling design anyway. By going with a few standard sizes, you get to an ideal like what people deal with at the gas station–you know when you drive up to a gas station, in any state, that the gas nozzle is going to fit into your car. If we can do that for upper stages, I think we’ll be well on our way to a future where on-orbit refueling becomes commonplace. End Note Sorry this initial post was deliberately light on both pictures and technical details. I usually like being pretty open about what we’re doing, but since these couplings are used for rocket vehicles, they may fall under ITAR, and some of the technical elements are probably patentable–especially the low connection force cryogenic sealing architecture. Once we’ve had a chance to file some patent protection and talk with our export control lawyers, we’ll see what we can say going forward. We’ll make sure we find some way of sharing more information and progress updates as we go along. In the meantime, if you’re a US company or research group that is interested in this technology, please reach out to us and we can give you more information off-linem . The Phase II proposal abstract can be found at https://sbir.nasa.gov/SBIR/abstracts/16/sbir/phase2/SBIR-16-2-H2.04-8454.html ! BetaguyGZT, Draggendrop and LOC 3 Share Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DocM Posted March 11, 2017 Share Posted March 11, 2017 Multi-company post - F9 was delayed from the 12th to the 14th. Delta IV was delayed to the 14th because of an RS-68A engine problem. So, Delta IV has to wait for Falcon 9. If F9 goes, Delta IV waits. Now Atlas V enters the schedule for Cygnus OA-7 on the 21st, and it has an issue, March is playin' with us Draggendrop 1 Share Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BetaguyGZT Posted March 11, 2017 Share Posted March 11, 2017 Could it be .... March Madness?! DocM 1 Share Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DocM Posted March 11, 2017 Share Posted March 11, 2017 Seems like it. Hell, last Thursday we were hit by 68 mph winds and over a million people are without power. Not us though - and we have a big natural gas generator with an LP reserve tank. Draggendrop 1 Share Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Draggendrop Veteran Posted March 14, 2017 Author Veteran Share Posted March 14, 2017 Launch Schedule Quote March 15/16H-2A • IGS Radar 5 Launch period: 0100-0300 GMT on 16th (9:00-11:00 p.m. EDT on 15th) Launch site: Tanegashima Space Center, Japan A Japanese H-2A rocket will launch an Information Gathering Satellite with a radar reconnaissance payload for the Japanese government. [Jan. 25] Falcon 9 at 1:35 EDT (5:35 UTC) on the 16th... then... Quote March 17 Delta 4 • WGS 9 Launch window: 2344-0058 GMT (7:44-8:58 p.m. EDT) Launch site: SLC-37B, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida A United Launch Alliance Delta 4 rocket will launch the ninth Wideband Global SATCOM spacecraft, formerly known as the Wideband Gapfiller Satellite. Built by Boeing, this geostationary communications spacecraft will serve U.S. military forces. The rocket will fly in the Medium+ (5,4) configuration with four solid rocket boosters. Delayed from Feb. 2, March 2 and March 8. [March 11] March 21 Ariane 5 • SGDC & Koreasat 7 Launch time: 2031 GMT (4:31 p.m. EDT) Launch site: ELA-3, Kourou, French Guiana Arianespace will use an Ariane 5 ECA rocket, designated VA236, to launch the SGDC and Koreasat 7 communications satellites. The Geostationary Defense and Strategic Communications, or SGDC, satellite will provide X-band and Ka-band military and civil communications services for the Brazilian government and Visiona Tecnologia Espacial, a joint venture between Embraer and Telebras. Koreasat 7 will provide broadcasting and telecommunications services over Korea, the Philippines, Indonesia and India for KTsat of South Korea. [March 8] March 21/22 Atlas 5 • OA-7 Launch window: 0211-0241 GMT on 22nd (10:11-10:41 p.m. EDT on 21st) Launch site: SLC-41, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida A United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket, designated AV-070, will launch will launch the eighth Cygnus cargo freighter on the seventh operational cargo delivery flight to the International Space Station. The mission is known as OA-7. The rocket will fly in the 401 vehicle configuration with a four-meter fairing, no solid rocket boosters and a single-engine Centaur upper stage. Delayed from March 9. [March 11] https://spaceflightnow.com/launch-schedule/ ------------------------- Japanese reconnaissance satellite set for Thursday launch atop H-IIA rocket Quote Preparations are underway at JAXA’s Tanegashima Space Center for the launch of the IGS-RADAR-5 radar reconnaissance satellite. The Mitsubishi Heavy Industries H-IIA rocket, in the 202 configuration, is set to launch within a 2-hour window opening at 9:00 p.m. EDT March 15 (01:00 GMT March 16), 2017. Sitting atop the 174-foot (53-meter) tall rocket is IGS-RADAR-5. The satellite is part of a fleet operated by the Cabinet Satellite Intelligence Center (CSICE) and will provide information in support of both Japan’s national defense and natural disaster operations. CSICE is responsible for several state and military intelligence organizations, and IGS-RADAR-5 will increase the agency’s data-gathering abilities. Not much information about the satellite is publicly available, as would be expected. However, inferences can be made about it from its predecessors. Information suggests the satellite will be inserted into a Sun-synchronous orbit (SSO) inclined roughly 97 degrees to the equator in a nearly circular 310-mile (500-kilometer) orbit. The solar-powered spacecraft is likely built on a commercially-available Mitsubishi Electric Company satellite bus. Its radar resolution is likely to be approximately 3.3 feet (1 meter). The satellite’s ride, the H-IIA, is Japan’s workhorse launch vehicle and has once again been tapped to deliver a national security payload to orbit. The rocket, in the 202 configuration – two stages, no liquid-fueled boosters, and two solid-fueled boosters – can loft approximately 8,800 pounds (4,000 kilograms) to SSO. The H-IIA will lift off the pad with the core stage’s single LE-7A engine, supplemented by two strap-on SRB-A solid-fueled boosters. The trio has a combined 1.49 million pounds (6,618 kilonewtons) of thrust at liftoff, with the boosters operating for the first 100 seconds of flight and accounting for more than 83 percent of the output. The rocket’s second stage is powered by a lone LE-5B liquid-fueled engine. Like its first stage sibling, the engine is also fueled by liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen (often shortened as “hydrolox”) and provides 30,800 pounds (137 kilonewtons) of thrust in vacuum. The H-IIA, in all of its configurations, has been a reliable vehicle for Japan. It has a launch success rate of nearly 97 percent. This flight will be the country’s third orbital launch attempt of 2017 and the second from an H-IIA 202. http://www.spaceflightinsider.com/organizations/jaxa/japanese-reconnaissance-satellite-set-for-thursday-launch-atop-h-iia-rocket/ -------------------- Check this out....your own personal "Static Fire" mobile platform... https://www.sedsucsd.org/projects-colossus.html Edit...last minute correction... Falcon 9 on the 16th...then Delta 4 on the 17th.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Draggendrop Veteran Posted March 15, 2017 Author Veteran Share Posted March 15, 2017 MLS selects Nova Scotia Launch Site for Commercial Operation of Cyclone 4M Rocket Image: Maritime Launch Services Quote Canadian-based Maritime Launch Services announced on Tuesday it has committed to establishing a launch site in Nova Scotia for Ukraine’s Cyclone-4M (Tsiklon-4M) rocket hoped to become a contender on the international launch market, primarily targeted for medium-class payloads headed to Low Earth Orbit. Cyclone-4 was left without a launch site after plans of launching the rocket from Alcantara, Brazil fell through in 2015 and the rocket’s designer Yuzhnoye, based in the Ukraine, was cleared by its government to begin looking into potential launch sites in North America. Maritime Launch Services (MLS), registered in Nova Scotia, has roots in the U.S. and Ukraine with initial funding provided in 2016 by United Paradyne, a firm specializing in rocket propellants with facilities in California and Cape Canaveral. Quote MLS studied 14 potential launch locations across North America over the past year with considerations ranging from launch trajectories and environmental impacts to present infrastructure. By early 2017, the company had zeroed in on a site in the Canso-Hazel Hill area of Nova Scotia’s Guysborough Municipality that offers a wide stretch of ocean to the south and east for launches into Low Earth Orbit and high-inclination Sun Synchronous Orbits favored by Earth-imaging satellites as well as communications satellite constellations aiming for global coverage. The chosen location fulfills all requirements for establishing a commercial launch site, notably “very low population density, proximity to multimodal transportation, and interest from the community, province and government,” MLS noted in a statement. MLS entered a dialog with the local community earlier this year with open house meetings to discuss the potential impacts and benefits of moving a commercial launch site into the area. Image: Maritime Launch Services Quote Cyclone 4M will face competition from a variety of rockets including a range of small satellite launchers such as Rocket Lab’s Electron and VirginOrbit’s LauncherOne that can only lift a fraction of Cyclone’s payload but offer more schedule flexibility to SmallSat operators that would have to book a shared ride on the larger Cyclone which comes with less authority over schedules for the individual operators. more at the link... http://spaceflight101.com/maritime-launch-services-selects-nova-scotia-launch-site/ CANADA TO GET ITS OWN SPACEPORT Quote Canada is getting its own rocket-launching facility. Maritime Launch Services (MLS) has confirmed its plans to build and operate a commercial launch facility in Nova Scotia, on Canada’s east coast. The new spaceport should begin construction in 1 year, and should be in operation by 2022. The facility will be built near Canso, in the province of Nova Scotia. Maritime Launch Services hopes to launch 8 rockets per year to place satellites in orbit. The Ukrainian Cyclone 4M medium-class rockets that will lift-off from Canso will have a payload of up to 3,350 kg. 8 Ukrainian-built Cyclone 4 rockets will be launched each year from Maritime Launch Services' planned spaceport in Nova Scotia, Canada. Image: Maritime Launch Services The Cyclone 4. The Cyclone family of rockets have over 200 successful launches to their credit. Image: Yuzhnoye Design Office Quote The Canso launch facility is an entirely private business proposal. Neither the Canadian government nor the Canadian Space Agency are partners. It’s not clear if having a launch facility on Canadian soil will impact the CSA’s activities in any way. But at least Canadians won’t have to leave home to watch rocket launches. more at the link... http://www.universetoday.com/134348/canada-get-spaceport/ Look's like we have graduated from pop bottle launchers......I'll miss those bottles of vertical fun.../s --------------------------- Zero 2 Infinity launches its first rocket from high-altitude balloon The Bloostar rocket ignites its engines in the company’s first high-altitude test. Photo Credit: Zero 2 Infinity Quote Zero 2 Infinity, a small startup with an unconventional plan to send small satellites into orbit, has successfully performed its first rocket test flight – from beneath a high-altitude balloon. The March 1 test, which the Spanish-based company announced March 13, took place a few miles off the coast of Spain from a ship. A stratospheric balloon took the company’s “Bloostar” rocket to the “edge of space” some 16 miles (25 kilometers) in altitude. Launch teams then gave the order to drop the small rocket from the balloon and ignite its engines. There were a number of goals for this test including: to validate the system’s telemetry, show the rocket could perform a controlled ignition and was stable, and to test parachute deployment for a sea recovery. Zero 2 Infinity said all of these goals were achieved in full. The company hopes to be able to launch micro and nanosatellites less than 220 pounds (100 kilograms) to orbit by using a stratospheric balloon as its first stage. The rocket-powered portion of the flight will then start already above 95 percent of the mass of the atmosphere. According to Zero 2 Infinity, in addition to getting to high altitude without any polluting emissions, it will allow the company to launch satellites for customers with only a two-week notice. Bloostar is a three-stage, liquid-fueled system (not counting the balloon). Each stage is toroidal shaped with the next stage tucked inside the former. This keeps the booster short and allows for a larger payload volume: 85 cubic feet (2.4 cubic meters) for orbital flights. Each stage is recovered on Earth using parachutes. The company, formed in 2009, said it is working toward opening up space for small companies, schools and universities by lowering the cost of dedicated small satellite launches. According to Zero 2 Infinity, the Bloostar system has attracted the attention of a number of satellite companies around the world and has “gathered upwards of 250 million euros in letters of intent for future launches.” This first test, while only firing a few seconds according to Space News, is the first of many that will allow the company to send its first commercial payload into space in 2019. If successful, it will be the first small satellite launcher to use a stratospheric balloon as a first stage. A diagram of the ascent profile for the Bloostar system. Image Credit: Zero 2 Infinity http://www.spaceflightinsider.com/missions/commercial/zero-2-infinity-launches-its-first-rocket-from-high-altitude-balloon/ Zero 2 Infinity Launches Rocket From The Edge Of Space http://spaceref.biz/company/zero-2-infinity-launches-rocket-from-the-edge-of-space.html Rocket Launch from Near Space - Bloostar by Zero 2 Infinity video is 0:34 min. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Draggendrop Veteran Posted March 18, 2017 Author Veteran Share Posted March 18, 2017 Launch Schedule Quote March 18 Delta 4 • WGS 9 Launch window: 2344-0059 GMT (7:44-8:59 p.m. EDT) Launch site: SLC-37B, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida A United Launch Alliance Delta 4 rocket will launch the ninth Wideband Global SATCOM spacecraft, formerly known as the Wideband Gapfiller Satellite. Built by Boeing, this geostationary communications spacecraft will serve U.S. military forces. The rocket will fly in the Medium+ (5,4) configuration with four solid rocket boosters. Delayed from Feb. 2, March 2, March 8 and March 17. [March 15] March 21 Ariane 5 • SGDC & Koreasat 7 Launch window: 2031-2320 GMT (4:31-7:20 p.m. EDT) Launch site: ELA-3, Kourou, French Guiana Arianespace will use an Ariane 5 ECA rocket, designated VA236, to launch the SGDC and Koreasat 7 communications satellites. The Geostationary Defense and Strategic Communications, or SGDC, satellite will provide X-band and Ka-band military and civil communications services for the Brazilian government and Visiona Tecnologia Espacial, a joint venture between Embraer and Telebras. Koreasat 7 will provide broadcasting and telecommunications services over Korea, the Philippines, Indonesia and India for KTsat of South Korea. [March 14] March 24/25 Atlas 5 • OA-7 Launch window: 0100-0130 GMT on 25th (9:00-9:30 p.m. EDT on 24th) Launch site: SLC-41, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida A United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket, designated AV-070, will launch will launch the eighth Cygnus cargo freighter on the seventh operational cargo delivery flight to the International Space Station. The mission is known as OA-7. The rocket will fly in the 401 vehicle configuration with a four-meter fairing, no solid rocket boosters and a single-engine Centaur upper stage. Delayed from March 9 and March 21. [March 15] NET March 27 Falcon 9 • SES 10 Launch window:2058-0058 GMT (4:58-8:58 p.m. EDT) Launch site: LC-39A, Kennedy Space Center, Florida A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket will launch the SES 10 communications satellite. Owned by SES of Luxembourg, the spacecraft will provide direct-to-home TV broadcasting and other telecommunication services for Mexico, the Caribbean, Central America and South America. It will also cover Brazil and support offshore oil and gas exploration. Delayed from 3rd Quarter, October and February. [March 16] https://spaceflightnow.com/launch-schedule/ ---------------- Live stream ---------------------------- ARIANE FLIGHT VA236 with SGDC and KOREASAT-7 Quote For its fourth launch of the year, and the second Ariane 5 mission in 2017 from the Guiana Space Center in French Guiana, Arianespace will orbit two satellites: SGDC for VISIONA Tecnologia Espacial S.A. on behalf of the Brazilian operator Telebras S.A., and KOREASAT-7 for ktsat of South Korea. SGDC and KOREASAT-7 are the 555th and 556th satellites to be launched by Arianespace. This will be the 287th mission by the Arianespace family of launchers, and the seventh all-Thales Alenia Space mission, as both satellites were built by this manufacturer. SGDC SGDC Arianespace Quote SGDC (Geostationary Satellite for Communications and Defense) is the first satellite for the operator Telebras S.A. to be launched by Arianespace, performed within the scope of a contract with SGDC prime contractor VISIONA Tecnologia Espacial S.A. This Brazilian government program has three main objectives: Reduce Brazil’s digital divide by providing high-quality Internet services to 100% of the country territory as part of the National Broadband Plan Provide sovereign and secure means for the Brazilian Government and Defense strategic communications Acquire critical technologies for the Brazilian space industry, enabling the industry to take increasingly important roles in the future Brazilian space programs. Positioned at 75° West, with its 57 Ka-band beams and 5 X-band channels, the SGDC is a multi-spot beam HTS satellite able to delivering more than 57 Gbps over the Brazilian territory. KOREASAT-7 KOREASAT-7 Arianespace Quote KOREASAT-7 is the third KOREASAT satellite to be launched by Arianespace for ktsat, following KOREASAT-3 and KOREASAT-6, launched in September 1999 and December 2010, respectively. ktsat, a wholly-owned subsidiary of KT Corp. – the largest telecom/media service provider in South Korea – is the country’s sole satellite service provider. Since the establishment of the Kumsan Satellite Center (Teleport) in 1970, ktsat has been the national leader in telecommunications and broadcasting services. It currently operates three satellites. KOREASAT-7 will provide a full range of video and data applications, including Internet access, direct-to-home broadcasting (DTH), government communications and connectivity for VSAT (Very Small Aperture Terminal) networks. Positioned at 116° East, KOREASAT-7 is designed to provide higher throughput and extended coverage over Korea, the Philippines, the Indochinese Peninsula, India and Indonesia. Its added Ka-band capacity, with steerable beams, will enable it to meet increased demand. Launch Kit, 2MB, 10 page pdf Press Release http://www.arianespace.com/mission/ariane-flight-va236/ ---------------------- S.S. John Glenn vessel mounted atop Atlas 5 rocket for launch next week Cygnus, as pictured last week, being prepped for encapsulation in Atlas 5 rocket’s nose cone. Credit: Walter Scriptunas II / Scriptunas Images Quote CAPE CANAVERAL — An eight-ton cargo ship destined for the International Space Station was hoisted aboard its United Launch Alliance Atlas-Centaur booster rocket today in preparation for liftoff to the orbiting laboratory next week. The commercial Cygnus freighter — christened the S.S. John Glenn in tribute to America’s first man to orbit Earth — is scheduled for launch either Thursday, March 23 or Friday, March 24 from Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral. A final determination of the date is expected Monday, based on Range availability. ULA is boosting its third Cygnus payload for Orbital ATK, allowing the vessel to carry its maximum amount of cargo to the station. March 23: Launch window 9:23-9:53 p.m. EDT; Rendezvous March 27 March 24: Launch window 9:00-9:30 p.m. EDT; Rendezvous March 28 March 25: Launch window 8:37-9:07 p.m. EDT; Rendezvous March 29 Liftoff was delayed a few days to replace a component in the first stage hydraulics that showed suspect behavior in pre-flight testing. Further date uncertainty was created by two SpaceX postponements and the ripple effects that had with scheduling on the Eastern Range. The Cygnus mission, known as OA-7 under NASA’s Commercial Resupply Service contract, carries 7,443 pounds of internal cargo and an 183-pound external deployer with cubesats. The freighter weighs 15,928 pounds in totality. “We have more than 2,000 pounds of scientific experiments on board spanning all fields of science onboard,” said Holly Vavrin, a commercial visiting vehicle engineer in NASA’s International Space Station Program Office. “There are also 38 CubeSats launching on this mission, including four that will launch from the Cygnus and 34 that will be launched from the station to conduct a range of experiments including testing long-life battery systems, study cloud systems and measure background radiation.” more at the link... https://spaceflightnow.com/2017/03/17/s-s-john-glenn-vessel-mounted-atop-atlas-5-rocket-for-launch-next-week/ BetaguyGZT 1 Share Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DocM Posted March 19, 2017 Share Posted March 19, 2017 WGS-9 launch Draggendrop and BetaguyGZT 2 Share Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Draggendrop Veteran Posted March 21, 2017 Author Veteran Share Posted March 21, 2017 Newer Launch Schedule....so far.... Quote March 22 Ariane 5 • SGDC & Koreasat 7 Launch window: 2031-2320 GMT (4:31-7:20 p.m. EDT) Launch site: ELA-3, Kourou, French Guiana Arianespace will use an Ariane 5 ECA rocket, designated VA236, to launch the SGDC and Koreasat 7 communications satellites. The Geostationary Defense and Strategic Communications, or SGDC, satellite will provide X-band and Ka-band military and civil communications services for the Brazilian government and Visiona Tecnologia Espacial, a joint venture between Embraer and Telebras. Koreasat 7 will provide broadcasting and telecommunications services over Korea, the Philippines, Indonesia and India for KTsat of South Korea. Delayed from March 21. [March 20] NET March 27 Atlas 5 • OA-7 Launch window: 2349-0019 GMT (7:49-8:19 p.m. EDT) Launch site: SLC-41, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida A United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket, designated AV-070, will launch will launch the eighth Cygnus cargo freighter on the seventh operational cargo delivery flight to the International Space Station. The mission is known as OA-7. The rocket will fly in the 401 vehicle configuration with a four-meter fairing, no solid rocket boosters and a single-engine Centaur upper stage. Delayed from March 9 and March 21. [March 20] NET March 29 Falcon 9 • SES 10 Launch window: 2059-2329 GMT (4:59-7:29 p.m. EDT) Launch site: LC-39A, Kennedy Space Center, Florida A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket will launch the SES 10 communications satellite. Owned by SES of Luxembourg, the spacecraft will provide direct-to-home TV broadcasting and other telecommunication services for Mexico, the Caribbean, Central America and South America. It will also cover Brazil and support offshore oil and gas exploration. Delayed from 3rd Quarter, October and February. [March 20] https://spaceflightnow.com/launch-schedule/ ----------------------- BetaguyGZT 1 Share Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Draggendrop Veteran Posted March 23, 2017 Author Veteran Share Posted March 23, 2017 Prior Schedule Quote March 23 Ariane 5 • SGDC & Koreasat 7 Launch window: 2031-2320 GMT (4:31-7:20 p.m. EDT) Launch site: ELA-3, Kourou, French Guiana Arianespace will use an Ariane 5 ECA rocket, designated VA236, to launch the SGDC and Koreasat 7 communications satellites. The Geostationary Defense and Strategic Communications, or SGDC, satellite will provide X-band and Ka-band military and civil communications services for the Brazilian government and Visiona Tecnologia Espacial, a joint venture between Embraer and Telebras. Koreasat 7 will provide broadcasting and telecommunications services over Korea, the Philippines, Indonesia and India for KTsat of South Korea. Delayed from March 21 and March 22. [March 21] NET March 27 Atlas 5 • OA-7 Launch window: 2349-0019 GMT (7:49-8:19 p.m. EDT) Launch site: SLC-41, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida A United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket, designated AV-070, will launch will launch the eighth Cygnus cargo freighter on the seventh operational cargo delivery flight to the International Space Station. The mission is known as OA-7. The rocket will fly in the 401 vehicle configuration with a four-meter fairing, no solid rocket boosters and a single-engine Centaur upper stage. Delayed from March 9 and March 21. [March 20] NET March 29 Falcon 9 • SES 10 Launch window: 2059-2329 GMT (4:59-7:29 p.m. EDT) Launch site: LC-39A, Kennedy Space Center, Florida A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket will launch the SES 10 communications satellite. Owned by SES of Luxembourg, the spacecraft will provide direct-to-home TV broadcasting and other telecommunication services for Mexico, the Caribbean, Central America and South America. It will also cover Brazil and support offshore oil and gas exploration. Delayed from 3rd Quarter, October and February. [March 20] https://spaceflightnow.com/launch-schedule/ Will need to see what happens with scheduling and decisions with SpaceX.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Draggendrop Veteran Posted March 26, 2017 Author Veteran Share Posted March 26, 2017 Launches from Kourou temporarily suspended by social unrest A barricade outside the Guiana Space Center. Credit: France Guyane Quote The launch an Ariane 5 rocket with Brazilian and Korean communications satellites that was set for this week has been postponed indefinitely after protesters blocked access to the French Guiana spaceport. The heavy-lift launcher was scheduled to lift off Tuesday, but widespread protests and a strike by workers from one of Arianespace’s subcontractors prevented the planned rollout of the Ariane 5 to its launch pad Monday. Arianespace hoped to reschedule the launch for later in the week, but the company announced Thursday that the commercial flight will remain grounded until further notice. “The evolution of the situation does not permit the restart of operations for the Ariane 5 launch scheduled for today,” Arianespace said in a statement Thursday. The fully-assembled Ariane 5 rocket, topped by the SGDC and Koreasat 7 communications satellites for the Brazilian government and South Korea’s commercial operator KTsat, are secured inside the spaceport’s final assembly building, officials said. Arianespace chief executive Stephane Israel tweeted Wednesday that officials will set a new target launch date as soon as possible. The delay will likely cause Arianespace to push back the following launch from French Guiana. Once the Ariane 5 takes off, a Russian-made Soyuz rocket is next in line at the tropical space base, slated to loft the Boeing-built SES 15 communications satellite into orbit to provide in-flight Internet connectivity for airline passengers, and support government, networking and maritime customers across North America. more at the link... https://spaceflightnow.com/2017/03/23/launches-from-kourou-suspended-by-social-unrest/ ------------------------ some what confirmed...subject to change... Quote NET March 29 Falcon 9 • SES 10 Launch window: 2059-2329 GMT (4:59-7:29 p.m. EDT) Launch site: LC-39A, Kennedy Space Center, Florida A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket will launch the SES 10 communications satellite. Owned by SES of Luxembourg, the spacecraft will provide direct-to-home TV broadcasting and other telecommunication services for Mexico, the Caribbean, Central America and South America. It will also cover Brazil and support offshore oil and gas exploration. Delayed from 3rd Quarter, October and February. [March 20] Quote April 4 GSLV Mk.2 • GSAT 9 Launch time: TBD Launch site: Satish Dhawan Space Center, Sriharikota, India India’s Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle Mk. 2 (GSLV Mk.2), flying on the GSLV-F09 mission, will launch the GSAT 9 satellite to provide communications services over India and neighboring countries. Delayed from March. [March 14] Quote April 15 PSLV • Cartosat 2E Launch time: TBD Launch site: Satish Dhawan Space Center, Sriharikota, India India’s Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle, flying on the PSLV-C38 mission, will launch India’s Cartosat 2E high-resolution Earth observation satellite and a collection of smaller secondary payloads from international customers. [March 23] April 16 Falcon 9 • NROL-76 Launch period: TBD Launch site: LC-39A, Kennedy Space Center, Florida A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket will launch a classified spacecraft payload for the U.S. National Reconnaissance Office. This will be SpaceX’s first launch for the NRO. [March 16] 3 to be determined... -------------------------- Air Force's Mysterious X-37B Space Plane Breaks Orbital Record Quote The ongoing mission of the U.S. Air Force's robotic X-37B space plane is now the longest in the clandestine program's history. As of today (March 25), the X-37B has spent 675 days on its latest Earth-circling mission, which is known as Orbital Test Vehicle-4 (OTV-4). The previous record was 674 days, set during OTV-3, which lasted from December 2012 to October 2014. It's unclear what the new duration record will end up being; most X-37B activities and payloads are classified, and the Air Force has historically been tight-lipped about landing plans. [The X-37B's Fourth Mystery Mission in Photos] "The landing date will be determined based on the completion of the program's on-orbit demonstrations and objectives for this mission," Capt. AnnMarie Annicelli, an Air Force spokeswoman, told Space.com via email. OTV-4 is still nowhere near the overall record for longest space mission, however. Some Earth-observation satellites have operated for decades; for example, Landsat-5 studied the planet from 1984 to 2013. And NASA's far-flung Voyager 1 and Voyager 2 probes are still sending data home, nearly 40 years after their 1977 launches. http://www.space.com/36205-x-37b-space-plane-breaks-record.html?utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=social#?utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=2016twitterdlvrit Jim K 1 Share Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DocM Posted March 26, 2017 Share Posted March 26, 2017 Man, this wildcat strike is getting bad. No launches from Kourou for a while. http://dailycaller.com/2017/03/21/france-cant-launch-satellites-into-space-because-of-a-massive-labor-strike/ @dutchspace Due to social movement, #VA236 launch will not occur this Thursday. New launch date ASAP. #Ariane5 & payloads are in safe, standby condition > As many areas in French Guiana are blocked, a government delegation is expected to arrive this weekend #Kourou #VA236 #CSG https://t.co/732k3cZySI > Update from #Kourou : mayors of the surrounding villages are arriving for a meeting on the current situation #CSG #VA236 https://t.co/dFUq8C0AwE > Another #kourou update: strikers collective feel abandoned by Paris,for the moment French minister @ebareigts will not go to French Guiana >US department of state @TravelGov has issued a travel warning for French Guiana https://t.co/IbCKmBIfo5 #CSG #VA236 #Kourou > Update from #Kourou : UTG union calls for strike tomorrow, Air France flight to Cayenne cancelled for Monday #VA236 most likely delayed #CSG Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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