SES-15 - Soyuz-ST-A/Fregat-M (VS17) - Kourou ELS - 18.05.2017 11:56 UTC

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Stéphane Israël‏ @arianespaceceo 4 мин. назад

#Soyuz has moved into position for its upcoming mission. @Arianespace will carry out its fifth launch of 2017 on May 18 @ 11:54 UTC #VS17

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(2:15)

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Компания Arianespace обновила Launch Kit:

VS17-launchkit-EN2.pdf - 545392 B
VS17-launchkit-FR2.pdf - 537196 B

Кроме размера шрифтов особой разницы с документами из #75 не заметил. На текущий момент доступны оба варианта.

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Фото с вывоза

DutchSpace‏ @DutchSpace 1 ч. назад

Close to launch, not to the moon but a nice shot anyway... #VS17 #SES15 #CSG #Soyuz

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Оффтоп:

Airbus Safran Launchers to Become ArianeGroup

Пресс-релиз
New-name-_EN.pdf

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Stéphane Israël‏ @arianespaceceo 15 мин. назад

#Soyuz is ready for flight! The launch readiness review has cleared this vehicle for tomorrow's #VS17 liftoff w/ @SES_Satellites' #SES-15

http://www.arianespace.com/mission-update/vs17-ral-ses-15/

Soyuz | May 17, 2017

Arianespace's Soyuz is approved for liftoff with SES-15

Authorization has been given for tomorrow's Arianespace Soyuz launch from French Guiana, providing the "all clear" for this medium-lift mission that will orbit a telecommunications satellite for European-based operator SES.


Preparations for Flight VS17 included the placement of decals for satellite operator SES on the Soyuz launcher's protective payload fairing.
 
The approval was granted today after the regular pre-launch review for Arianespace flights – which confirmed the readiness of Soyuz and its SES-15 satellite passenger, the launch site and associated infrastructure at the Spaceport, as well as the network of downrange tracking stations.

The May 18 mission – designated VS17 in Arianespace's numbering system – will be performed from the purpose-built ELS launch facility for Soyuz. Liftoff is scheduled at precisely 8:54:53 a.m. local time in French Guiana, with SES-15 to be deployed during a flight lasting approximately 5 hrs., 18 min.

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Built by Boeing, SES-15 will be the 40th spacecraft orbited by Arianespace for long-time customer SES. It has an estimated liftoff mass of 2,302 kg., while the mission's total lift performance to geostationary transfer orbit is set at 2,447 kg. – taking into account the payload integration equipment and other hardware.

SES-15 is to be operated by SES from an orbital position of 129 deg. West, with the satellite offering extensive coverage over North America, Mexico and Central America – stretching from Arctic Alaska to the South of Panama, and from Hawaii to the Caribbean.

Flight VS17 will be Arianespace's fifth mission performed so far in 2017 (following two using the heavy-lift Ariane 5, and one each with the medium-lift Soyuz and lightweight Vega), as well as the 17th Soyuz liftoff performed from French Guiana since this vehicle's 2011 introduction at the Spaceport.

Larger versions of the photos above are available to download in the Gallery.

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Launch window for Flight VS17

Liftoff is scheduled for Thursday, May 18, 2017 at exactly:[TH]French Guiana[/TH][TH]Universal Time (UTC)[/TH][TH]Washington, D.C.[/TH][TH]Luxembourg[/TH][/TR][TR][TD]08:54:53 a.m.[/TD][TD]11:54:53 a.m.[/TD][TD]07:54:53 a.m.[/TD][TD]01:54:53 p.m.[/TD][/TR][/TABLE]

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Arianespace‏ @Arianespace 40 мин. назад

Launch preparations with #Soyuz, #Ariane5 and #Vega keep @Arianespace on track for 12 missions in 2017: http://bit.ly/2rrSWiz 

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http://www.arianespace.com/corporate-news/launch-preparations-spaceport/

Feature story | May 17, 2017

Launch preparations with Soyuz, Ariane 5 and Vega keep Arianespace on track for 12 missions in 2017

Arianespace's objective of performing 12 launches in 2017 is backed by a high level of activity at the Spaceport in French Guiana, where mission preparations, payload checkout and launch vehicle hardware are in process for upcoming flights with Soyuz, Ariane 5 and Vega.


The basic three-stage Soyuz launcher for Flight VS17 is raised into position in the ELS launch zone, where it was fitted with the SES-15 payload and Fregat upper stage.
 
For the company's next liftoff, a medium-lift Soyuz is now in the Spaceport's ELS launch zone, fitted with its SES-15 telecommunications satellite payload. Undergoing the countdown for a morning departure on Thursday, May 18, this launch is designated Flight VS17 in Arianespace's launcher family numbering system – signifying the 17th mission with the Russian-built workhorse vehicle since it entered service at the Spaceport in 2011.

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Flight VS17 will mark Arianespace's fifth mission so far in 2017, following two launches with the heavy-lift Ariane 5, and one each utilizing Soyuz and the light-lift Vega.

Preparing for the next two Ariane 5 flights

Elsewhere at the Spaceport, the next Ariane 5 has moved fr om the Launcher Integration Building to the Final Assembly Building, wh ere a dual payload of the Viasat-2 and Eutelsat E172B telecommunications satellites will be integrated. This mission is designated Flight VA237, denoting the 237th flight with an Ariane launcher since the family of European-built vehicles began Spaceport operations in 1979.
Activity also has begun for the subsequent Ariane 5 launch, VA238, which will loft the Hellas-Sat 3/Inmarsat S relay satellite and the GSAT-17 telecommunications spacecraft for the Indian Space Research Organisation.

GSAT-17 arrived in French Guiana this week aboard a chartered cargo jetliner that landed at Cayenne's Félix Eboué Airport. Separately, elements for Flight VA238's Ariane 5 launch vehicle were delivered to Kourou's Pariacabo port by the MN Toucan roll-on/roll-off transport ship, completing a trans-Atlantic sea voyage that also carried launcher components for Arianespace's next Vega mission.
 

India's GSAT-17 satellite for Arianespace's Flight VA238 with Ariane 5 is unloaded from a chartered cargo jetliner at Cayenne's Félix Eboué Airport (at left), while the Ariane 5 for Flight VA237 is transferred to the Spaceport's Final Assembly Building (center). In the photo at right, the Zefiro 9 third stage for Arianespace's next Vega launcher is unloaded from the MN Toucan ship at Kourou's Pariacabo port.
 
Larger versions of the photos above are available to download in the Gallery.

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https://www.roscosmos.ru/23555/

ПУСК РАКЕТЫ-НОСИТЕЛЯ «СОЮЗ-СТ-А» С КОСМИЧЕСКИМ АППАРАТОМ SES-15
18 мая 2017
Пуск РН с ГКЦ

18 мая 2017 года в 14:54:53 мск с космодрома Гвианского космического центра (Куру, Французская Гвиана) запланирован пуск РН «Союз-СТ-А». Российские ракета-носитель и разгонный блок «Фрегат-М» выведут на геостационарную орбиту телекоммуникационный космический аппарат SES-15. Заказчиком пуска является европейская компания SES, один из мировых лидеров в сфере спутниковой телекоммуникации. Космический аппарат SES-15, производства Boeing Satellite Systems, предназначен для предоставления телекоммуникационных услуг на территории Северной Америки и Центральной Америки.

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Гвианский космический центр - европейский космодром, расположенный вблизи города Куру во Французской Гвиане (департамент Франции в Южной Америки). Его расположение около экватора обеспечивает 15% преимущество по полезной нагрузке по сравнению с запусками в восточном направлении с американского космодрома на мысе Канаверал и 40% - при запусках с космодрома БАЙКОНУР. С начала 70-х годов прошлого века ГКЦ используется для запусков КА ракетами-носителями семейства «Ариан». Космодром используется в интересах совместных европейских космических программ.

Российско-европейский проект «Союз» в Гвианском космическом центре» начался в 2003 году, когда на правительственном уровне было принято решение о запусках РН «Союз» с европейского космодрома во Французской Гвиане. В рамках принятых решений был подписан целый ряд межправительственных соглашений, которые заложили правовую основу для подписания контрактов на создание наземной инфраструктуры стартового комплекса «Союз», изготовление и отгрузку РН «Союз-СТ» и разгонных блоков «Фрегат» в Гвианский космический центр. В 2005 году началось строительство стартового комплекса для РН «Союз-СТ», в мае 2011 года состоялась официальная церемония передачи стартового комплекса Европейскому космическому агентству и эксплуатанту космодрома – компании Arianespace. Первый пуск РН «Союз-СТ» состоялся в октябре 2011 года. Ежегодно осуществляется 2-3 пуска как в интересах ESA, так и в интересах коммерческих компаний.

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Chris B - NSF‏ @NASASpaceflight 11 мин назад

ARTICLE: Arianespace Soyuz ST-B ready to loft SES-15 - https://www.nasaspaceflight.com/2017/05/arianespace-soyuz-st-b-loft-ses-15/ ...

https://www.nasaspaceflight.com/2017/05/arianespace-soyuz-st-b-loft-ses-15/
Прим. В названии и в статье фактологическая ошибка - вместо ST-B должно быть ST-A.

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https://spaceflightnow.com/2017/05/17/soyuz-meets-multipurpose-ses-owned-telecom-satellite-for-thursday-launch/

Soyuz meets multipurpose SES-owned telecom satellite for Thursday launch
May 17, 2017 Stephen Clark

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Credit: ESA/CNES/Arianespace – Photo Optique Video du CSG – J. Durrenberger

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A commercial communications satellite will blast off Thursday fr om French Guiana on top of a Soyuz rocket, on the way to a station over the Americas to supply bandwidth to airline travelers and broadcasters in the United States, Canada and Mexico.

The SES 15 communications craft, built by Boeing, is fastened top the top of a Russian-made Soyuz ST-A rocket inside a gantry on a launch pad at the Guiana Space Center, a French-operated spaceport on the northeastern coastline of South America.

Fitted with xenon-ion thrusters, the 5,075-pound (2,302-kilogram) satellite is heading for a circular geostationary orbit thousands of miles over the equator, wh ere it will slot into position at 129 degrees west longitude, keeping station there for a planned 15-year mission beaming Internet and television services over North America.

Liftoff is timed for exactly 1154:53 GMT (7:54:53 a.m. EDT; 8:54:53 a.m. French Guiana time) Thursday. If a technical problem or weather prevents launch at that time, another liftoff opportunity is available 33 minutes later.

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All systems are go for blastoff Thursday, according to Martin Halliwell, chief technology officer at SES, the Luxembourg-based company which owns the SES 15 spacecraft.

"Everything is going fine," Halliwell said in a telephone interview from French Guiana. "No issues with the spacecraft, no issues with the launch vehicle at the moment. We're on target for a launch Thursday morning, local (time)."

Halliwell said the mission holds several firsts for SES, operator of one of the largest fleets of geostationary telecom satellites.

"It's a small Boeing 702SP, around 2.3 tonnes," Halliwell said. "It's fully electrical propulsion, so that's a first for us. The other first is it's the first Soyuz GTO (geostationary transfer orbit) launch that we've done in the group."

Russian technicians rolled out the Soyuz rocket to its jungle launch pad Monday, and crews mounted the SES 15 satellite on top of the launcher Monday evening. The telecom platform was enclosed inside the rocket's nose fairing May 12 in a nearby clean room.


Credit: ESA/CNES/Arianespace – Photo Optique Video du CSG – J. Durrenberger

After final electrical checks and a mission dress rehearsal this week, the countdown will begin before dawn Thursday.

Managers from the Russian space agency and Arianespace, which is in charge of Soyuz operations in French Guiana, will authorize fueling of the launcher with kerosene and liquid oxygen shortly before 0700 GMT (3 a.m. EDT; 4 a.m. French Guiana time).

Filling of the Soyuz rocket's three main stages with propellants should begin at T-minus 4 hours, 30 minutes.

A mobile tower protecting the Soyuz rocket from the humid, rainy jungle climate at the spaceport will withdraw to launch position around 1044 GMT (6:44 a.m. EDT; 7:44 a.m. French Guiana time).

An automatic countdown sequencer will take control of the final launch preparations, overseeing pressurization of the Soyuz fuel tanks, the retraction of umbilicals, a power transfer to the rocket's internal batteries, and ignition of the launcher's four strap-on boosters and core stage.

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Petal-like hold-down clamps will release the 151-foot-tall (46-meter) Soyuz launcher from a purpose-built launch pad at the space center, and the rocket's digital flight computer will steer it east over the Atlantic Ocean.

The four strap-on engines will shut down and fall away at T+plus 1 minute, 58 seconds, followed by the release of the two-part clamshell-like payload fairing at T+plus 3 minutes, 39 seconds, once the Soyuz is out of the densest layers of the atmosphere.

The Soyuz third stage's RD-0110 engine will ignite at T+plus 4 minutes, 47 seconds for a four-minute firing, before giving way to a hydrazine-fueled Fregat upper stage for a pair of burns to guide the SES 15 satellite into an "optimized" elliptical geostationary transfer orbit.

The first Fregat engine firing, scheduled to last nearly 14 minutes, will propel SES 15 into a preliminary egg-shaped orbit. The Russian-built upper stage will coast for more than four-and-a-half hours before reigniting at 1652 GMT (12:52 p.m. EDT; 1:52 p.m. French Guiana time).

The second maneuver will last approximately 52 seconds, long enough to reshape SES 15's path around Earth and raise the low point, or perigee, of its orbit.

Deployment of SES 15 from the Fregat upper stage is scheduled for 1713 GMT (1:13 p.m. EDT; 2:13 p.m. French Guiana time) in an orbit tilted 6 degrees to the equator — roughly the latitude of the Guiana Space Center — with a high point of 19,449 miles (31,300 kilometers) and a low point of 1,367 miles (2,200 kilometers).

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The SES 15 mission poster. Credit: ESA/CNES/Arianespace

SES 15's xenon-ion thrusters will then kick off around six months of orbit-raising maneuvers to steer the satellite into its final circular geostationary orbit over the equator.

Halliwell said the orbit targeted by Thursday's launch, with a higher perigee than a typical geostationary transfer orbit, "gives us a little bit of a head start" on the orbit-raising.

"We're closer to the equator here than in Florida, so that's good and is helping us out a little," Halliwell told Spaceflight Now. "We've only got 6 degrees to take out."

The low-thrust electrical jets, powered by xenon gas and electricity, will take longer to adjust SES 15's orbit than conventional chemical rocket engines. Until the last few years, communications satellites carried large liquid propellant tanks for the firings needed to move payloads from their initial drop-off orbits to their final locations.

Boeing pioneered the all-electric communications satellite design, building and launching four of the new-generation spacecraft aboard SpaceX Falcon 9 rockets from Cape Canaveral in 2015 and 2016.
"The big saving is in mass and complexity on the spacecraft," Halliwell said of the all-electric design. "In the propulsion system, we're only carrying a xenon tank, and that will give us all our station-keeping maneuvers for the entire lifetime."

The cut in mass available with the all-electric design allows payload owners to book rides on smaller, less expensive rockets without giving up capacity on the satellite.

"SES 15 is really a marvel of innovation," said Mark Spiwak, president of Boeing Satellite Systems International, the spacecraft's manufacturer. "We are still the only satellite contractor in the world that has launched and has on-orbit an all-electric propulsion satellite. There are some other folks who are using portions of the mission with all-electric (propulsion), but even now ... We're still the only ones that launch a satellite with only xenon gas on-board."

Airbus Defense and Space is preparing a Eutelsat communications satellite with all-electric thrusters for launch on an Ariane 5 rocket next month, marking that contractor's first in-space demonstration of the technology.

SES 15 was originally supposed to fly on a dual-payload mission on Arianespace's heavy-lift Ariane 5 rocket, but the launch firm and SES agreed last year to switch to a medium-class Soyuz booster to keep the satellite on schedule due a jam-packed Ariane 5 manifest.

"The downside (of all-electric propulsion) is the orbit-raising," Halliwell said. "We're looking for very good performance on the Soyuz and the Fregat, but even so, we're probably looking at 190-odd days of orbit-raising. But we're going to push this as hard as we can, and we're looking to try to get into orbit and to get into operation before the end of the year."

SES and Boeing announced the agreement to build the SES 15 satellite in February 2015.

The spacecraft hosts hardware for multiple Ku-band communications missions, including a high-throughput payload designed to provide in-flight connectivity to airline passengers traveling across North America, Central America and the Caribbean.

The aeronautical mobility payload "covers the whole of the United States, going right the way up to Alaska, and with a corridor going out to Hawaii, all in Ku," Halliwell said.

A Ku-band beam for video broadcasts overlays the high-throughput footprint over the United States, according to Halliwell.

SES 15 also carries a hosted payload built by Raytheon to improve GPS navigation data over the United States. The navigation aid is part of the Federal Aviation Administration's Wide-Area Augmentation System, used by pilots and air traffic controllers to improve aircraft spacing and positioning near busy airports and in inclement weather.

In an interview with Spaceflight Now, Spiwak said more than 50 structural components on SES 15 were 3D-printed.

"We're now using a lot of these technologies, whether it be all-electric (propulsion) or printed parts, across all of our product line," Spiwak said.


Artist's concept of the SES 15 satellite. Credit: Boeing

SES 15 will be the second Boeing-built telecom satellite launched this week.
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket took off Monday and delivered a heavyweight satellite for Inmarsat's mobile broadband service to orbit.

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https://spaceflightnow.com/2017/05/17/timeline-of-soyuz-launch-with-ses-15/

Timeline of Soyuz launch with SES 15
May 17, 2017 Stephen Clark

Follow the key events of the Soyuz rocket's ascent into orbit from the Guiana Space Center with the SES 15 communications satellite. A listing of exact times for the flight's major events is posted below.

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Data source: Arianespace

T-0:00:03: Engines at Full Thrust


The five main engines of the Soyuz rocket's core stage and four strap-on boosters are at full thrust.
 
T+0:00:00: Liftoff


Producing more than 900,000 pounds of thrust, the Soyuz ST-A (Soyuz 2-1a) rocket soars into the sky from the Guiana Space Center.

T+0:01:58: Jettison Boosters


The Soyuz rocket's four strap-on boosters, each powered by an RD-107A engine, are jettisoned after consuming their propellant.

T+0:03:39: Jettison Fairing


The ST-type payload fairing is released from the Soyuz rocket when it reaches the edge of the upper atmosphere. The 13.5-foot-diameter fairing protects the payload during the launch countdown and the flight through the dense lower atmosphere.

T+0:04:47: Core Stage Separation


Having burned its propellant, the core stage of the Soyuz rocket, also known as the second stage, separates and the third stage's RD-0110 engine ignites to continue the flight.

T+0:08:49: Soyuz/Fregat Separation


The Soyuz rocket's third stage releases the Fregat-M upper stage just shy of orbital velocity.

T+0:09:49: First Fregat Ignition


The hydrazine-fueled Fregat upper stage ignites to place the SES 15 satellite into a preliminary elliptical transfer orbit.

T+0:23:34: First Fregat Shutdown


After a 13-minute, 45-second burn, the Fregat upper stage shuts down to begin a 4-hour, 34-minute coast phase.

T+4:57:35: Second Fregat Ignition


The Fregat main engine ignites again for a 52-second burn to put the SES 15 satellite into the correct deployment orbit.

T+4:58:27: Second Fregat Shutdown


The Fregat main engine shuts down after reaching a sub-geostationary transfer orbit with a low point of 1,367 miles (2,200 kilometers, a high point of 19,449 miles (31,300 kilometers) and an inclination of 6 degrees.

T+5:18:28: SES 15 Separation


The SES 15 communications satellite deploys from the Fregat upper stage.

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По данным сайта SFN

Arianespace's live video stream begins at 1139 GMT (7:39 a.m. EDT).

Трансляция - на станице миссии - http://www.arianespace.com/mission/soyuz-flight-vs17/

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05/18/2017 13:17
The launch team is loading more than 500,000 pounds of liquid oxygen and kerosene propellant into the rocket this morning, plus hydrogen peroxide to drive the engines' gas turbines and liquid nitrogen to keep the propellant tanks pressurized.

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The Soyuz countdown sequence begins 6 minutes, 10 seconds prior to liftoff, then the Fregat upper stage will transition to internal power five minutes before launch.

The umbilical arm servicing the upper stage and payloads will pull away at T-minus 2 minutes, 25 seconds. The Soyuz rocket is operating on internal power at T-minus 40 seconds, and the final servicing mast retracts from the rocket 20 seconds later.

The ignition sequence of the Soyuz rocket's kerosene-fueled core stage and four strap-on boosters begins 17 seconds before liftoff, and all engines should be at full thrust three seconds before launch.

Flying for the 17th time from the Guiana Space Center in South America, the Soyuz will head east over the Atlantic with the SES 15 communications satellite, en route to a sub-geostationary transfer orbit. Separation of the SES 15 spacecraft is scheduled around 5 hours, 18 minutes after liftoff.

It will be the fifth Arianespace flight of the year, and fourth Soyuz launch anywhere so far in 2017.

Russian officials, Arianespace top management and representatives from the French-run spaceport met around five hours before liftoff to authorize fueling of the three-stage Soyuz rocket with kerosene and liquid oxygen.

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05/18/2017 13:39
The launch pad's 174-foot-tall mobile service gantry will be retracting soon to reveal the Soyuz booster. The mobile structure will be secured in launch position about 260 feet from the rocket.

The tower's retraction to launch position allows ground teams to complete radio checks with the rocket's tracking beacon and destruct system.

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05/18/2017 13:55
T-minus 60 minutes. The European-funded, Russian-built pad is located about eight miles northwest of the Ariane 5 and Vega launch pads at the Guiana Space Center. Engineers sel ected the Soyuz launch site based on terrain, geology and a location away from Ariane facilities to ensure they did not interfere with each other.

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It took three years and cost European governments $800 million to build the Soyuz launch facility, which is known by its French acronym ELS. Other than the 17-story mobile servicing tower and four lightning masts, the launch pad is modeled after the Soyuz launch pad at the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan.

This morning's launch is the 17th Soyuz to fly fr om ELS.

The Soyuz pad includes blue and yellow umbilical arms and hold-down petals at the base of the rocket. On the back side of the pad is a deep flame trench dug out of granite bedrock. The facility also houses living quarters for Russian workers and a launch control center.

The Soyuz site lies closer to the town of Sinnamary than Kourou, which is more typically associated with the spaceport.

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До начала трансляции 25 мин

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Arianespace‏ @Arianespace 20 мин. назад

Can you feel the excitement in the air? Only one hour until liftoff! The #VS17 live broadcast begins at 11:39 UTC on http://Arianespace.com 

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05/18/2017 14:18
This morning's launch will use the Soyuz 2-1a, or Soyuz ST-A, version of the venerable Russian booster, featuring advanced digital avionics. Thrust from 32 engine nozzles on the first stage will generate more than 900,000 pounds of thrust at liftoff.

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05/18/2017 14:33
The 5,075-pound (2,302-kilogram) SES 15 satellite mounted on top of the Soyuz rocket is now being configured for launch.