Iridium Next Flight 5 (x10) - Falcon 9 (B1041.2) - Vandenberg SLC-4E - 30.03.2018 14:14 UTC

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Chris B - NSF‏ @NASASpaceflight 37 сек. назад

And there we go! Article for this static fire test:

https://www.nasaspaceflight.com/2018/03/falcon-9-vandenberg-static-fire-fifth-iridium-next-mission/ ...

- by Ian Atkinson (@IanPineapple)

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Iridium Corporate‏Подлинная учетная запись @IridiumComm

Iridium Corporate Ретвитнул(а) SpaceX

T-minus 4 to #IridiumNEXT launch 5!


Iridium Corporate добавил(а),

SpaceXПодлинная учетная запись @SpaceX
Static fire test of Falcon 9 complete—targeting March 29 launch of Iridium-5 from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California.

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Matt Desch‏ @IridiumBoss 48 мин. назад

Everything is currently looking green for launch on Thursday morning. Satellites are all happy and buttoned up and ready to go. An early view of the weather is very positive too... Beginning my prelaunch rituals and happy thoughts #pleaseohpleaseohplease

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http://spaceflight101.com/flight-proven-falcon-9-completes-static-fire-test-for-5th-iridium-next-mission/

Flight-Proven Falcon 9 Completes Static Fire Test for 5th Iridium-NEXT Mission
March 25, 2018

Iridium-1 Static Fire – Credit: SpaceX

A previously-used Falcon 9 booster soared to life at California's Vandenberg Air Force Base on Sunday for its Static Fire test ahead of lifting the fifth set of Iridium-NEXT communications satellites on Thursday, marking the start of a string of Falcon 9 missions lined up for March and April. Liftoff is targeting 14:19 UTC on March 29 to boost the number of Iridium-NEXT satellites in orbit to 50 as the Virginia-based communications company continues pushing toward having the full Iridium-NEXT constellation in operation by the end of summer.[/

Sunday's Static Fire test occurred near the opening of the day's test window at 7 a.m. and was expected to run for seven seconds to exercise the nine previously-flown Merlin 1D engines of Booster 1041, gearing up for its second Low Earth Orbit mission. The booster was first in action for the third Iridium-NEXT mission in October 2017 and successfully returned via a Drone Ship landing in the Pacific Ocean as SpaceX has yet to conduct its first return-to-launch-site recovery from Vandenberg.

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Ten Iridium NEXT Satellites integrated for Launch (File Image) – Credit: SpaceX

Thursday's launch will mark SpaceX's sixth of the year, the fifth with Falcon 9 and the third Falcon 9 mission with a used first stage. It is to be followed by a series of Falcon 9 missions out of Florida with a Dragon resupply craft set to begin its trip to the International Space Station on April 2nd, NASA's TESS exoplanet hunter is aiming for a minute-long launch window on the 16th and the Bangabandhu-1 and SES 12 satellites are set for Geotransfer deliveries at some point in April if the manifest stands.

Having crossed the halfway point with December's Iridium-4 mission, Thursday's launch of ten constellation members will reach the two-thirds mark with 50 satellites in orbit and 25 left on the ground, set to be launched by the end of August via two dedicated Falcon 9 missions and a shared ride between five Iridiums and two GRACE-FO gravity-sensing satellites. The shared mission had been scheduled for April 28 while Iridium-7 was looking at a June launch target; however, these dates have recently been placed under review with a likelihood of moving to the right.


Photo: Iridium Communications (File)


Image: Iridium Communications

The replacement of the entire first generation Iridium fleet with much-improved Iridium-NEXT satellites is the most extensive constellation upgrade ever performed – coming with a price tag near $3 billion and requiring an assembly-line style satellite integration architecture to keep up the pace needed for sending 75 satellites into orbit in a period of only one and a half years.

The original Iridium constellation began deployment in May 1997 and, at operational strength, consists of 66 active satellites in six orbital planes at an altitude of 780 Kilometers plus operational spares to replace satellites in case of problems.

Carefully spaced in their orbital planes, the Iridium satellites communicate with user terminals on the ground and route communications packages to their destinations through satellite-to-satellite links between members of each plane and satellites in neighboring planes. Given its low altitude and high inclination, Iridium is the only constellation currently in operation that can offer truly global coverage (including the poles that are difficult to serve from Geostationary Orbit).

Built by Thales Alenia and integrated by Orbital ATK, each Iridium-NEXT satellite weighs 860 Kilograms and covers a 4,700-Kilometer wide footprint – connecting to user terminals through a large L-Band antenna. Typical services offered by Iridium-NEXT are voice and data communications with mobile terminals at up to 1.5Mbit/s while a high-speed Ka-Band service is available for larger fixed and transportable terminals at data rates up to 8Mbit/s.

>> Iridium-NEXT Satellite & Constellation Overview


Iridium-3 Launch – Photo: SpaceX

Thursday's launch will likely be the final mission for Block 4 Booster 1041 if SpaceX follows a recent pattern of expending boosters not deemed suitable for more than two flights. The booster rolled off the production line at SpaceX HQ in Hawthorne last summer and went through acceptance testing at the company's McGregor, Texas facility in September before shipment to Vandenberg to meet its Block 4 second stage for a Static Fire Test and integration with the ten Iridium satellites. It lifted off before sunrise on October 9, 2017 and played an active role in the third Iridium delivery for 144 seconds before separating from the second stage and mastering a nighttime landing on the "Just Read The Instructions" Drone Ship.

Returning to land via the Port of Los Angeles, the sooty booster went through refurbishment in Hawthorne, including non-invasive inspections on its nine engines and welds as well as the replacement of some thermal protection material around the engine section. It departed Hawthorne in late February to enter its second Vandenberg processing campaign – meeting a factory-new second stage before rolling out to the SLC-4E launch pad.


Iridium-3 Booster in Port – Photo: Pauline Acalin, @w00ki33 on Twitter

Falcon 9 was spotted on the launch pad on Saturday and entered a lengthy countdown under a veil of darkness as Sunday's test window opened just moments after sunrise at the Pacific-side launch complex. Tanking began at the T-70-minute mark when Kerosene began flowing into the two-stage rocket followed at T-35 minutes by the expedited Liquid Oxygen tanking sequence designed to load the sub-cooled oxidizer as close to T-0 as possible to prevent it from warming excessively.

Although the second stage is only a bystander in the brief ignition of the booster, it also goes through a complete tanking and pressurization cycle to put its systems through integrity checks as they would occur on launch day. Standing fully loaded with over 500 metric tons of propellant, Falcon 9 was to be handed control at the T-1 minute mark to oversee the countdown to ignition of the nine Merlin 1D engines. For missions employing a new booster, SpaceX deems a 3.5-second firing sufficient to check the start-up parameters of the engines while used boosters fire for seven seconds to collect additional data with all engines running at their operational thrust.


Photo: Iridium (File)

After going through an orderly shutdown, Falcon 9 was to be safed while engineering teams went through a quick-look review to a) ensure the firing met its planned duration and b) verify all required performance parameters were captured to head into deeper reviews. SpaceX confirmed the successful completion of the Static Fire test via Twitter, indicating all initial reviews were nominal – also confirming the March 29 launch target.

After safing steps, propellants were to be drained from both stages in preparation for the rocket's return to the Horizontal Integration Facility for the installation of the payloads on Monday and Tuesday.

The fifth Iridium set began shipment to Vandenberg on February 23, one day after the Falcon 9 with Spain's PAZ satellite vacated the launch pad. Arriving at the launch site, the satellites went through final checks before taking their slots around the two-tier launch adapter and receiving maneuvering propellant for their missions.


Image: Thales Alenia

Once the encapsulated stack is attached to Falcon 9, the fully integrated launch vehicle will be cleared for rollout – provided a green-light is given by the upcoming Launch Readiness Review. Liftoff on Thursday is targeting 14:19 UTC, 7:19 a.m. local time, just under half an hour after sunrise, and the mission will follow the typical Iridium ascent profile comprising two second stage burns for deployment of the ten satellites into a 625-Kilometer orbit by T+72 minutes.

Under Iridium's constellation management plan, the mission is targeting Plane 1 of the six-plane constellation with no drifting planned after launch and all members of the mission heading into operational slots in the first plane. Earlier this week, Iridium CEO Matt Desch announced on Twitter that Planes 2 and 4 are now completely filled with Iridium NEXT satellites after successful drifting and slot-swap campaigns. The company is hoping to have all operational constellation slots filled with upgraded satellites by "late summer."

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NOTMAR

NAVAREA XII 121/2018 (GEN)

PACIFIC OCEAN.
1. HAZARDOUS OPERATIONS 291327Z TO 291502Z MAR,
   ALTERNATE 1327Z TO 1502Z DAILY 30 MAR THRU 02 APR
   IN AREA BOUND BY
   28-04N 119-51W, 28-05N 121-19W,
   31-00N 121-19W, 30-59N 119-52W.
2. HAZARDOUS OPERATIONS 291548Z TO 291639Z MAR,
   ALTERNATE 1548Z TO 1639Z DAILY 30 MAR THRU 02 APR
   IN AREA BOUND BY
   27-59S 147-19W, 27-54S 144-30W,
   28-37S 142-08W, 72-32S 131-35W,
   73-05S 146-38W.
3. CANCEL THIS MSG 021739Z APR 18.

( 250333Z MAR 2018 )

Часть 2 идентична по координатам NOTAM A0146/18 (NTTT)

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NOTMAR NAVAREA XII 121/2018, часть 1

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О погоде (из переписки)

Matt Hartman‏ @ShorealoneFilms 15 ч. назад

how are the winds looking ....

Matt Desch‏ @IridiumBoss

В ответ @ShorealoneFilms

Looks pretty good so far from my personal weather sources, but haven't seen an official Air Force upper level winds forecast yet.

19:20 - 26 мар. 2018 г.

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Pauline Acalin‏ @w00ki33 19 ч.19 часов назад


В ответ @Teslarati @13ericralph31 @_TomCross_

How cool is it that this Iridium-3 booster will be re-used for the Iridium-5 launch this week! Can't wait to see it fly one more time.

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Chris G - NSF‏ @ChrisG_NSF 19 мин.19 минут назад

Hmm... so a since-deleted tweet from just a few moments ago indicates that #Iridium5 *might be* slipping from Thurs. to NET 3/31 or into next week due to issue with 1 of the 10 sats set to launch. Let's see what happens here. #SpaceX #Falcon9

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Stephen Clark‏ @StephenClark1 26 мин. назад

Iridium confirms delay of Falcon 9 launch of 10 new mobile communications satellites from Thursday to no earlier than Saturday morning at Vandenberg AFB.

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Matt Desch‏ @IridiumBoss 4 мин. назад

We are having an issue with 1 of the 10 satellites in prep for #Iridium5. Our supplier and launch team is resetting for NET 3/31, with potential to shift into next week, if not resolved quickly. Launch success is priority #1! Will provide more info as available.

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Из переписки

SpaceXUpdates‏ @SpaceXUpdates 2 ч. назад

Do we have a time for T-0 on this new launch date? Thanks.

Matt Desch‏ @IridiumBoss

В ответ @SpaceXUpdates

Should be approximately 7:08am local if it goes on 3/31.

12:14 - 27 мар. 2018 г.

14:08 UTC

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Matt Desch‏ @IridiumBoss 7 ч. назад

Positive update to our satellite and launch delay. Just been apprised there has been a technical resolution; satellites and F9 are in great shape and ready to go! Was ground harness test cable issue - now fixed. Launch now pulled back to Friday, 3/30 at 7:14am pdt! #GoTeam!

14:14 UTC 2018-03-30

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https://spaceflightnow.com/2018/03/27/ground-equipment-problem-slips-next-falcon-9-launch-to-friday/

Ground equipment problem slips next Falcon 9 launch to Friday
March 27, 2018 | Stephen Clark


File photo of an Iridium Next satellite. Credit: Thales Alenia Space

Trouble with a piece of ground equipment used for testing of the 10 Iridium communications satellites aboard the next Falcon 9 rocket launch has forced a 24-hour delay in the mission to Friday, officials said Tuesday.

Liftoff of the SpaceX Falcon 9 launcher from Space Launch Complex 4-East at Vandenberg Air Force Base is now scheduled for 7:14 a.m. PDT (10:14 a.m. EDT; 1414 GMT) Friday.

Matt Desch, Iridium's chief executive, said ground crews preparing the satellites for launch uncovered a problem with ground equipment that initially caused officials to expect the launch to be put off from Thursday until Saturday. A further examination of the issue led officials to declare the mission could blast off Friday.

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"It turned out to be an obscure problem with communication harnesses used for testing on the ground, and have now been fixed," Desch tweeted Tuesday night. "Stubborn problem to find; kudos to combined teams for working round the clock to resolve."

Earlier Tuesday, Desch posted an update on Twitter saying there was a problem with one of Iridium's 10 satellites slated to ride the Falcon 9 rocket into orbit.

He tweeted again Tuesday night saying the issue was not with one of the spacecraft, but with ground equipment used for data connectivity during pre-flight testing.

"Positive update to our satellite and launch delay," Desch tweeted. "Just been apprised there has been a technical resolution; satellites and F9 are in great shape and ready to go! Was ground harness test cable issue – now fixed."

"Satellites were always fine; just couldn't talk to one," he wrote later.

SpaceX and Iridium have a backup launch opportunity Saturday on the Western Range at Vandenberg Air Force, a spaceport on the Central Coast of California northwest of Los Angeles.

The launch will be the fifth for Iridium's new-generation voice and data relay satellite fleet. Each previous launch has carried 10 satellites to orbit, all using SpaceX Falcon 9 boosters from Vandenberg.

The rocket launching Friday will use a previously-flown first stage that sent 10 Iridium satellites toward orbit in October 2017.

SpaceX's launch team completed a hold-down firing of the first stage Sunday at Vandenberg. Engineers use the static fire test as a countdown rehearsal for the launch team, which oversees the loading of super-chilled kerosene and liquid oxygen propellants before igniting the first stage's nine Merlin 1D engines on the pad.

After the brief firing, ground crews rolled the rocket back to the hangar near the launch facility for attachment of the 10 Iridium Next satellites inside their payload fairing, the structure that shields the spacecraft during the first few minutes of flight through the dense layers of the lower atmosphere.

Iridium has invested $3 billion in the new-generation system, purchasing 81 satellites from an industrial partnership between Thales Alenia Space and Orbital ATK, eight Falcon 9 launches from SpaceX, and modernized ground terminals to allow the company's more than 900,000 subscribers to connect to the network. The new satellites allow Iridium to debut voice and Internet capabilities, alongside the network's previous telephone, messaging and tracking applications.

SpaceX has another launch scheduled for Monday, April 2, from Cape Canaveral with a Dragon supply ship heading for the International Space Station. Like the Iridium launch Friday, the resupply mission will lift off aboard a reused Falcon 9 first stage.

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Chris G - NSF‏ @ChrisG_NSF 32 мин. назад

For those like me who appreciate precision: the exact, instantaneous launch time Friday morning for #Iridium5 is 07:13:51 PDT (14:13:51 UTC). #SpaceX #Falcon9 @IridiumComm

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Michael Baylor‏ @nextspaceflight 52 мин. назад

NRC Quest just departed the Port of LA and is heading to the landing zone. This means that #SpaceX will likely perform an ocean landing test during the #Iridium5 mission. NRC Quest will be able to collect telemetry from the booster.

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Официальная эмблема миссии

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Выпущен пресс-лит миссии

iridium-5_press_kit.pdf - 277.3 KB, 2 стр, 2018-03-28 20:42:47 UTC

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http://www.spacex.com/webcast

IRIDIUM-5 MISSION

SpaceX is targeting Friday, March 30 for a Falcon 9 launch of the Iridium-5 NEXT mission from Space Launch Complex 4E (SLC-4E) at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. This is the fifth set of 10 satellites in a series of 75 total satellites that SpaceX will launch for Iridium's next generation global satellite constellation, Iridium® NEXT. The instantaneous launch opportunity is at 7:13 a.m. PDT, or 14:13 UTC, and the satellites will begin deployment about an hour after launch.

A backup instantaneous launch opportunity is available on Saturday, March 31 at 7:08 a.m. PDT or 14:08 UTC. Falcon 9's first stage for the Iridium-5 mission previously supported the Iridium-3 mission from SLC-4E in October 2017. SpaceX will not attempt to recover Falcon 9's first stage after launch.

You can ... find out more about the mission in our press kit.

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