Really Rocket Science

There are only eight countries that build communications satellites: France, Germany, Japan, the U.S., India, China, Russia and Israel. Yes, Israel. Who knew?

Built by IAI, the Amos-3 satellite is scheduled to launch on Friday, 25 April 2008, according to Tsenki:

На космодроме Байконур завершаются работы по подготовке к пуску ракеты космического назначения "Зенит-3SLБ" с разгонным блоком "ДМ-SLБ" в качестве третьей ступни и коммуникационным космическим аппаратом Amos 3.

The Amos satellite system is operated by Spacecomm, also based in Israel. Launch service is provided by Land Launch, which uses essentially the same rocket as Sea Launch, only from Baikonur.

The Jerusalem Post is reporting the launch was delayed by 24 hours:

The expected launching of Israel’s Amos 3 communications satellite, which was slated to take place at approximately 8:00 a.m. Thursday in Kazakhstan, was called off due to technical difficulties. The Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) announced that the launch would be put off by at least a day after a failure was detected in the satellite’s launching system.

As a result of the postponement Beit Hanassi canceled a large reception that was to be hosted by President Shimon Peres to commemorate the launch.

No word yet whether this launch will be webcast, but the launch window opens at 02:00 GMT.

Interesting mission:

AMOS-3 will be deployed to the 4°W orbital slot, where it will join the AMOS-1 and AMOS-2 satellites, eventually replacing AMOS-1. AMOS-3 will offer additional capacity, coverage areas, and advanced capabilities such as two wideband Ka-band beams of up to 500 MHZ each and 12 Ku band 72MHZ transponders with steerable beams for global coverage.

Ballistic re-entry, again. Yes, that’s the story here. But there’s more: did Anatoly Perminov, head of the Russian Federal Space Agency, really say what was attributed to him?

You know in Russia, there are certain bad omens about this sort of thing, but thank God that everything worked out successfully. Of course in the future, we will work somehow to ensure that the number of women will not surpass [the number of men]. This isn’t discrimination. I’m just saying that when a majority [of the crew] is female, sometimes certain kinds of unsanctioned behaviour or something else occurs, that’s what I’m talking about.

Does this imply the women were ganging up on the guy to "just get us home," or something? Unsanctioned behavior — could include "nagging," but I kind of doubt that. 

They experienced 8 to 10 times the forces of gravity, which is very serious, according to the next astronaut from Australia:

The steeper-than-normal angle of re-entry subjects the crew to enormous gravitational force, up to 10 times that which is experienced on the ground.

Nik Halik, an Australian adventurer and entrepreneur, has experienced such forces during his cosmonaut training at Star City, near Moscow.

"The force in your chest, it’s incredible," he said.

"It’s like a boa constrictor is just squeezing you and squeezing and you can hardly breathe.

"That’s why we do training here to make sure that our bodies can cope with the actual stresses because they are very, very excessive."

Mr Halik lives in a room on the floor below the quarantine area where the cosmonauts have been held since their return to Earth.

He has wanted to travel in space since he was four years old and he will soon get his wish. He graduates as a cosmonaut in September after five years of study and training.

Already, he’s been named as the back-up crew member for the next Soyuz mission, currently known as TMA-13.

"The back-up historically has the primary spot, the following flight, which in this case will be the spring of ’09 flight," he said.

"It’s incredibly exciting for an Australian civilian."

Astronaut Yi is recovering in a Moscow hospital and is expected back in South Korea next week:

When she was salvaged from the charred Soyuz space on the Kazahkstan steppe, Yi looked so exhausted that she was not able to walk by herself. “There was a shock during landing, and I’m having trouble with my sense of direction,” she told SBS TV as she was waiting to be airlifted by a military helicopter. Veteran crewmates Peggy Whitson of the United States and Yuri Malenchenko of Russia also looked worn out.

In a press conference held at the Kustanaj airport in Kazakhstan a few hours later, the 29-year-old Korean seemed to have regained some of her energy and cheerfulness. When asked about the most difficult part of her 12-day trip to the International Space Station, she said nothing was harder than the training she received on the ground.

“I have always said the spinning chair was most difficult for me,” she said in English. “Otherwise, it was all exciting and fantastic. The most impressive thing was flying in outer space, so now I’m little bit confused whether I can fly or not.”

Arianespace today rolled out the Ariane 5 for its second mission of 2008, clearing the way for a final countdown to its liftoff tomorrow evening with the Star One C2 and VINASAT-1 telecommunications satellites.

The heavy-lift Ariane 5 ECA emerged from its Final Assembly Building at 10:45 a.m., and arrived in the Spaceport’s ELA-3 launch zone at 12:00 noon.

This transfer utilized a 2.8-km. section of the dual-rail system that links the Spaceport’s major launch infrastructure elements. The Ariane 5 rode atop one of two mobile launch tables developed for the workhorse vehicle.

Star One C2 and VINASAT-1 will be deployed during the Ariane 5’s 31-minute-long flight, with liftoff from French Guiana scheduled at the 7:17 p.m. opening of a 1-hour, 7-min. launch window.

Live broadcast in Vietnam  on VTV-1. The launch will be available via webcast beginnging at 21:57 GMT. Launch window opens at 22:17 GMT.

La Revue d’Aptitude au Lancement (RAL) s’est déroulée le mercredi 16 avril à Kourou et a autorisée les opérations de chronologie pour le Vol Ariane 5 ECA – STAR ONE C2 & VINASAT-1. Pour son 2ème lancement de l’année, Arianespace mettra en orbite deux satellites de télécommunications : STAR ONE C2 pour l’opérateur Brésilien Star One, dans le cadre d’un contrat clés en main avec Thales Alenia Space et VINASAT-1 construit par Lockheed Martin Commercial Space Systems (LMCSS) pour le compte de l’opérateur Vietnamien Vietnam Post and Telecommunications Corporation (VNPT). Le lancement sera effectué depuis l’Ensemble de Lancement Ariane n° 3 (ELA 3) à Kourou en Guyane française. Le décollage du lanceur Ariane 5 ECA est prévu le plus tôt possible dans la fenêtre de lancement suivante:

GMT : de 22h17 à 23h24, le 18 avril 2008
PARIS : de 00h17 à 01h24, le 19 avril 2008
HANOÏ : de 05h17 à 06h24, le 19 avril 2008
KOUROU : de 19h17 à 20h24, le 18 avril 2008
RIO DE JANEIRO : de 19h17 à 20h24, le 18 avril 2008

Yesterday at 4:12 pm at Cape Canaveral, an Atlas 5 rocket successfully lifted ICO Global Communications‘ ICO G1 North American geosynchronous satellite, "a mobile communications satellite to assist and entertain Americans on the go."

The launch marked the first commercial flight in two years of an Atlast 5, and the carrying of its heaviest payload ever: 

 Weighing 14,625 pounds, the ICO G1 spacecraft was the heftiest payload ever launched by an Atlas rocket. Built by Space Systems/Loral, the craft stands over 27 feet tall, features a 39-foot-diameter mesh reflector antenna that will be unfurled in space and a pair of power-generating solar wings to span over 100 feet tip-to-tip once extended in orbit.

It’s a pretty bird, the G1:

 The ICO G 1 satellite belongs to the 2-GHz mobile systems, which are driving a growing segment of today’s satellite manufacturing industry.

ICO’s G 1 satellite is based on SS/L’s space-proven LS-1300 platform, which has an excellent record of reliable operation. Its high efficiency solar arrays and lightweight batteries are designed to provide uninterrupted electrical power. In all, SS/L satellites have amassed almost 1,200 years of reliable on-orbit service.

ICO G1 is a next-generation satellite designed to deliver a wide variety of interactive services to mobile and portable devices using ICO’s Mobile Interactive Media (ICO mim™).

The launch marks the first deployment of DVB-SH service in North America. DVB-SH is short for Digital Video Broadcasting – Satellite services to Handhelds; it’s "a physical layer standard for delivering IP based media content and data to handheld terminals such as mobile phones or PDAs, based on a hybrid satellite/terrestrial downlink."

ICO mim addresses a wide variety of consumers’ entertainment, information and two-way communication needs, including live and stored mobile TV in vehicles, interactive navigation, and roadside assistance, all with nationwide coverage.

ICO mim will also initially provide 10-15 channels of premium television content to portable, larger-screen (4.5- to 10-inch) user devices. Initial partners for the trial phase of ICO mim include Alcatel-Lucent.

For a demo video of ICO mim click here. To see the current state of DVB-H reployments, click here.

Here’s the launch video…

Yi? Why, that’s Korea’s first astronaut. Yi So-yeon is scheduled to lift-off tomorrow, on a Russian Soyuz spacecraft, rolled to its launching pad earlier today. Symbolizing the historic trip, the rocket will depart from the same launch pad that Soviet Yury Gagarin, the first man in space, blasted off on in 1961.

The Russian-Korean crew has already bonded in the usual, Russian fashion – “The White Sun of the Desert”:

As always with Russian space missions, the crew will sit down together before blast off to watch the old Soviet film “The White Sun of the Desert”. The comedy classic boosts morale and is thought to bring the mission good luck.

Yi’s historic stint in space will be very busy:

After a 50-hour flight, the Soyuz spacecraft will dock at the International Space Station on Thursday. There Yi will conduct several experiments until April 18, one day before she returns to Earth. The experiments include studies of the germination, growth and mutation of plants in space, the effects of micro-gravity on eye pressure, the effects of a space environment on the heart, and a study on gravitational effects on aging and genes. Yi will use fruit flies for the latter experiment since their life span is two weeks, making it possible to observe their growth to maturity during her 10-day stay. Having obtained a doctorate in bio and brain engineering from the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST) last February, Yi is considered well qualified for experiments involving biology, physics, and electronic engineering.

And Yi isn’t about to conform to the usual NASA/RSA diets during her busy trip:

When it comes to dining, astronauts must live on space food they bring with them. Hundreds of kinds of space foods have been developed in the U.S. and Russia, made by freeze-drying items after they are sterilized by radiation. Yi will bring about a dozen Korean comestibles developed by the Korea Food Research Institute and Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute, including rice, kimchi, red pepper paste, soybean paste soup and instant noodles.

Sea Launch yesterday lifted the DIRECTV 11 satellite from its ocean-based platform on the Equator.

Yesteray’s launch marks Sea Launch’s 4th successful launch of a DIRECTV satellite:

A Zenit-3SL rocket lifted off at 3:48 pm PDT (22:48 GMT) from the Odyssey Launch Platform, positioned at 154 degrees West Longitude, precisely on schedule. All systems performed nominally throughout the flight. The Block DM-SL upper stage inserted the 5,923 kg (13,058 lb) DIRECTV 11 satellite into geosynchronous transfer orbit, on its way to a final orbital position at 99.2 degrees West Longitude. Acquisition of the spacecraft’s first signals from orbit is expected in another few hours and will be reported when confirmed….

DIRECTV 11 is one of three recent Boeing 702-model spacecraft built for DIRECTV and is among the largest and most powerful Ka-band satellites built to date. The on-board technology of this direct-to-home satellite will enable DIRECTV to continue to expand its industry-leading lineup of quality high-definition television (HDTV) programming. DIRECTV 11, combined with the DIRECTV 10 satellite already in orbit, will provide DIRECTV with the capacity for 150 national HD channels and will be capable of supporting spot beams carrying 1,500 local HD channels.

Video of the launch can be seen here; a live webcam of the Sea Launch platform is viewable here. 

Boeing provides additional specs on the bird (opens in PDF).

It was just over a year ago that Sea Launch experienced a spectacular failure during its launch of the NSS-8 satellite. (The booster rocket exploded in a fireball during lift-off.) Additional details of that incident (as well as a pretty dramatic photo) can be seen in the comment thread of our blog post on that launch. 

SES-AMERICOM’s AMC-14 launches from Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan aboard a Proton M rocket on Friday night.

Local time for the launch is 5:18 a.m. on Saturday 15 March 2008 — or 23:18 GMT on Friday the 14th of March.

What that means is you can watch the launch live in the United States — but if you’re on the East Coast, you may wish to start feeding the kids at 6 o’clock.

The live webstream will be available here, or watch on on C-band: AMC-1, transponder C17, 4040 Horiz., NTSC, analog, in the clear or on DISH channel 101.

The last update from the launch blog (on March 11) tells us:

The roll-out of the fully assembled Proton Breeze M launcher, carrying the AMC -14 spacecraft, to Launch Pad 39 commenced early in this morning (at 6:30 a.m. Baikonur time). By 10 a.m. the rocket was erected in vertical position. Once installed onto the pad, the Proton was enclosed inside a mobile service tower.

AMC-14 was originally part of a grand plan for direct-to-home services. 8.2 KW of power, the spacecraft has an active phased array (APA) payload consisting of a receive mode APA antenna, and the highest levels of redundancy on core components such as amplifiers, receivers, commanding beam and computer control systems. This means coverage can be reshaped while in orbit.

Developed primarily by Lockheed Martin Commercial Space Systems, the APA will be a key satellite technology for future missions.

From the get-go, AMC-14 will provide AMERICOM2Home® services in the United States for EchoStar Communications’ DISH Network.

1. Led Zeppelin: "Stairway To Heaven"

2. John Lennon: "Imagine

3. Mika: "Grace Kelly" 

4. Louis Armstrong: "What A Wonderful World"

5. Avril Lavigne: "Girlfriend"

Those were the top five songs submitted by students from member states in the European Space Agency’s competition to determine which songs get included in a playlist being carried by the ESA’s Automated Transfer Vehicle (ATV). The songs will be download and enjoyed by the astronauts. Not sure if the RIAA let this one through. Here’s the winning playlist, sumitted by 14-year-old Therese Miljeteig of Norway:

The Beatles: "Here Comes The Sun" 
Frank Sinatra: "Come Fly With Me" 
Elton John: "Rocket Man" 
Joe Cocker and Jennifer Warnes: "Up Where We Belong"
John Lennon: "Imagine"
Irene Cara: "What A Feeling" (from Flashdance)
Dire Straits: "Walk of Life"
Celine Dion: "Fly"
Status Quo: "Rockin’ All Over The World" 
R Kelly: "I Believe I Can Fly"

The ATV, the "Jules Verne," will also carry become the Ariane 5’s heaviest payload at 20.7 tons when it launches this weekend (9 March 2008) from Europe’s Spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana.

Wait a minute. Was that 20.7 tons?! That’s got to be double their heaviest payload ever. But if you think about it, the previous record was for launching into geosynchronous transfer orbit, which is much, much higher than the International Space Station’s.

According to yesterday’s piece in the New York Times, this increases the ESA’s ISS participation substantially:

Jean-Jacques Dordain, director general of the European Space Agency, said the inauguration of A.T.V. flights — along with last month’s delivery of the Columbus science module and activation of a European control center — cements Europe’s major new role in space.

"This makes us full partners and a significant player in the space station and space in general," Mr. Dordain said of his organization, which represents 17 European nations. The supply vehicle, Columbus laboratory and other components represent Europe’s investment of more than $7 billion in the station project.

Jules Verne and at least four spacecraft like it are to be launched to the station about every 18 months. Until now, American space shuttles and Russian Progress cargo ships have been the main lifeline to the station.

Michael Suffredini, NASA station program manager, noted that the European craft carries almost three times as much cargo as a Progress and will have an increasingly significant role. "It will be most important after 2010, when the space shuttle retires," he said.

The Jules Verne is the first fully automatic cargo spacecraft of its kind. After launch, it is designed to fly itself to the vicinity of the space station and use a unique system of laser-optical sensors to rendezvous and dock with no human assistance.

The ESA published a great video on the project. Enjoy:

In a big boost to Virginia’s aeronautical and space industries (and economy), NASA has awarded a contract to Northern Virginia’s Orbital Sciences Corporation to resupply the International Space Station.

The federal space agency on Tuesday said it will provide Orbital Sciences Corp. as much as $170 million to demonstrate its capability to resupply the space station.

Orbital officials say they plan to team with NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility and the state’s Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport to demonstrate a new launch rocket in late 2010. If they succeed, the Eastern Shore could become a key outpost for commercial space operations, bringing jobs and investment to the region.

"This is a real opportunity to see that happen," said Billie Reed, executive director of the Virginia Commercial Spaceflight Authority and head of the spaceport, known as MARS. "This is significant."

Since December 2006, the fledging spaceport has hosted two successful launches into low-Earth orbit for Pentagon customers, and both featured a Minotaur I rocket developed by Orbital.

This isn’t just a boom for Orbital; it could mean significant investment in Virginia’s space industry and its Wallops infrastructure:

To handle cargo missions to the space station, Orbital is developing a much bigger rocket, called the Taurus II. It would be the largest rocket ever launched from Wallops, said Barry Beneski, an Orbital spokesman.

Because of that, the launch facilities at MARS would have to be upgraded to accommodate the larger vehicle. If those improvements aren’t made, Orbital would have to look elsewhere, probably in Florida, for a launch site, Beneski said.

"We’re supporters of Wallops, and we’re supporters of developing the space industry in Virginia," Beneski said, "but infrastructure development is really the key."

Reed said state leaders plan to meet with Orbital executives this week to discuss the needs. "It’s not a show-stopper," he said, adding that the spaceflight authority is empowered to issue bonds to finance improvements. "We can find ways to do this."

NASA Wallops provides mission control and logistics support to MARS. The Eastern Shore launch site is considered ideal. Its latitude is aligned to the space station’s orbit, reducing fuel expenses, and rockets quickly travel over the ocean, limiting risks to populated areas.

"This shows the industry that what we have to offer here is real," said Keith Koehler, spokesman for the flight facility. "We’re excited."

Besides NASA’s investment, Orbital plans to pitch in $150 million of company money to the effort, known as COTS, for commercial orbital transportation services. NASA’s aim is to contract with private aerospace companies to resupply the station after the agency retires the space shuttle program in 2010.

Orbital is still flying high after the announcement. Shares are up more than 50 cents and profit is expected to rise by as much as 25 percent.

A Proton rocket launched Telenor‘s Thor 5 satellite from the Baikonur Cosmodrome over the weekend, delighting Cato Halsaa:

“I was delighted to see THOR 5 successfully being launched”, said Cato Halsaa, CEO of Telenor Satellite Broadcasting. “I would like to thank our partners, Orbital, for carrying out the entire THOR 5 mission programme and ILS, for performing a successful launch.

The THOR 5 satellite will now go through extensive in-orbit testing before it is brought into its final geo-stationary position at 1 degree West and commence operating commercial services.  From 1 degree West, THOR 5 will carry all broadcasting services which currently reside on Thor II and provide additional capacity to allow growth in the Nordic region and expansion into Central and Eastern Europe.

THOR 5 is the first new satellite to be launched in Telenor Satellite Broadcasting’s replacement and expansion programme for satellites, which has a total investment frame of 2.5bn NOK. With the completion of the programme, Telenor will have doubled its capacity on 1 degree West, which will facilitate both organic growth and expansion for Telenor.
 
“The satellite replacement and expansion programme demonstrates Telenor’s commitment to the satellite industry and our firm belief that satellites will continue to play an important role as a distribution platform for TV entertainment”, says Cato Halsaa, CEO of Telenor Satellite Broadcasting. “Driven by HDTV, new niche channels, and the expansion within emerging markets, the need for high powered capacity is increasing, and with our new satellites, we will are able to support the future growth requirements of our customers in Europe”.

Pretty cool: a daytime launch is something I haven’t seen in a while. The weather was on the cold side, with the high temparature that day of 10° F and a low of -15° F (-12° C and -26° C, respectively). Here’s the roaring launch clip: