NROL-101 - Atlas V 531 (AV-086) - CCAFS SLC-41 - 13.11.2020 22:32 UTC

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 Tory Bruno @torybruno 10 мин. назад

Board remains green. Count is progressing nominally. Mood in the control rooms are relaxed. #L101

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 United States Space Force @SpaceForceDoD 11 мин. назад

Join us on Facebook at 5:24 p.m. to watch @ulalaunch Atlas V rocket take off from Cape Canaveral, carrying a payload for the @NatReconOfc. In the meantime, check out the ULA crew putting the Space Force logo on the rocket. #PartnersinSpace #SemperSupra

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 Tory Bruno @torybruno 4 мин. назад

Wind picking up a little, but still well within limits. #L101

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Nov 14, 2020 00:30

Today's launch will use the upgraded Acoustic Suppression Water System (ASWS) at Space Launch Complex-41 for the first time. The system was recently enhanced as part of the pad's transformation to make it compatible with both Atlas V and the more powerful Vulcan Centaur rockets. The ASWS provides water deluge to dampen the intense sound and vibrations that could damage the rocket or payload during liftoff.

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Nov 14, 2020 00:35

Flight control final preps are getting underway. This is the steering test pattern run on the Atlas V engine nozzles to ensure proper gimbaling during the ascent.

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Nov 14, 2020 00:39

Mission Patch

The NROL-101 mission patch, emblazoned on the Atlas V rocket's payload fairing, pays tribute to the Lord of the Rings stories, with a gold ring and Elvish script that translates to "Goodness Persists."

Ещё раз статистика

11/14/2020 00:40 Stephen Clark

Here are some statistics on today's mission:

• 668th launch for Atlas program since 1957
• 370th Atlas launch from Cape Canaveral
• 257th mission of a Centaur upper stage
• 234th use of Centaur by an Atlas rocket
• 503rd production RL10 engine to be launched
• 34th RL10C-1 engine launched
• 92d flight of an RD-180 main engine
• 1st-3rd GEM-63 solid rocket boosters to fly
• 86th launch of an Atlas 5 since 2002
• 30th Atlas 5 launch for the NRO
• 71st launch of an Atlas 5 from Cape Canaveral
• 5th Atlas 5 launch of 2020
• 126th Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicle flight
• 141st United Launch Alliance flight overall
• 78th Atlas 5 under United Launch Alliance
• 101st United Launch Alliance flight from Cape Canaveral
• 31st 500-series flight of the Atlas 5
• 4th Atlas 5 to fly in the 531 configuration
• 98th launch from Complex 41
• 71st Atlas 5 to use Complex 41
• 24th orbital launch overall from Cape Canaveral in 2020

Nov 14, 2020 00:43

Atlas V 531



This launch uses the 531 version of the Atlas V rocket that will generate the necessary power to launch the NROL-101 mission.

This configuration of the Atlas V is distinguished by two stages, a five-meter-wide nose cone, three side-mounted solid-fuel boosters and a single-engine Centaur upper stage.

The United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket will come off the pad on 1.8 million pounds of thrust produced by the RD-180 main engine and three solids. Today's version stands 206 feet tall.

The 531 has flown three times before, including the launches of the AEHF-1, -2 and -3 strategic communications satellites.

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Nov 14, 2020 00:44

The GEM 63 Debut

Today's launch begins a new era of solid motor propulsion in the Atlas V rocket system with the first use of GEM 63 rocket boosters, building on the legacy of over a thousand Graphite Epoxy Motors (GEMs) that powered Delta rockets for 30 years and a stepping-stone to GEM 63XLs powering our Vulcan Centaur.



Produced by ULA's strategic partner Northrop Grumman, GEMs are strap-on motors that burn solid propellant and augment the lifting capacity of rocket's first stage. The original design, called GEM 40s because of their 40-inch diameter, began flying on the Delta II rocket in 1990. A second generation of 46-inch GEMs yielded the Delta II Heavy. A third generation, called GEM 60, was successfully used by Delta IV Medium+ rockets.

Now, the GEM 63s are ready to debut aboard the Atlas V rocket starting with the NROL-101 mission.

This fourth generation of GEMs is a direct evolution of the boosters used by Delta, rooted in the knowledge, manufacturing processes and materials of the earlier motors.


Nov 14, 2020 00:49

GEM 63s a Bridge to GEM 63XL

The GEM 63s measure 63 inches in diameter and 66 feet in length. They will be ignited at the launch pad and burn for 94 seconds, each consuming 97,500 pounds of propellant to produce 371,550 pounds (1.6 mega-Newtons) of max thrust to augment the 860,200 pounds of thrust produced by the RD-180 main engine to power the Atlas V rocket skyward.



They have undergone successful qualification test-firings on the ground at the Northrop Grumman facility in Utah and the factory is in full production.
GEM 63s are a lower-cost alternative to the solid rocket boosters that have been used by Atlas V since 2003, yet deliver the same level of thrust and lift-capacity to enable replacement. They also offer a streamlined process for attaching them to the launch vehicle at the Vertical Integration Facility.

What's more, the upcoming Atlas V launches with the new motors will build flight experience in preparation for using GEM 63XLs on Vulcan Centaur's first flight.

The XL variant will stand 72 feet tall, contain 105,800 pounds of propellant and generate approximately 450,000 pounds of thrust each. They will be the longest single-segment solid rocket motors ever built.

Atlas V can be fitted with as many as five GEM 63s, the Vulcan Centaur can incorporate up to six GEM 63XLs, depending on the weight of the payload and its orbital destination. All motors will have stationary nozzles.

They are manufactured using state-of-the-art automation and robotics. The cases are filament wound by computer-controlled winding machines using high-strength graphite fiber and durable epoxy resin.

ULA entered a long-term strategic partnership with Northrop Grumman in 2015 to become the sole provider of solid rocket boosters for Atlas V and Vulcan Centaur.

GEM 63s will be added to future Atlas V missions throughout 2021 using a pre-defined schedule to complete a full transition in the near future.

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 Tory Bruno @torybruno 16 мин. назад

Winds light. #L101

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Nov 14, 2020 00:54

The live video broadcast of today's liftoff has begun in the embedded YouTube stream on this page.

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Nov 14, 2020 00:55

Weather is GO

Weather is observed and forecast GO for liftoff a half-hour from now, according to the countdown's final planned briefing by weather officer Jessica Williams. All of the Range's Lightning Launch Commitment Criteria and Atlas-specific weather rules are green.

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Nov 14, 2020 01:00

We are 24 minutes away from liftoff time of the Atlas V rocket and NROL-101.

This will be the 668th Atlas launch since 1957, the 86th for an Atlas V rocket since 2002, the 4th in the 531 configuration and the inaugural flight of three GEM 63 solid rocket motors that will provide half of the liftoff thrust.

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репортаж FNSF - youtu.be/nIPX6T57BcY

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Nov 14, 2020 01:02

The Automatic Determination and Dissemination of Just Updated Steering Terms, better known as the ADDJUST file, is being loaded into the Atlas V rocket's Inertial Navigation and Control Assembly (INCA) flight computer by the flight control operator here at the Launch Control Center. This is the planned steering parameters for the INCA to use based on today's upper level wind conditions.

A series of weather balloons has been launched throughout the countdown from the Range weather station at Cape Canaveral to collect measurements of wind speeds and directions to determine if conditions aloft violate the controllability or structural loads on the rocket during ascent. The balloon data was transmitted to ULA engineers in Denver to select a steering profile that minimizes launch vehicle responses.

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Nov 14, 2020 01:05

The fuel fill sequence is underway. This procedure releases RP-1 kerosene fuel into the RD-180 main engine in preparation for ignition.

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11/14/2020 01:07 Stephen Clark

The trajectory profile has been verified and loaded into the Atlas 5's INCA guidance computer.

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Nov 14, 2020 01:10

Winds Aloft GO

Upper level winds have been verified acceptable for launch.

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11/14/2020 01:10 Stephen Clark

ULA's anomaly team has determined the readings observed during the engine slew test is not an issue, and the countdown will proceed.

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О5 поехали...   

Они улетят когда-нибудь??

Nov 14, 2020 01:12

New Launch Time

A new launch time of 5:32 p.m. EST (2232 UTC) is being coordinated.