Miscellaneous Launches and Payloads (updates)

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[Draggendrop Veteran]

Live coverage: Commercial Proton launch set for Thursday

 

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ILS says the issue that caused officials to halt the Proton launch countdown yesterday has been resolved, and the rocket is on track for liftoff at 0710 GMT (3:10 a.m. EDT) Thursday with a communications satellite for Intelsat and DirecTV.

 

"Following the additional verifications of the cables and connectors associated with last night’s issue which resulted in a delay to the Intelsat 31 launch, the problem has been isolated to a connector on the flight vehicle," ILS said in a statement today. "The ground system was wrongly identified as the cause of today’s delay. The flight connector issue has been resolved and the vehicle cleared for flight."

 

The Proton rocket will blast off from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan, carrying the U.S.-built telecom satellite into a "supersynchronous" transfer orbit more than 65,000 kilometers (40,000 miles) above Earth. The Breeze M upper stage will deploy the Intelsat 31/DLA-2 spacecraft at 2241 GMT (6:41 p.m. EDT) Thursday after a 15-hour sequence of orbit-raising burns.

live coverage at the link...should be great...

http://spaceflightnow.com/2016/06/07/intelsat-31-mission-status-center/

 

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Live coverage: Delta 4-Heavy countdown and launch journal

 

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Clearing its final readiness review and now simply waiting for countdown clocks to begin ticking, a Delta 4-Heavy rocket will haul a classified payload into space Thursday from Cape Canaveral.

Liftoff of the United Launch Alliance rocket is planned for 1:59 p.m. EDT (1759 GMT).

 

Although the duration of the day's launch window has not been publicly disclosed, officials previously said liftoff would happen before 6:30 p.m. EDT (2230 GMT).

 

We will have complete live play-by-play coverage of the count and launch on this page, as well as a webcast of liftoff.

live coverage at the link...double launch day....

http://spaceflightnow.com/2016/06/08/d374_journal/

 

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Masten Space Systems Introduces Xodiac and XaeroB Next Generation Reusable Rockets

 

Masten Space Systems Introduces Xodiac and XaeroB Next Generation Reusable Rockets.

 

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On Monday Masten Space Systems introduced its next generation reusable rockets Xodiac and XaeroB based on the previous generation Xombie, Xoie, and Xaero.

According to the Masten blog posting "both Xodiac (open frame) and XaeroB (aeroshell) share the core architecture that has powered Masten's rockets to date - LOX/IPA; pressure fed, regeneratively cooled engine; Masten avionics and GNC. The two new vehicles also share many of the same components, enabling Masten to have more efficient operations and less risk of service interruption."

"These new rocket vehicles continue to offer the features of Masten terrestrial test bed:
- precision vertical landing
- custom flight profile
- rapid iteration
- custom physical/mechanical integration
- rocket powered station keeping"

http://spaceref.biz/company/masten-space-systems-introduces-xodiac-and-xaerob-next-generation-reusable-rockets.html

 

Next generation reusable rockets - Xodiac and XaeroB

video is 1:25 min.

 

 

[Draggendrop Veteran]

Proton suffers Second Stage Anomaly, Intelsat 31 continues Orbital Ballet atop Briz-M Stage

 

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Thursday’s Proton-M launch with the Intelsat 31 communications satellite dodged a bullet when the second stage of the workhorse suffered an engine-related problem in the last seconds of its burn, creating a performance shortfall that is likely to remain without consequences for the satellite payload.

 

While Intelsat 31 continues trucking into orbit atop its Briz-M upper stage, information emerged that Proton’s ten-minute ascent mission earlier in the day was not without trouble.

 

The 58-meter tall Proton rocket lifted off from Site 81/24 at the Baikonur Cosmodrome at 7:10 UTC, coming back from a one-day launch delay caused by a faulty electrical connector on the rocket that needed to be replaced. Thundering off powered by its six RD-275M engines, Proton took the standard route towards Geostationary Transfer Orbit, swinging to the north-east to head towards the Russian border.

 

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To make up for the performance shortfall on Proton, Briz-M extended the burn of its 2,000 Kilogram-force engine by 32.66 seconds to reach the planned 173-Kilometer parking orbit.

analysis at the link...

http://spaceflight101.com/proton-second-stage-anomaly-intelsat-31/

 

Launch of Russian Proton-M Rocket carrying Intelsat 31

video is 11:38 min., launch is at the beginning of the video

 

 

 

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Live coverage: Delta 4-Heavy countdown and launch journal

 

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1732 GMT (1:32 p.m. EDT)
The weather improvement trend is continuing, with the best shot for launch today likely coming between 2:15 and 3:15 p.m. EDT (1815-1915 GMT), the weather officer indicates. The odds of acceptable weather in the rest of the launch window have been reduced to just 10 percent.

coverage at the link...

http://spaceflightnow.com/2016/06/08/d374_journal/

 

[Draggendrop Veteran]

Live coverage: Delta 4-Heavy countdown and launch journal

 

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1751 GMT (1:51 p.m. EDT)
NEW LAUNCH TIME set for 2:55 p.m. EDT when weather improvement is forecast for the Cape.

http://spaceflightnow.com/2016/06/08/d374_journal/

[Jim K Global Moderator]

8 minutes ago, Draggendrop said:

Live coverage: Delta 4-Heavy countdown and launch journal

 

http://spaceflightnow.com/2016/06/08/d374_journal/

Guess there is no other stream for this?  

ugh

[Draggendrop Veteran]

2 minutes ago, jjkusaf said:

Guess there is no other stream for this?  

ugh

Not many, but here is another...

http://www.ulalaunch.com/webcast.aspx

[Clirion]

They pretty well look the same to me.  Not sure who is sending out the............ Subpar.............. ( we will go with that) video feed.

 

[Jim K Global Moderator]

/sigh.  Same thing ... it is like they're streaming in 360p.  LOL

Maybe the sound will be in HD.  My dogs are asleep...they need a little rumble to wake them up.

[Draggendrop Veteran]

It is bad, but at least we get to see a NRO launch, usually they are a bit touchy about what is shown...and may even have a hand in this.

 

[Clirion]

Sounds like it is being pushed back a little more.  (I have he audio stream up)

[Jim K Global Moderator]

1 minute ago, Draggendrop said:

It is bad, but at least we get to see a NRO launch, usually they are a bit touchy about what is shown...and may even have a hand in this.

 

Good point.

 

1505 ET launch time now.

[Jim K Global Moderator]

ut oh.  Looks like maybe a scrub or another delay.

 

Edit:

Delayed.  Waiting for new launch time due to weather.

[Jim K Global Moderator]

hmmm.  Does anyone know how long they will extend this out before scrubbing?  

 

 

[Draggendrop Veteran]

10 minutes ago, jjkusaf said:

hmmm.  Does anyone know how long they will extend this out before scrubbing?  

 

 

 

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No information on the duration of the launch window is released for NRO launches, though ULA noted earlier that the launch period ends at 22:30 UTC, but that time does not represent the end of the actual launch window.

 

A backup launch slot is available on Saturday because SpaceX booked the range on Friday. Weather will improve slightly, to a 60% chance of acceptable conditions as the boundary continues to linger over the area.

http://spaceflight101.com/nrol-37-delta-iv-heavy-launch-preview/

 

We need this....

 

[Clirion]

1 hour ago, jjkusaf said:

ut oh.  Looks like maybe a scrub or another delay.

 

Edit:

Delayed.  Waiting for new launch time due to weather.

From what I gathered on this mornings news (I moved down here a few months ago), the Window is 6:30PM ET.  However, the weather was supposed to get worse as the afternoon went on.  It looks like that prediction is coming true.

 

 

[Draggendrop Veteran]

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2010 GMT (4:10 p.m. EDT)
While the weather wait continues, a reminder that today's Delta 4-Heavy launch period lasts another couple of hours.

http://spaceflightnow.com/2016/06/08/d374_journal/

 

[Draggendrop Veteran]

 

 

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2025 GMT (4:25 p.m. EDT)
If launch does not occur today, it is believed that the next opportunity would come on Saturday afternoon.

http://spaceflightnow.com/2016/06/08/d374_journal/

[Jim K Global Moderator]

boooo.  What is SpaceX doing there tomorrow....static fire?

[Draggendrop Veteran]

SpaceX has a launch on the 14th, the 10th is probably the static fire...we'll hear soon....

[Jim K Global Moderator]

2 minutes ago, Draggendrop said:

SpaceX has a launch on the 14th, the 10th is probably the static fire...we'll hear soon....

Yea...I was thinking one of the rockets they've recovered.  They haven't fired the last one.  What about the one before that (the May 6 JCSAT)?

[Clirion]

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If you are looking for some hope, the launch weather team now predicts a 30 percent chance of GO conditions around 5:40 p.m. EDT (2140 GMT).

So lets see if it Clears.

[Draggendrop Veteran]

15 minutes ago, jjkusaf said:

Yea...I was thinking one of the rockets they've recovered.  They haven't fired the last one.  What about the one before that (the May 6 JCSAT)?

All 4 cores being in the barn, has shown from images, that the first 2 are in various stages of "testing tear down". No word yet, but a stage is supposed to go to McGregor for tests and they also need a core for LC 39A testing. I think we will know soon, but work is still in progress on 39A, the shuttle swing arm teardown.

[Draggendrop Veteran]

Looks like another shot at 5:58 EDT

 

 

 

[Draggendrop Veteran]

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2152 GMT (5:52 p.m. EDT)
Permission to proceed has been granted by the ULA launch director and the National Reconnaissance Office mission director.
However, the weather remains NO GO as it has since about 11:30 a.m. EDT today. The team has been instructed to pick up the countdown to run through procedures before calling a hold prior to liftoff at T-minus 60 seconds.

 

2151 GMT (5:51 p.m. EDT)
The final readiness polls of the launch team and mission managers have been completed. No technical problems are being worked and all rocket, spacecraft and ground systems are "go" for liftoff at 5:58 p.m.

http://spaceflightnow.com/2016/06/08/d374_journal/

[Clirion]

Off of T-4 Hold.  T-3 and counting.