LauncherOne - Virgin Galactic's satellite launching rocket

Автор Salo, 03.10.2010 00:39:15

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tnt22

https://virginorbit.com/mission-recap-our-first-launch-demo/

Цитата: undefinedMission Recap: Our First Launch Demo

MAY 27, 2020
TECHNICAL UPDATES

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CNJib8lJY1E

As we've delved into the data from yesterday's flight, the more we see, the happier we get. We've taken an enormous step forward as a team, and we wanted to share more about the flight, including both the many things that went well and what we know about the areas where we'll need to improve.

The context of everything that happened before the release of the rocket is incredibly important, and we'll describe that in detail below. But we won't make you wait for the part that's of most interest.

WHAT HAPPENED?

For about 9 seconds after drop, the flight went perfectly. Through some of the most challenging portions of our flight — release, the controlled drop, the rocket's ignition sequence, and the initial portion of guided, powered flight — every part of our system did exactly as we designed it to do. We have solid data from hundreds of channels and sensors — and in looking at those, we see performance that is well-matched to our predictions and to the extensive data we have from our models and ground tests. This means that we have proved out via flight the foundational principles of our air-launch operations, which is the key thing that separates us from our peers in the industry.

About 9 seconds after drop, something malfunctioned, causing the booster stage engine to extinguish, which in turn ended the mission. We cannot yet say conclusively what the malfunction was or what caused it, but we feel confident we have sufficient data to determine that as we continue through the rigorous investigation we've already begun. With the engine extinguished, the vehicle was no longer able to maintain controlled flightbut the rocket did not explode. It stayed within the predicted downrange corridors of our projections and our Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) launch license as the vehicle fell to the ocean, posing no risk to public safety, no danger our aircrew or aircraft, and no significant environmental impact.

SO, WHAT DID THIS LAUNCH DEMONSTRATION PROVE?

Our Launch Demo was the world's first attempted orbital launch from Mojave Air and Space Port. One of the core capabilities we've been working to develop is the idea of a truly mobile launch infrastructure — and yesterday, we completely demonstrated that capability. The infrastructure LauncherOne requires is dramatically different from any existing launch system. For this launch demo, all we needed from the airport was a small plot of land at the end of a taxiway and access to a runway.  Everything else we brought in ourselves — coming in on local roads or on our carrier aircraft itself. This low infrastructure footprint is the key to truly responsive launch and a new kind of global launch capability. And we've now proven it works.

As part of that, we have proven out our own fully transportable ground operating system. All of the trailers that we use to transport our rocket, mate it to our carrier aircraft, fuel and pressurize it, and service our payload were transported by public roads to the spaceport. Indeed, even some of our most critical ground stations for receiving telemetry were driven and parked in place. Again, this proves out our ability to quickly bring our launch capability wherever it is needed — a whole new category of launch service. Our Launch Demo was also conducted under a Commercial Space Transportation License issued by the FAA, the first time we have ever operated under such a license. Furthermore, this launch was conducted independent of the U.S. federal ranges, important national institutions that can nevertheless impart significant cost and schedule impacts on traditional launches. Apart from coordinating the airspace, our system is beholden to no one's schedules other than our customers', our own, and Mother Nature's.

One key technology that is required in order to move away from reliance on those federal ranges is an extremely robust autonomous flight safety system. While rockets traditionally rely on complex ground systems at the ranges to monitor the flight and terminate the mission if the flight ever goes out of the approved launch corridor, the new generation of launch vehicles are doing this job autonomously. Yesterday, our rocket demonstrated its capability to correctly know when we are in that corridor and when we are not — something we verify during our "cold pass" prior to dropping the rocket. Thankfully, this system was not needed during yesterday's mission, but it functioned perfectly throughout the flight.

When Cosmic Girl and LauncherOne took off from the runway at Mojave Air and Space Port just before noon yesterday, that marked our first flight with cryogenic liquid oxygen loaded into the rocket — and only our second ever flight with cryogenic materials on board. Capping an extensive campaign of ground testing, this milestone allowed us to prove out key aspects of the technology behind our linerless composite tanks, which held up to the loads of flight under the wing of a widebody jetliner and the release maneuver while carrying a full load of cryogenic oxidizer.

After a swift flight out to the drop point and a cold pass around our racetrack — the planned loop where we ensure the system autonomously detects when it enters and exits the allowable launch corridor, in addition to verifying telemetry locks — we entered into and executed a terminal count for the first time outside of dress rehearsals. A universal aerospace practice that has been made famous by countless documentaries and films, the terminal count is the final sequence of checks and polls that culminate in a rocket's ignition and flight. These countdowns always require an uncompromising level of precision, communication, and choreography — and our team pulled it off without a hiccup, hold, or scrub.

As the terminal count approached zero, our carrier aircraft went into our pitch-up maneuver, climbing steeply and achieving a flight path angle of about 30 degrees. Exactly on cue, we cleanly released the LauncherOne rocket from the pylon under the wing of our 747. As planned, the aircraft quickly banked away from the rocket. The rocket itself flew gracefully, with complete control, perfectly matching our predictions and further validating our aerodynamic models.

A few seconds after drop, the rocket trigged its ignition sequence. On our first ever attempt, we achieved in-air ignition and steady state-operation of our main stage rocket engine. The use of liquid-fueled rocket engines for air-launched vehicles is almost unheard of outside of legendary programs like the X-1 and X-15; and indeed, no one before us had ever completed such an ignition of an orbital-class rocket engine.

Once the engine ignited, our guidance and control system controlled the rocket in powered flight and steered it along its trajectory, all as predicted by our 6-DOF analysis.

Each of these items is a huge achievement for our team, and we are thrilled to have accomplished so many of them in our first launch demo mission.

WHAT NEXT?

With more confidence than ever in our design philosophy and the utility of our one-of-a-kind launch system, we're determined to reach space as soon as humanly possible. Clearly, we have things to learn and something to fix, but our engineers, technicians, and flight crew have taken a moment to celebrate and are now precisely and thoroughly dissecting the data.

Meanwhile, our integration team is hard at work preparing our next rocket, and the one after that, and several more. If hardware changes are needed, we'll be able to make them quickly, thanks to our vertically integrated, state-of-the-art rocket factory. And if we decide we want to run a few experiments, well, we've got a factory full of flight hardware we can use for whatever tests we need.

It's too soon to say exactly when our next launch demo will occur. But we can confidently say that we laid the groundwork long ago for us to build on this launch demo quickly and skillfully. We're excited to take the next step on our journey to open space for good.

Дмитрий В.

"Гасление двигателя" (перевод Гугля), значит... Ну-ну...
Lingua latina non penis canina
StarShip - аналоговнет!

cross-track

Цитата: Дмитрий В. от 27.05.2020 19:55:20"Гасление двигателя" (перевод Гугля), значит... Ну-ну...
Вашу подпись Гугл тоже забавно переводит)

Lingua latina non penis canina
Латинский язык без пениса
Не все у нас еще хорошо, кое-что - просто замечательно!

tnt22

Цитата: undefined Thomas Burghardt @TGMetsFan98 23 мин. назад

An FCC filing for launch communications indicates that Virgin Orbit's second orbital launch attempt with LauncherOne could be targeted for this fall. The requested period of operation begins September 1.
https://apps.fcc.gov/oetcf/els/reports/STA_Print.cfm?mode=current&application_seq=101178

Старый

Цитата: cross-track от 27.05.2020 21:04:54Вашу подпись Гугл тоже забавно переводит)

Lingua latina non penis canina
Латинский язык без пениса
Толи в латинском нет притяжательного падежа, толи Саныч его не смог употребить, но канина оказалась не при делах.
1. Ангара - единственная в мире новая РН которая хуже старой (с) Старый Ламер
2. Назначение Роскосмоса - не летать в космос а выкачивать из бюджета деньги
3. У Маска ракета длиннее и толще чем у Роскосмоса
4. Чем мрачнее реальность тем ярче бред (с) Старый Ламер

Serge V Iz

Это про Гая Клавдия. Просто в этих ваших интернетах заглавные буквы отпадывают )

vissarion

https://spacenews.com/virgin-orbit-identifies-cause-of-engine-shutdown-on-first-launcherone-flight/

Цитата: undefinedПо поводу аварии 25 мая
...
«У нас был отказ компонентов в нашей системе двигателя. Это была линия подачи высокого давления», - сказал он. Жидкий кислород «перестал попадать в двигатель, и наш полет был прекращен».

Компания провела расследование и определила, что нужно исправить в двигателе, чтобы усилить неисправные компоненты. Вторая ракета LauncherOne находится в окончательной интеграции прямо сейчас и покинет завод в ближайшие несколько недель, пока продолжаются модификации двигателя. «Мы будем ориентироваться на наш следующий рейс до конца года»
...
А любопытно, если эту РН не бросать с самолёта, а пускать с земли (Стартовая масса 30 тонн, 326 кН тяга I ст, 26 кН IIст), она насколько меньше она выведет?

tnt22

https://virginorbit.com/wrapping-up-our-first-launch-demo-and-looking-ahead-to-launch-demo-2/

Цитировать
Wrapping Up Our First Launch Demo, and Looking Ahead to Launch Demo 2

AUGUST 3, 2020  ●  FEATURED/TECHNICAL UPDATES

This past Memorial Day, Virgin Orbit took a major step forward as a company and conducted our first Launch Demo. As you've read before, we built on years of design and preparation to step into our first launch campaign; and on our very first attempt, our team pulled off a picture-perfect loading operation, take-off, captive carry, terminal count, release, and ignition, and achieved powered flight. It was a smooth operation, thanks to the intense focus of an incredibly talented team.

You've also seen that that during our first stage flight, our main rocket engine shut down prematurely, bringing our experimental flight to an end — but only after we had demonstrated all of the key technologies of a truly unique air-launched spaceflight system, differentiating our launch system from every other system on the market.

Within minutes of our flight crew safely touching down at the Mojave Air and Space Port, our full attention turned to an investigation of all of the copious data from the flight. We had worked hard to ensure we'd have a mountain of data from that demonstration flight, and with our highly instrumented vehicle feeding data down to four ground stations, plus additional information from our carrier aircraft and chase plane, that work paid off.

Although we'd hoped to truly defy the odds and make orbit in our very first test, we were still thrilled to have reached milestones that only a small handful of others have ever gotten to celebrate. But we didn't spend too much time partying it up. By the evening of the same day, we were deep into the process of both celebrating the wins and how closely performance matched prediction and, of course, figuring out why our main engine had shut down, ending the flight.


RESULTS FROM OUR INVESTIGATION

We knew the odds of getting to orbit on our first attempt were slim well before our wheels started to roll down the tarmac, and so we were ready for any outcome. We had our plans ready and an investigation team identified before the countdown began. So as soon as the flight concluded, we were able to get started. To ensure we left no stone unturned in our quest for answers, we added strong independent voices to the team, calling upon industry legends Jim Sponnick and Mark Wilkins as well as the world-class team at the Aerospace Corporation to give us their straight-up advice and opinions along the way.

Soon, we were able to identify the cause of the failure that ended our first Launch Demo: a breach in the high-pressure line carrying cryogenic Liquid Oxygen (LOX) to our first stage combustion chamber due to a component failure. Without a supply of oxidizer, that engine soon stopped providing thrust, ending our powered flight and ultimately the test itself.

In the business of launch vehicles, finding the direct cause of any failure of any flight is incredibly important, but certainly not sufficient. In order to truly get to the root of the issue, it is important to ask why after why after why.  If the answer to the first why is "because the high-pressure LOX line failed," then the second why must be "why did it fail?" That in turn must be followed by more whys— including "why didn't we anticipate this failure," "why wasn't this failure observed in our earlier testing," and more. To all of these, you must add in a healthy dose of "what else could have happened," "what would this failure have looked like if it occurred at a different point in the mission," and hundreds more questions. Creating a robust fault tree or fishbone diagram is important, especially for those visual learners.

In the two months since that milestone test, we've asked ourselves those questions and our team has come up with clear insights and answers. Engineers, technicians, and inspectors have been working hand-in-hand (well, the COVID-19 equivalent of hand-in-hand) to validate those answers. We've put our hardware through a punishing barrage of tests to shake out any hidden surprises that might otherwise doom us to repeat the mishap.

Now, we're putting the finishing touches on that investigation; and while we aren't quite done, the major findings and the corrective actions are clear — and we're well under way with fabricating new parts and putting those actions into play.


CHANGES AND IMPROVEMENTS

In implementing tweaks to LauncherOne for our next flight, we've taken a "belt and suspenders" approach; that is to say, fixing the obvious issues we observed, and also proactively addressing issues we didn't observe but fall into the realm of possible contributors.

A battery of tests of our components and systems has enabled us to re-anchor our understanding of the physical stresses and leak paths in the system, and to reassess the design and the operation of every component. On the basis of those results, we are strengthening parts of our high-pressure LOX feed system and increasing some of the operating margins with an eye towards maximizing robustness and reliability.

We're also able to safely pass on more good news about the system to our customers.

One of the datasets that pleased us the most from our first Launch Demo was what we saw in terms of the vibrations that satellites riding on our rocket will experience. Our structural dynamics engineers are by nature a fairly conservative group, and have been appropriately cautious with all of their analyses, especially when it comes to our customers' precious cargo. Our analysts need proof before they will remove uncertainty. Last year, they updated their projections based upon our flight test campaign; now, thanks to the insight earned from our Launch Demo, they have further reduced our random vibration environment predictions. After years of under-promising on that front, we're pleased now to state with the confidence only afforded by flight data that we'll provide our customers a gentle ride.

Of course, after an intense journey to first launch, and all the lessons learned and teamwork along the way, it must be said that the biggest improvements in the system between Launch Demo and Launch Demo 2 will be the improvements to ourselves. We've always felt we have the best team in the business, and the skills and the perseverance of our team really shone through in what we accomplished in May. It takes a lot to smoothly, professionally move through a fully automated countdown, transfer control of the system to a small crew of four on our 747, execute a picture-perfect release, and more, and none of that happens by accident. But the experience of the whole launch campaign — not just the flight, but the work that led up to it — taught us a lot. Our self-reflections along that road and now our data review has taught us still more.

Our team is now more experienced and better prepared than ever. Our tools and processes have been honed by our first launch campaign. We've experienced both joy and frustration and every emotion in between, and now we're ready for the next chapter.


INTRODUCING OUR NEXT MISSION

Although our first Launch Demo proved a lot, the fact is that we clearly did not test all of the portions of the system in flight. As such, we will use our next rocket for a second Launch Demo mission to demonstrate all phases of flight.

Our flight hardware for this mission is in final integration now. We anticipate the fully assembled rocket will leave our Long Beach, CA, factory around Labor Day, when it will head to our Mojave, CA, facility for an onslaught of tests designed to ensure we truly have learned all of the lessons from our first Launch Demo. After that, it will return to our factory for some final tweaks and planned hardware swaps, and then we'll be back at the end of the taxiway at the Mojave Air and Space Port, moving into our second-ever launch campaign.


Throughout this process, we've been keeping in close touch with our customers. We believe transparency benefits everyone — which is why we published a detailed flight recap along with video showing the failure within a day of the test flight itself. Open, honest communications are particularly important between a launch provider and their customers.

We love all of our customers equally, but it was especially important for us to remain in close contact with the customer slated to fly on our first operational mission: a little team that you might have heard of called NASA.

NASA has been engaged with our technical team in the run-up to our Launch Demo, during the test itself, and in the time since. We believe it is critical to share the good and the bad alike.

Not too long after our Memorial Day test flight, we called NASA to inform them that our upcoming rocket would be used for our Launch Demo 2 mission, which we anticipated would move their mission to the next rocket on our manifest. NASA, however, was quick to remind us of the fundamental goals of the NASA Venture Class Launch Services program, through which they purchased this launch. Our colleagues at NASA's Launch Services Program (LSP) were glad to have the insight into our plans and appreciated the offer to fly another test prior to their mission, but also assured us that they were ready to get their payloads onboard our Launch Demo 2 flight.

The team was both proud and honored by the thought of flying NASA on our next mission, but we didn't say yes right away. We wanted to be sure we fully understood the risks involved. So, we completed a boatload of analysis, looking at our conclusions from our investigation and our expectations for the next flight in sum. A few weeks later, we landed on a plan.

Accordingly, we are delighted to announce that our Launch Demo 2 mission will carry eleven CubeSats for NASA's CubeSat Launch Initiative (CSLI).


This mission builds on an excellent relationship we've had with NASA since being selected for the Venture Class Launch Services (VCLS) program back in 2015. We feel an immense sense of pride to be launching satellites for arguably the world's most preeminent space organization.

What's even cooler to us is what this mission represents. With the spacecraft on this flight built mainly by universities across the U.S., it strikes to the heart of our purpose of opening access to space. We're elated to have a hand in supporting all kinds of interesting new scientific research and technology demonstrations in orbit.

Currently, we are working hard to conduct this launch towards the end of this year — a relatively short timeline for an industry where the average turnaround time between first and second flights of a new system measures up to about a year. Most importantly, we are focused on completing the right technical work so that as many risks as we practically can are retired on the ground. As we've said before, we're out to set new standards for the launch business: in customer service, in flexibility, and in agility. We've got lots of work to do getting ready for flight, but we are making great progress, even in the midst of a pandemic and a mostly virtual workspace.

We'll have more to share about the upcoming Launch Demo 2 mission as we progress towards flight. 

tnt22

Цитировать Virgin Orbit @Virgin_Orbit 1 ч. назад

Because hotfires just hit different at night.


tnt22

Цитировать Virgin Orbit @Virgin_Orbit 17 ч. назад

And away we go! As we mentioned in our early August blog, we wanted to get our next rocket out the door to Mojave for testing before the end of the month. This week, with both stages fully integrated, we did just that!





17 ч. назад

Like its predecessor, this rocket has been installed onto a test stand that simulates the conditions under Cosmic Girl's wing. At the same time, our launch techs are working on activating our mobile ground support equipment and getting it hooked up to the rocket.




17 ч. назад

Soon to come: cryo shocks, fuel loading exercises, procedure rehearsals and more! Once we've wrapped up those exercises, this LauncherOne will head back down to Long Beach for some planned hardware swaps — and then, it'll be time for Launch Demo 2.


tnt22


tnt22

https://www.interfax.ru/world/731072

Цитировать11:32, 12 октября 2020
Virgin Orbit Ричарда Брэнсона запланировала привлечь до $200 млн от инвесторов

Москва. 12 октября. INTERFAX.RU - Американская Virgin Orbit, которая входит в Virgin Group британского миллиардера Ричарда Брэнсона и запускает спутники, рассчитывает привлечь от инвесторов до $200 млн и получить оценку в $1 млрд, пишет The Wall Street Journal со ссылкой на информированные источники.

По их данным, раунд финансирования, для проведения которого Virgin Orbit привлекла LionTree Advisors и Perella Weinberg Partners, может пройти до конца 2020 года. Компания намерена направить привлеченные средства на капитальные расходы и запуск спутников.

Virgin Orbit, которая планирует выводить на орбиту небольшие спутники, ориентирована как на коммерческих клиентов, так и на государственных. Аналитики считают, что предлагаемый компанией запуск спутников с самолетов дешевле, чем с поверхности земли, однако существуют технические сложности. В мае в ходе первого испытания ракета-носитель Virgin Orbit LauncherOne не смогла достичь орбиты.

По оценке аналитиков, Virgin Orbit уже потратила $400 млн на развитие системы запуска ракет с воздуха.

До пандемии космические стартапы уже испытывали трудности с привлечением финансирования. Прогнозы спроса на запуски упали после вспышки COVID-19, а источники финансирования сократились.

Представители отрасли и аналитики в последнее время отмечают восстановление интереса к отрасли на фоне поддержки американскими военными ведомствами запуска небольших и менее дорогих спутников.

Ричард Брэнсон с начала пандемии уже дважды обращался за помощью к инвесторам на фоне спада в туристической и авиационной отраслях.

В июле авиакомпания Virgin Atlantic договорилась с акционерами о пакете финансовой помощи в размере 1,2 млрд фунтов стерлингов ($1,5 млрд). В октябре Virgin Group привлекла $480 млн с помощью специализированной компании по целевым слияниям и поглощениям.

tnt22

#332
ЦитироватьReturn to Flight: Launch Demo 2 | Virgin Orbit

Virgin Orbit

14 окт. 2020 г.

Our team has really been on their A-game, putting in an incredible amount of work to move quickly and efficiently through the biggest milestones on the path to our second launch demonstration. Hear directly from some of our technical leaders on how we've matured this year, and what exactly we've been up to since our last flight with LauncherOne!

youtu.be/r7figg6NPg0

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r7figg6NPg0 (2:56)

tnt22

#333
https://virginorbit.com/launch-demo-2-october-update/

Цитировать

Launch Demo 2: October Update

October 14, 2020

Just three years after Virgin Orbit was born as a company, we took to the skies to conduct our very first Launch Demo with LauncherOne. During that demo, we proved out all of the key technologies for a new kind of launch technology: liquid-fueled air-launch. With the first launch just a few months behind us, we are now smartly driving down the path to Launch Demo 2, which our incredibly talented and determined team is targeting to complete before the end of the year.

That's a pretty quick turnaround by industry standards — so how'd we manage that? Well, the simple answer is that our second launch rocket was already in assembly when the first one flew, along with several other rockets in flow at our state-of-the-art rocket production facility. After all, one launch can make history, but it's just the beginning. It takes a whole lot more to create a launch service.

Our team has really risen to the occasion in recent months, doing the necessary work and driving forward at a best-in-industry pace — despite the unprecedented circumstances of a global pandemic that has changed everything about the way we all live and work.

Recent Milestones

The rocket we will use for Launch Demo 2 shipped out of the factory in late August. After making the short trip up to Mojave Air and Spaceport, that rocket was fitted to a test stand built to emulate Cosmic Girl's left wing. There, our team hooked up our mobile ground support trailers and conducted a number of checkouts and tests, including fully loading the rocket with propellants like cryogenic liquid oxygen to verify the health of all rocket systems. The test was a major success, and the operation, which resembled a full countdown, benefited hugely from our operational refinements: completing cryo load was a much faster and much smoother process compared to the first time around earlier this year.



We saw a similar quantum leap with the other build and test series we recently completed: the acceptance testing (ATP) campaign for our main stage ("NewtonThree") engine. Main stage propulsion is a big task for any rocket and any launch, and given the knowledge that we gained from our first Launch Demo, this milestone took on even more importance. But we got through it extremely quickly: work that took us two months to complete just one launch ago was finished in just two weeks this past September.


Our team is better prepared, our hardware is better manufactured, all of our procedures, scripts, and tools are in launch-ready shape — and all of that hard work is paying off big time.

You can hear directly from our technical leaders on what we've been up to since our last flight:
youtu.be/r7figg6NPg0
 
What's Next?

Today, both rocket and engine are back down in our Long Beach HQ for final integration. Our NewtonFour upper stage engine is already fully tested and installed, and our NewtonThree engine and a few other bits of flight hardware will join the party in the coming days. We're preparing for the big move — packing up the rocket and the mobile trailers and transiting everything back to the "hammerhead" at Mojave Air and Space Port — a bare spot at the end of a taxiway (which is all we really require in a launch site). That's where we'll mate LauncherOne to Cosmic Girl's wing just before we fly.

Here's a glimpse of all of the major campaigns we planned out in between our first Launch Demo in late May and our upcoming flight.


As you'll see, we are moving steadily forward. We're not done yet, but every day brings more progress, and we're keeping our nose to the grindstone so that we can maintain this momentum.

This week, we're taking another exciting step forward. Yesterday, for the first time in our company's short history, customers arrived at our facility to begin processing their spacecraft for launch!

Thanks to COVID-19 everything looks a little different than we'd imagined, to be sure. But we've worked with NASA and with our payload teams to find safe ways for teams to conduct this work in our beautiful new payload processing facility, called Nebula.

While they're on-site this week, we'll work with each team to complete a final round of analysis and testing before finally integrating their payloads into the fairing. The fairing will then be shipped up to Mojave, where we'll do the final mate to the rocket in our unique mobile cleanroom.


Though our focus has been squarely on preparing for Launch Demo 2 and on welcoming our customers and their spacecraft, our other projects continue to make steady progress. Recently, we participated as the sole space launch provider in one of the biggest military training exercises of all time, demonstrating how a country could very quickly replace a satellite that had been interfered with by an adversary. We have also updated our Service Guide to better set up our customers for success as they plan their missions with LauncherOne. And in parallel to all of that, we're also preparing the hardware we'll use on the four flights that follow LD2.

None of this work is ever easy — even in a normal world, much less in the odd world we're all living in 2020. But the work is worth doing, and it can be done well with the right team, the right tools, and the right experience. We're excited about what we've done, and fired up about what comes next. The team working hard to pull off our second Launch Demo prior to the holidays, and we'll keep you all updated every step of the way.

zandr

https://vk.com/spacex?w=wall-41152133_283562
ЦитироватьVirgin Orbit планируют вторую попытку запуска своей ракеты LauncherOne
Окно для запуска миссии Launch Demo 2 открывается 10 января. Резервные дни: 17, 24 и 31 января
Компания уже доставила ракету LauncherOne для новой миссии со своего завода в Калифорнии на аэродром в Мохаве. Она была подвешена под крыло специального самолёта-носителя Boeing 747 "Cosmic Girl". В связи с пандемией компания отказалась от попытки запуска в конце декабря того года, но сейчас Virgin Orbit снова вернулись к работе и нацелены всё-таки запустить свою ракету.
Спойлер
Первая попытка запуска LauncherOne 25 мая этого года была неуспешна, двигатель первой ступени отключился спустя пару секунд после зажигания.
Было проведено расследование, которое показало, что вышла из строя линия подачи кислорода, что привело к преждевременному отключению двигателя.
В первой миссии LauncherOne не несла полезной нагрузки. В новой миссии ракета будет нести 10 кубсатов от NASA в рамках контракта Venture Class Launch Service, заключённого в 2015 для демонстрации технологий и запуска малых космических аппаратов в космос.
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Это будет 20-я миссия NASA по программе ELaNa, она поможет провести на орбите 9 разнообразных миссий, используя небольшие спутники для демонстрации новых технологий и проведения научных и образовательных исследований.
Почти каждая полезная нагрузка этой миссии была полностью разработана и произведена силами университетов:

🛰 CACTUS-1 - 3U кубсат, для демонстрации двух технологий. Одна из них должна решить проблему космического "мусора" с помощью аэрогеля для его захвата и последующего свода. Вторая - модуль Hermes, который демонстрирует технологию управления с помощью сети Интернет, как экономичную коммуникационную и командную систему для сбора научных данных.
🛰 CAPE-3 - кубсат для образовательной миссии Smartphone CubeSat Classroom, которая позволяет любому, у кого есть смартфон участвовать в интерактивном образовательном мероприятии и взаимодействовать с кубсатом через приложение на его телефоне.
🛰 EXOCUBE-2 - 3U кубсат для исследования космической погоды, который будет измерять количество частиц в экзосфере. Знание состава и текущего состояния активности в экзосфере может быть полезно при прогнозировании потенциальных воздействий на спутниковую связь и негативного влияния на космические аппараты.
🛰 MiTEE - два образовательных пикоспутника в одном космическом аппарате, для демонстрации спутниковой системы связи. Они позволят студентам поработать над реальной исследовательской миссией с двумя кубсатами, связанными между собой системой тросов для оценки их электродинамических характеристик.
🛰 PICS - два демонстрационных кубсата, которые проведут осмотр друг друга и системы развёртывания с помощью камер. В перспективе это должно помочь создать кубсаты для наблюдений и выполнения технических работ друг с другом прямо на орбите.
🛰 PolarCube - кубсат, который собирает данные о температуре поверхности Земли и атмосферы. Его цель - сбор температурных показателей для формирования карт температур, что полезно для наблюдений за штормами и изучения морского льда вблизи полюсов Земли.
🛰 Q-PACE - кубсат для изучения столкновений космических объектов, подобных тому, что происходили во время раннего протопланетного диска. Спутник будет наблюдать столкновения между частицами сантиметрового размера и даже более мелкими, помогая решить загадку: как тела в космосе вырастают за барьер метрового размера и потом могут становиться планетами в результате гравитационной аккреции.
🛰 RadFXSat-2 - кубсат для изучения влияния космического излучения на оперативную память (SRAM) с целью проверки прогнозов частоты появления ошибок в единичных событиях. Также он протестирует двустороннюю любительскую радиосвязь.
🛰 TechEdSat-7 - кубсат для демонстрации новых технологий для будущих экспериментов на борту малых спутников. После 60 дней нахождения на орбите спутнику будет дана команда быстро сойти с орбиты с помощью своеобразного космического "парашюта" под названием Exo-Brake.

Но все эти кубсаты доберутся до орбиты, если ракета LauncherOne сработает как надо, поэтому мы желаем Virgin Orbit - успешной миссии и обязательно расскажем, смогла ли компания выйти на орбиту

zandr

https://www.militarynews.ru/story.asp?rid=1&nid=544457&lang=RU
ЦитироватьVirgin Orbit совершила первый успешный пуск на орбиту ракеты-носителя системы воздушного старта
17.01.2021 23:56:31
       Вашингтон. 17 января. ИНТЕРФАКС - Калифорнийская компания Virgin Orbit в воскресенье в ходе демонстрационного испытания успешно запустила на орбиту с борта самолета ракету-носитель LauncherOne, сообщается на ее сайте.
      "Ракета LauncherOne вышла на орбиту", - говорится в сообщении.
       Ракета-носитель LauncherOne, которую разрабатывает американская компания, предназначена для вывода на орбиту небольших спутников.
       В ходе демонстрационного испытания двухступенчатая ракета длиной 21 метр была сброшена на высоте примерно 10,2 тысяч метров с модифицированного самолета Boeing 747 (под названием Cosmic Girl) над Тихим океаном, после чего на ней включился двигатель. Вслед за отделением первой ступени ракета отправилась на штатную орбиту с десятью исследовательскими миниспутниками американских университетов и NASA.
       Самолет с ракетой вылетел с аэродрома Мохаве в Калифорнии и осуществил пуск ракеты примерно в 22:38 мск в 150 км к юго-западу от города Лонг-Бич над океаном.
       Разрабатываемая орбитальная ракета, которая крепится под левым крылом самолета, после воздушного старта должна выводить на солнечно-синхронную орбиту до 500 кг полезной нагрузки.
       Это первое успешное демонстрационное испытание ракеты LauncherOne компанией Virgin Orbit, принадлежащей британскому миллиардеру Ричарду Брэнсону. Основное предприятие компании находится в городе Лонг-Бич. Разработки системы воздушного старта начались в 2015 году.
       В компании отмечают, что такой вывод в космос небольших спутников будет значительно дешевле обычных ракетных пусков. Ракета LauncherOne использует ракетный керосин и жидкий кислород в качестве топлива, что делает стоимость достаточно невысокой.
       Система воздушного старта также позволяет быстро перемещать ракету в любой район для запуска. Virgin Orbit ранее сообщала, что в перспективе запуски планируется осуществлять с аэродромов в США, Японии и Великобритании.
       В мае прошлого года первый демонстрационный запуск LauncherOne окончился неудачей. После отделения от самолета ракета из-за отказа двигателей первой ступени упала в океан.

zandr

https://virginorbit.com/the-latest/virgin-orbit-aces-second-launch-demo-and-deploys-nasa-payloads/
ЦитироватьVirgin Orbit Aces Second Launch Demo and Deploys NASA Payloads
January 17, 2021 Featured/Press Releases
Mojave, California — January 17, 2021 — Virgin Orbit, the California-based satellite launch company, confirmed that its LauncherOne rocket reached space during the company's second launch demonstration today, successfully deploying 10 payloads for NASA's Launch Services Program (LSP).
Virgin Orbit's novel launch system uses a technique called air launch, in which a rocket is launched from under the wing of a jet aircraft, rather than from a traditional launch pad on the ground. In addition to improving the payload capacity of the rocket, this technique allows the LauncherOne system to be the world's most flexible and responsive launch service — flying on short notice and from a wide variety of locations to access any orbit.
For today's picture-perfect mission, Virgin Orbit's carrier aircraft, a customized 747-400 dubbed Cosmic Girl, took off from Mojave Air and Space Port at approximately 10:50 A.M. and flew out to a launch site over the Pacific Ocean, about 50 miles south of the Channel Islands. After a smooth release from the aircraft, the two-stage rocket ignited and powered itself to orbit. At the conclusion of the flight, the LauncherOne rocket deployed 10 CubeSats into the team's precise target orbit, marking a major step forward for Virgin Orbit in its quest to bust down the barriers preventing affordable and responsive access to space.
The payloads onboard LauncherOne today were selected by NASA LSP as part of the agency's CubeSat Launch Initiative (CSLI). Nearly all of the CubeSat missions were designed, built and tested by universities across the U.S., including Brigham Young University (PICS), the University of Michigan (MiTEE), and the University of Louisiana at Lafayette (CAPE-3).
This flight also marks a historical first: no other orbital class, air-launched, liquid-fueled rocket had successfully reached space before today. 
"A new gateway to space has just sprung open! That LauncherOne was able to successfully reach orbit today is a testament to this team's talent, precision, drive, and ingenuity. Even in the face of a global pandemic, we've maintained a laser focus on fully demonstrating every element of this revolutionary launch system. That effort paid off today with a beautifully executed mission, and we couldn't be happier," said Virgin Orbit CEO Dan Hart.
"Virgin Orbit has achieved something many thought impossible. It was so inspiring to see our specially adapted Virgin Atlantic 747, Cosmic Girl, send the LauncherOne rocket soaring into orbit. This magnificent flight is the culmination of many years of hard work and will also unleash a whole new generation of innovators on the path to orbit. I can't wait to see the incredible missions Dan and the team will launch to change the world for good," said Virgin Group founder Sir Richard Branson.
With this successful demonstration in the books, Virgin Orbit will officially transition into commercial service for its next mission. Virgin Orbit has subsequent launches booked by customers ranging from the U.S. Space Force and the U.K.'s Royal Air Force to commercial customers like Swarm Technologies, Italy's SITAEL, and Denmark's GomSpace.
The company's next few rockets are already well into integration at its Long Beach manufacturing facility.
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Дмитрий В.

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Victor123

#338
Цитата: cross-track от 27.05.2020 21:04:54
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Victor123

Цитата: Старый от 10.07.2020 20:24:48
Цитата: cross-track от 27.05.2020 21:04:54Вашу подпись Гугл тоже забавно переводит)

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