Форум Новости Космонавтики

ЦитироватьU.S. Navy's MUOS-4 Shipped for August Launch
by Jonathan Charlton (http://spacenews.com/author/jonathan-charlton/) — July 1, 2015
(https://img.novosti-kosmonavtiki.ru/155502.jpg)
MUOS-4 hangs above its shipping container. Credit: Lockheed Martin 
 
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Navy's fourth Mobile User Objective System (MUOS) communications satellite arrived at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida, in preparation for a scheduled August launch aboard a United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket.
The satellite is the penultimate in the geostationary-orbiting MUOS series, designed to provide smartphone-like communications to U.S. forces across the globe, including in challenging environments such as beneath forest canopies. Lockheed Martin Space Systems of Sunnyvale, California, is the prime contractor.
"MUOS allows troops all over the world to talk, text and share mission data seamlessly, while traveling, like a cellular network, without having to worry about where they are in relation to a satellite," Iris Bombelyn, Lockheed Martin's vice president for narrowband communications, said in a prepared statement. "MUOS-4 will complete our near global coverage, reaching further north and south toward the poles than ever before."
(https://img.novosti-kosmonavtiki.ru/155501.jpg) (http://spacenews.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/MUOS-4-17Jun2015_vertical2.jpg)
MUOS-4 preps for shipment to Cape Canaveral for launch. Credit: Lockheed Martin

The first three MUOS satellites launched between 2012 and this past January. After MUOS-4 launches, Lockheed Martin expects the full network to be operational by the end of the year. An on-orbit spare satellite, MUOS-5, is scheduled to launch in 2016.
According to the Government Accountability Office, the MUOS program will cost about $7.4 billion. The initial constellation provides mobile service 10 times faster than legacy systems and is expected to operate through 2025.
Lockheed Martin says all four MUOS ground stations are built, and that about 55,000 currently fielded radio terminals can be upgraded for MUOS-compatibility.
Astrotech Space Operations, a Lockheed Martin subsidiary, will conduct MUOS-4's pre-launch processing before the satellite launches.

ЦитироватьAir Force communications satellite joined to Delta 4 for July 22 launch       
Posted on July 9, 2015 by Justin Ray (http://spaceflightnow.com/author/justin-sfn-ray/)
(https://img.novosti-kosmonavtiki.ru/154722.jpg) (http://spaceflightnow.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/div_wgs5_m31016201391116PM63.jpg)
File photo of WGS satellite being mated to Delta 4. Credit: ULA
 
CAPE CANAVERAL — For the second time this week, United Launch Alliance has delivered an Air Force payload to one of its Cape Canaveral pads for liftoff in July.
On Monday, crews mounted the next Global Positioning System satellite atop an Atlas 5 rocket for blastoff July 15.
On Wednesday, it was the Wideband Global SATCOM satellite No. 7 being transported to Complex 37 and attached to a Delta 4 rocket for launch July 22. Liftoff is scheduled for 8:07 p.m. EDT.
They will be ULA's 97th and 98th launches, respectively.
WGS 7 will be boosted into a super-synchronous transfer orbit more than 36,000 nautical miles high during the launch of the Delta 4 Medium+ (5,4) configured rocket with four strap-on solids.
WGS is the Department of Defense's highest capacity communications satellite system. The satellites provide the needed capacity, coverage and connectivity in support of demanding operational scenarios for the Pentagon and allied forces around the world.
WGS 7 is a Block 2 Follow-On spacecraft built by The Boeing Co. It has the same features as the earlier WGS 5 and WGS 6 satellites, according to the Air Force's Space and Missile Systems Center.
"The most notable upgrade is that WGS 7 will allow up to 17 percent additional bandwidth," the Air Force said.
The new bird is expected to enter service fr om geosynchronous orbit 22,300 miles above the equator in December or January.
The WGS 7 satellite is valued at $566 million.
Already shrouded in the launcher's 47-foot-tall, 17-foot-diameter composite nose cone, the spacecraft was hauled to the Delta 4 launch pad and hoisted atop the upper stage Wednesday.
The fully assembled rocket stands 217 feet tall.
The satellite was flown to Florida at the end of May from Boeing's manufacturing facility in El Segundo, California. After arriving, it was taken to the commercial Astrotech processing facility to undergo pre-flight preps.
Final testing, loading of maneuvering propellant and encapsulation in the rocket's nose cone was accomplished with the satellite.
On Wednesday, a convoy hauled the 13,000-pound satellite from Titusville, through the Kennedy Space Center and over to Complex 37 wh ere the Delta had been awaiting since the end of May.

See our earlier launch coverage (http://spaceflightnow.com/tag/wgs-7/).

ЦитироватьRocket/Payload: An Atlas V 551 will launch the Navy's fourth Mobile User Objective System (MUOS-4) satellite.

Date/Site/Launch Time: Monday, Aug. 31, 2015, from Space Launch Complex-41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida.

Mission Description: The Mobile User Objective System (MUOS) is a next-generation narrowband tactical satellite communications system designed to significantly improve ground communications for U.S. forces on the move. MUOS will provide military users 10 times more communications capability over existing systems, including simultaneous voice, video and data, leveraging 3G mobile communications technology.

Launch Notes: MUOS-4 will mark the 56th Atlas V since the vehicle's inaugural launch in August 2002 and the sixth in the 551 configuration. Previous missions launched on Atlas V 551 missions include three MUOS missions as well as the New Horizons mission to Pluto and the Juno mission to Jupiter.

ЦитироватьAtlas 5 team begins stacking most powerful variant for Navy launch       
Posted on July 31, 2015 by Justin Ray (http://spaceflightnow.com/author/justin-sfn-ray/)
(https://img.novosti-kosmonavtiki.ru/154724.jpg) (http://spaceflightnow.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/MUOS4.jpg)
The mission poster. Credit: ULA
 
CAPE CANAVERAL — Continuing a run of military satellite deployments this summer, United Launch Alliance has begun stacking the Atlas 5 rocket that will boost the Navy's next mobile communications craft.
The 15,000-pound Mobile User Objective System satellite No. 4 is scheduled for launch atop the most-powerful version of the Atlas-Centaur rocket on Aug. 31 fr om Cape Canaveral.
Liftoff will occur some time during an unclassified, four-hour period of 4:07 to 8:07 a.m. EDT. The actual target launch time within that period will be announced closer to the liftoff date.
The mission follows successful launches of the Global Positioning System 2F-10 navigation satellite on July 15 by another Atlas 5 and the Air Force's Wideband Global SATCOM satellite No. 7 by a Delta 4 rocket on July 23.
This will be the second Atlas launch for the Navy this year, following MUOS No. 3 on Jan. 20 to cover the Atlantic Ocean region. MUOS 1 was launched Feb. 24, 2012 aboard an Atlas 5 and serves as the Pacific Ocean satellite. MUOS 2 launched July 19, 2013 aboard another Atlas 5 and serves as the continental U.S. satellite.
MUOS 4 will enter service over the Indian Ocean, creating a worldwide reach for the constellation.
The Navy is fielding a constellation of four primary satellites and one in-space spare to cover the entire planet for its new rugged smart-phone communications network.
The final MUOS launch is scheduled for July 2016 on Atlas.
"MUOS allows troops all over the world to talk, text and share mission data seamlessly, while traveling, like a cellular network, without having to worry about wh ere they are in relation to a satellite," said Iris Bombelyn, Lockheed Martin's vice president for narrowband communications.
"MUOS 4 will complete our near global coverage, reaching further north and south toward the poles than ever before."
This year has seen four Atlas 5 rockets fly so far, launching the MUOS 3 communications satellite in January, NASA's MMS magnetospheric science experiment in March, the Air Force's X-37B spaceplane in May and sustaining the GPS constellation with launch of a replacement satellite in July.
The rocket has five more missions on the manifest for 2015, including launches of MUOS 4, a classified NRO payload from Vandenberg, Mexico's Morelos 3 communications satellite, the GPS 2F-11 navigation spacecraft and Orbital ATK's Cygnus cargo-delivery craft for the International Space Station.
(https://img.novosti-kosmonavtiki.ru/154712.jpg) (http://spaceflightnow.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/2015-1294-m.jpg)
File photo of stacking. Credit: NASA-KSC
 
The stacking work for AV-056 began this morning as the bronze-colored, 106.6-foot-long, 12.5-foot-diameter first stage was pulled to the VIF doorway, erected upright and hoisted inside the building to be put aboard the mobile launcher platform.
Known as the Common Core Booster, the stage produces 860,000 pounds of thrust to lift the rocket off the ground. It burns kerosene fuel and supercold liquid oxygen during the initial minutes of flight.
In the coming days, five strap-on boosters will be added, along with the barrel-like interstage adapter, the Centaur upper stage and the base sections of the nose cone. Centaur is 41.5 feet in length, 10 feet in diameter and is fueled by liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen.
The payload is undergoing its own processing in nearby Titusville at the Astrotech facility. It will be delivered to the VIF and mated to the Atlas-Centaur in mid-August.
The 206-foot-tall rocket will be flying in the top-of-the-line, 551-variant that features an RD-180 main engine powering the first stage, five strap-on solid-fuel boosters and an RL10 on the Centaur upper stage. The satellite will be enclosed in an 18-foot-diameter composite nose cone for atmospheric ascent.
The MUOS 4 is destined for geosynchronous orbit 22,300 miles high.
The launch will be the 56th Atlas 5 rocket since 2002 and the 22nd overseen by the Air Force since 2007. For United Launch Alliance, it is the company's 99th launch overall since 2006 and the eighth this year.
See earlier MUOS 4 coverage (http://spaceflightnow.com/tag/av-056/).

Our Atlas archive (http://spaceflightnow.com/atlas/).

ЦитироватьСтарый пишет:
Внешний вид блока облучателей антены секретный, чтоль? Везде он тряпочкой прикрыт...

ЦитироватьПрол пишет: 
Это не тряпочки  :)  . Это штатная ЭВТИ. Антенны (маленькие) тоже укутаны. 

ЦитироватьИз спутников связи они особых секретов не делают.

ЦитироватьLockheed Martin
15 августа ·

MUOS-4, the next satellite scheduled to join the U.S. Navy's Mobile User Objective System (MUOS) secure communications network, has been encapsulated in its protective launch vehicle fairing for its August 31 launch from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. The MUOS satellite constellation will enable new military smart phone-like capabilities for troops on the move. (Photo courtesy of United Launch Alliance). http://lmt.co/1ISWD1U
(https://scontent-waw1-1.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-xpf1/t31.0-8/s960x960/11834681_10154387900833538_2991469152577275168_o.jpg)

ЦитироватьButtoned Up: Lockheed Martin-Built MUOS-4 Secure Communications Satellite Encapsulated for August 31 Launch

   

MUOS-4 Will Complete Near-Global Coverage
 for U.S. Navy's New Military Smart Phone-Like Network

(https://img.novosti-kosmonavtiki.ru/329595.jpg) (http://www.lockheedmartin.com/content/dam/lockheed/data/space/photo/pressrelease/2015/av_muos4_e3_Photo_Courtesy_of_ULA_USN_approval_SR-2015-304.jpg)
 

PHOTO: MUOS-4, the next satellite scheduled to join the U.S. Navy's Mobile User Objective System (MUOS) secure communications network, has been encapsulated in its protective launch vehicle fairing for its August 31 launch fr om Cape Canaveral Air Force Station (photos courtesy of United Launch Alliance).

CAPE CANAVERAL AIR FORCE STATION, Fla., August 13, 2015 – The fourth Mobile User Objective System (MUOS) (http://www.lockheedmartin.com/us/products/mobile-user-objective-system--muos-.html) satellite built by Lockheed Martin [NYSE] for the U.S. Navy was encapsulated in its protective launch vehicle fairing August 10. It is scheduled to launch August 31 aboard a United Launch Alliance Atlas V (http://www.ulalaunch.com/site/pages/Products_AtlasV.shtml) rocket.
 
 MUOS-4 is the latest addition to a network of orbiting satellites and relay ground stations that is revolutionizing secure communications for mobile military forces. Users with operational MUOS terminals can seamlessly connect beyond line-of-sight around the globe and into the Global Information Grid. MUOS' new smart phone-like capabilities include simultaneous, crystal-clear voice, video and mission data, over a high-speed Internet Protocol-based system.
"Delivery of this fourth satellite for the U.S. Navy completes the initial MUOS constellation and provides near-global coverage for the network," said Iris Bombelyn, vice president of Narrowband Communications at Lockheed Martin. "For our mobile forces, that means for the first time they will be able to have secure, high-fidelity voice conversations, networked team calls and data exchange, including video, with anyone around the world connected with a MUOS terminal."
(https://img.novosti-kosmonavtiki.ru/231004.jpg) (http://www.lockheedmartin.com/content/dam/lockheed/data/space/photo/pressrelease/2015/av_muos4_e2_Photo_Courtesy_of_ULA_USN_approval_SR-2015-304.jpg)
 

PHOTO: MUOS-4, the next satellite scheduled to join the U.S. Navy's Mobile User Objective System (MUOS) secure communications network, has been encapsulated in its protective launch vehicle fairing for its August 31 launch from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station (photos courtesy of United Launch Alliance).

MUOS, which also supports the legacy ultra high frequency communications satellite system, will provide comparatively 16 times the capacity of the legacy system and eventually replace it.
The MUOS-1 (http://www.lockheedmartin.com/us/news/press-releases/2012/july/0717-ss-muos.html), MUOS-2 (http://www.lockheedmartin.com/us/news/press-releases/2013/december/1202-ss-muos.html) and MUOS-3 (http://www.lockheedmartin.com/us/news/press-releases/2015/june/150602-ssc-muos.html) satellites launched respectively in 2012, 2013 and January 2015. All four required MUOS ground stations are complete. MUOS-5, an on-orbit Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (WCDMA) spare with additional legacy system capability, is expected to launch in 2016.
More than 55,000 currently fielded radio terminals can be upgraded to be MUOS-compatible, with many of them requiring just a software upgrade.
Lockheed Martin manufactured MUOS-4 at the prime contractor's Sunnyvale, California facility. Earlier this summer, the satellite shipped (http://www.lockheedmartin.com/us/news/press-releases/2015/june/ssc_0629-MUOS-SV4-Ship.html) to the Cape, wh ere it was pre-launch processed and finally encapsulated at Astrotech Space Operations (http://www.lockheedmartin.com/us/news/press-releases/2014/august/0822hq-astrotech.html), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Lockheed Martin.
The Navy's Program Executive Office for Space Systems (http://www.public.navy.mil/spawar/PEOSpaceSystems/Pages/default.aspx) and its Communications Satellite Program Office, San Diego, California, are responsible for the MUOS program.
For additional information, photos and video visit: www.lockheedmartin.com/muos (http://www.lockheedmartin.com/muos)
About Lockheed Martin
 Headquartered in Bethesda, Maryland, Lockheed Martin is a global security and aerospace company that employs approximately 112,000 people worldwide and is principally engaged in the research, design, development, manufacture, integration and sustainment of advanced technology systems, products and services. The Corporation's net sales for 2014 were $45.6 billion.

ЦитироватьSalo пишет:

https://youtu.be/QQAP4b7X8yA


                  
https://youtu.be/QQAP4b7X8yA (https://youtu.be/QQAP4b7X8yA)

Цитироватьтавот пишет:
 
На внутренней стороне композитного обтекателя прикреплены алюминиевые панели, да ещё с цилиндрическими элементами ( выфрезерованными). Зачем ?

ЦитироватьСтарый пишет:

ЦитироватьПрол пишет:
Это не тряпочки  :)  . Это штатная ЭВТИ. Антенны (маленькие) тоже укутаны.

А мочему она установлена всегда, на всех стадиях сборки?

ЦитироватьИз спутников связи они особых секретов не делают.

Может здесь применяется какаято особенная технология формирования локальных лучей? Которую нежелательно показывать посторонним...

Одним словом есть хоть одно фото блока облучателя где было бы видно его конструкцию?

ЦитироватьОАЯ пишет: 
Внизу четыре крутых перца (видимо отк) на фоне облучателей
 http://govcomm.harris.com/solutions/SpaceSystems/SatelliteAntennaSystems.aspx

И похожие облучатели http://www.google.com/patents/US7034771

ЦитироватьОАЯ пишет:
Др. инфы нет. 

ЦитироватьОАЯ пишет:
Эти самые облучатели, что в журнале в псевдо-видео http://article.wn.com/view/2013/11/18/Two_Harris_Corporation_Unfurlable_Mesh_Antenna_Reflectors_Su_q/ выстроены в два ряда. Из видео я ничего не понял. Может быть и есть зерно.
 
Я бы закрыл герметично, если бы у меня там был прецизионный механизм раскрытия.  :oops:

ЦитироватьСтарый пишет:

ЦитироватьОАЯ пишет:
Эти самые облучатели, что в журнале в псевдо-видео http://article.wn.com/view/2013/11/18/Two_Harris_Corporation_Unfurlable_Mesh_Antenna_Reflectors_Su_q/ выстроены в два ряда. Из видео я ничего не понял. Может быть и есть зерно.
 
Я бы закрыл герметично, если бы у меня там был прецизионный механизм раскрытия.  :oops:  

Не увидел облучателей.
Вы не путаете с отражателем, в т.ч. вторичным?

И по прежнему нет данных о яркости спутников с антеннами типа "Харрис". Это заговор?  :oops:

ЦитироватьСтарый пишет:

ЦитироватьОАЯ пишет:
Эти самые облучатели, что в журнале в псевдо-видео http://article.wn.com/view/2013/11/18/Two_Harris_Corporation_Unfurlable_Mesh_Antenna_Reflectors_Su_q/ выстроены в два ряда. Из видео я ничего не понял. Может быть и есть зерно.
 
Я бы закрыл герметично, если бы у меня там был прецизионный механизм раскрытия.  :oops:  

Не увидел облучателей.
Вы не путаете с отражателем, в т.ч. вторичным?

И по прежнему нет данных о яркости спутников с антеннами типа "Харрис". Это заговор?  :oops:  

Цитироватьтавот пишет:
На внутренней стороне композитного обтекателя прикреплены алюминиевые панели, да ещё с цилиндрическими элементами ( выфрезерованными). Зачем ?

ЦитироватьОАЯ пишет:
Слой пробки наносится на внешнюю поверхность обтекателя для защиты от нагрева во время подъема. Затем, на пробку наносится слой электропроводящей белой краски, чтобы избежать электрических зарядов. Внутри имеет акустическую систему защиты , чтобы уменьшить звук интенсивный во время запуска.

ЦитироватьСтарый пишет:
Я думаю у Харриса много разных облучателей...
Просто возникла такая мысль: а не от секретных ли геостационарных спутников РТР облучатель?

Цитировать (https://img.novosti-kosmonavtiki.ru/185623.jpg) Tory Bruno ‏@torybruno  (https://twitter.com/torybruno)
 
Just finished my President's Mission Readiness Review for MUOS4. Clean bird. Looking forward to the launch. 6th Atlas 551. 99th ULA flight
 13:43 - 19 авг. 2015 г.

ЦитироватьПрол пишет:

ЦитироватьСтарый пишет:
Я думаю у Харриса много разных облучателей...
Просто возникла такая мысль: а не от секретных ли геостационарных спутников РТР облучатель?

А что такое "секретные геостационарные спутники РТР"? Что-то кроме WGS, AEHF, MUOS?

ЦитироватьПрол пишет: 
А что такое "секретные геостационарные спутники РТР"? 

ЦитироватьОАЯ пишет:
Э...э...э. Дык, если антенны проволочные, то и отражения не будет. А для малоканального передатчика и мощность нужна маленькая.

ЦитироватьСтарый пишет:

ЦитироватьОАЯ пишет:
Э...э...э. Дык, если антенны проволочные, то и отражения не будет. А для малоканального передатчика и мощность нужна маленькая.

Ой... О чём это?  :oops:  

ЦитироватьОАЯ пишет: 
По своей наивности про яркость на отражении площади антенн. Яркость в радиодиапазоне мне не приходила в голову.

ЦитироватьУглепластиковые позолоченные рефлекторы? 

ЦитироватьНо на фото в сложеном виде все очень миниатюрно. Как же их разворачивают?

ЦитироватьОАЯ пишет:
Не уверен, что Harris самая крутая радиоэлектронная компания и там есть какие-то суперские секреты. В моих глазах крутость определяется производимой номенклатурой высокоскоростных микросхем компании. А сделать позолоченный волновод могут и в ювелирной мастерской за углом. Может быть не с первого раза, но и волноводов надо не миллион.

ЦитироватьОАЯ пишет:
Я же сам приводил съемки из спутника раскрытия рефлектора Harris. На Сириусе. Это была проволочная антенна. А из углепластика не видел, поэтому и задал вопрос. (В описании у Harris упоминаются углепластиковые рефлекторы для спутника как Ноу - Хау.)

ЦитироватьОАЯ пишет:
Может быть лучше искать поставщика для Harris овских антенн приемников (самих СВЧ головок) на стороне? Может быть поэтому не находится инфа про облучатели - потому что не они производители? 

ЦитироватьСтарый пишет:
А главное - надо посмотреть яркость чтоб подтвердить или опровергнуть теолрию что на Менторах антенны как на Муосах.
Заодно будет разгадана загадка высокой яркости Менторов. И её изотропности.

ЦитироватьG.K. пишет:

ЦитироватьСтарый пишет:
А главное - надо посмотреть яркость чтоб подтвердить или опровергнуть теолрию что на Менторах антенны как на Муосах.
Заодно будет разгадана загадка высокой яркости Менторов. И её изотропности.

Не поможет. Менторы уникально яркие. Если бы это было только из-за антенн та же Турайя с её лопухами была то же очень яркой.
А на деле...
 
Взято из Вики (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:USA202_Thuraya2.jpg) , как не странно.

ЦитироватьСтарый пишет:
Где ярче?

ЦитироватьG.K. пишет:

ЦитироватьСтарый пишет:
Где ярче?

Это два рендера. Без данных о площади антенны и коэффициенте отражения нельзя сказать.

ЦитироватьСтарый пишет:
Почувствуйте разницу:

ЦитироватьСтарый пишет:
Везде на всех частотах антенны Харриса яркие а Астромеш - прозрачные. Просто разные фирмы - разные конструкции.
Однако чего гадать? Надо просто посмотреть яркость спутников. А нету.

ЦитироватьСтарый пишет:
Кстати, я так думаю что частоты для связи с телефонами на которых работают большие антенны и у Турайи и у Гаруды одинаковы.

ЦитироватьPhotos: Navy satellite joins Atlas booster rocket for launch       
Posted on August 24, 2015 by Justin Ray (http://spaceflightnow.com/author/justin-sfn-ray/)
          
This photo gallery shows the U.S. Navy's fourth Mobile User Objective System communications satellite, already encapsulated in the 18-foot-diameter nose cone, being lifted atop the United Launch Alliance Atlas-Centaur rocket Wednesday, Aug. 19 at the Vertical Integration Facility. Launch is planned for Aug. 31 during a window of 6:07 to 6:51 a.m. EDT.
Photo credit: United Launch Alliance
See earlier MUOS 4 coverage (http://spaceflightnow.com/tag/av-056/).
Our Atlas archive (http://spaceflightnow.com/atlas/).
(https://img.novosti-kosmonavtiki.ru/154730.jpg) (http://spaceflightnow.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/11.jpg)
(https://img.novosti-kosmonavtiki.ru/154732.jpg) (http://spaceflightnow.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/21.jpg)
(https://img.novosti-kosmonavtiki.ru/154734.jpg) (http://spaceflightnow.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/31.jpg)
(https://img.novosti-kosmonavtiki.ru/154736.jpg) (http://spaceflightnow.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/41.jpg)
(https://img.novosti-kosmonavtiki.ru/154738.jpg) (http://spaceflightnow.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/51.jpg)
(https://img.novosti-kosmonavtiki.ru/154740.jpg) (http://spaceflightnow.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/61.jpg)
(https://img.novosti-kosmonavtiki.ru/154743.jpg) (http://spaceflightnow.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/7.jpg)
(https://img.novosti-kosmonavtiki.ru/154745.jpg) (http://spaceflightnow.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/8.jpg)

ЦитироватьОАЯ:
А частоты для других полезных дел? Рефлекторы же могут быть общими.

ЦитироватьUnited Launch Alliance and the U.S. Air Force Work Together to Improve Launch Processing and Enable Schedule Efficiencies

Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla., (Aug.  25, 2015) – United Launch Alliance (ULA) and the U.S. Air Force have demonstrated a commitment to innovation and continuous improvement through implementation of Off-site Vertical Integration (OVI) of several structural elements and the Centaur upper stage for the Atlas V launch vehicle. OVI significantly reduces the number of lifting operations performed at the Vertical Integration Facility (VIF) at Cape Canaveral, taking them off the critical path and allowing for reduced time between launches. Relocating these operations to the Delta Operations Center (DOC), an indoor facility, also mitigates risk of weather-related processing delays.

"We are very pleased to have successfully completed the first Off-site Vertical Integration for the upcoming Mobile User Objective System launch. With OVI, the team developed an innovative process that provides safer and more efficient launch processing of the Atlas vehicle." said Jim Sponnick, ULA vice president, Atlas and Delta Programs. "The associated one-week reduction in the launch-to-launch processing spans enables us to better meet the launch needs of our customers."

For a 500-series Atlas V rocket like the one launching the MUOS-4 mission, the OVI process accomplishes the integration of six structural elements along with the Centaur upper stage inside a test cell in the DOC, rather than conducting major portions of these complex hardware lifting and mating tasks outside at the VIF. Moving these operations inside provides a safer working environment for employees and mitigates weather impacts to launch schedules. In the last six years, there were 25 days of weather delays to launch vehicle stacking operations at the VIF.   

One of the innovations required to enable OVI was the development of a transporter to safely move the five-story stack of rocket hardware approximately six miles from the DOC to the VIF. The transporter includes a tank pressure control system for the Centaur upper stage.  

"The Off-site Vertical Integration process, including ground support equipment designs and operational procedures, were developed in collaboration with our Air Force customer to support launch manifest needs and enable continuous improvement to these critical launch operations," said Sponnick.

"The Air Force is pleased to partner with ULA to find and implement efficiencies. We are fully onboard with efforts to implement continuous process improvement, a key tenant of Better Buying Power 3.0," said Lt. Gen. Sam Greaves, commander, Space and Missile Systems Center.

ULA's next launch is the MUOS-4 mission for the U.S. Air Force and the U.S. Navy, scheduled to launch Aug. 31 aboard an Atlas V from Space Launch Complex-41 from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida.

The Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicle (EELV) program was established by the United States Air Force to provide assured access to space for Department of Defense and other government payloads. The commercially developed EELV program supports the full range of government mission requirements while delivering on schedule and providing significant cost savings over the heritage launch systems.

With more than a century of combined heritage, United Launch Alliance is the nation's most experienced and reliable launch service provider. ULA has successfully delivered more than 95 satellites to orbit that provide critical capabilities for troops in the field, aid meteorologists in tracking severe weather, enable personal device-based GPS navigation, and unlock the mysteries of our solar system.

For more information on ULA, visit the ULA website at www.ulalaunch.com, or call the ULA Launch Hotline at 1-877-ULA-4321 (852-4321). Join the conversation at www.facebook.com/ulalaunch (https://www.facebook.com/ulalaunch), twitter.com/ulalaunch (https://twitter.com/ulalaunch) and instagram.com/ulalaunch (https://instagram.com/ulalaunch).

ЦитироватьTropical weather postpones Monday's Atlas 5 rocket launch       
Posted on August 29, 2015 by Justin Ray (http://spaceflightnow.com/author/justin-sfn-ray/)     
(https://img.novosti-kosmonavtiki.ru/154747.jpg) (http://spaceflightnow.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/vif.jpg)
The Atlas 5 rocket will remain inside assembly building for now. Credit: ULA
 
CAPE CANAVERAL — Plans to launch a Navy communications satellite aboard an Atlas 5 rocket early Monday have been interrupted by Tropical Storm Erika, an unpredictable cyclone with its sights on Florida.
"We've been Erika'ed," United Launch Alliance CEO Tory Bruno tweeted.
Officials made the decision Friday night to postpone the scheduled Saturday rollout of the rocket from its assembly building to the launch pad at Cape Canaveral's Complex 41, choosing instead to leave the 206-foot-tall booster in the safe confines of the hangar for now.
That, in turn, has delayed the Monday liftoff attempt until the storm passes.
"The launch of a United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket carrying the MUOS 4 mission has been postponed to due uncertainty in the weather conditions associated with Tropical Storm Erika," officials said in announcing the delay.
If the rocket was fueled during the countdown for a Monday launch attempt, it would take 24 hours before a rollback to shelter could occur.
Complex 41 is an open-air. clean-pad facility without a protective service gantry, meaning the rocket would have to sit exposed to whatever weather Erika threw at it.
Launch is re-targeted for no earlier than Wednesday morning. The workload and the predawn launch time mean rollout happens roughly 44 hours before liftoff.
A Monday launch was timed to occur at 6:07 a.m. EDT. The launch opportunity moves four minutes earlier for each day it is delayed.
"If you are like me, you probably have a bookmark for the National Hurricane Center website and take a look at everything that's going on," Dr. Walt Lauderdale, MUOS 4 mission director from the Air Force's Space and Missile Systems Center, told reporters at a Friday afternoon news conference.
"The integrated team is following this very, very closely to make sure we don't make any decisions that could compromise the safety of our people or of the mission stack."
The United Launch Alliance rocket is carrying the Navy's fourth Mobile User Objective System mobile communications satellite. MUOS No. 4 will fill the last remaining gap to create global coverage for the military's new rugged smartphone system.

See earlier MUOS 4 coverage (http://spaceflightnow.com/tag/av-056/).

ЦитироватьAtlas 5 rocket travels to launch pad for Wednesday flight       
Posted on August 31, 2015 by Justin Ray (http://spaceflightnow.com/author/justin-sfn-ray/)    
https://youtu.be/W0UqrPSofE8 (https://youtu.be/W0UqrPSofE8)
CAPE CANAVERAL — Delivering two-and-a-half million pounds of ground-shaking thrust at takeoff, more than any rocket flying fr om Cape Canaveral these days, the mighty vehicle was rolled from its assembly building to the launch pad Monday for Wednesday's early morning blastoff.
The United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket, equipped with five strap-on solid-propellant boosters for added performance, will launch the Navy's MUOS 4 mobile communications satellite at 5:59 a.m. EDT (0959 GMT). The available launch window extends to 6:43 a.m. EDT.
The booster was wheeled out aboard a mobile launcher platform, emerging from the hangar wh ere the rocket's two stages and the payload were integrated over the past few weeks.
The slow drive from the 30-story Vertical Integration Facility to the launch pad used a pair of specially-made "trackmobiles" to carry the rocket's 1.4-million pound launching platform along rail tracks for the 1,800-foot trip.
The 206-foot-tall rocket will launch the MUOS satellite into geosynchronous transfer orbit. Deployment of the payload occurs three hours into flight.
The rocket is flying the 551 vehicle configuration. The version features two stages, five solids and an 18-foot-diameter nose cone. It is powered off the launch pad by an RD AMROSS RD-180 main engine and Aerojet Rocketdyne solids. The Centaur upper stage has an Aerojet Rocketdyne RL10C-1 cryogenic engine.
Countdown clocks begin ticking Tuesday night, seven hours before launch, leading to activation of the rocket, final testing and system preps. Fueling will be underway by 4 a.m. EDT.
There is a 70 percent chance of acceptable weather for Wednesday's launch opportunity. Cumulus clouds will be the main concern.
"A tropical wave (formerly Tropical Storm Erika) is in the Eastern Gulf of Mexico with the trough extending into Central Florida with cloudy conditions. The tropical wave is expected to lift north over the next 24 hours with showers and isolated thunderstorms developing over Central Florida this afternoon," Air Force weather forecasters say.
"On launch day, the wave looks to be in the Northern Gulf of Mexico extending into North Florida with the greater shower threat to the north. Over Central Florida, there is a coastal shower threat during the count with thunderstorms developing after the count near the noon hour. The primary concern for launch is cumulus clouds."
The launch time outlook calls for scattered low- and high-level clouds, coastal showers, good visibility, southerly winds of 10-14 knots and a temperature of 80 degrees F.
See earlier MUOS 4 coverage (http://spaceflightnow.com/tag/av-056/).
Our Atlas archive (http://spaceflightnow.com/atlas/).
Photo credit: United Launch Alliance
(https://img.novosti-kosmonavtiki.ru/154731.jpg) (http://spaceflightnow.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/12.jpg)
(https://img.novosti-kosmonavtiki.ru/154733.jpg) (http://spaceflightnow.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/22.jpg)
(https://img.novosti-kosmonavtiki.ru/154735.jpg) (http://spaceflightnow.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/32.jpg)
(https://img.novosti-kosmonavtiki.ru/154737.jpg) (http://spaceflightnow.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/42.jpg)
(https://img.novosti-kosmonavtiki.ru/154739.jpg) (http://spaceflightnow.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/52.jpg)
(https://img.novosti-kosmonavtiki.ru/154741.jpg) (http://spaceflightnow.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/62.jpg)
(https://img.novosti-kosmonavtiki.ru/154742.jpg) (http://spaceflightnow.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/71.jpg)
(https://img.novosti-kosmonavtiki.ru/154744.jpg) (http://spaceflightnow.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/81.jpg)
(https://img.novosti-kosmonavtiki.ru/154746.jpg) (http://spaceflightnow.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/9.jpg)
(https://img.novosti-kosmonavtiki.ru/154729.jpg) (http://spaceflightnow.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/10.jpg)
Photo credit: United Launch Alliance

ЦитироватьJames Dean ‏@flatoday_jdean  (https://twitter.com/flatoday_jdean) 1m ago (https://twitter.com/flatoday_jdean/status/638991045703925760)

#Atlas (https://twitter.com/hashtag/Atlas?src=hash) V countdown has entered unplanned hold to work issue with preparations to fuel Centaur upper stage with liquid hydrogen.

ЦитироватьJames Dean ‏@flatoday_jdean  (https://twitter.com/flatoday_jdean) 1m ago (https://twitter.com/flatoday_jdean/status/638997233250250752)

Countdown has resumed, launch team proceeding with chilldown of #Atlas (https://twitter.com/hashtag/Atlas?src=hash) Centaur upper stage's liquid hydrogen lines.

[/li]
• The 638th launch for Atlas program since 1957
• The 344th Atlas launch from Cape Canaveral
• The 227th mission of a Centaur upper stage
• The 204th use of Centaur by an Atlas rocket
• The 46th Atlas 5 launch from Cape Canaveral
• The 460th production RL10 engine to be launched
• The 5th RL10C-1 engine launched
• The 62nd flight of the RD-180 main engine
• The 56th launch of an Atlas 5 since 2002
• The 22nd Air Force mission for an Atlas 5
• The 86th Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicle flight
• The 99th United Launch Alliance flight overall
• The 48th Atlas 5 under United Launch Alliance
• The 20th 500-series flight of the Atlas 5
• The 6th Atlas 5 to fly in the 551 configuration
• The 4th MUOS satellite to launch
• The 5th Atlas 5 launch of 2015
  

Цитироватьтавот пишет:
браво РД-180 !

ЦитироватьAn Atlas V rocket carrying the MUOS-4 mission lifts off from Space Launch Complex 41. The MUOS-4 spacecraft will bring advanced, new, global communications capabilities to mobile military forces, as well as ensure continued mission capability of the existing ultra high frequency satellite communications system.