Posts: 5,895
Threads: 753
Joined: Oct 2014
Yazata
Mar 18, 2020 02:08 AM
(This post was last modified: Mar 18, 2020 02:10 AM by Yazata.)
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.
Posts: 5,895
Threads: 753
Joined: Oct 2014
Yazata
Mar 18, 2020 02:34 PM
(This post was last modified: Mar 18, 2020 03:21 PM by Yazata.)
Launch went well, stage separation, second stage engine shutdown and satellite deployment. The Starlinks are up. That's the good news.
Launch:
https://twitter.com/NASASpaceflight/stat...3552792576
Starlinks released
https://twitter.com/SpaceX/status/1240254931338031105
The bad news is that the video feed from B1048.5 cut out right after reentry burn, and confirmation has come that 1048.5 was lost on its fifth flight.
Forensic evidence:
An unususal white burst visible on the first-stage video feed right before MECO (main engine cutoff).
https://twitter.com/TrevorMahlmann/statu...5848683522
Elon verifies that an engine was lost on ascent. (There are nine engines.) Starlinks still made it to orbit due to engine redundancy, but SpaceX still needs to investigate what exactly happened.
https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/1240262636547100672
Posts: 5,895
Threads: 753
Joined: Oct 2014
Yazata
Apr 12, 2020 03:07 AM
(This post was last modified: Apr 12, 2020 04:28 AM by Yazata.)
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.
Posts: 17,203
Threads: 10,777
Joined: Oct 2014
C C
Apr 12, 2020 03:59 AM
(This post was last modified: Apr 12, 2020 04:02 AM by C C.)
(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).
Posts: 5,895
Threads: 753
Joined: Oct 2014
Yazata
Apr 13, 2020 06:38 PM
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.
Posts: 5,895
Threads: 753
Joined: Oct 2014
Yazata
Apr 19, 2020 11:40 PM
(This post was last modified: Apr 20, 2020 12:34 AM by Yazata.)
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.
https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/0rLcsVpqTIY
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
Posts: 5,895
Threads: 753
Joined: Oct 2014
Yazata
Apr 20, 2020 06:40 PM
(This post was last modified: Apr 20, 2020 07:34 PM by Yazata.)
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.
Posts: 5,895
Threads: 753
Joined: Oct 2014
Yazata
Apr 21, 2020 02:03 AM
(This post was last modified: Apr 21, 2020 03:41 AM by Yazata.)
SX has verified that the launch has been moved forward to 3:37 PM EDT on Wednesday April 22.
https://twitter.com/SpaceX/status/1252344682807353344
Go Quest and OCISLY are about halfway to the booster LZ, and the two fairing catchers (Ms Chief and Ms Tree) are forging on ahead to the fairing recovery area.
https://twitter.com/SpaceXFleet/status/1...9178640384
Posts: 5,895
Threads: 753
Joined: Oct 2014
Yazata
Apr 22, 2020 04:10 AM
(This post was last modified: Apr 22, 2020 04:30 AM by Yazata.)
Press kit for tomorrow's launch here
https://www.spacex.com/sites/spacex/file...erview.pdf
Livestream will be here about 10 or 15 minutes before launch.
https://www.spacex.com/webcast
The default is the enthusiastic (sometimes a bit too enthusiastic) narrators. There's also a link to get the launch net audio. Unlike ULA, SpaceX controllers don't typically say anything unless something goes wrong, so the launch net has long stretches of silence.
https://www.youtube.com/spacex
OCISLY and Go Quest are at the LZ, about 630 km downrange. The two fairing catchers Ms Chief and Ms Tree are further out where the fairings are expected to fall.
https://twitter.com/SpaceXFleet/status/1...5935593472
Posts: 17,203
Threads: 10,777
Joined: Oct 2014
C C
Apr 22, 2020 05:42 AM
(This post was last modified: Apr 22, 2020 05:35 PM by C C.)
^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^
Bump up for Recent Activity, Latest Threads.
|
