They are going to take another shot at launching the Starlinks tomorrow (Wednesday). Indications are that there was really nothing serious wrong with B1048.5, the abort may have merely been the result of a bad sensor. Time for this try will be 5:16 AM PDT 8:16 AM EDT, 12:16 UTC.
Watch here
https://www.spacex.com/webcast
(Looks like I'll have to set my alarm for 5 AM if I want to watch, but locked-down here in Wuhan of the West, there's nothing else to do. So maybe I will.)
I'm kind of surprised this launch is happening, since Nasa has reportedly gone on a mandatory telework regime
except for "mission critical" personnel". I guess that Starlinks are a critical mission.
Admit it... nobody can ever have enough Starlinks. The sixth load of Starlinks is scheduled to go up this Thursday, 16 April at 17:31 EDT (21:31 UTC), from SpaceX's pad at Cape Canaveral AFS. The Space Force says that they will support the mission with reduced personnel due to the coronavirus troubles. (Kind of surprising to me, seeing as how this isn't a 'national security payload'.)
https://twitter.com/ChrisG_NSF/status/12...1568866305
The booster will be familiar old B1051.4. This one was first seen launching Crew Dragon Demonstration Mission 1, that delivered Ripley and Little Earth to the Space Station. Then it launched those Canadian Radarsats from Vandenberg. Then it launched the third batch of Starlinks in January of this year before returning to action once again this week with the sixth batch of Starlinks.
Michael Baylor's very informative website:
https://nextspaceflight.com/launches/reuse/42
Michael says that B1051 cost $50 million. If they fly it four times, that will be $12.5 million/flight, which is very cheap for orbital launches, which typically run closer to $100 million with expendable boosters. Each time they refly it, the initial cost is amortized and the cost per flight comes down.
The plan is to try to once again recover B1051 at sea on OCISLY.
(Apr 12, 2020 03:07 AM)Yazata Wrote: [ -> ]Admit it... nobody can ever have enough Starlinks. The sixth load of Starlinks is scheduled to go up this Thursday, 16 April at 17:31 EDT (21:31 UTC), from SpaceX's pad at Cape Canaveral AFS. The Space Force says that they will support the mission with reduced personnel due to the coronavirus troubles. (Kind of surprising to me, seeing as how this isn't a 'national security payload'.)
https://twitter.com/ChrisG_NSF/status/12...1568866305
The booster will be familiar old B1051.4. This one was first seen launching Crew Dragon Demonstration Mission 1, that delivered Ripley and Little Earth to the Space Station. Then it launched those Canadian Radarsats from Vandenberg. Then it launched the third batch of Starlinks in January of this year before returning this week with the sixth batch of Starlinks.
Michael Baylor's very informative website:
https://nextspaceflight.com/launches/reuse/42
Michael says that B1051 cost $50 million. If they fly it four times, that will be $12.5 million/flight, which is very cheap for orbital launches, which typically run closer to $100 million with expendable boosters. Each time they refly it, the initial cost is amortized and the cost per flight comes down.
The plan is to try to once again recover B1051 at sea on OCISLY.
"The Space Force says that they will support the mission with reduced personnel due to the coronavirus troubles. (Kind of surprising to me, seeing as how this isn't a 'national security payload'.)"
Hmm... (followed by a spy conspiracy emoji of
Howard Hughes's
drillship built for secret CIA mission
Project Azorian 46 years ago).
Looks like this latest Starlink launch is being postponed.
First off, OCISLY was supposed to leave Port Canaveral this morning and that didn't happen. Then a Notice to Mariners went out saying that the down-range hazard area for Thursday was canceled.
It looks like the postponed Starlink mission will be happening this Thursday April 23. There will be livestreams, more on that as it's announced.
In the meantime, here's Julia Bergeron giving a tour of Port Canaveral and SpaceX's little fleet based there (the ships that don't go to space). She will be one of those doing the live-stream on Thursday too. Go Searcher and Go Navigator below will be the primary and secondary recovery vessels when the DM-2 astronauts eventually splash down in several months (after their May 27 launch and several months on the Space Station). Go Quest in the middle specializes in supporting booster recoveries so it should be out with OCISLY on Thursday.
It's now looking like they have moved up the Starlink launch to Wednesday April 22, apparently for weather reasons. Reports that the SX ships are leaving Port Canaveral.
https://twitter.com/nextspaceflight/stat...6680902656
Speaking of weather, there was just a tornado warning at KSC/CCAFS. Weather radar detected rotation. Latest reports from the scene suggest that while a pretty intense thunderstorm came through, no tornado seems to have touched down. B1051 was safely tucked in its hanger and wasn't erect on the pad.
https://twitter.com/ChrisG_NSF/status/12...9708115971
Edit: KSC PR confirms no tornado.
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