Category: Satellites

Image credit: Orbital Sciences

Orbital Sciences Pegasus rocket carried an Orbview-3 satellite into orbit Thursday. The Pegasus is different from most rockets because it’s carried underneath the wing of an aircraft and then launched from the air. The Pegasus detached from its L-1011 carrier aircraft and then placed the Orbview-3 high-resolution imaging satellite into a parking orbit 10 minutes later.

Orbital Sciences Corporation (NYSE: ORB) announced that earlier today, it successfully launched the company-built OrbView-3 high-resolution imaging satellite into its targeted orbit aboard the company’s Pegasus? rocket. The OrbView-3 satellite was accurately delivered into an initial “parking” orbit and, over the next several weeks, Orbital engineers will command the satellite to use its onboard propulsion system to reach its final circular operational orbit of 470 kilometers above the Earth, inclined at 97 degrees to the equator. Orbital designed, developed, built and tested the 304-kilogram OrbView-3 satellite for Orbital Imaging Corporation (ORBIMAGE) at the company’s Dulles, Virginia satellite manufacturing facility.

The powered flight sequence for the OrbView-3 mission took about 10 minutes, from the time the Pegasus rocket was released from its L-1011 carrier aircraft at approximately 2:55 p.m. (EDT) to the time that the satellite was deployed into orbit. Preliminary information indicates that the OrbView-3 satellite is working as planned in the early stages of its mission.

“We are very pleased with the results of the Pegasus launch and with the early indications that the OrbView-3 satellite is operating as expected,” said Mr. David W. Thompson, Orbital’s Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. “We look forward to delivering a highly-capable satellite that will allow ORBIMAGE to provide its customers with world-class imagery products.”

Orbital develops and manufactures small space systems for commercial, civil government and military customers. The company’s primary products are spacecraft and launch vehicles, including low-orbit, geostationary and planetary satellites for communications, remote sensing and scientific missions; ground- and air-launched rockets that deliver satellites into orbit; and missile defense boosters that are used as interceptor and target vehicles. Orbital also offers space-related technical services to government agencies and develops and builds satellite-based transportation management systems for public transit agencies and private vehicle fleet operators.

Original Source: Orbital News Release

Image credit: Arianespace

An Ariane 5 rocket successfully launched two geostationary communications satellites Wednesday evening after an hour’s delays because of poor weather. The Ariane 5G lifted off at 2238 GMT (6:38 pm EDT) and the two satellites separated 35 minutes later. The first satellite is the Australian commercial/military Optus and Defence C1 communications satellite which will provide coverage for the Asia Pacific region. The other is the Japanese BSAT-2c which will provide satellite television services throughout Japan.

Kourou, French Guiana, June 11, 2003 – Arianespace today orbited two geostationary communications satellites: Optus and Defence C1 for the Australian operator Optus and the Australian Department of Defence, and BSAT-2c for the Broadcasting Satellite System Corporation (B-SAT) of Japan under terms of a turnkey contract with Orbital Sciences Corporation of the United States.

Twelfth successful launch
With its 12th successful mission, the Ariane 5 Generic launcher confirmed its technical and operational maturity.

This latest success comes two months after the previous Ariane 5 flight — which also orbited a dual-satellite payload, and less than 10 days after Starsem’s successful Soyuz commercial mission with the European Space Agency’s Mars Express spacecraft.

Several days prior to launch, a ministerial-level ESA Council meeting authorized the Ariane 5 support plan and approved construction of a Soyuz launch pad at the Guiana Space Center, Europe’s Spaceport. These decisions give Arianespace the means to operate a full range of launch vehicles that respond to all client requirements.

Prestigious customers: Australia, Japan and the United States
The choice of Ariane by major space telecom manufacturers and operators in the United States, Japan and Australia clearly reflects international recognition of Arianespace’s top-flight launch service.

Optus and Defence C1 is the second Australian satellite to be launched by Ariane. In September 1987, Ariane orbited the Aussat K3 satellite, while Singtel — the parent company of operator Optus — had its ST-1 spacecraft launch by Ariane in 1998.

BSAT-2c is the 19 satellite launched by Ariane for Japan, and the fifth for telecom operator B-SAT — following BSAT-1a on Flight 95, BSAT-1b on Flight 108, and BSAT-2a and BSAT-2b on Flights 140 and 142. BSAT-2C is the fifth satellite built by Orbital Sciences Corporation to be launched by Arianespace using an Ariane 5 since March 2001.

Flight 161 at a glance
Flight 161 was carried out by an Ariane 5 Generic launcher from Europe’s Spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana. Liftoff was on Wednesday, June 11, 2003 at 7:38 p.m. local time in Kourou (22H38 GMT, 6:38 p.m. in Washington, D.C., 12:38 am in Paris on June 12, and at 7:38 am in Tokyo and 8:38 am in Sydney on June 12).

Provisional parameters at injection of the storable propellant upper stage were:
Perigee: 590 km for a target of 590 km (?3 km)
Apogee: 35,798 km for a target of 35,826 km (?160 km)
Inclination: 7.00 degrees for a target of 6.99 degrees (?0.06?)

Optus and Defence C1: Mitsubishi Electric Corporation of Japan is the prime contractor, and is responsible for all communications systems. Space Systems Loral of the United States designed, assembled and integrated the bus and satellite system.

Weighing about 4,725 kg at liftoff, it will be positioned at 156 degrees East. Equipped with 24 Ku-band transponders, it will provide commercial communications services for Australia, New Zealand, Southeast Asia and Hawaii. It also carries 4 X-band transponders, 4 Ku-band transponders and 6 UHF channels to provide dedicated links for the Australian Department of Defence.

Built by Orbital Sciences Corporation in Dulles, Virginia using the Star-1 platform, BSAT-2c weighed 1,275 kg at liftoff. It will be positioned at 110 degrees East. Equipped with 4 Ku-band transponders, it will provide direct TV broadcast services throughout Japan over its design life of 10 years. Over 16 million households receive programs broadcast by the B-SAT satellite.

Original Source: Arianespace News Release

Image credit: Sea Launch

Sea Launch completed its eighth successful mission Tuesday morning with the launch of the Boeing-built Thuraya-2 satellite on board a Zenit-3SL rocket. Liftoff occurred at 1355 GMT (9:56 am EDT), and the satellite separated from the Block DM upper stage 90 minutes later. Thuraya will provide data, broadcast and telecommunication services to Europe, the Middle East, Africa and Asia. This was the first mission from Sea Launch in nearly a year, but the company expects another three launches this year.

Thuraya-2, the second satellite built by Boeing [NYSE:BA] for Thuraya Satellite Telecommunications Company of Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, rocketed to geosynchronous transfer orbit today aboard a Zenit-3SL provided by Sea Launch Company, LLC.

The Boeing GEO-Mobile model satellite lifted off at 6:56 a.m. PDT (13:56 GMT) from the Odyssey Launch Platform positioned on the equator in the Pacific Ocean. The spacecraft separated from the launch vehicle approximately one hour and 40 minutes after the launch, and minutes later its first signals were received at a Telemetry, Tracking and Control Station at Uralla, Australia, confirming normal operation.

?The newest light in the heavens is Thuraya-2, a mobile communications satellite that will help connect users on the move within a vast area of the globe,? said Dave Ryan, president of spacecraft builder Boeing Satellite Systems International. ?A thorough check-out on orbit lies ahead for the satellite, and we are confident that it will soon take its place as a vital long-term asset supporting Thuraya?s future growth.?

Built in El Segundo, Calif., Thuraya-2 is designed to operate for 12 years at the 44 degrees East longitude orbital slot. The satellite will add capacity to the Thuraya network, which provides mobile voice and data communication services to a region of more than 100 countries in Europe, the Middle East, North and Central Africa, and Central and South Asia.

The Boeing Company is the world’s leading aerospace company, with its heritage mirroring the history of flight. It is the largest manufacturer of satellites, commercial jetliners and military aircraft. The company is also a global market leader in missile defense, human space flight and launch services.

Original Source: Boeing News Release

Image credit: ILS

A Russian-built Proton K rocket successfully launched the AMC-9 satellite on Saturday, completing the 300th launch of this rocket design over the course of 38 years. The Proton lifted off from the Baikonur Cosmodrome at 2215 GMT (6:15pm EDT), and the satellite separated from the Breeze M upper stage nearly nine hours later. The AMC-9 will provide digital television, data, and telecommunications services.

A Proton rocket successfully placed the AMC-9 satellite into orbit this morning for Alcatel Space and SES AMERICOM. The launch was conducted by the U.S.-Russian joint venture International Launch Services (ILS).

This marks the 300th flight of a Proton vehicle, including 38 years of Russian federal missions and seven years with commercial flights under the auspices of ILS. Today?s mission was the first Proton rocket launch of the year for ILS.

The vehicle used today was Proton vehicle with a Breeze M upper stage, which lifted off from the Baikonur Cosmodrome at 4:15 a.m. local time (22:15 June 6 GMT, 6:15 p.m. June 6 EDT). After 8 hours and 55 minutes, the AMC-9 satellite was separated from the Breeze M and placed into geostationary transfer orbit. Satellite builder Alcatel Space of Cannes, France, contracted for the launch as a delivery-in-orbit mission.

?Once again, Proton demonstrated that it is one of the most reliable vehicles in the world,? ILS President Mark Albrecht said. ?It?s a pleasure to provide both Alcatel Space and SES AMERICOM with another excellent launch.?

?I am delighted about the launch of AMC-9, a satellite that is important to our plans for growth of the AMC fleet,? said Dean Olmstead, president and CEO of SES AMERICOM. ?I extend warm congratulations to the entire team on the occasion of this picture-perfect launch and achieving the great 300th Proton mission milestone.?

This also was ILS? 14th launch of a satellite for a member of the SES GLOBAL family of companies ? SES AMERICOM and its predecessor GE AMERICOM, SES ASTRA and AsiaSat. In addition, ILS is scheduled to launch three more AMC satellites on either Proton or Atlas rockets in the 2003-04 time frame, and has recently acquired a fourth, not yet identified AMC mission.

This also is the eighth Alcatel Space-built satellite launched by ILS. AMC-9 is a Spacebus 3000B3 model with 48 transponders. It will enable SES AMERICOM, an SES GLOBAL company, to expand its digital television broadcasting, data transmission and telecommunication service offerings to North America.

ILS is a joint venture of Lockheed Martin Corp. (NYSE:LMT) in the United States, which builds the Atlas rocket; and Russian companies Khrunichev State Research and Production Space Center and RSC Energia. Khrunichev produces the Proton vehicles and the Breeze M upper stage.

ILS was formed in 1995 to provide launch services to customers worldwide, including technical, management and marketing expertise. It offers the broadest range of launch services in the world along with the highest reliability in the industry.

Original Source: ILS News Release

Image credit: ESA

The governments of the European Union gave their final approval for the launch of the new Galileo satellite navigation system, similar to the US-built Global Positioning System. The $3.6 billion system has had several delays to this point, but now the 30-satellite network is scheduled for completion by 2008. Consensus was reached at a meeting on Monday in Paris with the members of the European Space Agency.

The European Space Agency is now able to finalise the conditions for participation in the Galileo navigation programme and to approve the Galileo Joint Undertaking foundation act to be soon signed by ESA and the European Union.

The agreement reached among ESA member states today clears the way for the official launch of the legal entity which will have the task of coordinating ESA and EU involvement in Galileo, the European initiative to develop a global satellite navigation system.

“This is a great day for Europe in general and its space community in particular. Conscious of the economic, industrial and strategic importance of satellite navigation, our Member States have reached agreement in the common interest. We are now able to continue with Galileo, a major programme from which all citizens will benefit. Galileo is definitely a reality”, said Antonio Rodot?, ESA Director General at the end of the Council Meeting at Delegate level held in Paris today while informing German Minister of Education and Research, Mrs. Edelgard Bulmahn, Chairwoman of the ESA Council at Ministerial level to be held in Paris tomorrow.

?I am extremely delighted with this result. Galileo is now on its way . I am grateful to all ESA Member States that have striven to find a balanced solution and pleased that Europe has once again proven to be able to remain at the forefront of high level technology for a programme useful to each of us in our everyday life? said Mrs. Bulmahn when she heard the good news.

The Galileo Joint Undertaking, to be headquartered in Brussels, has a key part to play in implementing the various phases of the programme. This unique organisational structure will pave the way for the entity that will in due course operate the Galileo system. It will be responsible for the Galileo development and validation phase and also for preparations for system deployment and operations.

The founding members of the Galileo Joint Undertaking are the European Space Agency and the European Union, represented by the European Commission.

Galileo will complement the existing satellite navigation system, which presently relies entirely on GPS, the American Global Positioning System. Developed by ESA and the EU on the basis of equal co-funding, Galileo is designed to provide a complete civil system. Scheduled to be operational by 2008, it will offer the citizens of Europe and the world an accurate and secure satellite positioning capability.

A broad range of applications will be supported by the system : control of road, rail and sea traffic, synchronised data transmission between computers, and many others. Projections point to very significant economic benefits, with a return on investment of 4.6 and creation of over 140 000 jobs.

Galileo is the first instance of a project carried out jointly by the European Space Agency and the European Union.

The Galileo system will be built around 30 satellites (27 operational and 3 reserve craft) occupying three circular earth orbits, inclined at 56? to the Equator, at an altitude of 23 616 km. This configuration will provide excellent coverage of the planet. Two Galileo control centres will be established in Europe to control satellite operations and manage the navigation system.

Original Source: ESA News Release

Image credit: ILS

An Atlas V rocket successfully launched the Hellas-Sat satellite on Wednesday morning. The rocket lifted off from Cape Canaveral at 2210 GMT (6:10pm EST) and placed the satellite into a transfer orbit 31 minutes later. The launch was delayed once for 24 hours because of avionics problems, and then again because some boats strayed into the launch area. Hellas-Sat will provide voice, data, video and broadcast telecommunications for Greece and Cyprus.

An Atlas V rocket placed the Hellas-Sat satellite into orbit this evening, marking the 65th consecutive successful flight for Atlas, its builder Lockheed Martin and mission provider International Launch Services (ILS).

This was the second launch in the Atlas V series, Lockheed Martin?s powerful current-generation vehicle. It lifted off at 6:10 p.m. EDT (22:10 GMT), placing the Hellas-Sat spacecraft in a supersynchronous transfer orbit 31 minutes later. Satellite controllers have confirmed that the Hellas-Sat spacecraft is functioning properly.

The Atlas V rocket placed the satellite into a nearly perfect transfer orbit: apogee of 85,458 km (target was 85,554 km), perigee of 312.2 km (target was 312 km), and an inclination right on target at 17.06 degrees.

Hellas-Sat is the first telecommunications satellite for Greece and Cyprus. The satellite is an Astrium Eurostar 2000+ model that will provide voice, video, data and broadcast services over Europe, Africa, the Middle East and Southeast Asia.

?We appreciate the confidence Hellas-Sat has placed in ILS and Atlas to deliver this important satellite,? said ILS President Mark Albrecht. ?We congratulate the Atlas team for its dedication to 100 percent Mission Success, making this the 65th flawless launch in a row.?

?Our thanks to ILS and the very reliable Atlas for placing our satellite into orbit,? said Christodoulos Protopapas, CEO of Hellas-Sat Consortium Ltd. of Nicosia, Cyprus. George Argyropoulos, Chairman & CEO of Hellas-Sat S.A. of Athens, Greece, said, ?We look forward to using this satellite to broadcast next year?s Summer Olympic events from Athens.?

The Atlas V family is designed to lift payloads up to nearly 8,700 kg to geosynchronous transfer orbit (GTO). It was developed both for ILS commercial missions and to meet the U.S. Air Force requirements for the Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicle (EELV). The Atlas V incorporates state-of-the-art designs, materials and processes, including the throttleable, Russian-built RD-180 engine, the first variable-thrust main engine to power a U.S. expendable launch vehicle.

ILS is a joint venture of Lockheed Martin Corp. in the United States, with Russian companies Khrunichev State Research and Production Space Center and RSC Energia. ILS provides launch services on the Atlas and the Russian Proton vehicles to customers worldwide. The company is based in McLean, Va., near Washington, D.C.

ILS offers the broadest range of launch services in the world along with products with the highest reliability in the industry. ILS? Atlas rockets and their Centaur upper stages are built by Lockheed Martin Space Systems Co. ? Astronautics Operations, at facilities in Denver, Colo.; Harlingen, Texas; and San Diego, Calif. The three-stage Proton and the available Breeze M upper stage are produced by Khrunichev at its factory near Moscow.

Original Source: ILS News Release

Image credit: NASA

A Pegasus XL rocket successfully launched NASA’s SORCE satellite on Saturday afternoon. The Pegasus was released from its Stargazer L-1011 carrier aircraft at an altitude of nearly 12,000 metres, and it then ignited and flew the satellite into orbit. SORCE contains five instruments designed to observe the Sun.

NASA’s Solar Radiation and Climate Experiment (SORCE) successfully launched Saturday aboard a Pegasus XL rocket.

“Saturday’s successful launch adds to our constellation of Earth-viewing satellites that help us to understand and protect our home planet,” said Dr. Ghassem Asrar, NASA’s Associate Administrator for Earth Sciences, Washington.

“We are all tremendously excited about whatby what we will learn about the solar climate connection from SORCE,” said Bill Ochs, SORCE Project Manager at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md. “We’re very proud of the mission team led by the University of Colorado and supported by Orbital Sciences Corporation. This mission is a great example of how NASA, universities, and industry can partner to create successful missions.”

Over the next few days, the mission team will ensure the spacecraft is functioning properly. The SORCE science instruments will then be turned on and their health verified. Approximately 21 days after launch, the instruments will start science data collection, and calibration will begin. Once in its final orbital position, SORCE will be approximately 397 miles (640 kilometers) above the Earth it will study the sun’s influence on the Earth. It will measure how the sun affects the ozone layer, atmospheric circulation, clouds and oceans.

This mission is a joint partnership between NASA and the University of Colorado’s Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics in Boulder, Colorado. The mission is a principal investigator led mission with NASA providing management and scientific oversight and engineering support. Scientists and engineers at the University of Colorado designed, built, calibrated, and tested the four science instruments on the spacecraft.

The University subcontracted with Orbital Sciences Corporation for the spacecraft and observatory integration and testing. The Mission Operations Center and the Science Operations Center are both operated at the University. The University will operate the spacecraft over its five-year mission life and is responsible for the acquisition, management, processing, and distribution of the science data.

Original Source: NASA News Release

Image credit: Arianespace

According to a commission of inquiry, the failure of the new Ariane 5-ESCA rocket appears to have been caused by a leakage in the cooling system. Approximately 456 seconds into the vehicle’s flight, it veered off course and had to be destroyed. With it went two satellites worth 600 million euros. The results of this inquiry clear the way for the launch of the Rosetta comet mission in the next few weeks.

The Inquiry Board appointed to investigate the failure of Flight 157 submitted its report to Arianespace on January 6, 2003. The board was named last December 13 to establish the causes of the anomaly during the flight of an Ariane 5 ECA on the night of December 11-12, 2002.

As requested, the board established the most probable cause for the mission failure, examined possible consequences for the baseline Ariane 5 launcher version, and recommended actions to correct the problems that occurred during the Ariane 5 ECA flight

Arianespace has accepted all the recommendations of the board, and will prepare an action plan by January 20 to enable a return to service of the Ariane 5 ECA during the second half of 2003.

The Inquiry Board

Cause of the failure
A complete analysis of all measurements recorded during Flight 157 was carried out, along with a review of documentation concerning production, quality and technical records for the Ariane 5 ECA, as well as for all Ariane 5 flights to date. Also reviewed by the board was the work of production and development teams in Europe.

The board’s findings confirm that all preparatory and countdown operations for Flight 157 went normally, as did the flight sequence until the separation of the solid boosters.

The report of the Inquiry Board did identify the occurrence of a leak in the of the Vulcain 2 nozzle’s cooling circuit during this first flight phase, followed by a critical overheating of the nozzle – which led to a loss of its integrity.

This resulted in a major imbalance in the thrust of the Vulcain 2 engine due to the nozzle’s deterioration, leading to a loss of control over the launcher’s trajectory.

# In conclusion, the most probable cause of the failure of Flight 157 was the simultaneous occurrence of two aggravating factors: The degraded thermal condition of the nozzle due to fissures in the cooling tubes, and
# Non-exhaustive definition of the loads to which the Vulcain 2 engine is subjected during flight

The board also noted that it would be difficult to simulate these additional loads during ground tests.

Consequences for the Ariane 5 Baseline
The designs of nozzles on the Ariane 5 Baseline’s Vulcain 1 engine and the Vulcain 2 engine for Ariane 5 ECA differ in two main ways:
# The shape of the cooling tubes, which form the structure of the nozzle, and
# The technology of the nozzle’s stiffeners.

After reviewing operating data from the Vulcain 1 engine’s 12 successful flights, the Inquiry Board did not identify any weaknesses concerning the functioning and resistance of its nozzle. The Inquiry Board nevertheless requested an exhaustive examination of the behavior of the Vulcain 1 engine nozzle, including precise modeling to demonstrate the component’s correct behavior during the flight. These verifications currently are in progress.

Consequences for Ariane 5 ECA
The Inquiry Board requested that the following actions be taken:
# Modification of the Vulcain 2 nozzle, taking into account experience acquired with the Vulcain 1 engine nozzle,
# Assessment of possibilities for simulation during ground tests of loads observed during actual flight on the Vulcain 2 engine, and
# Enhancing of the quality of flight equipment.

Consequences for Rosetta launch
In view of the specific factors involved in this flight, Arianespace has decided to create a Review Board to make a decision on Tuesday, January 14 regarding the mission’s launch date.

Upcoming Arianespace launches

# February 11: Ariane 4
# Second half of February: an Ariane 5 Baseline launcher version

Original Source: Arianespace News Release

Image credit: USAF

After five scrubbed launch attempts, a Titan II rocket finally roared up from Vandenberg Air Force Base on Monday, lifting a Coriolis spacecraft into orbit. The $224 million satellite was funded by the US Air Force and Navy to study wind patterns in the Earth’s oceans. The Titan II rocket that launched the satellite used to be tipped with a nuclear warhead, but it was repurposed as part of the strategic arms reductions.

The 30th Space Wing, the 576th Flight Test Squadron here and a task force from the 91st Space Wing, Minot AFB, N.D., launched an unarmed Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missile at 4:31 a.m. today from North Vandenberg as part of a flight test for Air Force Space Command’s Force Development Evaluation Program.

Launch activities were directed by Capt. Rob Light, 576th FLTS. Lt. Col. James Cardinal, 91st Maintenance Operations Squadron commander, was the task force commander. Lt. Col. Anthony Blaylock, 576th FLTS commander, was mission director for this launch. Col. Wayne Louis, 30th Space Wing vice commander, was the spacelift commander, or final go/no-go authority for the launch.

Original Source: Air Force News Release

A Russian-built Proton M rocket launched a Canadian Nimiq2 rocket on Sunday evening. The rocket lifted off from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan at 2317 GMT (6:17pm EST), and released the satellite into a transfer orbit 6 hours, 53 minutes later. Nimiq 2 will provide direct broadcasting services across Canada.