Форум Новости Космонавтики

ЦитироватьMUOS 1, 2, 3, 4, 5[/size]

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MUOS [Lockheed]

MUOS (Mobile User Objective System) is a next-generation narrowband tactical satellite communications system designed to significantly improve ground communications for U.S. forces on the move.

The new communications system, slated to become operational in 2010, would provide 10 times more throughput, or volume of information that can be transmitted, than the current UFO System, and will provide the US troops a much more reliable way to communicate, as it is not affected by weather, environmental constraints or foliage.

Under the new system, even troops in the most remote locations or buildings with no satellite access would see a big increase in communications capabilities, industry sources said.

In September 2004 the Lockheed team was selected against the Raytheon team.

Lockheed Martin Space Systems, Sunnyvale, Calif. the MUOS prime contractor and system integrator, was recently awarded a $2.1 billion contract to build the first two satellites and associated ground control elements by the U.S. Navy Space and Naval Warfare Systems Command (SPAWAR), on behalf of the Program Executive Office – Space Systems, San Diego, Calif. The contract also provides for options on three additional spacecraft. With all options exercised, the contract for up to five satellites has a total potential value of $3.26 billion.

MUOS satellites will be developed at the company's Commercial Space Systems unit in Newtown, Pa.; final assembly and test will occur in Sunnyvale. Lockheed Martin's award-winning A2100 bus, which has achieved over 100 years of on-orbit service, will serve as the MUOS spacecraft platform.
General Dynamics C4 Systems, Scottsdale, Ariz., which will lead the user-entry and integrated ground segments of the MUOS program, supplying a secure ground network, satellite control and network management, and a JTRS-compliant terminal solution.
Boeing Satellite Systems (BSS), El Segundo, Calif.; The satellite-manufacturing arm of Boeing Integrated Defense Systems will provide the legacy UHF payload.
Ericsson, Plano, Texas. The leader in 2G and 3G mobile technology systems will provide portions of the integrated ground segment.
Harris Corporation, Melbourne, Fla. A world leader in spaceborne, unfurlable mesh reflectors, Harris will provide the large reflectors for the MUOS program. The reflectors, two per satellite, will be manufactured at Harris facilities as part of the MUOS geo-synchronous satellite's ultra high-frequency (UHF)-band antenna system.

The planned launch of the first MUOS satellite was delayed to 2012 after a part of the budget was used to fund operations in Iraq.

The program is valued at $6.4 billion over its lifespan, which could run through 2024.Nation:   USA
Type / Application:   Comsat
Operator:   US Navy
Contractors:   Lockheed Martin (Prime), Boeing, General Dynamics
Configuration:   A2100M ?
Propulsion:   IHI BT-4
Power:   2 deployable solar arrays, batteries
Orbit:   GEO[/size]

ЦитироватьMONDAY, JANUARY 30, 2012

The United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket that will propel the U.S. Navy's next-generation mobile communications spacecraft into orbit Feb. 16 was rolled to the Complex 41 pad at Cape Canaveral this morning for a practice countdown.

The giant booster consisting of its bronze-colored first stage, Centaur upper stage and five strap-on solid-fuel rockets was recently assembled together atop the mobile launching platform at the Vertical Integration Facility.

This morning's rollout, which took place just after 10 a.m. EST, is part of the Wet Dress Rehearsal activities that each Atlas undergoes prior to launch. The rocket will be fully fueled tomorrow for a realistic countdown simulation.

The event is designed to iron out any problems with the hardware and exercise the launch team.

Once the simulated launch day is completed, the rocket will be rolled back to the assembly building for final pre-flight work. Attachment of the MUOS 1 satellite payload will occur next week.

Liftoff remains targeted for sunset Feb. 16 during a window opening at 5:46 p.m. EST (2246 GMT).

ЦитироватьWEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 1, 2012
The rocket convoy began rolling back to the Vertical Integration Facility just before 1 p.m. EST today to complete the successful Wet Dress Rehearsal.

The MUOS 1 spacecraft will be brought to the VIF next week for mounting atop its launcher in preparation for blastoff on Feb. 16 to begin the long-awaited upgrade to the U.S. military's mobile communications network with dramatically improved capacity over the Navy's previous satellite constellation.

TUESDAY, JANUARY 31, 2012
1805 GMT (1:05 p.m. EST)
Counting down like clockwork, the Atlas 5 rocket underwent a full launch day simulation today that ended in the final seconds before a pretend liftoff time at 1:00 p.m. EST.

The Wet Dress Rehearsal culminated with the vehicle fully fueled to rehearse the real launch day coming on Feb. 16 to deliver the U.S. Navy's next-generation mobile communications satellite into orbit.

The countdown was halted just before the T-0 time as planned, and the launch team began exercising its hold and recycle steps to safe the rocket.

The cryogenic fuels will be offloaded this afternoon and the vehicle allowed to warm up before it is transported back to the assembly building tomorrow.

Next up in the pre-flight campaign is mounting the MUOS 1 payload atop the rocket early next week.

The fully assembled rocket with the satellite aboard will be rolled out to the Complex 41 pad the day before launch.

1700 GMT (12:00 p.m. EST)
Supercold cryogenic propellants are flowing at Cape Canaveral's Complex 41 as the Atlas 5 rocket gets fueled up with liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen for its countdown dress rehearsal. Bright white streamers of vapor are billowing from ports on the vehicle as clocks continue to march toward the pretend liftoff time.

1500 GMT (10:00 a.m. EST)
Countdown clocks are ticking at Cape Canaveral today, but it's only for practice as the Atlas 5 rocket team gears up for a Navy satellite launch in two weeks.

Fueling of the first stage and the Centaur upper stage will be getting underway shortly as the count targets a mock liftoff time of 1:00 p.m. EST for this WDR -- or Wet Dress Rehearsal.

ЦитироватьAtlas 5 rocket topped with Navy's newest satellite[/size]
BY JUSTIN RAY
SPACEFLIGHT NOW
Posted: February 6, 2012

Looking towards launch next week to begin dramatically improving the capacity for U.S. military mobile communications, a new breed of satellite was hauled to the towering Atlas 5 rocket assembly building today for mounting atop the powerful booster.

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File image of Atlas payload arriving at the VIF. Credit: NASA-KSC
 
The Navy's first Mobile User Objective System satellite, dubbed MUOS 1, is scheduled for blastoff next Thursday, Feb. 16, at sunset from Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral, Florida.

The 44-minute launch window stretches from 5:46 to 6:30 p.m. EST (2246-2330 GMT). Given the sunset time of 6:13 p.m., a liftoff anytime in the window could be spectacular as the 206-foot-tall rocket rises on a pillar or fire and smoke, weather permitting, of course.

With just 10 days left until flight, MUOS 1 took a middle-of-the-night road trip from the commercially-run Astrotech satellite processing campus in Titusville to the launch site aboard a trailer-like transporter.

The slow-moving drive crossed the river, went northward through Kennedy Space Center, passed by the Vehicle Assembly Building and the old space shuttle launch pad before cruising down along the beach to the Atlas rocket's Vertical Integration Facility.

MUOS 1 was delivered to the Cape on Dec. 15 from Lockheed Martin's factory in Sunnyvale, California, arriving inside an Air Force transport aircraft. The shipping crate was taken to Astrotech where the craft was unboxed for final testing, loaded with maneuvering propellants and encapsulated in the rocket's nose cone.

Check out this photo gallery of MUOS 1 being nestled into the Swiss-made launch shroud last week.

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File image of payload being hoisted atop Atlas 5 rocket. Credit: NASA-KSC
 
After pulling up to the doorway of the Vertical Integration Facility this morning, technicians went to work attaching the heavy-duty lifting sling to hoist the spacecraft in the bullet-shaped fairing off the ground and atop the Centaur upper stage.

The United Launch Alliance-made rocket was assembled inside the VIF aboard a mobile launching platform over the past several weeks. It was wheeled out to the launch pad one-third-of-a-mile away last Monday for a countdown dress rehearsal and fueling exercise Tuesday before returning to the building on Wednesday to await the MUOS 1 installation.

Mating of the payload to the rocket was underway at mid-afternoon today, then work will began to affix the nose cone's ogive section to the lower base of the fairing.

Functional checks of the spacecraft and the combined systems test between MUOS and the Atlas vehicle will occur this week to verify the payload and rocket are talking to each other properly.

The fully stacked rocket, now standing 20 stories tall, features a main stage fed with refined kerosene and liquid oxygen, five strap-on solid propellant boosters, the liquid hydrogen-powered cryogenic Centaur upper stage and a composite payload shroud 16 feet in diameter.

Rollout to the pad for launch is slated for next Wednesday morning, leading to the 7-hour countdown sequence picking up Thursday at 10:46 a.m. Fueling operations begin shortly before 4 p.m. EST.

This is the largest, most energetic version of the Atlas 5 rocket currently available. The so-called 551 configuration has been used only twice in the previous 28 flights by the vehicle, launching NASA's New Horizons probe to Pluto in 2006 and the Jupiter-bound Juno orbiter last August.
 
Tipping the scales at nearly 15,000 pounds, the MUOS spacecraft needs that kind of power and three firings by the Centaur upper stage over the course of three hours to reach its targeted geosynchronous transfer orbit of 22,237 by 2,152 statute miles at 19 degrees inclination. A typical Atlas 5 ascent uses only two burns.

The craft's size also means the medium-length option in the range of Atlas nose cones was picked for this launch that features a 9-foot extension over the usual choice.

In its launch configuration with the two power-generating solar arrays stowed on the sides, MUOS is 22 feet tall, 12 feet wide and 6 feet deep.

A pair of gold mesh antenna reflectors, built by Harris Corp., at the heart of the satellite's communications payload will be unfurled like umbrellas on deployable boom assemblies once in space. Coverage to legacy users will transmit through a 17.7-foot-diameter reflector on the bottom of the craft and the advanced, multi-beam features of MUOS to significantly increase the transmission capacity over the Navy's previous satellites will use a large 46-foot reflector atop the satellite.

Lockheed Martin is producing five MUOS satellites -- four primes and one in-orbit spare -- to replace the Navy's current generation of Ultra High Frequency Follow-On spacecraft that were launched by Atlas rockets from 1993 through 2003. Eight of the 11 satellites remain in operation today.

The sophisticated MUOS system was designed around the commercial 3G cellular telephone architecture to substantially increase the number of users and amount of communications that can be routed to military forces.

"MUOS is designed to allow backward compatibility with legacy UHF terminals while providing a next generation waveform to support 'communications on the move' capabilities," said Mark Pasquale, Lockheed Martin vice president and MUOS program manager. "This ensures that legacy systems remain compatible with the MUOS architecture, while offering the technological advancements needed by its military users."

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An artist's concept of MUOS. Credit: Lockheed Martin
 
MUOS will offer 10 times greater communications capacity to the mobile warfighter over the UHF F/O constellation to relay narrowband tactical information such as voice calls, data messaging, file transfers and email on rates of up to 384 Kilobits per second. It also enables users to communicate with smaller devices.

"Utilizing commercial 3G cell phone and satellite technology, MUOS will provide warfighters 'on the move' point-to-point and netted communications services at enhanced data rates and priority-based access to on-demand voice, video and data transfers," said Pasquale.

It will take about three months to maneuver the craft into the proper orbital position and conduct in-space testing before becoming operational.

"A single MUOS satellite provides more communication access than the current UHF constellation. This capability is critical to the U.S. military because they depend on reliable, targeted communication to complete missions and to protect service members worldwide," said Pasquale.

"MUOS is designed to support those requirements by providing users narrowband communications with greater mobility, higher data rates and improved operational availability."

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MUOS 1 during encapsulation within Atlas nose cone. Credit: ULA
 
The Navy says approximately 67,000 UHF user terminals are deployed across the military branches serving around the world, many of them carried deep into theaters of operation.

The UHF communications provide command and control between combatant leaders and their warfighters, connectivity to tactical forces, communications for Special Operations and support to rapid deployments of land, air and naval forces worldwide.

Military officials have stressed the need for additional UHF channels to supply the diverse users of the system, something that MUOS is designed to give.

"The UHF spectrum is the military's communications workhorse because it is the only radio frequency that can penetrate jungle foliage, inclement weather and urban terrain," says the Navy.

The launch comes just a month after the Air Force deployed the latest in its growing fleet of Wideband Global SATCOM spacecraft offering X- and Ka-band frequencies to provide very high data rates up to 3.6 Gigabits per second for routing voluminous amounts of communications -- like large intelligence files and weather information -- to the battlefield and providing the links to and from the military's remotely-controlled aerial drones patrolling global hotspots.

MUOS, on the other hand, is geared toward to mobile receivers using lower-data-rate communications than WGS.

The military's other major communications satellite program, the Advanced Extremely High Frequency system to provide highly secure, jam resistant links between the president and military leaders will be launching its second satellite on the subsequent Atlas 5 rocket at the end of April.[/size]

ЦитироватьThe venerable U.S. upper stage rocket motor -- the Centaur -- that created the pathway to the Moon and every planet across the solar system will be making its 200th flight next Thursday in a milestone mission to boost the U.S. Navy's sophisticated new mobile communications satellite to orbit.

Originally developed by General Dynamics under the direction of NASA at the dawn of the space age, Centaur was conceived to power payloads with a high-energy cryogenic engine fed with liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen.

"Centaur makes it possible for the U.S. to launch spacecraft of much greater size and weight then ever before," NASA said on the eve of the first launch in 1962. "Hydrogen offers more pounds of thrust per pound of propellant consumed per second than any other fuel possible in chemical rockets."

The stage was at the forefront of advancing rocket technology by conquering cryogenic fuels, a key accomplishment that benefited a host of different space boosters to follow.

"Centaur has been pioneering space launch for the last 50 years. The first launches in the early 1960s demonstrated the extremely high performance that can be achieved with a liquid hydrogen/liquid oxygen rocket stage. LH2/LO2 stages were subsequently used for the Saturn I, Saturn V, Space Shuttle, Titan and Delta programs," said Jim Sponnick, United Launch Alliance's vice president for mission operations.

"Centaur developed and flight demonstrated in-flight restarts for LH2/LO2 engines -- a technology that was critical for the Apollo programs and also for enabling a wide variety of flexible mission designs."

The first flight-test came in May 1962, but the motor never got a chance to fire because the Centaur insulation panels came off prematurely and the vehicle exploded a minute after liftoff. You can read the NASA press kit from that maiden mission.

Success came on the second launch in November 1963, injecting the Centaur into Earth orbit where it continues to loop today in an elliptical perch ranging from 290 to 840 miles. The NASA press kit from the second mission is online too.

The project had a difficult development. Insulating the Centaur to preserve the supercold liquid hydrogen propellant at -423 degrees F was a major challenge and keeping the fuel "bottomed" in the tank for in-space relighting of the engine proved temperamental.

Several of the early launches failed due to a variety of issues including a steering problem on flight three and the inability to get the engines restarted on flights four and seven as the ullage thruster design was worked out.

Successful single-burn missions were repeated over and over, then a good restart of the engine in orbit occurred on flight ten as the Centaur moved closer toward perfection.

To the Moon, Mars and beyond

"Centaur has delivered scientific missions to explore the sun, our Moon, and every planet in our solar system," said Sponnick.

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The first operational payloads were Surveyor between 1966 and 1968 that sent a series of landers to touch the surface of the Moon.

Other notable early spacecraft that successfully reached orbit aboard Centaurs were the Orbiting Astronomical Observatory ultraviolet telescope, Mariners 6 and 7 that performed photo reconnaissance flybys of Mars in 1969 and Mariner 9 that became the first spacecraft to enter orbit around another planet -- Mars -- in 1971.

Then came Pioneers 10 and 11 on mankind's first journey to explore the outer solar system, launching from Complex 36 at the Cape in March 1972 and April 1973, respectively. Pioneer 10 made the first-ever close encounter with Jupiter in December 1973 before being flung out on an escape trajectory from our planetary neighborhood. Pioneer 11 also visited Jupiter before continuing on to make the first flyby of Saturn and getting sent on its own escape path.

At the end of 1973, Mariner 10 took off to cruise by Venus and use that planet's gravity as a sling shot to venture further inward in the solar system to become the first craft to visit Mercury.

Besides NASA scientific probes, Centaurs were flying in the early days on communications spacecraft deployment flights for Intelsat, the International Telecommunications Satellite Organization.

Centaurs also married up with Titan boosters as a third stage, propelling the Viking 1 and 2 orbiter/lander combo missions in 1975 for their treks to Mars. The four spacecraft operated in orbit and on the surface from 1976 through the early 1980s, returning more than 50,000 photos from the red planet.

Further exploits to the outer solar system -- Voyagers 1 and 2 -- also rode Centaurs atop their Titan rockets from Cape Canaveral in the summer of 1977. Both visited Jupiter and Saturn, then Voyager 2 continued on a grand tour to fly by Uranus and Neptune.

The planetary legacy of Atlas-Centaur included more Pioneer missions -- 12 and 13 -- that went to orbit Venus in 1978.

Also in 1978, the Navy's first Fleet Satellite Communications System spacecraft -- FLTSATCOM 1 -- was lofted to orbit. That military communications constellation was assembled by Atlas-Centaur vehicles through 1989, becoming the initial generation that eventually would be replaced by the UHF Follow-On program in the 1990s and now the MUOS mobile communications craft beginning with next Thursday's launch.

In more recent years, high-profile missions like Cassini to Saturn, Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter and the Mars Science Laboratory, New Horizons to Pluto and Juno to Jupiter have gotten successful starts on Centaur.

The rocket stage even went to the Moon on a crashing experiment to hit a crater in the South Pole to search for evidence of water ice.

Then and now: The evolution of Centaur

Centaurs have come in dual-engine and single-engine versions, serving multiple variants of Atlas and Titan, flying 176 times on Atlas and 23 times on Titan, and even was envisioned for use aboard the space shuttle starting in 1986 for planetary probes, but that plan was scrapped after Challenger.

The first RL10 engine was designed to generate about 15,000 pounds of thrust. Upgrades and advancements to today's RL10A-4-2 used on the Atlas 5 produces 22,300 pounds of thrust to push payloads to Earth orbit and beyond.

The Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne fact sheet has more details on the venerable powerplant.

"The overall Centaur stage architecture (today) is fundamentally the same as the versions flown in the early 60s -- with a thin-walled, less than the thickness of a dime -- stainless steel pressure-stabilized structure that provides the most weight-efficient stage possible, and also the Centaur is still powered by the very reliable and proven RL10 engine," said Sponnick.
 
"All of the components, subsystems, and overall capabilities have evolved dramatically over the last 50 years. The RL10 engine performance has improved substantially and the chamber pressure has doubled. The vacuum-tube based ignition system has been replaced with a solid-state, fault tolerant system. The hydraulic actuators for steering the RL10 engine have been replaced with fault-tolerant electromechanical actuators.

"The Centaur avionics have evolved through numerous generations, with the current system based on an extremely capable 8-processor, fault tolerant, ring laser gyro navigation system and flight computer.

"The Centaur has grown in size, now carrying 50 percent more propellant than the early Centaur vehicles.

"These evolutionary changes over the 5-decade history of the Centaur have made for an increasingly flexible and reliable upper stage that has triple the performance capabilities of the first Centaurs developed and flown by rocket pioneers in the early 1960s," said Sponnick.

Remarkable success rate

After surviving the bumpy road of development in the early days, Centaur has proven to be a dependable booster for space. In the 199 launches over the past 50 years, only 11 Centaurs have failed, and over half of those malfunctions occurred in the 1960s and 70s.

The last outright failure happened on a Titan-Centaur in 1999 when a software error caused the stage to misfire and ruined the mission of an Air Force MILSTAR communications satellite.
 
Nearly half of all Centaur missions have flown in just the past two decades. The Atlas 2 and 3 programs wrote flawless records, amassing 69 launches from the 1990s through 2005, and now the Atlas 5 that has successfully launched 28 times in last 9 years.

"I and many of my coworkers clearly recall the 100th flight of the Centaur in April of 1995. It took 33 years for Centaur to accomplish those first 100 flights. The next 100 Centaur launches have been accomplished in 17 years," said Sponnick.

A big payload for No. 200

Roaring off the launch pad at Cape Canaveral's Complex 41 next Thursday, the Centaur will be shrouded inside the bulbous nose cone of the Atlas 5 rocket for the climb through Earth's atmosphere.

Its chance to perform begins four-and-a-half minutes into flight when the first stage drops away and the RL10 engine fires to life for the first of three burns needed to heave the massive MUOS 1 spacecraft into the proper orbit for the U.S. Navy.

At nearly 15,000 pounds, the satellite is the heaviest payload ever launched by an Atlas rocket. Filled with state-of-the-art 3G cellular telephone technology, MUOS 1 will provide an unprecedented level of capacity for mobile communications to U.S. and allied warfighters on the move.

"The 200th flight of the Centaur is a very big milestone for the ULA team," said Sponnick.

Initially firing for almost 8 minutes, the Centaur will reach a preliminary low-Earth orbit of 90 by 337 nautical miles in altitude, tilted 28 degrees to the equator, to begin the three-step process of achieving the desired orbit.

The rocket will coast briefly while crossing the Atlantic before igniting the main engine a second time just over 20 minutes after liftoff for a six-minute firing to propel MUOS into a highly elliptical transfer orbit of 104 by 18,600 nautical miles inclined 26 degrees.

Then begins a lengthy coast away from the planet in this new orbit for two-and-a-half hours.

Previous Atlas 5 launches to geosynchronous transfer orbit have used just two burns, but MUOS will feature three firings.

"The three burn mission design for MUOS provides 1,000 pounds greater lift capability than a conventional 2-burn geosynchronous transfer orbit," said Sponnick.
 
One final push nearly two hours and 57 minutes into flight about 15,000 nautical miles over the Indian Ocean will raise the orbit's low point and reduce the inclination closer to the equator. The burn, lasting less than a minute, will deploy the payload into a 1,870 by 19,323 nautical mile orbit at 19 degrees inclination.

"The MUOS 1 mission represents an excellent example of the performance and mission design capabilities of the Centaur," said Sponnick.

"Our customers for this mission asked for a mission design that would launch this very heavy and capable satellite in a manner that would minimize the amount of energy (and propellant) that the satellite would have to consume to position itself into the final geosynchronous orbit. Considering all of the commodities and capabilities of the Centaur, our mission design team developed this three-burn mission profile to provide an optimal solution for the MUOS customer."

MUOS separates from the Centaur three hours and one minute after leaving Cape Canaveral, beginning its 15-year life for the Defense Department. Controllers will spend about three months getting the craft maneuvered into a circular geosynchronous orbit over the equator and checked out before putting it into service.

You can follow Thursday's launch in our Mission Status Center with live journal updates and streaming video.

ЦитироватьT-00:02.7    Engine Start
The Russian-designed RD-180 main engine is ignited and undergoes checkout prior to launch.

T+00:01.1    Liftoff
The five strap-on solid rocket boosters are lit as the Atlas 5 vehicle, designated AV-030 lifts off and begins a vertical rise away from Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida.

T+01:44.6    Jettison SRBs
Having burned out of propellant approximately 15 seconds earlier, the spent solid rocket boosters are jettisoned to fall into the Atlantic Ocean. The separation event is staggered with two motors releasing first, then the others about 1.5 seconds later.

T+03:22.2    Nose Cone Jettison
The payload fairing that protected the MUOS 1 spacecraft during launch is separated once heating levels drop to predetermined limits after passage through the atmosphere.

T+03:27.2    Forward Load Reactor Jettison
The Forward Load Reactor deck that supported the payload fairing's structure to Centaur upper stage is released five seconds after the shroud's jettison.

T+04:24.1    Main Engine Cutoff
The RD-180 main engine completes its firing after consuming its kerosene and liquid oxygen fuel supply in the Atlas first stage.

T+04:30.1    Stage Separation
The Common Core Booster first stage of the Atlas 5 rocket separates from the Centaur upper stage. Over the next few seconds, the Centaur engine liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen systems are readied for ignition.

T+04:40.1    Centaur Ignition 1
The Centaur RL10 engine ignites for the first of three upper stage firings. This burn will inject the Centaur stage and MUOS spacecraft into an initial parking orbit.

T+12:21.0    Centaur Cutoff 1
The Centaur engine shuts down after arriving in a planned low-Earth parking orbit of 90 by 337 nautical miles at 28 degrees inclination. The vehicle enters an 8-minute coast period before arriving at the required location in space for the second burn.

T+20:48.9    Centaur Ignition 2
The Centaur re-ignites to accelerate the payload into a highly elliptical transfer orbit from the parking altitude achieved earlier in the launch sequence.

T+26:50.1    Centaur Cutoff 2
At the conclusion of its second firing, the Centaur will have ascending into a 104 by 18,600 nautical mile orbit inclined 26 degrees to begin a two-and-a-half-hour coast.

T+2:56:50.4    Centaur Ignition 3
A final push by Centaur is ignited to raise the orbit's low point and reduce orbital inclination for the MUOS spacecraft.

T+2:57:44.2    Centaur Cutoff 3
The powered phase of flight is concluded as the Centaur, making its 200th launch, reaches the planned geosynchronous transfer orbit of 1,870 by 19,323 nautical miles and 19 degrees inclination.

T+3:01:23.2    Spacecraft Separation
The U.S. Navy's first Mobile User Objective System spacecraft, MUOS 1, is released into orbit from the Centaur upper stage to complete the AV-030 launch.

ЦитироватьFri, 10 February, 2012
Advanced MUOS Features Lag as Initial Craft is Readied for Launch[/size]
By Debra Werner

    SAN FRANCISCO — As the U.S. Navy and Lockheed Martin prepare for the planned Feb. 16 launch of the first satellite in a long-overdue military communications constellation, contractors are scrambling to finish developing the waveform that will enable U.S. forces to take advantage of the spacecraft's most advanced features.

    The Mobile User Objective System (MUOS), a constellation of four U.S. Navy spacecraft plus one on-orbit spare, is designed to supplement and eventually replace the existing UHF satellites that provide narrowband capacity for U.S. military personnel operating in remote areas worldwide. Each MUOS satellite will carry two payloads: a payload similar to the one currently flying on each of the Navy's aging UHF Follow-On satellites to provide links to currently deployed user terminals and a second, digital payload designed to offer 10 times the capacity of the legacy satellites.

    "The MUOS constellation will offer significantly improved coverage, capacity and, for the first time, communications on the move for the warfighter," said Mark Pasquale, MUOS program manager for Lockheed Martin Space Systems of Sunnyvale, Calif., prime contractor for the satellites and the MUOS terrestrial network. MUOS satellites will function "basically like a cellphone tower in the sky," Pasquale said. "You can think of the handheld user terminals as robust, rugged smartphones."

    That cellphone-like capability will not be available immediately after launch, however, because General Dynamics C4 Systems, prime contractor for the Joint Tactical Radio System (JTRS) Handheld, Manpack, Small Form Fit program still is developing the waveform that will enable military users to communicate with the MUOS satellites' digital payload. That work is scheduled to be completed next summer. In the meantime, the first MUOS satellite will use its UHF Follow-On payload to augment the Navy's narrowband constellation and provide communications through existing user terminals.

    Government and industry teams are evaluating the performance of a preliminary version of the digital MUOS waveform. During tests in December, U.S. Army Brig. Gen. Michael Williamson, the Defense Department's JTRS joint program executive officer, used a General Dynamics PRC-155 radio to send and receive data using a MUOS satellite simulator and a MUOS ground station, Chris Brady, vice president of assured communications for General Dynamics C4 Systems of Scottsdale, Ariz., said in an email.

    The Navy also plans to test the current version of the waveform after the first MUOS spacecraft is launched on a United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla., into geostationary orbit over the Pacific Ocean, said Steven A. Davis, a spokesman for the Space and Naval Warfare Systems Command in San Diego. The spacecraft is scheduled to undergo approximately six months of on-orbit checkout and testing before it becomes operational, Davis said.

    MUOS user terminals are expected to feature the final version of the waveform following the launch of the second MUOS satellite, he added.

    That satellite, which is undergoing thermal vacuum testing at Lockheed Martin's Sunnyvale facility, is scheduled for launch in early 2013. Lockheed Martin has completed construction of the third MUOS spacecraft and is building the fourth and fifth satellites. Each MUOS satellite is scheduled to complete testing and integration approximately one year behind the previous one, Pasquale said.

    With the satellites in production, government and industry officials are anxious to gain access to the digital MUOS waveform because demand for UHF communications far outpaces available supply. The Navy launched 11 UHF Follow-On satellites between 1992 and 2003. The first satellite suffered a launch failure and two additional satellites stopped working in 2005 and 2006. The eight remaining UHF Follow-On satellites are degrading due to age, Navy officials told lawmakers May 11 during a U.S. Senate Armed Services strategic forces subcommittee hearing.

    "The delay in delivery of the MUOS system, coupled with the age and fragility of the current UHF satellite constellation, has our full attention and focus," Rear Adm. David Titley, director of the Navy's space and maritime awareness domain, and John Zangardi, Navy deputy assistant secretary for command, control, communications, computers, intelligence, information operations and space, said in a joint statement.

    To prevent gaps in UHF capacity, the Navy has leased services on Intelsat General's Leasat, the United Kingdom's SkyNet satellites and the Italian defense ministry's Sicral satellite. In addition, the service has repositioned and reprogrammed existing spacecraft to expand capacity. "Currently, the military and commercially leased legacy UHF satellite communications assets exceed warfighter requirements by approximately 111 channels worldwide," Davis said in an email. "Although the unplanned loss of a [UHF Follow-On satellite] before MUOS-1 [is operational] would result in the UFO constellation not meeting its availability requirement, total UHF SATCOM capacity for the warfighter would still be met."

    Former Pentagon officials note, however, that the Navy's published requirement for UHF satellite communications capacity falls far short of actual demand. Demand continues to climb, due largely to the proliferation of unmanned aircraft, while supply remains low, due largely to delays in the MUOS program. The Navy originally planned to launch the first MUOS satellite in late 2009.

    In an attempt to meet high demand, the Senate Armed Services Committee included language in a report accompanying the 2012 Defense Authorization Act calling on the Navy to explore hosted payloads or other options to expand UHF capacity and to deliver to the committee a report on that review "no later than March."

    The Navy already plans to share UHF capacity in the Indian Ocean region on a hosted payload the Australian Defense Force plans to send into orbit in March on Intelsat General's IS-22 commercial communications satellite. In exchange, the Australian Defense Force will share MUOS capacity in the Pacific Ocean region under an agreement signed in April 2010.

    Intelsat plans to fly a copy of that UHF payload on IS-27, a satellite scheduled to launch in December into a slot over the Atlantic Ocean, said Richard DalBello, vice president for legal and government affairs for Intelsat General of Bethesda, Md. While that satellite will be designed primarily to offer television service to Latin America, it also will feature a payload identical to the one on IS-22, so it can support the tens of thousands of UHF terminals deployed around the world, he added.

    "The Navy has not yet agreed to buy any capacity on Intelsat 27," DalBello said in an email. "We hope the government will be supportive so we can make this capability available to the war fighter and our closest allies."

    Mobile satellite services operator Inmarsat also is eager to help the U.S. military augment tactical communications capacity with its Broadband Global Area Network, which provides service to portable terminals. U.S. military forces already use the Broadband Global Area Network, provided by London-based Inmarsat's fleet of L-band satellites, to supplement military tactical communications networks, an Inmarsat official said.[/size]

ЦитироватьSUNDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2012

The long-range weather outlook for Thursday's sunset sendoff of the Atlas 5 rocket carrying a U.S. Navy mobile communications satellite is calling for an 80 percent chance of favorable conditions.

The 44-minute-long launch window runs from 5:46 to 6:30 p.m. EST, and the only small concern for violating the weather rules during that period is the development of cumulus clouds over Cape Canaveral.

The forecast at launch time includes scattered low and high clouds, a chance of isolated showers in the area, good visibility, southerly winds of 10 to 15 knots and a temperature around 73 degrees F.

"Today, a strong arctic high pressure will continue to move through the central plains introducing gusty northwest winds and cold, dry conditions over Eastern Florida. On Monday, the high pressure will move east of the Carolinas and winds will begin to transition to a northeasterly direction by the afternoon/evening allowing temperatures to warm somewhat but remaining well below average. High pressure dominates the area on Tuesday along with a warmer southeasterly flow," Air Force meteorologists report.

"For MLP roll Wednesday morning, south-southwest winds are expected with gusts in the mid to upper teens. No lightning is expected. A weak cold front pushes through Northern Florida with only a slight chance for showers over the Cape Wednesday afternoon/evening.

"On launch day, a stronger cold front enters the Florida panhandle but conditions over Eastern Florida should remain favorable. Southerly winds gusting into the low teens are expected with only a slight chance of an isolated shower in the area. The primary concerns for launch are cumulus clouds developing as the area becomes slowly unstable in advance of the approaching front in the panhandle."

The odds of acceptable weather on the backup launch date of Friday falls to 60 percent due to the cloud cover from the passing cold front.

"In the event of a 24-hour delay, a cold front is expected to transit the peninsula through launch day with frontal passage expected in the afternoon on Friday," forecasters say. "A threat of showers exists in advance and along the front over Central Florida during the afternoon on Friday. A slight chance of an isolated thunderstorm also exists associated with the front as it transits the area. By launch time winds will be northwesterly gusting in the upper teens/low 20s. The primary concerns for a 24-hour delay are cumulus clouds and thick clouds."

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 10, 2012

Members of the launch team gathered for the mission dress rehearsal today at the Atlas Spaceflight Operations Center to practice the countdown scripts and procedures to be used during next Thursday's real deal.

An initial run at the final 4-minute phase of the countdown was halted mid-way through to simulate a hold and recycle prior to the pretend 12:20 p.m. launch time.

After demonstrating problem resolution and turning around the countdown for another attempt, clocks were reset for a 12:43 p.m. blastoff. The second run resulted in a successful mock launch.

Activities remain on track for launching the Atlas 5 rocket with MUOS 1 next Thursday from Cape Canaveral at 5:46 p.m. EST (2246 GMT).

ЦитироватьGet to know the Atlas 5 rocket launching Thursday[/size]

(https://img.novosti-kosmonavtiki.ru/22771.jpg)

 Various versions of the Atlas rocket launched earlier constellations of U.S. Navy communications satellites, and now the family's biggest booster will begin deploying a new generation of spacecraft this week. The towering Atlas 5 rocket will be wheeled out to the Cape Canaveral launch pad Wednesday morning in preparation for a sunset blastoff Thursday at 5:46 p.m. EST (2246 GMT).[/size]

ЦитироватьA0179/12 - QWMLW ER OP A8797 EFF 1202161946 THRU 1202170017. THE FOLLOWING AIRSPACE IN USE FOR A MISSILE LAUNCH/SPLASH DOWN. DURING THESE TIMES KZMA ARTCC/OAC, KZNY ARTCC/OAC & TJZS ARTCC/OAC WILL NOT APPROVE IFR FLIGHT WITHIN 45NM OF THE AFFECTED OCEANIC STATIONARY AIRSPACE RESERVATIONS WEST OF 5000W AND 50NM EAST OF 5000W OR WITHIN AFFECTED WARNING AREA AIRSPACE. EFF: 1202161946 THRU 1202162046 W497A WEST OF 8000W. SFC-FL050. EFF: 1202162046 THRU 1202162246 W497A SFC-FL180. EFF: 1202162246 THRU 1202170017 1. FROM 2838N 8034W TO 2838N 8032W TO 2836N 8008W TO 2834N 7945W 2831N 7922W TO 2828N 7904W TO 2825N 7904W TO 2824N 7913W TO 2825N 7927W TO 2829N 8004W TO 2833N 8034W TO BEGINNING. SURFACE TO UNLIMITED. 2. FROM 2839N 7918W TO 2826N 7853W TO 2755N 7856W TO 2810N 7922W TO BEGININNG. SURFACE TO UNLIMITED. 3. FROM 2744N 7134W TO 2707N 6759W TO 2614N 6809W TO 2655N 7147W SURFACE TO UNLIMITED. 4. FROM 2326N 5252W TO 2113N 4559W TO 1944N 4630W TO 2210N 5327W TO BEGINNING. SURFACE TO UNLIMITED. 5. W497A/B R2933 R2934. SURFACE TO UNLIMITED. 6. THAT PORTION OF W157 W158 W159 FROM 2840N 8040W TO 2923N 8040W TO 3000N 7902W TO 3000N 7713W TO 2930N 7818W TO 2920N 7820W TO BEGINNING. SURFACE TO UNLIMITED. IN THE INTEREST OF SAFETY ALL NONPARTICIPATING PILOTS ARE STRONGLY ADVISED TO AVOID THE ABOVE AREAS, EXCEPT AS NOTED BELOW FOR FLIGHT PLAN FILING PURPOSES. THE FOLLOWING RESTRICTIONS WILL BE IN EFFECT WITHIN KZMA KZJX KZNY TJZS FIRS. ALL SOUTHBOUND AR3, AR6, AR15, AR16, AR17, AR18, AR19, AR21, AR22, AR23, AR24, AND ALL OTHER TRAFFIC RALT MUST BE ESTIMATED TO CLEAR W497A/B, THE ABOVE PORTIONS OF W157/158 AND OCEANIC ALTRV(S) AT OR BEFORE 1202162241. NORTHBOUND JET TRAFFIC DEPARTING SO FLA ARPTS FILED AR ROUTES WILL BE REROUTED AFTER 1202162156. TURBOPROP/PROPS REQUIRE ADDITIONAL TIME. ATC WILL ISSUE FLOW RESTRICTIONS FOR DOMESTIC REROUTES TO AVOID AIRSPACE IN USE. THE FOLLOWING INTERNATIONAL ROUTES WILL BE IMPACTED: AR3, AR6, AR15, AR16, AR17, AR18, AR19, AR21, AR22, AR23, AR24, A699, BR62V, BR65V, G446, L435, L452, L453, L454, L455, L456, L463, M201, M202, M203, M204, M327, M329, M330, M331, M593, M595 AND Y585. BECAUSE OF THE INDEFINITE OPENING TIME, SOME AIRLINE OPERATIONS ARE REROUTING FLIGHTS UNNECESSARILY. ALL FLIGHTS WITH ROUTES THAT WOULD NORMALLY TRANSIT THROUGH OCEANIC OPERATIONAL AREAS DURING OPERATION WINDOW 1202162246 THRU 1202170017 SHOULD FILE THEIR NORMAL ROUTE BUT PLAN ON RECEIVING REROUTE FROM ATC. CENTERS WILL REROUTE ONLY THOSE FLIGHTS NECESSARY TO CLEAR THE AFFECTED AREAS WHILE THEY ARE IN USE. INTERNATIONAL REROUTES ARE AS FOLLOWS: FOR MYNN/MYGF REQUEST SOUTHBOUND TFC DEST MYNN VIA ILM AR15 BAHAA DCT OMN J79 VRB DCT PBI BR63V. FOR MYNN/MYGF REQUEST NORTHBOUND TFC DCT PBI DCT ORL DCT OMN DCTBAHAA DCT LANIE AR18 DIW OR DCT EMCEE AR16 ILM THEN AS FILED. SOUTHBOUND OVERFLIGHT TRAFFIC TO OVER ZBV CAN EXPECT ROUTING O/ILM AR15 BAHAA DCT OMN J79 PBI DCT ZBV THEN AS FILED. NORTHBOUND OVERFLIGHT TRAFFIC FROM OVER ZBV CAN EXPECT ROUTING VIA DCT VKZ DCT ORL DCT OMN DCT BAHAA DCT LANIE AR18 DIW OR DCT EMCEE AR16 ILM THEN AS FILED. AR3 NO. BND: EXPECT ZQA DCT ZBV DCT FLL DCT ORL DCT OMN DCT BAHAA M201 PERIE AR3. SO. BND: EXPECT O/CLB G446 PERIE M201 BAHAA DCT OMN J79 VRB J45 BLUFI DCT ZFP DCT ZQA AR6 CLOSED AR15 CLOSED AR16 EXPECT J53 ORL DCT OMN DCT BAHAA DCT EMCEE AR16 AR17 EXPECT BAHAA DCT OMN J79 PBI DCT VKZ AR18 EXPECT J53 ORL DCT OMN DCT BAHAA DCT LANIE AR18 AR19 EXPECT AR19 JENKS DCT BAHAA DCT OMN J79 VRB CAYSL/TUXXI/FRWAY ARVLAR21 EXPECT AR21 BAHAA DCT OMN J79 VRB FISEL/GISSH ARVL AR22 EXPECT AR22 JENKS DCT BAHAA DCT OMN J79 VRB ANNEY/HILEY ARVL AR23 NO.BND: EXPECT URSUS A509 DHP J53 ORL DCT OMN DCT BAHAA DCT LANIE AR23 SO. BND: EXPECT AR23 LANIE DCT BAHAA DCT OMN J79 PBI DCT URSUS AR24 NO. BND: EXPECT URSUS A509 DHP J53 ORL DCT OMN DCT BAHAA DCT LANIE AR18 DIW SO. BND: EXPECT DIW AR19 JENKS DCT BAHAA DCT OMN J79 PBI DCT URSUS A699 SEE M204 OR M327 BR1L EXPECT ZFP DCT PBI THEN INLAND RTES AND REVERSE BR62V EXPECT ZFP BR63V PBI THEN INLAND RTES AND REVERSE BR65V CLOSED NORTH OF ZFP G446 NO. BND: EXPECT O/GTK A555 ZBV DCT VKZ DCT ORL DCT OMN DCT BAHAA M201 PERIE G446 SO. BND: EXPECT O/CLB G446 PERIE M201 BAHAA DCT OMN J79 VRB J45 BLUFI DCT ZFP BR1L GTK L435 USE L435 FIVZE DCT 2130N 5530W DCT BUTUX AND REVERSE. L452 USE L451 AND REVERSE. L453 USE L451 AND REVERSE. L454 USE L451 AND REVERSE. L455 USE L459 AND REVERSE. L456 USE L459 AND REVERSE. L463 NO. BND: EXPECT BTLER A555 ZBV DCT VKZ DCT ORL DCT OMN DCT BAHAA M201 PERIE G446 SO. BND: EXPECT O/CLB G446 PERIE M201 BAHAA OMN J79 VRB J45 BLUFI ZFP BR1L BRRGO L463 M201 NO. BND: EXPECT ORL DCT OMN DCT BAHAA M201 SO. BND: EXPECT M201 BAHAA DCT OMN J79 VRB STAR ARVL M202 NO. BND: EXPECT ORL DCT OMN DCT BAHAA DCT PERIE DCT JAINS DCT 3131N 7549W DCT OMALA M202SO. BND: EXPECT M202 OMALA DCT 3131N 7549W DCT JAINS DCT PERIE DCT BAHAA DCT OMN J79 VRB STAR ARVL. M203 NO. BND: EXPECT ORL DCT OMN DCT BAHAA DCT PERIE DCT JAINS DCT 3131N 7549W DCT LEXIM M203. SO. BND: EXPECT M203 LEXIM DCT 3131N 7549W DCT JAINS DCT PERIE BAHAA DCT OMN J79 VRB STAR ARVL. M204 NO. BND: EXPECT ORL DCT OMN DCT BAHAA DCT PERIE DCT JAINS DCT 3131N 7549W DCT LEXIM DCT ALOBI M204. SO. BND: EXPECT M204 ALOBI DCT LEXIM 3131N 7549W DCT JAINS DCT PERIE DCT BAHAA DCT OMN J79 VRB STAR ARVL. M329 USE M328 AND REVERSE. M330 USE M328 AND REVERSE. M331 USE M328 AND REVERSE. M593 EXPECT DYNAH/TANIA DCT HODGY DCT SMTTY DCT MLLER M594 AND REVERSE. M595 EXPECT ENAMO/ERRCA DCT MLLER DCT AYTTE AND REVERSE. SO. BND: EXPECT OMN J79 VRB J45 BLUFI DCT ZFP BR1L BRRGO DCT RENAH Y585. NO. BND: UTAHS R507 GTK A555 ZQA DCT FLL DCT ORL. SURFACE - UNL) END PART 8 OF 8, SEE TEXT, 16 FEB 19:46 2012 UNTIL 17 FEB 00:17 2012. CREATED: 14 FEB 16:30 2012

ЦитироватьNOTAM на этот пуск какой-то чудовищной длины выпустили, аж в восьми частях.
...

Цитироватьgo..go..go..go..go.....

ЦитироватьULA @ulalaunch

We have scrubbed for the day. Next #MUOS launch attempt will be tomorrow. Stay tuned for updates.
11 мин

#MUOS countdown clock has stopped at 1 min 15 seconds.
13 мин

After takeoff, the vehicle will take 31 seconds to reach the speed of sound #MUOS
14 мин

We are GREEN! Picking up the count at T-3:55 and counting for #MUOS
15 мин

We are "Go" for #MUOS launch at 6:29 p.m. EST; still pending upper level winds
17 мин

We are at T-4 min and holding in the #MUOS count; starting the poll for the final "GO" to resume the countdown.
23 мин

#MUOS T-0 still planned for 6:29 p.m. EST; however we remain red due to upper level winds.
25 мин

#MUOS RT @45thspacewing: 2312 GMT (6:12 p.m. EST) The sun is setting here on the Space Coast. A liftoff at 6:29 p.m. would be 16 minutes...
30 мин

T-0 for #MUOS is now the end of the window: 6:29 p.m. EST.

ЦитироватьULA @ulalaunch

The #MUOS launch is rescheduled for tomorrow. The 44-minute launch window opens at 5:42 p.m. EST.
6 мин

Today's launch of #MUOS on a ULA Atlas V was scrubbed due to upper level winds.
8 мин

ЦитироватьULA @ulalaunch

Tonight's #MUOS window opens at 5:42 p.m. EST. Webcast starts at 5:22 p.m. ow.ly/989or (http://www.ulalaunch.com/site/pages/Multimedia_Webcast.shtml)

ЦитироватьULA @ulalaunch

Woo hoo! RT @hypertay: @ulalaunch Go Atlas! Go Centaur! Go #MUOS!
1 мин

#MUOS T-4 minutes and holding. New T-0: 5:55 p.m. EST.
3 мин ULA

We are at T-4 min and holding in the #MUOS count; starting the poll for the final "GO" to resume the countdown
4 мин

#MUOS flight profile being adjusted for upper level winds. New liftoff time: 5:50 p.m. EST.
8 мин

Riding atop an #Atlas rocket in his Friendship 7 capsule, John Glenn's 1962 flight was the 1st of 4 successful manned Mercury missions.
8 мин

On Feb. 20, we'll reach an important milestone in space history -- the 50th anniversary of manned orbital spaceflight.
9 мин

No longer in violation of cumulus and disturbed weather rule; red for the thick cloud rule and now upper level winds. #MUOS
10 мин

We are at T-4 min and holding in the #MUOS count; T-0 moved to 5:47 p.m. EST
15 мин

The Atlas V 551 has a 5-meter fairing, 5 solid rocket boosters, and 1 engine in the Centaur upper stage #MUOS
16 мин

We have now entered the planned 10-minute hold at T-4 minutes #MUOS
18 мин

Today's #MUOS launch window opens at 5:42 p.m. EST and closes at 6:26 p.m.

Цитировать#MUOS launch director has recommended we scrub. Thick clouds and upper level winds. Stay tuned for update on next attempt.
15 сек (3:24 Мск)

Polling.

#MUOS RT @45thspacewing: (6:12 p.m. EST) No change on the two constraints that are preventing liftoff.

New T-0 for #MUOS 6:25 p.m.EST. This is the last opportunity for today's launch window. Cross your fingers!

#MUOS is now slated for lift off no earlier than 6:10 p.m.


RT @45thspacewing: (5:55 p.m. EST) Weather officer now reports that the optimism for clearing the thick cloud rule has dissipated.


On Feb. 20, we'll reach an important milestone in space history -- the 50th anniversary of manned U.S. orbital spaceflight.
12 сек

@johnrsports Thank you! One of the pitfalls of live-tweeting. Re-sending corrected version.

Fingers crossed. RT @twirlandswirl: I made it! Well, if there's anything to have made it for, at least. #MUOS @ulalaunch

#MUOS launch now 6:05 p.m. EST. Weather restraints for thick clouds and upper level winds.

RT @lockheedmartin: Who ever said launches didn't keep you on your toes? #MUOS T-0 moving - watch @ulalaunch for the latest.

Цитировать0015 GMT (7:15 p.m. EST Fri.)
Liftoff has been tentatively reset for next Wednesday at the earliest. That's the soonest the Eastern Range could be available to support another launch attempt. The Air Force-controlled Range provides all of the necessary tracking, communications and safety services for rocket flights from Cape Canaveral. Exactly what has the Range booked for the next few days hasn't been disclosed.
Here's the official post-scrub statement from United Launch Alliance.

"The launch of an Atlas 5 carrying the United States Navy's Mobile User Objective System 1 (MUOS 1) payload was scrubbed today due to weather conditions associated with upper level winds and flight rules associated with thick clouds. Due to lack of range availability and also the forecast weather conditions for the next several days, the Atlas 5 vehicle and MUOS will return to the Vertical Integration Facility and will roll back out to the launch pad prior to launch. The launch is rescheduled for no earlier than Wednesday, Feb. 22 from Space Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla."

2345 GMT (6:45 p.m. EST)
Rollback has been announced. To wait on the expected several days before the Range will be available for another launch attempt, the Atlas 5 rocket will ride the rails back the third-of-a-mile to its Vertical Integration Facility to wait out the delay. Exactly when the next launch date will occur remains up in the air, but liftoff won't occur for at least the next few days.
The rollback will happen tomorrow, roughly 24 hours after the scrub to allow the vehicle to warm up from the supercold propellants that are being drained right now.

2335 GMT (6:35 p.m. EST)
If there is a prolonged wait for the next available launch shot on the Eastern Range, officials will opt to roll the Atlas 5 rocket back to its assembly building for waiting out the delay.

ЦитироватьFeb. 22     Atlas 5  •  MUOS 1
Launch window: TBD

ЦитироватьFeb. 22     Atlas 5  •  MUOS 1
Launch window: 2223-2307 GMT (5:23-6:07 p.m. EST)

ЦитироватьВообще если судить по траектории выведения то над Индийским океаном. То есть на 72Е. Но хотелось оффициального подтверждения

Цитировать2/24/2012, 2215-2259Z   MUOS-1

ЦитироватьMONDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 2012
It is looking like Friday afternoon at 5:15 p.m. EST (2215 GMT) will be the next opportunity to launch the Atlas 5 rocket carrying the U.S. Navy's next-generation mobile communications satellite.

The hoped-for Wednesday launch date was predicated on the Range becoming available quicker than expected. With that not materializing, it will be Friday before the Range can support the Atlas again.

Rollout of the mobile launch platform carrying the Atlas will occur on Thursday morning to kick off final preparations for the satellite-deployment flight. Countdown clocks begin ticking Friday at 10:15 a.m. EST.

The launch window will extend 44 minutes from 5:15 to 5:59 p.m. EST (2215-2259 GMT).

Weather forecasters, however, are predicting just a 40 percent chance of acceptable weather on Friday afternoon as another cold front slides into the local area.

"On launch day, a stronger cold front will move into Central Florida generating increasing clouds, showers and isolated thunderstorms by the afternoon. Strong southwesterly winds gusting into the low-mid 30s in advance of the front are also expected in the afternoon/evening on Friday. The primary concerns for launch are thick clouds, anvil clouds, cumulus clouds and liftoff winds," forecasters say.

The specifics call for scattered low clouds, a broken deck of mid-level clouds and overcast high clouds, rain showers and isolated storms in the area, 7 miles of visibility, southeasterly winds of 25 to 30 knots and a temperature of 73 degrees F.

If the launch should slip into the weekend, that cold front is expected to drift south of the Cape and allow the weather to improve. There's an 80 percent chance of favorable weather on both Saturday and Sunday, with only thick cloud and cumulus cloud rule concerns.

ЦитироватьULA @ulalaunch

The broadcast of Friday's #MUOS launch will start at 4:55 p.m. EST; launch window opens at 5:15 p.m. ow.ly/9cFx4 (http://www.ulalaunch.com/site/pages/Multimedia_Webcast.shtml)
21 февраля 12 в 23:09

Fingers crossed! RT @spawarhq: Hey @LockheedMartin @ulalaunch- are u crossing your fingers for good weather on Friday? We are! #MUOS
21 февраля 12 в 20:34

ЦитироватьAtlas 5 rocket rolls out to pad for Friday's launch[/size]

Aiming for a third launch attempt Friday after weather conditions spoiled back-to-back countdowns last week and a previously-scheduled classified operation occupied the Eastern Range over the past several days, an Atlas 5 rocket is again standing tall on Complex 41.[/size]

Цитировать(http://pix.academ.org/img/2012/02/24/d8b68bf8fd95bbb1f2bebea391dd3674.png)
Mission Status Center[/size] (http://www.spaceflightnow.com/atlas/av030/status.html)

1537 GMT (10:37 a.m. EST)
On the pad! ...

The day's 44-minute launch window opens at 5:15 p.m. and closes at 5:59 p.m. EST.

Here's a timeline of the countdown's key events:

HR:MM..Eastern...Event
T-6:20..10:15am...Countdown begins with rocket power up
T-5:30..11:05am...Weather briefing
T-4:55..11:40am...Start clearing assembly building area
T-4:20..12:15pm...C-band tracking beacon testing
T-3:40..12:55pm...S-band telemetry link checks
T-2:55...1:40pm...Establish blast danger area roadblocks
T-2:20...2:15pm...Weather briefing
T-2:15...2:20pm...Clear the pad
T-2:00...2:35pm...T-120 minutes and holding (for 30min)
T-2:00...3:00pm...Launch conductor briefing to team
T-2:00...3:02pm...Readiness poll for fueling
T-2:00...3:05pm...Resume countdown
T-1:50...3:15pm...Centaur LOX transfer line chilldown
T-1:43...3:22pm...Begin Centaur liquid oxygen loading
T-1:30...3:35pm...Begin Atlas first stage LOX loading
T-1:25...3:40pm...Centaur LH2 transfer line chilldown
T-1:10...3:55pm...Centaur RL10 engine chilldown
T-1:02...4:03pm...Begin Centaur liquid hydrogen loading
T-0:40...4:25pm...FLight termination system final test
T-0:16...4:49pm...RD-180 engine fuel fill sequence
T-0:10...4:55pm...Weather briefing
T-0:04...5:01pm...T-4 minutes and holding (for 10min)
T-0:04...5:08pm...Readiness poll for launch
T-0:04...5:11pm...Resume countdown
T-0:00...5:15pm..LAUNCH

Цитировать0116 GMT (8:16 p.m. EST Fri.)
T+plus 3 hours, 1 minute, 41 seconds. SPACECRAFT SEPARATION! The Centaur upper stage, marking its milestone 200th mission, has deployed the U.S. Navy's first Mobile User Objective System satellite, dubbed MUOS 1, for a 15-year mission to provide mobile communications to U.S. and allied military forces on the move.

0116 GMT (8:16 p.m. EST Fri.)
T+plus 3 hours, 1 minute, 30 seconds. Spin up of the Centaur has begun.

0114 GMT (8:14 p.m. EST Fri.)
T+plus 2 hours, 59 minutes, 30 seconds. The third burn was a full success, putting Centaur exactly where it's supposed to be, with a high point of 19,323 nautical miles, a low point of 1,869 nautical miles and inclination of 19 degrees.

0114 GMT (8:14 p.m. EST Fri.)
T+plus 2 hours, 59 minutes. Centaur is turning itself to the proper orientation for releasing the payload.
   
0113 GMT (8:13 p.m. EST Fri.)
T+plus 2 hours, 58 minutes, 2 seconds. MECO 3. Main engine cutoff confirmed. Centaur has completed the powered phase of flight for the launch of MUOS 1.
   
0112 GMT (8:12 p.m. EST Fri.)
T+plus 2 hours, 57 minutes, 30 seconds. The engine is burning well. This is a planned 54-second firing by the Centaur's single Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne RL10 engine.

0112 GMT (8:12 p.m. EST Fri.)
T+plus 2 hours, 57 minutes, 10 seconds. Ignition and full thrust! The Centaur's main engine has re-ignited for a third time in this launch sequence to accelerate the payload into the planned deployment orbit.

0111 GMT (8:11 p.m. EST Fri.)
T+plus 2 hours, 56 minutes, 20 seconds. Cryo system prestarts are underway.

0110 GMT (8:10 p.m. EST Fri.)
T+plus 2 hours, 55 minutes, 30 seconds. The vehicle is getting pressurized again for ignition.
   
0109 GMT (8:09 p.m. EST Fri.)
T+plus 2 hours, 54 minutes, 30 seconds. Centaur has reached the desired orientation for the upcoming burn.
   
0108 GMT (8:08 p.m. EST Fri.)
T+plus 2 hours, 53 minutes. Centaur uses its settling thrusters in preparation for the burn and also de-spinning from the roll.
   
0105 GMT (8:05 p.m. EST Fri.)
T+plus 2 hours, 50 minutes. The rocket is performing a turn to get into the proper position for the upcoming engine burn.
   
0053 GMT (7:53 p.m. EST Fri.)
T+plus 2 hours, 38 minutes. Centaur remains in good shape and in the correct orientation as it slowly rolls for passive thermal control in this parking orbit.
   
0045 GMT (7:45 p.m. EST Fri.)
T+plus 2 hours, 30 minutes. Just about 30 minutes from Centaur delivering the final orbital boost and casting MUOS free to fly on its own.

From its eventual spot in geosynchronous orbit, matching Earth's rotation to hover in a parking spot 22,300 miles up, the expansive footprint of MUOS 1 will cover a huge swath of the planet to serve ships, submarines, aircraft, land vehicles and terminals in the hands of troops.

Initial testing of the craft will be performed later this spring over the mid-Pacific Ocean in view of a Hawaiian ground station. However, the final operational position in space and what geographical area of the globe the craft will cover hasn't been chosen yet.

0035 GMT (7:35 p.m. EST Fri.)
T+plus 2 hours, 20 minutes. Bus and battery voltages, tank pressures and other system measurements look good as a healthy Centaur orbits in space on its 200th mission. Altitude now over 12,000 nautical miles.

0030 GMT (7:30 p.m. EST Fri.)
T+plus 2 hours, 15 minutes. In its launch configuration atop the Atlas rocket with the two power-generating solar arrays stowed on the sides and the umbrella reflectors folded up, MUOS stands 22 feet tall, 12 feet wide and 6 feet deep. The craft was built on Lockheed Martin's A2100 satellite design used by dozens of previous communications spacecraft.

ЦитироватьНарод, подскажите, а где будет стоять потом КА? Есть такая информация?

ЦитироватьInitial testing of the craft will be performed later this spring over the mid-Pacific Ocean in view of a Hawaiian ground station. However, the final operational position in space and what geographical area of the globe the craft will cover hasn't been chosen yet.

ЦитироватьСША запустили спутник связи нового поколения[/size] (http://www.vz.ru/news/2012/2/25/563903.html)
25 февраля 2012, 04::21

США запустили в пятницу на околоземную орбиту тактический спутник связи нового поколения, который станет частью системы MUOS (Mobile User Objective System), запуск состоялся на мысе Канаверал (штат Флорида) в 17.15 по времени Восточного побережья США (в 02.15 по московскому времени в субботу).

Выводить спутник на орбиту было доверено United Launch Alliance - совместному предприятию авиационных гигантов Boeing и Lockheed Martin. Космический аппарат был заточен в специальную капсулу в верхней части ракеты-носителя Atlas-5, в первой ступени которой используется знаменитый российский ракетный двигатель РД-180 НПО «Энергомаш».

Система MUOS, которая будет находится в ведении военно- морских сил США, разработана компанией Lockheed Martin. Она призвана значительно улучшить связь между войсками США и их союзниками по всему земному шару.

«По сути, она будет действовать как сотовая вышка в небе», - объяснил один из руководителей программы MUOS Марк Паскаль.

«Сейчас для того, чтобы воспользоваться узкодиапазонной спутниковой связью, нашим подразделениям приходится стоять на месте с направленной в небо антенной», - добавил его коллега Пол Гизел.

«К тому времени, как мы введем MUOS в строй, мы позволим солдатам передвигаться по полю боя и одновременно поддерживаться связь, даже если спутник находится вне прямой видимости», - отметил он. По словам военных, использовать новую технологию можно будет не только на суше, но и на кораблях, самолетах и подлодках.

MUOS, эффективно сочетающая в себе самые современные технологии связи третьего поколения, предложит в 10 раз более быструю связь по сравнению с имеющимися спутниковыми системами, в том числе при одновременном голосовом подключении, передаче изображения и данных. Кроме того, спутниковый комплекс, функционирующий в дециметровом диапазоне, предложит «расширенные возможности по геолокации» и будет совместим с уже имеющимися в распоряжении войск терминалами связи, подчеркнули в компании.

Второй спутник MUOS проходит испытания и будет запущен через год. Всего Lockheed Martin планирует построить для Пентагона пять таких аппаратов, в том числе один - запасной. Одновременно General Dynamics завершает работу по созданию мобильных терминалов, способных эффективно использовать возможности новой системы, передает ИТАР-ТАСС.

ЦитироватьLike erecting a cellular telephone tower 22,300 miles tall, the U.S. Navy's first-of-its-kind mobile communications satellite rose high above Earth tonight to provide 3G voice, data and video services to military troops on the move.

Soaring away from Cape Canaveral's Complex 41 at 5:15 p.m. EST (2215 GMT), the Atlas 5 rocket sped towards space carrying the Mobile User Objective System 1 satellite.

MUOS 1 became the heaviest payload ever launched by an Atlas rocket in more than 600 launches under the venerable booster's name, weighing nearly 15,000 pounds.

And to heave the craft into a lofty geosynchronous transfer orbit, the Atlas 5's largest, most energetic configuration previously used to hurl space probes toward Jupiter and Pluto was tapped for the mission with five forceful solid rocket boosters flanked around the vehicle.

What's more, the launch also marked the milestone 200th flight for the dependable Centaur upper stage, which conducted three critical firings over the course of three hours to position MUOS 1 into the proper orbit to score a successful launch.

The sophisticated MUOS system -- to be fully assembled with four more launches over the next few years -- was designed around the commercial third-generation cellular telephone architecture to substantially increase the number of users and amount of communications that can be routed to military forces. The satellites will ring the planet and provide capacity, availability and global coverage for mobile military communications like never before.

"If you think of the spacecraft as a cell tower in the sky, each of the satellites represents a cell tower," said Capt. Paul Ghyzel, program manager of the Navy's Communications Satellite Program Office.

From its eventual spot in geosynchronous orbit, matching Earth's rotation to hover in a parking spot 22,300 miles up, the expansive footprint of MUOS 1 will cover a huge swath of the planet to serve ships, submarines, aircraft, land vehicles and terminals in the hands of troops.

Initial testing of the craft will be performed later this spring over the mid-Pacific Ocean in view of a Hawaiian ground station. However, the final operational position in space and what geographical area of the globe the craft will cover hasn't been chosen yet.

MUOS: The Navy's next-generation satellite

MUOS will offer 10 times greater communications capacity to the mobile warfighter over the Navy's current generation of Ultra High Frequency Follow-On spacecraft to relay narrowband tactical information such as voice calls, data messaging, file transfers and email on rates of up to 384 Kilobits per second.

"Utilizing commercial 3G cell phone and satellite technology, MUOS will provide warfighters 'on the move' point-to-point and netted communications services at enhanced data rates and priority-based access to on-demand voice, video and data transfers," said Mark Pasquale, Lockheed Martin vice president and MUOS program manager.

The UHF communications routed through previous Navy satellites and soon MUOS 1 provide command and control between combatant leaders and their warfighters, connectivity to tactical forces, communications for Special Operations and support to rapid deployments of land, air and naval forces worldwide.

(https://img.novosti-kosmonavtiki.ru/22962.jpg)
 
Military officials have stressed the need for additional UHF channels to supply the diverse users of the system, something that MUOS is designed to give.

"The UHF spectrum is the military's communications workhorse because it is the only radio frequency that can penetrate jungle foliage, inclement weather and urban terrain," says the Navy.

Approximately 67,000 UHF user terminals are deployed across the military branches serving around the world, according to the Navy, and many of them are carried deep into theaters of operation.

MUOS also enables users to communicate with smaller devices, like "rugged smartphones" in the hands of troops, unlike the bulky gear needed to talk with the Ultra High Frequency Follow-On (UFO) satellite fleet.

"In the current UFO environment, ground users must be stationary with an antenna positioned directly toward the satellites to send out information. With MUOS, not only will users be able to connect with the satellites while on the move, the satellites will be connected to ground-based receiving stations that provide connectivity to the Global Information Grid, enabling users to send and receive data, calls and video worldwide," said Pasquale.

"The system transitions from a circuit switch to an all-IP dynamic network which supports on demand, ad-hoc and priority based planning. MUOS also provides users with predetermined priority which allows bandwidth to be shared efficiently."

At the heart of the MUOS satellite's communications payload are two gold mesh antenna reflectors, built by Harris Corp. Coverage to legacy users will transmit through a 17.7-foot-diameter reflector on the bottom of the craft and the advanced, multi-beam features of MUOS to significantly increase the transmission capacity over the Navy's previous satellites will use a large 46-foot reflector atop the satellite.
 
"MUOS is designed to allow backward compatibility with legacy UHF terminals while providing a next generation waveform to support 'communications on the move' capabilities," said Pasquale. "This ensures that legacy systems remain compatible with the MUOS architecture, while offering the technological advancements needed by its military users."

Lockheed Martin is producing five MUOS satellites -- four primes and one in-orbit spare -- to replace the Navy's Ultra High Frequency Follow-On spacecraft that were launched by Atlas rockets from 1993 through 2003. Eight of the 11 satellites remain in operation today.

"A single MUOS satellite provides more communication access than the current UHF constellation. This capability is critical to the U.S. military because they depend on reliable, targeted communication to complete missions and to protect service members worldwide," said Pasquale.

"MUOS is designed to support those requirements by providing users narrowband communications with greater mobility, higher data rates and improved operational availability."

MUOS 2 will go up in July 2013 and the subsequent two primary satellites and one orbital spare will follow at a launch rate of approximately one per year.

"The second MUOS space vehicle is currently undergoing environmental testing, which will validate its performance in a simulated space environment. The third spacecraft is entering environmental testing, and the fourth and fifth MUOS satellites are steadily progressing in the production flow," said Pasquale.

In its launch configuration atop the Atlas rocket with the two power-generating solar arrays stowed on the sides and the umbrella reflectors folded up, MUOS stood 22 feet tall, 12 feet wide and 6 feet deep. The craft was built on Lockheed Martin's A2100 satellite design used by dozens of previous communications spacecraft.
 
The constellation's orbital zones include the vast Pacific Ocean, the continental U.S. coverage area, the Atlantic Ocean region, plus two positions over the Indian Ocean and the Middle East. The system is expected to be fully operational for global service in 2015.

"Just like your commercial cellphone providers out there, they don't build all of their cell towers in a day. They come on in a sequence, same with the satellites," said Ghyzel.

A 3-hour ride to orbit

With its kerosene-fed main engine rumbling to life, the five solid-fueled motors strapped to the first stage ignited to propel the tower 206-foot-tall rocket into the Florida sky with a crackling thunder pounding across the spaceport.

Less than five minutes later, the solids and bronze lower stage had jettisoned and the cryogenic Centaur upper stage, making its milestone 200th flight, lit the RL10 main engine to continue clawing toward orbit.

A preliminary parking perch of 104 by 388 statute miles, tilted 28 degrees to the equator, was achieved just over 12 minutes into the launch as the Centaur shut down the engine and entered a brief cruise across the central Atlantic.

A typical Atlas 5 ascent to geosynchronous transfer orbit, the standard dropoff point for communications satellites, uses just two firings by the Centaur to achieve the highly elliptical, egg-shaped orbit to deploy the payloads. From there, the satellites use their own engines in the subsequent days to fly into the operational locations 22,300 miles above the equator.

But the sizable MUOS drove planners to create a three-burn launch profile for the hefty payload to use all of the available performance from the Atlas-Centaur that in turns saves the satellite's precious onboard fuel supply for maneuvering over its 15-year life.

"The MUOS 1 mission represents an excellent example of the performance and mission design capabilities of the Centaur," said Jim Sponnick, United Launch Alliance's vice president of mission operations. "Our customers for this mission asked for a mission design that would launch this very heavy and capable satellite in a manner that would minimize the amount of energy (and propellant) that the satellite would have to consume to position itself into the final geosynchronous orbit. Considering all of the commodities and capabilities of the Centaur, our mission design team developed this three-burn mission profile to provide an optimal solution for the MUOS customer."

Just off the western coast of Africa, the Centaur main engine was restarted about 20 minutes after launch to propel MUOS to the second step on its way to the planned orbit. This six-minute burn put the rocket into a 120 by 21,400 statute mile orbit inclined 26 degrees.

Then began a lengthy coast away from the planet for two-and-a-half hours, flying to a point about 17,000 statute miles above the far eastern Indian Ocean where the final burn would occur.

"The three burn mission design for MUOS provides 1,000 pounds greater lift capability than a conventional 2-burn geosynchronous transfer orbit," said Sponnick.

One final push was given nearly two hours and 57 minutes into flight to raise the orbit's low point and reduce the inclination closer to the equator. The burn, lasting less than a minute, placed the payload into a 2,150 by 22,237 statute mile orbit at 19 degrees inclination.

The satellite separated from Centaur at 8:16 p.m. EST (0116 GMT) to complete a highly successful launch, the first of 2012 for Atlas and 29th overall in the program's 9-year history.

(https://img.novosti-kosmonavtiki.ru/22963.jpg)
 
Ground controllers established contact with the satellite to begin what's expected to be a three-month process of maneuvering MUOS 1 into geosynchronous orbit, deploying its power-generating solar arrays to span more than 90 feet, unfurling a pair of umbrella-like antenna reflectors on boom assemblies and fully checking out the onboard communications equipment.

Eight orbital raising burns are expected over the next 10-14 days, followed by the test program that Lockheed Martin will perform, Ghyzel said. The military will take control of the satellite in about 90 days to conduct its own acceptance evaluation before the craft enters service.

Which of the available five orbital zones MUOS 1 will be placed in has not been determined. "We're in close coordination with the user community with U.S. Strategic Command. The final decision on where this satellite, No. 1, will go hasn't been made yet," Ghyzel said.

ЦитироватьRocketcams offer dazzling views of Atlas 5 launch[/size] (http://www.spaceflightnow.com/atlas/av030/rocketcams/)
BY JUSTIN RAY | SPACEFLIGHT NOW | Posted: February 26, 2012
(https://img.novosti-kosmonavtiki.ru/22992.jpg) The Atlas 5 rocket ascends from Complex 41.

(https://img.novosti-kosmonavtiki.ru/22993.jpg) Solid rocket booster separation.

(https://img.novosti-kosmonavtiki.ru/22994.jpg) Sunset from Centaur camera.

 Продолжение (http://www.spaceflightnow.com/atlas/av030/rocketcampix/)

ЦитироватьСтравливается лишний водород.

Цитировать

ЦитироватьСтравливается лишний водород.

Есть предподозрение, что как раз не "лишний", а уже отработанный на захолаживании движка и магистралей.
Кроме того, этот патрубок уж очень напоминает сопло крена.  :roll:

Цитировать"turbopump exhaust duct rotates to provide roll control"

Цитировать

Цитировать"turbopump exhaust duct rotates to provide roll control"

Это где? На RL-10, чтоль?  :shock:

Цитироватьсудя по всему, это на версии, которая была сделана для титана.
атласовская версия наверное не сильно отличается

Цитировать

Цитироватьсудя по всему, это на версии, которая была сделана для титана.
атласовская версия наверное не сильно отличается

Судя по всему везде практически одинаковая версия. И везде замкнутая схема. Так что с турбопамп экзостом както не совсем понятно...

ЦитироватьНасколько я понимаю, номера USA-xxx сабжу пока не присвоено?

ЦитироватьНасколько я понимаю, номера USA-xxx сабжу пока не присвоено?

ЦитироватьMass: 6740 kg; 3812 kg (dry)

Цитироватьhttp://space.skyrocket.de/doc_chr/lau2012.htm

Тут он USA-234 :)

Цитировать

Цитироватьсудя по всему, это на версии, которая была сделана для титана.
атласовская версия наверное не сильно отличается

Судя по всему везде практически одинаковая версия. И везде замкнутая схема. Так что с турбопамп экзостом както не совсем понятно...

ЦитироватьThe U.S. Navy's new satellite to provide more agile communications for forces on the move has successfully maneuvered itself into a perch 22,300 miles above Earth and unfurled its giant umbrella-like mesh antennas.
 
Launched by ULA's Atlas 5 rocket on Feb. 24 from Cape Canaveral into a geosynchronous transfer orbit, the Mobile User Objective System 1 satellite has executed eight firings of its liquid apogee main engine to ascend from that dropoff point. The rocket delivered the craft to a preliminary 2,150 by 22,237 statute mile orbit, which has now been circularized, and the inclination was reduced from 19 degrees to about 5 degrees relative to the equator.

Deployment of the craft's power-generating solar arrays has occurred, now spanning more than 90 feet, and the pair of antenna reflectors on boom assemblies took place as planned.

The communications payload carries two gold mesh antennas, built by Harris Corp., to serve legacy-equipment users transmitting through a 17.7-foot-diameter reflector on the bottom of the craft and the advanced, multi-beam features of MUOS to significantly increase the transmission capacity over the Navy's previous satellites through a large 46-foot reflector atop the satellite.

Satellite-builder Lockheed Martin is conducting its checkout of MUOS 1 before handing control to the military for acceptance testing. The craft is scheduled to enter service later this summer.

The Navy has not announced which of five available orbital zones the spacecraft will be operated from -- the vast Pacific Ocean, the continental U.S. coverage area, the Atlantic Ocean region, or two positions over the Indian Ocean and the Middle East. The testing location is over the Pacific in view of ground station in Hawaii.

The expansive footprint of MUOS 1 will cover a huge swath of the planet to serve ships, submarines, aircraft, land vehicles and terminals in the hands of troops.

"The ability for a warfighter to make a telephone call over a MUOS terminal and send data at 10 times more capacity than they can now will be a significant improvement," said Navy Capt. Paul Ghyzel, MUOS program manager.

Four primary satellites and one orbiting spare will comprise the MUOS system as it is fielded over the next few years to augment and then replace the Navy's aging Ultra High Frequency spacecraft constellation.

MUOS utilizes commercial 3G cellular telephone and satellite technology to provide UHF communications through "rugged smartphones" in the hands of troops, unlike the bulky gear needed to talk with the older generation of satellites.

"With MUOS they'll be able to move around the battlespace," said Navy Cmdr. Jeff King, a MUOS systems engineer. "They'll be able to communicate to users on the other side of a mountain or the other side of the world."

ЦитироватьSUNNYVALE, Calif., June 18, 2012 – Lockheed Martin [NYSE] has successfully completed thermal vacuum testing of the U.S. Navy's second Mobile User Objective System (MUOS) satellite, designated MUOS-2.  Completion of this major program milestone validates performance in a simulated space environment and clears the satellite for final integrated system test.

"With the completion of environmental testing, the MUOS team has illustrated its continued focus on successful program execution and mission success," said Lockheed Martin's Global Communications Systems vice president and general manager, Kevin Bilger. "The first MUOS satellite is on-orbit and poised to provide significantly improved communications capabilities for the mobile warfighter. This team looks forward to expanding MUOS capabilities with the launch of the second satellite in the constellation."

Conducted inside Lockheed Martin's Dual Entry Large Thermal Altitude chamber, the MUOS-2 satellite was stressed at extreme hot and cold temperatures, simulating the environments the satellite will experience throughout its mission life. The extensive test-like-you-fly process validates the satellite's overall design and survivability during launch and on-orbit operations.

"Building on the success of the first MUOS satellite, the team completed this critical test phase efficiently and affordably to support our customer's launch schedule," said Mark Pasquale, Lockheed Martin vice president and MUOS program manager. "Our team is on track to successfully complete final satellite integration and test this fall."

The five-satellite MUOS constellation will revolutionize military Ultra High Frequency (UHF) satellite communications by introducing new capabilities to mobile warfighters throughout the world.

The first MUOS satellite launched February 24, 2012, from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla., and is progressing steadily with on-orbit checkout. The wideband code division multiple access payload provides 16 times the capacity over the existing system, including global connectivity through the Defense Information Systems Network and support services such as full two-way voice and data transfers. The Lockheed Martin-led team is completing satellite validation in preparation for customer handover in June.

The first MUOS satellite and associated ground system will provide initial on-orbit capability this year, followed by the launch of the second spacecraft in 2013. The five-satellite global constellation is expected to achieve full operational capability in 2015, extending UHF narrowband communications availability to the armed forces well past 2025.

The MUOS constellation replaces the legacy Ultra High Frequency Follow-On (UFO) system and provides significantly improved assured communications for mobile warfighters. A single MUOS satellite will provide four times the capacity of the entire UFO constellation of 8 satellites.  Each MUOS satellite also includes a legacy UHF payload that is fully compatible with the current UFO system and legacy terminals.  This dual-payload design ensures a smooth transition to the cutting-edge MUOS technology while the UFO system is phased out.

ЦитироватьА есть снимки где было бы видно сложеную большую антену?

Цитироватьhttp://www.ulalaunch.com/site/PhotoGallery/galleryimages/images/AtlasV/A5_MUOS1/av_muos1_e4.jpg

ЦитироватьБольшая антенна сверху

ЦитироватьЕсли сбоку сложена, тогда сильно компактно сложили ее :D

ЦитироватьПо идее это ж та же антена что и на Менторах.

Цитировать

ЦитироватьПо идее это ж та же антена что и на Менторах.

А есть какие-то данные кроме "по идее" ?

ЦитироватьА объективные данные надо спрашивать у наблюдателей. Но им сравнить секретные спутники с известными - как нож в сердце. Запрещают, наверное. :(

ЦитироватьМожет у них просто нет алгоритмов обработки

Цитироватьили им не приходит в голову сравнивать связник и разведчик?  :wink:

ЦитироватьА как с фотометрией и изображениями?!

ЦитироватьА есть снимки где было бы видно сложеную большую антену?

ЦитироватьВот эта вязанка с прожелтью сбоку корпуса и есть сложенная антенна.

Цитировать

ЦитироватьА есть снимки где было бы видно сложеную большую антену?

http://www.ulalaunch.com/site/PhotoGallery/galleryimages/images/AtlasV/A5_MUOS1/av_muos1_e2.jpg
http://spacenews.com/images/MUOSopen_LM02.jpg

Вот эта вязанка с прожелтью сбоку корпуса и есть сложенная антенна.

ЦитироватьВидео с бортовой камеры ICO G1, показывающее процесс развертывания похожей 12-метровой харрисовской антенны.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PeaHbgU0ExQ

ЦитироватьТогда на одном боку сложены 2 антенны (большая раскрывается вверх, маленькая вниз), а на другом боку уже не антенны, что же тогда?

ЦитироватьУгумс. Похоже это действительно она. Неслабо однако её упаковали. Начинаю верить в 25-метровые антены.

ЦитироватьНадо ж! На секретные есть алгоритм, а на известные - нету. :)

Цитировать] Типа тупые? ;)

ЦитироватьДык посчитали же сколько спиц на Риолите. А проверить по Флитсаткому - ни-ни!

ЦитироватьНо им сравнить секретные спутники с известными - как нож в сердце. Запрещают, наверное. :(

Цитировать

ЦитироватьНо им сравнить секретные спутники с известными - как нож в сердце. Запрещают, наверное. :(

Старый - спешиал фор ю, из Казахстана: http://lfvn.astronomer.ru/report/0000072/didenko_usoltzeva.pdf

Цитировать

ЦитироватьНо им сравнить секретные спутники с известными - как нож в сердце. Запрещают, наверное. :(

Старый - спешиал фор ю, из Казахстана: http://lfvn.astronomer.ru/report/0000072/didenko_usoltzeva.pdf

ЦитироватьУмилило, кстати, предположение что Риолит запущеный Атлас-Адженой и TDRS запущеный IUSом соизмеримы.

Цитировать

ЦитироватьУмилило, кстати, предположение что Риолит запущеный Атлас-Адженой и TDRS запущеный IUSом соизмеримы.

Предполагается конструктивное сходство харрисовских АНТЕНН с учетом возможного масштабирования.

ЦитироватьЕсли считать, что размеры солнеч-
ных батарей (СБ) TDRS и Rhyolite соизмеримы, а суммарные коэффициенты
отражения идентичны, то   диаметр антенны, установленной на КА Rhyolite,  
не должен превышать 5.5 м.  

ЦитироватьА почему бы не предположить, что панели СБ старых ТДРСов, Риолитов (и кстати, Флитсаткомов) соизмеримы?

ЦитироватьЧего это вдруг "не нужна"? Траффик "вниз" для РЭРовских аппаратов должен быть не такой уж и маленький. Явно не меньше, чем для Флитсаткома - а его СБ соизмеримы с СБ ТРВшных ТДРСов.

ЦитироватьАтлас-Аджена не выведет тяжелый спутник. А сопоставление идет не по массе, а по габаритам характерных элементов конструкции.

ЦитироватьMilitary communications satellites go into service
BY JUSTIN RAY
SPACEFLIGHT NOW
Posted: November 25, 2012

Two sophisticated U.S. military communications satellites launched earlier this year for distinctly different missions have entered initial service lives in geosynchronous orbit 22,300 miles above Earth.

(https://img.novosti-kosmonavtiki.ru/22642.jpg)
An artist's concept of MUOS. Credit: Lockheed Martin
 
The Navy's Mobile User Objective System 1 spacecraft was carried aloft by a United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket from Cape Canaveral on Feb. 24 and the Air Force's Advanced Extremely High Frequency 2 satellite followed from the same pad atop a similar Atlas on May 4.

MUOS is the first in a new space-based constellation for global mobile communications to replace the military's aging Ultra High Frequency (UHF) spacecraft fleet with substantial new capabilities for smartphone-like flow of information around the battlespace.

"Whether it's in vehicles, on ships, in submarines, in aircraft, or simply carried by service members who are dismounted from vehicles and on the move, this system was designed to bring them voice and data communication services, both in point-to-point mode and through networked communications. Those capabilities have not existed with previous programs," said Navy Capt. Paul Ghyzel, the MUOS program manager.

A single MUOS spacecraft provides more communication access than the Navy's current 8-craft Ultra High Frequency Follow-On satellite constellation combined.

The Navy announced Nov. 21 that MUOS 1 has been accepted for operational use, completing its post-launch maneuvering, testing and checkout process.

"This provides the warfighter with powerful capability," said Vice Adm. Michael S. Rogers, commander, U.S. Fleet Cyber Command/U.S. 10th Fleet.

MUOS 2 will go up in July 2013 aboard an Atlas 5 and the subsequent two primary satellites and one orbital spare will follow at a launch rate of approximately one per year, providing a full operational constellation in 2015 and extend the Navy's narrowband communications capacity well past 2025.